Matthew 6:12, 14-15And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors…For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
At the outset, it is encouraging that a request for forgiveness is included in the template of the Lord’s Prayer. It’s inclusion means that sin, repentance and forgiveness is expected by God to be a normal part of the Chrsitian life. The Lord knew our weakness and made provision for it. So if you’re one of the poor beggars who come daily to the throne of mercy as a repeated offender, be encouraged, this is the way it is supposed to happen. We are strictly forbidden all throughout scripture to ever sin, no matter how great or small; sin is never tolerable or permissible, but the wonderful news is that regardless of the severity or frequency of our transgressions, we are still invited to return to our Father and receive mercy for our souls! Today, if there is unfinished business between you and the Lord, don’t delay: Isaiah 55:7, “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.”
But there is more to the story here with this prayer. There is a very important addition made to the prayer: a condition – it says, “Forgive us our debts, aswe forgive our debtors.” Then attached to the end of the prayer is another statement elaborating how important this condition is, “For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”Remember, this prayer is not meant only to be prayed, but to be lived. Here’s the deal – If we want the freedom and invitation to come to God for forgiveness when we sin, then we must be willing to forgive others when they sin against us. Wow. This really seems to be the focus of the Lord in this part of the prayer. Our Father is a God of great, magnificent mercy, and if we have tasted of that mercy, we must – we are required – to extend that same mercy to others. This combination is beautifully illustrated by Jesus in the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant, found in Matthew 18…
In Matthew chapter 18 Jesus speaks all about offenses, or problems between people, and how to deal with them. He strongly warns against offending others (v.6); reminds us that offenses are simply going to happen (v.7); and then he gives the instructions for the proper way to resolve conflicts (v.15-20). At the end of these instructions, Peter asks Jesus a question, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?” So the Jewish teachers at that time taught that you should forgive someone three times, but not the fourth. Three strikes and you’re out! Peter, sensing that Jesus is calling for a higher standard of mercy and forgiveness than the status quo, upped the ante to 7. Jesus replied to him, “I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, until seventy times seven.” Jesus is obviously speaking symbolically here. He is not saying, “Keep track of how many times someone offends you, and when they reach 491 times, tell them that you are not obligated to forgive them anymore.” He means, “Keep forgiving them. There is no limit. Always forgive.” Knowing Peter, as well as the other apostles, there was most likely a pause, trying to process the teaching, not getting it. I also tend to this, because in Luke 17 we have a similar conversation (which may perhaps be the same occasion) where Jesus says “Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him. And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.” (Luke 17:3-4) Their response to Jesus’ teaching was, “Lord, increase our faith!” Haha! They knew right away, “Lord, if we are actually going to successfully do what you just said, we really need your help! Grace to understand why we should do that, and strength to be able to!” So in response to their plea for increased faith. Jesus delivers to them this parable:
“Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants. And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents. But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made. The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion (pity), and loosed (set him free; let him go; released him) him, and forgave him the debt.”
In the parable there is a King who called his servants to give an account of their stewardship. One unfortunate fellow came, knowing that he had accumulated an astronomical amount of debt. He owed the king 10,000 talents. In Jesus’ day, 1 talent was equal to 6,000 days of pay, assuming an average wage. In modern terms this would be about $720,000 ($15/hr would be $120/day; Multiply by 6000 and you get $720,000). Now this servant did not owe 1 talent, but 10,000 talents. When we multiply $720,000 by 10,000, that gives us a whopping $720 Billion. Yes, Billion with a B. Saying that this kind of debt would be a sort of a problem would be an understatement! Do you think that however this debt was accumulated caused some problems for the kingdom? In fact, it seems very unlikely that this kind of debt could even be added up in real life by one person. The point that Jesus is making is that the servant accumulated a debt that was impossible to pay off.
So to settle the debt, the King commanded that the servant, his wife and children should be sold into slavery until the debt could be paid. This meant a lifetime or servitude, most likely a complete separation from family. The servant, realizing that his entire life was over, did the only thing he could do – he fell prostrate before the King and begged for mercy, pledging that he would do everything in his power to pay it off (even though he and the king knew he never could without a miracle). This caused the King to have compassion upon him, to pity him, and to completely release him of his obligation. I’m not sure if this sort of debt has ever been freely and totally forgiven among men. I doubt it. But the point is that in a hypothetical situation, imagine if someone was actually pardoned of that much debt! Wow! What an dream that would be to experience.
