The Model Prayer from Matthew 6. This message originally delivered June 2, 1996 PM Service.
The King is teaching his subjects in Matthew chapter six, about spiritual disciplines. When you do arms when you do righteous acts when you help the poor in particular, here's the way you're supposed to do it the first four verses. And when you pray, here's the way it's supposed to be. And here's the way it's not supposed to be. And when you fast, here's the way it's supposed to be. Now, if you can remember what we are not to do in prayer begins in verse five, would you look there with me. And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door, and pray to your Father who is unseen, than your Father, who sees what is done in secret will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. But when you pray, this is how you should pray. Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. Now, if you recall quickly, by way of review from this morning, and we ever let Jesus Christ teach us how to pray, I'll tell you this is swelling large, in my heart, it's big, it means a lot for me to be able to preach this. And if we give a quick breakdown or overview we see the address our Father in heaven, we talked about the word our o u r, we talked about the word father, and we talked about in heaven, where the concept that we're in the body, it's not just us, quickly, we were talking to our father. And also we need to remember that he's in heaven, we need to be thinking of where he is, it should help our theology. As we pray, it should build hope in our life, as we pray. Now, I want you to notice is we've mentioned already from this sermon, the first three petitions. When Jesus says you should pray not only do we squeeze a whole lot of out of our Father in heaven, but notice the way he says you should pray. The first three concern God directly in his glory. This is interesting. The same with the table in the 10 commandments, you have the 10 commandments, the first four are this way towards God, the next six are this way. This is consistent theme throughout Scripture, when we pray, our first concern is to God. Secondly, our concern is for us others. So we're going to see this is going to come back against us against our nature. And then of course, we pray for ourselves. And we'll be breaking these down one phrase at a time as we go through them. But to help us just quickly recall, I want you just to remember the emphasis on fatherhood, all through this sermon. If you can remember, for instance, Peter says in in First Peter chapter two, he talks about you call on a Father who is she does not show partiality. In Ephesians chapter three, the apostle Paul says, I bow my knees before the Father of whom all heaven and earth is named. And there is this overwhelming huge amount of evidence looking just in the Sermon on the Mount, how many times Jesus says your Father in heaven, look at all these references to it. It has it has to do with everything we are to do and to think about in our Christian life conscious in our thoughts, every time we go to pray is to that we are besieging our father. And so several practical things by way of reminder from this morning, therefore, prayer is not impersonal or mechanical, but you're going to your father. I was just thinking again, by way of illustration that I've started to use my daughters all the time, but in everyone else, I was going over my message for about 520 On the night and and and in my office and other people would knock at the door and and my my daughters don't do this, they just come right in put their arm on me Hi, Dad, how are you gonna have a kiss? Can I have something I have this candy? Why can't you know they just did that. They feel very free to do that. Alright, and I want them to do that. So it's not impersonal mechanics. It can be free and bold. Our kids ask us for things that we have to understand as we beseech God, we can do this. And so our sonship should be the controlling thought in our lives. Our entire Christian life should be understood in front of it. Remember what Packer said, to the extent that you understand New Testament theology will be to the extent that you view God as your Father. This is really the climax of the New Testament. So in this sermon by Jesus, it's the basis for Christian conduct. Now you may want to just remember quickly, that if we were to glorify God, it is because he is our Father. If we Are to imitate God our Father, we are to be living for God our Father, we are not to be worrying because we have a father, who is our God. Now we moved to this first petition. And this first petition is this, our Father in heaven, let's say together, how loaded be thy name, hallowed be thy name. Our Father in heaven that Jesus says, When you pray, pray like this, our Father in Heaven petition number one, May your name be hollow, Hallowed? Well, I want us to see something that's important. As we let Jesus teach us to pray, there really has to do with this. Are we feel centric in our thinking? Or are we man centered? Notice Jesus teaches to pray. The first three petitions have nothing to do with ourselves, my friends, this is so important for us to understand. As we come to prayer, we there are going to be times for instance, like Nehemiah when he gets asked me for the king and he says, Why are you so sorrowful he quickly