http://www.nbchurch.com/jerrys-thinking/ "...for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever, Amen." As the prayer begins, so it ends--giving glory to God, recognizing our place in his good creation, and his authority to not only care for the issues of the present, but the issues that transcend time and place. It's more than comforting or assuring to know that God has all authority (Matthew 28:18). Jesus teaches us that by praying "...thy kingdom come, they will be done" early in the prayer, we position ourselves to recognize the priority and excellence of the Kingdom of God over my own kingdom. I have my wants and wishes, but because I know my God is holy--uncommon, not like any other god, not like any human--I'm willing to receive whatever he chooses to give. Our God is holy, he is good, he is giving, he is excellent, he is brilliant, he is beautiful...adjectives seem to be created to try to extol his virtues, but they always pale in comparison! May we pray this prayer with our hearts leaning towards him, and may this prayer give us peace and faith to let God be God, and we take our place as his servants--well cared for, at peace, full of joy, reflecting Him.  "...and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil..." "Oh Adam's sons, how cleverly you defend yourselves against all that might do you good!" (Aslan in The Magician's Nephew, The Chronicles of Narnia,by C. S. Lewis) After we shed ourselves of God's goodness and grace by rebelling in the Garden, we exposed ourselves to a different world, one full of good AND evil, things visible AND invisible. Our wisdom had been compromised, our sight became myopic, our judgement unreliable. Good looks like evil, evil looks like good...How shall we navigate ourselves?  Jesus teaches us to pray that God would give us wisdom and insight so that we would properly discern what is good AND evil and act upon each appropriately. Jesus was the only One who successfully walked through our earth and wisely chose between them by depending solely on the Father. He tells us so: "I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does." (John 5:19, NIV)  So, pray with confidence. The Father loves you dearly and loves to give you wisdom to live into the fullness of your gifting. He agrees with you and will "lead you not into temptation, but deliver you from evil"--ask him and see! "...forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors..." Our complete dependence and trust on him, empowers us to forgive our debts because we recognize our own forgiveness as the weaponry that defeats the powers and principalities of this dark world. It emphasizes the relational priority of the Kingdom of God--no wrong should be harbored. Paul writes, "[love] keeps no record of wrongs." Praying this prayer helps pry our pride away from the incessant, evil desire to get and have our way. While we may cling to unforgiveness with all our might, the power of Christ's Kingdom works to dissolve the iron grip that weighs us down--not the subject of our unforgiveness. When we struggle with unforgivness, we need be reminded only of the forgiveness we have received. If one does not believe one has been forgiven much, one's love for the Father is at best distorted and at worse--blocked. Our forgiveness melts our hearts and puts us in right relationship with God and man. The two great commnadments: Love God, love your neighbor remain the bastion of this Kingdom of God. When you pray this prayer today, pray it in such a way that you recognize any unforgiveness you've harbored. Extend it--even if you don't feel it. Feelings will catch up. The action will be freeing and make you more like the subject of the Kingdom you are praying into place. "...give us this day our daily bread..." Trust. Jesus is teaching us trust. "Don't worry about tomorrow" he will say later in this chapter, "tomorrow will worry about itself" (v. 34). We were not designed to worry, but to trust. We weren't designed to hoard, but to share. This simple request, on the heels of surrendering our kingdom to the in-breaking, unstoppable Kingdom of God, gives us peace. Just trust God for today. He will take care of you. What an Awesome God! "...Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven..." Jesus reminds us that the Author of our earth has 'programmed' the world to operate best under His rule. Any time our will is contrary to God's will, we want His to be accomplished no matter what--because He is our Father in Heaven, who is holy. So, we lay down our claims to authority as we approach our Father; we recognize His qualifications that make Him holy--uncommon to us; and we surrender our wills subservient to His. When His will is done--all is well. When our will is done--chaos reigns. Surrendering is difficult for us. It takes practice. It takes dedication. It takes repitition. It takes...saving. "...Hallowed be Thy Name..." 'Hallowed', 'holy', not for common use, but for sacred use. This God whom Jesus addresses is our 'Father', but he is different from our earthly fathters. He is holy. When we address Him, we are addressing THE One who rules it all. There is no one like Him--never has and never will be. He does not disappoint; He is not 'fickle' or moody; He is the King of all the kings and Lord of all the lords. As He revealed Himself to Moses in the Ten Commandments, Jesus reminds us--God is not common--everthing about Him is holy including His Name. It is a call for honor and respect and reverance and awe. It is an honor to us that we can call upon His Name and not profane! "Our Father who is in heaven..." It's not just "Our Father" with whom Jesus is indciating we have intimacy, a relationship with; no, this Father lives in the heavens. His Presence exceeds ours and transcends space. He is authoritative in that we cannot be in heaven and on earth--but He can. When the Philippian letter says that "one day every knee shall bow and tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father, in heaven and on earth and under the earth" it is because our Father who is in heaven is able to make that happen. He is not the Father you can resist forever. He is the Father who gives you a choice, but this Father cannot be ignored. "Our Father..." Notice the address. It's not an impersonal deity, in whose Presence we scramble for fear, looking for an appropriate title with the appropriate emphasis lest we profane. This address is to the personal God. "Father." "Dad" Not everyone has a relationship with their father that is satisfying, but this address indicates a relationship that not only is satisfying, but expectantly fulfilling. He's not a human father, one who can and does fail. He is "Our Father who is in heaven." Ruler of all creation. Lord of all lords! King of all kings! Go ahead and pray to Him. Jesus models it. He doesn't say 'if' you pray. He says, "when" you pray. Try it. Be bold and invite whoever is with you to join you. So far, I've been pleasantly surprised. Mon, 06 Dec 2010 03:01:41 GMT en-us Copyright 2010 New Beginnings Church