SERMON OUTLINE:
(1). The priority of Prayer (vs 1).
(2). The Pattern for Prayer (vs 2-4).
(3). The Persistence in Prayer (vs 5-8).
(4). The Promises for Prayer (vs 9-13).
SERMON BODY:
Ill:
• If you are a fan of Disney ad Pixar movies, then keep an eye out for “A113”
• Because it is everywhere!
• e.g., It’s Andy’s mom’s license plate number in Toy Story.
• e.g., It’s a door number in Monsters University.
• e.g., It’s the courtroom number in Up.
• e.g., It’s the camera model number in Finding Nemo.
• e.g., It’s on a rat’s ear tag in Ratatouille.
• e.g., And it’s the train number in Cars … to name just a few.
Question: What does it mean?
Answer:
• “A113” was a classroom number at the California Institute of the Arts.
• So, when it appears in a movie, it is a kind of calling card,
• Telling you that a CalArts graduate was involved with the animation.
• And it’s not just in animated films.
• The trademark number even appears in live action films,
• e.g., like the Hunger Games and Mission Impossible.
• “A113” has been described as a digital calling card or a cinematic fingerprint,
• It’s a message to the public is simple, ‘a CalArts graduate was involved here!’
• TRANSITION:
• Christian what is your calling card?
• What is your fingerprint, your message to the public?
• When they look at you and your life, what do they see?
• In verse 1 the disciples of Jesus mention the disciples of John the Baptist.
• And in our studies, we are completing a series called, ‘discipleship.’
• So, we need to ask what is a disciple? If I am supposed to be one!”
Ill:
• Someone contrasted disciple with a pupil or student.
• And there is a big difference.
• Students learn from whatever topic the teacher teaches.
• That is the passing on of information from one person to another.
• But that is not Christianity!
• The Christian life is more than receiving knowledge,
• A disciple learns in order to be like their Master.
• In other words, it is an attitude of learning to apply our knowledge
• Following Jesus means we seek to be imitators of him,
• And not just data gathers who know all about him.
• TRANSITION: One way we can learn from Jesus is regarding prayer,
• That is the focus of our study today.
(1). The Priority of Prayer (vs 1).
“One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples”.
Question:
• (The John mentioned in verse 1 is John the Baptist)
• Now, what do you think of when someone mentions John the Baptist?
Answer:
• His habitat (surroundings not the shop)
• Raised in the solitude and loneliness of the desert.
• His clothes: He wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist.
• This was not a fashion statement; but in the desert this was all that was available.
• His food: He ate locusts and wild honey.
• Once again this was not some sort of special diet, he simply ate what he could find.
• His message: he had a unique style (ill: fire & brimstone):
• Quote: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath!”
• His unusual practice: He is known throughout history as John the Baptist.
• Not because he founded a denomination but because he baptised Jewish people (shock!)
• His death: Beheaded at the whim of a young teenage girl aided on by her mother.
• His death was sordid & violent, the very opposite of the man himself.
Now John the baptiser is one of my favourite Bible characters:
• I have a folder at home full of sermons on John the baptiser.
• But I have not got one entitled; “The prayer life of John the baptiser!”
• In fact, you will strain your brain, to link JTB and prayer,
• Apart from here in Luke chapter 11.
• Now JTB obviously prayed,
• So much so that the disciples of Jesus took note of the fact,
• That John taught his disciples to pray, and they felt they were missing out on something.
Ill:
• Don’t forget John was a "miracle baby," filled with the Holy Spirit before he was born,
• And yet……………………… he had to pray.
• He was privileged, his job was unique, to publicly introduce Jesus the Messiah to Israel,
• And yet……………………… he had to pray.
• Jesus said that “John was the greatest of all the prophets” (Luke chapter 7 verse 28),
• And yet……………………… he had to pray.
• If prayer was that vital to a man who had these many advantages,
• How much more important it ought to be to us who do not have these advantages!