makes a prayer to God for help. I do not mean that if you're in big trouble that all of a sudden you gotta go our father ROK family body, live the father really go through the in heaven. You know, you can just cry, Lord, help me as Peter did when he was drowning, and he will indeed help you. So we're not again talking magic formula, but the general stay the bulldozer approach to the long term can, the way you're supposed to approach prayer is to understand that as you go through the disciplines of prayer, it is to be in secret. It is not to try to impress people, you're not to be I think there's a there's a big sense in which you are not to be talking a whole lot about your personal prayer life. And I think that we need to remember that is the teaching of what you're not to do. But notice this. Here's two views of life. This is looks like somebody on our staff, if you look closely, you'll notice that but here you have a man centered person, me centered, all right. And there is there's God and God is revolving around my life because I'm centered. And he's out there to please me. And so if I go to prayer, it's Lord, give me this Lord, give me that. Lord, give me give me I gotta have my way. I don't like what you're doing. But the God centered view of life is that God is at the center and our life is to revolve around God. You will see that this is the approach that Jesus takes as he teaches us how to pray, because this first petition then is hallowed or hollowed or however you want to say it holy be your name. So, we would say principle number one concerning this petition of Hallowed be Thy name is this never start with yourself but start with God? Again, not emergency prayer, but the daily routine the disciplines of prayer as you learn to discipline yourself in prayer, don't start with your God with yourself start with God. We're gonna read voice makes this comment. The lesson is of more importance than we think. In true worship, in true prayer, the father must be first must be all the sooner I learned to forget myself in the desire that He may be glorified. The richer will be the blessing that prayer will bring to myself. No one ever loses by what he sacrifices for the Father. Many people listen carefully because he really nails us here. Many people think of prayer as something that brings God into line with their own desires, instead of something that brings them into line with his will. They learn that sometimes from the prayers of others, and they do it naturally themselves as children, many person learn this prayer. Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep if I die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take. Thus, the idea that prayer consists of presenting a list of personal requests becomes entrenched early in our thinking. As the person grows older, the pattern repeats itself on a more sophisticated level, the person finds himself offering some small thing to God, in return for the things that he wants from him. It's sort of like let's make a deal. Unfortunately, we often pray first and listen to this. This is so crucial. So many Christians have made this mistake. Listen, unfortunately, we often pray first, for things that might take us from God, for friends that might compete for his friendship, or for an order the ordering of events that might accomplish our plans, but not his. Instead, we must learn to begin our prayers with thoughts of God's honor and the advancement of his purpose in history. I would go on to add this friends, when we really begin to pray, and we our hearts are drawn and our faith swells. And we are we sense we really are approaching God and you're not just doing the bouncing off the ceiling type prayers, as you're realizing that you're in the body of Christ, as you're realizing that he is your father and you realize that he's in heaven. You're addressing him and your prayers go right there because of Jesus Christ and through the Holy Spirit. And as we have this, our first request, then is going to be hallowed be thy name thy friends, here's my point. If we pray, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done. I think it's going to change Change the way we pray about Give us this day our daily bread. Forgive us our debts. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, it may greatly change even the things that we pray for, and stop and think of how many Christians have prayed, for instance, for a boyfriend or a girlfriend that was out of God's will, and they sort of knew a bit they were praying, somehow God will make it their will. Or they could how many times we have prayed for things to do with something to do with maybe something that was going to actually take us from God. And I like to say that only listen to me carefully, only the regenerate heart, only the person that truly has been born again, by the Spirit of God, the person that has been made new, only that person will be ever be able to pray this. Because I guarantee you the unregenerate will not have any interest whatsoever in praying that God's name be set apart as holy. It'll never be even the slightest concern in their life. And that's really what this prayer is that God's name would be set apart is only God's name, what is his name, all that represents God, hallowed be thy name, holy, this is the word it's found. 