PONDERING... Praying as a Saved Sinner (Matthew 6:12-15)

Teach Us To Pray: A Brief Series Dissecting the Lord’s Prayer

Praying as a Saved Sinner

GIST: Despite who we are, the One we pray to is listening with love and strength. (Reverse of opening in order…but same content )

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 6:12-15

12 and forgive us our debts, (NOTE: Debts or Sins) as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.[some manuscripts add For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen] 

14 For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, 15 but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. 

We come to the end of our study of the Lord's Prayer, and I have more verses left than I have covered in the previous three sermons. Therefore, this will be more of a survey addressing of some very important truths. Thankfully, Brother Driggs is teaching through James on Sunday evenings and has covered (and will continue to be covering) temptation and forgiveness at more length for the regular Providential crew. For those of you who just read these things on "the blog" because you found yourself with little better to do :), please feel free to message me, and I will be more than happy to address anything I leave unclear.

1. We need forgiveness

12a and forgive us our debts...

• There is so much I feel should be said here. Alistair Begg points out that this portion of the prayer moves from asking for our basic physical needs (daily bread) to our basic spiritual need (forgiveness). And that's the key. We've spoken about this at length and often in the past, so I won't stretch this out too long. Yet, I don't want to ignore it either. This is foundational to the Gospel (the good news). God is holy and loving. We are not. He has a standard of perfection; He is that standard. We do not live up to this. As I've pointed out before, sometimes people recoil at this notion and argue that God cannot judge us for not living up to His standard that we may or may not even agree with in the first place. Setting aside the fallacy of assuming our own views of morality could somehow surpass God's, let's just look at your standards...that which you consider to be right and wrong. Do you live up to those? Think of all the things that drive you crazy in other people. Think of all the beliefs you have about how people should and should not behave. If someone where recording your life and said they'd only judge you based on how you live up to your own expectations, how would you do? Terrible. We all would. We don't live up to our own standards, and we definitely fall short of God's. The punishment for breaking the eternal law? Eternal punishment. Hell. As a result, we need His forgiveness, which He provided through Jesus Christ.

2. We need to forgive

12b... as we also have forgiven our debtors... 14 For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, 15 but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

• We need to remember: This is a prayer for Christians...Forgiveness should be a major part of our character. It is a mark of the change Christ makes in us. This reminds me of Jesus' parable in Matthew 18:23-35.

23 “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. 24 When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. 25 And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26 So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ 27 And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. 28 But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ 29 So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ 30 He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. 31 When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. 32 Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33 And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ 34 And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt.35 So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”

• The expectation for the forgiven is that they will forgive. I few months back I preached a sermon entitle "The Greatly Loved Love Greatly". The idea here is the same. If we are saved, we'll live like it. Examine your heart. Are you forgiving? Here's the deal. We have been forgiven of sin which earned us Hell. What could anyone possibly do to you that could outweigh that? AND, if you feel that what you are somehow justified in your unforgiveness, then you have not understood the nature of your own condition, or the price paid for your salvation. If you are saved, you will live like it. If you're not living like it, again, examine your heart. Spend time in serious prayer. Jesus knew this would not be easy--forgiveness never is. It's costly. That's why it hurts so much. To forgive is to give without repayment. Jesus knows this more than we ever could. He died and endured Hell to pay for our forgiveness. If you have not known this forgiveness personally, ask Him for it. Be saved. It is your greatest need.
• As a quick aside, I want to address a possible objection. This is not spiritual blackmail. Jesus is not saying, 'If you don't forgive, I won't forgive...so you better keep doing what I tell you or else'. He's not a mobster. Yes, He won't forgive if you don't, but not because He's blackmailing you into any particular behavior, but because you haven't really been saved. Look at the last few words in His parable. "... if you do not forgive your brother from your heart." Just going through the motions of forgiving is not what He's looking for. He's looking for heart changes.

3. We need direction away from sin

 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

Brother Driggs just addressed temptation a few weeks ago, so I won't spend too much time here. However, we need to see this.

• We will be tempted. Just because we are saved does not mean our sin nature will be removed this side of heaven. We look forward to that day. But for now, Jesus calls us to take up our cross daily and follow Him, and to put on the armor of God, and to resist the devil by clinging to Him. It is a battle. Why? Not simply because the devil is a prowling lion seeking whom He may devour, but because we are sinners. Let's look really briefly at the passage Brother Driggs addressed a few weeks ago in James 1.
• 14 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 15 Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.
• Where does temptation come from? Within. We are tempted when we are lured and enticed by our own desires. Could the devil use these against us. Yes. But even if he doesn't, we will find ourselves tempted because the source of sin is in our nature.
• SO, this prayer is asking God to lead us away from the path that we would naturally take. Temptation is tempting because we want it. It's like the example I've used a million times. I offer you a free dinner--you're tempted. I offer you a chance to do my laundry--you're not. The offer is equally free, but only one is desirable. So to be led not into temptation and to be delivered from evil, or the evil one, is, at is core, asking God to, again, change Your heart. How do we resist sin and Satan? -->James 4: 7-8 "7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded." It's not by our strength, but by clinging to Him, drawing near to Him, being made like Him.

4. We need to end well

For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen

• The prayer ends like it begins, remembering to whom we speak. Again, we could spend much time here, but I will be brief. When we pray, we approach the Holy and Loving and Almighty creator of the universe. His perfect kingdom, His ultimate power, and His incomparable character reign FOREVER. And so we have confidence as we approach our Heavenly Father. Knowing that despite who we are, the One we pray to is listening with love and strength.