Maybe this is one of the secrets to John’s powerful and effective evangelistic ministry:
• He was a man of prayer.
• And as a result, God worked in him and through him!
Verse 1 is interesting, and worth noting:
• That adult Jewish males were expected to pray,
• Morning and evening in the direction of Jerusalem three times a day,
• And before and after meals. L
• But these were written prayers that lacked any spontaneity or life,
• The disciples looked at JTB’s disciples and saw something different.
• John had taught his disciples the value of personal prayer.
• And Jesus' disciples observed this, and they too wanted to learn how to pray better.
• Notice: They did not ask Jesus to teach them how to preach like John.
• They did not ask Jesus to teach them how to do great signs & miracles,
• They asked Him to teach them to pray.
• They realised that this was a priority for any disciple,
• Who wants to become a man or woman of God?
One the greatest arguments for the priority of prayer in the life of a Christian.
• Is the fact that Jesus himself was a Man of prayer.
• And his disciples noticed that.
Ill:
• Scan just through Luke’s gospel you will see that:
• Jesus prayed at His baptism (chapter 3 verse 21),
• Before He chose the Twelve (chapter 6 verse 12),
• Before He asked the Twelve for their confession of faith (chapter 9 verse 18),
• And at His Transfiguration (chapter 5 verse 29).
• The disciples knew that He often withdrew and prayed alone (Luke chapter 5 verse 16),
• And they watched and took notice of this.
• And they too wanted to learn from Him this secret of spiritual power and wisdom.
Quote: Chinese proverb,
“tell me; I’ll forget.
Show me; I may remember.
But involve me and I’ll understand.”
• The disciples of Jesus watched him and wanted to emulate him,
• And so, they asked him to show them that they might learn!
Application:
• Prayer is a discipline,
• We can all do it, but it demands a cost that we are not all willing to pay!
• Because it takes time out of a busy day.
• It takes effort from a tired or lazy mind.
• There is a cost to be paid.
• But the rewards will more than make up for any personal inconvenience.
(2). The Pattern for Prayer (vs 2-4).
“He said to them, when you pray, say:
'Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come.
3 Give us each day our daily bread.
4 Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.'”
Note:
• You may have noticed that this prayer is shorter,
• Then what we think of as the traditional version,
• That we find in Matthew’s gospel (chapter 7 verse 9-13)
• This version of the prayer in Luke has five requests.
• The first two (vs 2) have to do with God.
• The last three (vs 3-4) have to do with the fulfilment of our needs.
• Each of those three is plural (“give us—forgive us—Bring us “),
• Emphasising the community of faith, the Church together.
• Rather than individual prayer and personal needs.
• Matthew’s version of this prayer (Matthew 6:9-13) includes seven petitions,
• And has the extra bits “your will be done” and “deliver us from the evil one.”
Question: What are they different?
Answer:
• The simple answer is that Jesus like most preachers will preach a sermon more than once,
• And each time it will be slightly different.
Ill:
• On Wednesday I did a school assembly on the theme ‘remember’
• And linked it to Bonfire night (weekend before) and Remembrance Sun Day (this weekend).
• I used part of that talk last night at a youth event,
• And I used part of that assembly for the kids spot this morning.
• TRANSITION: You prepare something and then you use it in various settings,
• Adapting it to your audience and to the situation.
• Jesus did the same, he used his sermons or teaching more than once,
• And he adapted it to the audience, to the situation he found himself in.
Note:
• Luke’s version of the Lord’s Prayer may be shorter in length,
• But it is rhythmic, intimate, reverential, practical and thought-provoking.
• The prayer is given not so much to be repeated as a ceremonial prayer,
• But rather it is a ‘pattern prayer,’
• It is given as a guide, so that we can be encouraged and helped in our own praying.
THE PATTERN OR CONTENT IS THREE-FOLD:
FIRST: relationship (vs 2):
“Father, hallowed be your name”.