29 times in the New Testament is the word set apart. It's translated many times. For instance, in first Peter 315, it says, be ready always to give an answer for every man that asketh you the reason of the hope that is within you. And then the first part of that verse suppose, but set apart Christ as Lord in your heart, is to be set apart, make God's name be set apart as holy. In other words, make God's name representing all that God is. All of his attributes. All of the name of God and God are synonymous in the scriptures, they are who he is, it's a revelation of who he is. And may the person of God the name of God, may God be glorified. May he be set apart as holy. Now, stop and think of how practical this really is, in our own lives. The creatures that have been redeemed, though we were enemies and rebellious people, we've been redeemed. And so what do we do on Earth? We cry out to God, May your name be glorified. May your name be honored. May you be a holla, may you be set apart, may you be revered. May people fear you may people honor you, may people revolve their lives around you. This is the first prayer and estafa telling me that this is not practical. Can anyone tell me that this would not be a practical prayer to begin praying for your kids? You start to think what is it that we want from our kids? How about this that as your kids grew up God's name, God's person would be honored. They would he would be set apart in their lives as someone special someone worth worshiping. I pray this, just recently, in recent days, I've been trying to think of creative ways to meditate on this because I know guys like Augustine, and Luther and where's the these guys have said how much riches they're in and at times, it's a real fight for me. So what I do is I started applying this I apply this to my wife, to my kids, to my kids, future husbands, wherever they are, Lord, if you have one for them, may right now they be set apart, be setting apart your name is holy, may there be an unusual sense of holiness and godliness in their own life. Other relatives, the staff, the elders, the deacons, Sunday school teachers, a one workers I make this prayer Lord, may there be something unusual may it really be true that your name would be set apart as holy, that people would fear you and love you and honor you will never go wrong by studying our prayers. Oh, our father, our Father in heaven, May your name be set apart as holy. In other words, we can say this is from the word holy saint or sanctifies, even translated consecrate in some verses. But the phrase of this petition could actually be reworded to say this, our Father in heaven, our first desire is that in everything you might have the preeminence. It's coming to God and saying, Oh, God, we love you. We want to worship you. We want you to do this. We want you to be honored in our lives. We want that it's not the God's name, we can make God's name any holier because he can't get any holier than who he is. But that among us among the Gentiles among the redeemed among people from all nations, his name would be set apart as holy, the friends, what this really is, then this first petition that we're looking at, it's a petition of worship. It's a petition of praise. It's one of adoration. It is absolutely 180 degrees diametrically opposite of what we are without Christ in our fallen state. What do Adam and Eve do they disobey God they believe that didn't want what is best and they run and they hide. What is the redeem creature? Do we have stopped running? We have stopped hiding and we come to give praise and honor and glory to God Almighty and we say May your name be hollow. There is no one like you. We sing the songs Be thou exalted. This is a way of saying it be exalted. make God's Navy set apart. So you stop and think about this friends over and over, for instance, in Romans chapter one, in the first chapter of Romans, as Paul describes, and just absolutely the most devastating terms, what sinful man is really like. The one thing he says as though they knew God, they would not glorify Him as God, neither were they thankful. And so what is God do people that steadfastly resist who he is steadfastly resist to give them honor and glory? He says, so he gave them up to vile affections. You see, what I'm saying is, just as the first commandment is, thou shalt have no other gods before me. That should the third commandment is Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain. None of us naturally would ever do this. But because the Holy Spirit has made us new, we come along and we would say, Oh, God, May your name be honored May your name do you have the preeminence, may your may you have the preeminence in our lives. The Psalmist cries out be exalted, oh, God, above the heavens. In the Book of Leviticus, there's specific instructions, he says, Now, if those priests that come to lead in this worship, they must be holy men, and people, they must be the kind of men that make people revere the name of God. That's Leviticus chapter 10. In Soma, says, 111, Psalm, holy and awesome is your name. Stop and think of me as the angels come to announce the birth of Jesus Christ. What did the angels say? The angels say, Glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth. It is the cry of the redeemed, it is the cry of the angels, that God would be lifted up and honored, and that