Prayer
(Prayer is one of the most amazing things God has given us as believers. In this series I hope to answer questions about prayer that many have, speak to the importance of prayer and lay a foundation of understanding to help us in our personal and corporate prayer life.)
PRAY!!
What is prayer?
Prayer - 1 (1): an address (as a petition) to God in word or thought (2): a set order of words used in praying b: an earnest request or wish 2: the act or practice of praying to God
· Communication with God / Connection with God. / Face time with God
(We get to pray! Have you ever really thought about that? The Sovereign creator, sustainer and ruler of all things decided to allow us to grow a relationship with Him. To spend time with Him. To bring our requests to Him.)
How to Pray – Part 2
· Matthew 6:9-13 – 9“This, then, is how you should pray:
“‘Our Fatherin heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10your kingdomcome,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
11Give us today our daily bread.
12And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.’
Daily Dependence
· Give us today our daily bread.
o (God, please give me everything I need for today to do everything I’m called to do.)
o Bread
§ Provision
· James 1:17 – 17Every good and perfect gift is from above,coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights,who does not changelike shifting shadows.
§ Word
· Matthew 4:4 – 4Jesus answered,“It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
· 2 Timothy 3:16-17 – 16All Scripture is God-breathedand is useful for teaching,rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,17so that the servant of God[a]may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
§ Life
· John 6:32-35 – 32Jesus said to them,“Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven.33For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heavenand gives life to the world.”
34“Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.”
35Then Jesus declared,“I amthe bread of life.Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believesin me will never be thirsty.
Forgiveness
· And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
o Forgiveness of sins
§ All my sins
· Colossians 2:13-15 – 13When you were dead in your sinsand in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made youalivewith Christ. He forgave us all our sins,14having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness,which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross.15And having disarmed the powers and authorities,he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over themby the cross.
§ Daily sin
· Ephesians 4:30 – 30And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God,with whom you were sealedfor the day of redemption.
· 1 John 1:8-10 – 8If we claim to be without sin,we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sinsand purify us from all unrighteousness.10If we claim we have not sinned,we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.
o Forgiving Others
§ It’s connected
· Matthew 6:14-15 – 14For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.15But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
§ How to deal with it among believers
· Matthew 18:15-20 – 15“If your brother or sistersins,go and point out their fault,just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over.16But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’17If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church;and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.
18“Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be[e]bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be[f]loosed in heaven.
19“Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for themby my Father in heaven.20For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”
§ How many times?
· Matthew 18:21-35 – 21Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me?Up to seven times?”
22Jesus answered,“I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.[g]
23“Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is likea king who wanted to settle accountswith his servants.24As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of goldwas brought to him.25Since he was not able to pay,the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be soldto repay the debt.
26“At this the servant fell on his knees before him.‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’27The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.
28“But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins.He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.
29“His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’
30“But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt.31When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened.
32“Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to.33Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’34In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
35“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”