Ill:
• In one of Jesus most famous parables, God is described as a Father.
• Luke chapter 15 verses 11-32
• TRANSITION:
• Although God is most often addressed as ‘Lord’ or ‘King’ in the Hebrew Old Testament,
• But he is also addressed as ‘Father’
• Jesus’s mother tongue was Aramaic,
• The word for father is, ‘Abba’ (Daddy),
• It expresses the intimate relationship between parent and child.
It is good to remind ourselves that when we (disciples of Jesus Christ) pray,
• We talk to not to some impersonal deity,
• But to our heavenly Father.
SECOND: Rule (vs 2):
“Your kingdom come.”
• Every Jew is looking for the ‘Kingdom of God’ on earth.
• At the time of Jesus, it was the Roman kingdom that ruled over them.
• They hoped the Messiah would change all that.
• But Jesus came to battle and defeat bigger enemies,
• Sin, death and the devil!
• And they would be destroyed not by a military army,
• But through his sacrificial death on a cross.
• Quote: Matthew in his gospel adds the additional phrase
• “Your kingdom come. Your will be done”.
• The key to effective prayer and developing our prayer life,
• Is to allow God the king to reign in our lives.
• And if we want to be noneffective in prayer,
• Just live for yourself.
THIRD: Requests (vs 3-4)
“Give us each day our daily bread.
4 Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.'”
• Notice a change of emphasis from: "Yours" to: "Ours".
• When God is in the right place in our lives we can then focus on self and needs.
• This stops us being selfish and egocentric in our praying.
Three requests are mentioned.
• "Give US each day our daily bread."
• "Forgive US our sins."
• "Lead US not into temptation."
This section of the prayer deals with the three essential needs we all have in life:
• The essential needs of all mankind.
• Relating to past, present and future.
• The Present: "Daily Bread."
• Symbolic of all those things, which are necessities in life.
• This expression is a good reminder.
• That we should acknowledge our dependency on God for all our physical needs.
• The Past: "Forgiveness."
• Deals with the past:
• Quote Charles Swindoll:
• "What bread is to the physical being, forgiveness is to the soul".
• (3). Future: "Lead US not into temptation."
• This verse deals with the future:
• And simply means: "Do not allow us to be led into temptation".
• Or better still: "Do not let us be overwhelmed by temptation".
• The point here is that we may overcome problems rather than avoid them:
• We are all going to face difficulties and temptations.
• That is part of living in a fallen world with a sinful nature!
• But we are asking God to keep us in those difficult times and to come out as victorious.
(3). The Persistence in Prayer (vs 5-8).
“Then Jesus said, "Imagine what would happen if you went to a friend in the middle of the night and said, "Friend, lend me three loaves of bread. 6An old friend travelling through just showed up, and I don't have a thing on hand.'
7"The friend answers from his bed, "Don't bother me. The door's locked; my children are all down for the night; I can't get up to give you anything.'
8"But let me tell you, even if he won't get up because he's a friend, if you stand your ground, knocking and waking all the neighbours, he'll finally get up and get you whatever you need.”
Notice:
• That in this parable,
• Jesus did not say that God is like this grouchy neighbour.
• In fact, He was saying just the opposite.
• If a tired and selfish neighbour finally meets the needs of a bothersome friend,
• How much more will a loving Heavenly Father meet the needs of His own dear children!
• Jesus is arguing from the lesser to the greater.
We have already seen that prayer is based on:
• Sonship ("Our Father"),
• Not on friendship!
• But in this parable Jesus used friendship to illustrate persistence in prayer.
• Remember that God the Father is not like this neighbour,
• For He never sleeps, never gets impatient or irritable,
• Is always generous, and delights in meeting the needs of His children.
• In contrast the friend at the door.
• Had to keep on knocking in order to get what he needed,
• The point that Jesus is making is clear:
• If persistence finally paid off as a man beat on the door of a reluctant friend:
• How much more would persistence bring blessing.
