To pray aright
Matthew 6:9 “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.”
In this prayer, the Lord gives us the spiritual essence of true prayer…
…we begin with addressing the God of Heaven, as our Father in Heaven.
…and we end with confessing and praising Him as King of the Universe in power and glory.
If you look at the prayers of Ezra, Daniel, David, the Prophets and Paul,….all seek certain requests for themselves and others…..
…but also, they adore and praise the One Who has saved and called them.
But now, our prayers….
I know when I was called as a prayer warrior, I thought that it would be easy…(little did I know of the battle that rages around those who really pray).
But I learned that prayer is more than seeking things I need….for me and others….
…it is coming before the throne of God and seeking His Will for these things….in the manner accustomed a King.
Christ, here, taught His disciples to ask for things which are needed, and to give the glory due to God.
We should bless and praise the One Who gives us His grace.
As we pray: two things happen.
We see ourselves…and if anything is hindering the prayer in us….the Holy Spirit makes it known to us, to get it taken care of.
We see the Lord….and how much His redemption has won for us! And our spiritual affections rise up…..our hearts and lives are encouraged….and we are humbled before the Lord’s love.
True prayer never stops with the focus on ourselves….but always guides us to Christ.
Matthew 6:13 “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.”
Here is the part of the prayer I wish to focus on:
We are to be pro-active where our lives are concerned…..we are to ask God for help….against the things which tempt and trouble us.
We are to ask that He will guide us out of temptation…..and include that we will listen and obey Him.
And we are to ask that if we are tempted, He will deliver us.
(Here we need to remember the Shepherd’s staff and rod. Psalm 23. These articles were for defense of the sheep, it is true.
A lion or a bear, the sheep might get caught in a pit….the rod for defense was wonderful….
…the staff for lifting us out of the pit was a blessing!
But they were also used to correct a wandering sheep….or one which often fell behind, refusing to follow at the Shepherd’s speed.
Corrections will come,….our Shepherd has promised it….for He will not let us fall victim, as our wanderings would do.)
“And deliver us from evil”. It could be written the evil one….or the devil and his wiles.
For “evil” here means “hurtful influence which does harm”.
This is what the Lord wants us to be pro-active about….the influences around us which causes harm to our spiritual life in Him.
The Lord wants us to pray against these things…..looking to Him, Who has all power and authority….and is worthy of all the glory. Amen.
Ephesians 1:3 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:”
Surely if God blesses us…..we should bless Him in praise and love.
And seeing as how God has blessed us…..does not this verse ask us how many of those heavenly blessings we have within us?
For this is a promise of the things we have “in Christ”….let us get them.
Preaching, Teaching, and Notes 