we wouldn't live in a society that just completely jokes about God. I got a good dose of this again, I saw my little greenhouse effect that I've had by being in the ministry. Recently, when we were up in Traverse City. One morning I chartered a boat with three other guys and a fishing captain in a tribe Grand Traverse Bay, the west side, know the bay there. And we went trout fishing. I was so excited to be out there. It was absolutely a gorgeous, beautiful morning. The guy had a 24 foot boat fishing fishing boat. He had it for 14 years, same boat on the lake, and he knew how to do it. And he had a partner helping him. So there was two of them. And there was two other guys. And these guys got on the boat. So there was no, I'm not a I hate this US versus they but there was four of them. And one of me in that from the moment these guys got on board. All they were doing was talking about the parties they had the night before. All they were doing is talking about what they did with certain girls the night before. All they were doing was talking about how many tequilas tequilas they had, or whatever that is it kept asking did you get the worm and I'm not even sure what all that is. But they were asking did you get the worm and everything out of their mouth was this? Oh, blankety blank. Oh, Jesus this. And it was just one thing after another. I'll tell you I sat there. It was a beautiful time on that day. But until you it just reminded me again there go live but by God's grace, I would never those guys would no longer think of setting aside God's name is holy, it would be the last thing they would ever do. But my friends, do you know what we're called to do? We are called on a regular basis to privately in secret with your closet door shut where nobody else sees you alone before God cry out to Him all by your name be ha holy through my life today. Listen, Spurgeon said, Remember how Christ says not Don't be public in your prayer standing on the streets and letting everyone see. Listen, listen to what Spurgeon said, public prayer is no evidence of piety. It is practiced by an abundance of hypocrites. But private prayer is a thing for which the hypocrite has no heart. I guarantee you if you practice private prayer as Jesus Christ says in these passages, go to your house shut the door. Don't let anyone else see you. Go and pray for I guarantee friends, you will not be a hypocrite before God. Because a hypocrite the last thing you would ever do was thinking about having a private time alone with God crying out May your name be made holy through my life today. Honoring Christ let's remember this now listen, our father honoring the Father. Now listen, watch this Our Father which art in heaven, Holy set apart his holy be your name you have the preeminence. Listen, your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Friends, I want you to think about this. What's going on in heaven right now? Just sit where you are. And I want to read you a couple of events that are taking place in heaven. In the Apocalypse of John, the fourth chapter, he makes this comment. In the center Around the throne were four living creatures. And they were covered. With eyes in front and in back. The first living creature was like a lion. The second was like an ox. And the third had the face of the man, the fourth was like a flying eagle. Each of the four living creatures had six wings, and it was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night, they never stop saying, Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come. By go to the fifth chapter of Revelation, and I read this. They sang a new song, you are worthy to take the scrolls and open it seals because you were slaying with your blood you purchase men for God, from every tribe and language in person and nation, you have made them to be a kingdom of priests to serve our God and they will reign on earth. Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering 1000s upon 1000s, and 10,000 times 10,000. They encircled the throne in the living creatures and the elders, and in a loud voice they sang Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise that I heard every creature in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and on the sea, and all that is in them singing to him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb the praise and honor and glory and power forever and ever. And the four living creatures said Amen, and the elders fell down and worshipped. What's going on in Heaven? In Heaven, it will be such a revelation, the fact that now we see through a glass darkly, it'll be pulled away. And it will be such a revelation and victory of the holiness of God, that there will be on ending, joyful, delightful worship of how holy our God is. The songs I can't even imagine the music that scripture says is some music we've never even dreamed of. We can't even think of it. The greatest masterpiece, Handel's Messiah is just going to seem like tinker toy music compared to what it's going to be like, and there will be the creatures in the redeem singing Worthy is the Lamb holy. Look what you've done. If you can remember from Jim Greer's message not too long ago, he was here on a Sunday night. He talked from the sixth chapter of Isaiah. I want to just read it to you again just listen. In the year that king us iodide, I saw the