• As we pray to a loving Heavenly Father!
Quote: Jacob Riis, quoted in Reader’s Digest:
• “I look at a stone cutter hammering away at a rock.
• A hundred times without so much as a crack showing in it.
• Yet at the 101st blow it splits in two.
• I know it was not the one blow that did it, but all that had gone before.”
Quote:
“It is not the arithmetic of our prayers; how many they are.
nor the rhetoric of our prayers, how eloquent they are.
nor the geometry of our prayers, how long they be.
nor the music of our prayers, how sweet our voice may be.
nor the logic of our prayers, now argumentative they may be.
nor the method of our prayers, how orderly they may be—which God cares for.
But the perseverance of our prayers that which accomplishes much”.
We have a good and gracious God:
• Who at times calls us to patient perseverance?
• It may not be how we want to work, but it is best!
(4). The Promises for Prayer (vs 9-13).
“So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
10 For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
11 Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead?
12 Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?
13 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
Notice:
• The tenses of the verbs are important here:
• "Keep on asking... keep on seeking . . . keep on knocking."
• These verses carry on the idea of patient perseverance.
• And those who ‘keep on, keeping on’ receive their due reward.
Quote:
Spurgeon: “By perseverance the snail reached the ark!”
So, Jesus asks his followers to: "Keep on asking... keep on seeking . . . keep on knocking."
• In other words, don't come to God only in the midnight emergencies,
• But keep in constant communion with your father.
• Jesus called this "abiding" (John chapter 15 verse 1),
• And what Paul urged (1 Thessalonians chapter 5 verse 17), "Pray without ceasing"
Ill:
• The story of a man who asked Alexander the Great.
• To give him a huge sum of money in exchange for his daughter's hand in marriage.
• The ruler consented and told him to request of his treasurer whatever he wanted.
• So, he went and asked for an enormous amount.
• The keeper to the funds was startled.
• And said he couldn't give him that much without a direct order.
• Going to Alexander, the treasurer argued that.
• Even a small fraction of the money requested would more than serve the purpose.
• "No," replied Alexander, "let him have it all. I like that fellow.
• He does me honour.
• He treats me like a king.
• And proves by what he asks that he believes me to be both rich and generous."
Quote: Hymn:
“Thou art coming to a king,
Large petitions bring.
For his grace and power are such,
None can ever ask too much”
Notice: that the lesson closes with an emphasis on God as Father (vs 11-13).
• Because our heavenly father knows us and loves us,
• We never need to be afraid of the answers that He gives.
• Once again,
• Jesus is arguing from the lesser to the greater:
• If a flawed earthly father gives what is best to his children,
• Surely the perfect Father in heaven will do even more.
Verse 13 is a great encouragement when we feel weak and discouraged,
“How much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
• Question: What is your biggest need in trying to be a disciple?
• Answer: I would say it is to be filled with the Holy Spirit.
Ill:
• In a car race it is better to….
• Be in a Reliant Robin with a tank full of petrol.
• Then in a Rolls Royce with an empty tank.
• In the race of life,
• Better to be filled with the Holy Spirit who will help us cope with life,
• Than have the trappings of a comfortable life.
Note:
• Verse 13 brings us back full circle to where Jesus’ instruction on prayer began (vs 2),
• We come to a heavenly Father in our need and our heavenly Father can meet that need.
• But…we may be asking for material things like bread and fish,
• Which are good, both fish and eggs help strengthen the physical body.
• Yet in his wisdom our Heavenly Father,
• May respond with spiritual blessing, the filling of the Holy Spirit.
• It is the Holy Spirit who strengthens us, who guides us, who comforts us,
• Who meets our deepest needs.
• I think the point here in verse 13 is not on the blessing, material or spiritual.
• But rather on the source of the blessing.
• A reminder of a good, caring and loving God.
MP3 AUDIO:
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