Let’s continue our reflection on the petitions of the Lord’s Prayer as a guide for what we should pray for. Today, we will reflect on the fourth petition: “Give us this day our daily bread...” (Matt. 6:11), It seems obvious what this petition is about: “our daily bread.” We are grateful that, after teaching us to pray for God’s name and kingdom and will, Jesus also teaches us to command for our temporal needs as well. God made us both body and spirit. He knows that, even though we do not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord (Deut. 8:3), we still need bread to live. Jesus affirms this later in the chapter: “your heavenly Father knows that you need them all [i.e., the things to eat, drink, and wear, etc.]” (Matt. 6:32).
Read MoreToday, let’s reflect on the third petition in the Lord’s Prayer as we continue to talk about what we should pray for: “your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:10). As fallen sinners, no prayer is more instinctive than to pray, “My will be done!” But a moment’s reflection will show that there is nothing more logical, more beneficial for us to pray than to pray, “Your will be done!” If God is God—absolutely sovereign, all-powerful, all-wise, and all-good—then, His will should take precedence over our will. After all, how good and wise is our will? Do we know what is really good for us? Our analysis of the past is inaccurate, our assessment of the present is incomplete, and our knowledge of the future is insufficient. As such finite, limited creatures, do we dare God what He should do for us? C.S. Lewis said, “There are two kinds of people: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, in the end, ‘Thy will be done.’ All that are in Hell, choose it.”
Read MoreWe are talking about what we should pray for. For that, we are going over the petitions of the Lord’s Prayer. Today, we are going to reflect on the second petition: “Your kingdom come.” Let us notice that this petition is about the coming of “Your kingdom”—that is, God’s kingdom, the kingdom of “our Father in heaven.” Think about this in the context of what the people of Israel at that time longed for and expected. This was shown when Jesus entered Jerusalem on a donkey: “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest” (Mark 11:9-10)! It was against this expectation that Jesus taught His disciples to pray for the coming of God’s kingdom. Jesus was making a clear distinction between the heavenly kingdom of God and the earthly kingdom of David/Israel.
Read MoreWe are thinking about what we should pray for. There is no better place to start than the Lord’s Prayer. Yesterday, we talked about the significance of calling out to God as “our Father in heaven.” Today, we want to talk about the first petition: “hallowed be your name” (Matt. 6:9). “Hallowed be your name” means “May your name be made holy.” This raises an immediate question: does this mean that God’s name is not holy? If something has to be made holy, it must not be in a state of holiness. But it’s ridiculous to think that God’s name is not holy. For God is holy: He is the Essence of holiness, the Source of whatever is holy and sacred.
Read MoreAs we think about what to pray for, it is only right that we start with the Lord’s Prayer. If God hears us when we ask anything according to His will (1 John 5:14), what clearer expression of God’s will do we have than in the Lord’s Prayer? (You all have my book, The Lord’s Prayer: Jesus the Teacher, Jesus the Answer. I’m going to highlight what I said in the book in the coming days. If you want a fuller exposition, you are welcomed to go back and read In it, our Lord teaches us to address God as “Our Father in heaven” (Matt. 6:9). Because of the Lord’s Prayer, we are used to calling God “our Father.” But it is truly an awesome privilege to call God “our Father” when we consider the infinite gap between God the Creator and man the creature, the holy God and the fallen sinner. If we can call God “our Father,” it is only because we are united with Jesus, God’s only Son, who alone had the right to God “My Father,” in whom we are adopted as God’s children: “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God...” (John 1:12); “For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’” (Rom. 8:15); “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons” (Gal. 4:4-5).
Read MoreFrom today, we will talk about what to pray for. But before we do that, let’s think about what Jesus told us not to pray for: “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all” (Matt. 6:31-32). Jesus commanded us to pray on many occasions. He also gave many promises concerning prayer, such as, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened” (Matt. 7:7-8); “Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it” (John 14:13-14); “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you” (John 15:7). These words seem to promise unrestricted, unconditional answer to our prayers, whatever we pray. So, Jesus words in Matt. 6, telling us not to pray for something, stand out.
Read MoreWe are talking about the importance of proper stewardship of God’s blessing when He answers our prayer lest we turn God’s blessing into a curse. Yesterday, we saw how we can turn God’s blessing into a curse when we make God’s blessing into a means of furthering our selfish greed. We can also do that when we make God’s gracious blessings into a source of our pride. From Hezekiah’s example, we know how easy it is to forget our humble condition (when we cried out to God) and become proud (when our problems are resolved by the grace of God). One moment, he was weeping bitterly because he was about to die. But as soon as he heard the news that his life was extended for fifteen years, he was boasting of his treasures to the Babylonian envoys.
Read MoreYesterday, in talking about the importance of proper stewardship of God’s answer to our prayer, we considered Hezekiah’s negative example and how terrible the consequence was. If we are not careful, we can easily turn God’s blessings into curses. One way to do it is when we make them into a means to further our greed and selfishness. So then, we must ask ourselves why we want certain things and desire them enough to pray for them. Whatever the reason, it must not be for the satisfaction of our selfish greed. Think about what the Bible says about God’s blessings, including His answer to our prayer. What did God promise when He called Abram? “I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing” (Gen. 12:2). Here, God made it clear that His promise was not just for Abram’s blessing but also for the blessing of others through him. It is wonderful to enjoy God’s blessings. But we see our enjoyment doubled and multiplied when we share our blessings with others. It is like traveling with someone special and enjoying the sight and experience together as opposed to traveling by oneself.
Read MoreWe are talking about proper stewardship of God’s answer to our prayer. We should not just pray for things. When God answers our prayer, we should be grateful and, in gratitude, enjoy what God has granted to us. But we have to keep in mind that there are right ways and wrong ways to enjoy God’s blessings. We all know how easy it is for us to turn God’s blessings into idols. Obviously, that is not a good thing. Listen to what God said to the corrupt priests of Malachi’s day: “And now, O priests, this command is for you. If you will not listen, if you will not take it to heart to give honor to my name, says the LORD of hosts, then I will send the curse upon you and I will curse your blessings. Indeed, I have already cursed them, because you do not lay it to heart” (Mal. 2:1-2). We see that one way God would punish the evil priests was to turn the blessings into curses. But if we are not careful, we can do that ourselves! When we get so enamored with God’s blessings that we grow distant from God, that would be tragic and detrimental. Idols may be attractive and pleasant (at least for a time) but they are bound to destroy us if we should bow down to them.
Read MoreWe are talking about what to do when God answers our prayer. We are seeing that giving thanks to God is not the only thing we do. Yesterday, we started talking about the importance of proper stewardship of God’s answer to our prayer. As long as we live in this fallen world, no gift of God, especially the things of this world, can make us live “happily ever after.” Yesterday, we considered the example of getting a (new) job. For someone, who lost his job and had been looking for a new job for a while, getting a new job in answer to his prayer is a huge blessing. It is important not to forget this simple fact because each job comes with its demands and challenges, which may not be easy. Before we start complaining and looking for something else (thinking that there will be a “perfect” job, which will pose no problem at all!), we should remember the time we were so grateful to God for the job. Not all the “sufferings” are the same. It is a miserable suffering to starve because you don’t have enough to eat. But there are “sufferings” that come because of the blessing/privilege you have—the demanding work of a job or position of authority and responsibility. These are the things that we should be grateful for, not complain about.
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