Lord seated on the throne high and exalted in the train of his robe filled the temple above him were saris each with six wings with two wings, they covered their faces. With two they covered their feet and with two they were flying. And remember, he explained why they had all those different wings in different places. And they were calling to one another. Holy, holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty. The whole earth is full of his glory, at the sound of their voices, the doorpost and the thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke here you gotta quaking going on because of the power of the angels voices as they're worshiping the holy God. And Isaiah is responses woe is me, I cried, I am ruined. And of course he talks about the coals you know what I think friends listen to this. When you start your prayers tonight or tomorrow morning, and you decide you're gonna start like this our father and you're gonna think about the body of Christ. And you're gonna think about your heavenly Father in heaven. And then you're gonna say Holy beer names set apart is wholly in your name in my life and my family's life in my church's life at work everywhere I go, May your name be set apart is wholly my friends, I'm going to tell you something. Number one, you are going to be more human at that moment than you've ever been in your entire life. Because the most we are fallen creatures, and even though we've been redeemed and justified by Jesus Christ, we still battle this corrupt allottee and as we stop and we cry out how holy God is you become closer to what it's going to be like in heaven than anything on earth. And secondly, you are preparing yourself for a lifetime, an eternal lifetime of worship and praise before the Almighty God to honor him. Aw, pink makes this comment. This petition must take precedence for the glory of God's great name is the ultimate end of all things. Every other request must not only be subordinated to this one, but be in harmony. with it in pursuance of it, we cannot pray right unless the honor of God be dominant in our hearts. If we cherish the desire for the honoring of God's name, we must not ask for anything which would be against the divine holiness to bestow. In praying the God's name be hallowed. We ask, that he will so act that his creatures may be moved to render that adoration which is to him. His name has indeed been eminently glorified in all ages, in the various workings of His providence and grace, whereby his power, wisdom, righteousness and mercy had been demonstrated before the eyes of angels and men. How easy it is to utter these words, hallowed be thy name, without the slightest thought of their profound and holy important. If we offer this petition from a heart, we desire that God's name may be sanctified by us, and at the same time, own the indisposition and utter inability to do this of ourselves, such requests and notes, a longing to be empowered to glorify God and everything whereby he makes himself known that we may have to honor him in all situations and circumstances. Friends, I mean, it's sincerely it's been such a rebuke to me to be meditating on this prayer. Because I have, I have spent too many days of my life, having to get to a certain meeting by a certain time. And so racing through some kind of sloppy view of devotions, and basically asking God to give me a blessing for who I'm meeting that day, and then going on and our God is so merciful, that he deals with us where we are at times. And then he chases us to get us into a different place. But I'm going to tell you this much just as a testimony, and it's almost hard to say this without violating the very principle when Jesus says, Be private about what you're talking about in prayer. But just starting off, praying to the Father in heaven, and just this before you ever get past the first request, when your heart longs when you cry out, oh God, in my life, in my family, in my relationships with people in all that I do, May your name be set apart as holy? May you be honored, may you be esteemed through our life of our missionaries. I'm gonna tell you, it starts putting a completely different slant before you start to get anything that you're going to ask for for yourself. It changes us completely. And we come to be renewed and we come to bring pleasure to God. And so look at how much we've learned already. Our Father, in heaven and your name be set apart as holy. Let's pray. Lord, our Almighty God, our heavenly Father, we are so grateful to be instructed by Jesus Christ your Son on prayer. receive from us now. Praise as we sing a couple of songs to you. And the Lord we by doing this we are attempting to honor your name and set it apart as Holy Jesus name amen. Let's go to 76 and our hymnbooks. Let's stand together we go. Good. Here's a rather lengthy benediction, you'll be dismissed in the sight of God who gives life to everything and of Christ Jesus who while testifying before Pontius Pilate made the good confession. I charge you to keep this command without spotter blame until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which God will bring about in his own time. God, the blessing and only ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal, and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see To Him be honor and might forever Amen.