This part of the parable is an illustration of God’s mercy and forgiveness. The King represents God and the servant represents Mankind. Every person born into this world has an account with God; not a money-account, but a moral account. Mankind is made in the image of God. We have been loaned a body, soul and spirit, and have been commissioned by God to invest our lives in his service and in things that please Him. We are obligated to reflect his character in the world, thereby giving God a “return” to him for his investment.
The big problem? You guessed it – we have all abused this loan. Every sin we commit is another swipe of the card. Our “sin-card” is more like a credit card than a debit card – the deeper we go into debt the more we accumulate compounding interest (by this I mean that “sin will always take you further than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you wanted to pay.” Some people have so much debt from various places they have even forgotten that certain ones exist. Our moral-account is similar – we cannot even begin to trace back all of the times we have plunged our moral obligations into the red. We have done this with every account we have – our bodies, our minds, our affections, our possessions, our relationships, etc. The Bible is abundantly clear: “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) “For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.” (Ecclesiastes 7:20) Like the servant in this story, our debt is impossible to pay off. The longer we live, the more we sin, and the more our debt piles up. We can attempt to pay it off, but it is too massive and compounding to actually do it. “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.” (Isaiah 64:6) The only way we ourselves can pay the fine for our crimes is to spend the time – this is what Hell is.
The only way out is to be prompted by sheer desperation and to cast ourselves on the pure mercy of God for forgiveness. We must plead, “God, please forgive me. I’m wrong. I’m guilty. I deserve this judgment, but please forgive me.” Thank God, that just as the King in this story, God will forgive us when we come to him with humility and repentance. Our debt with God cannot simply be overlooked; that would be an affront to the infinite holiness and justice of God. This debt had to be paid, and God in His wonderful love and tender-mercy, He gave his Son to pay the debt for us, in full at the Cross!
“And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us (canceling the public record of debt), which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross” (Colossians 2:13-14) Also Psalm 103:2-3,10-12, “Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.” Praise God for his wonderful mercy and love! We have been eternally set free!
But this is not the end of the story. Nor is it the main point of the parable…
Here is the second half of the parable:
“But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellow-servants, which owed him a hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest. And his fellow-servant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt. So when his fellow-servants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done. Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst (begged) me: Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellow-servant, even as I had pity on thee? And his lord was wroth (from O.English – wrath, writhe; hot), and delivered him to the tormentors (torterors; scougers), till he should pay all that was due unto him. So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.”
We see the most preposterous event occur after this servant was forgiven of his unimaginable debt. He leaves the King’s presence, now a free man, debt free! You picture him on cloud-9, overjoyed by this miracle that happened in his life. But what does he do? He goes out and finds one of his fellow-servants who was in debt to him. We are told this other servant owed him 100 pence (denarii), which is equal to about $12,000. Some sources place the currency exchange much lower than this, but either way, these are servants answering directly to a king, who were most likely wealthy. Whatever the amount actually was, the point of the parable is to show that it was an insignificant amount that could easily be paid off.
The forgiven servant seizes his fellow-servant, violently grabs him by the throat, and demands from him immediate payment, “Pay me what you owe me!” The fellow-servant responds to him in the same exact way he did before the king – with humility, begging for mercy. But instead of having mercy, or even having patience, the forgiven servant casts his fellow-servant into prison, to be a bondsman, until payment could be made! Unfortunately for this “forgiven” servant, some other servants saw the whole thing go down, and came and told the king what happened. Can you imagine how angry this king would have been? It is unimaginable, unthinkable, that this would be the actions of a servant who was forgiven of so much! It says that the king was wroth – he was hot, in wrath, enraged. The then king calls in the servant and gives him a scolding reprimand, “You wicked, degenerate, vicious servant. I forgave you all of that debt, because you begged and besought me. Shouldn’t you have have had pity on your fellow-servant as I had pity upon you?” Then the king delivered the servant who would have been forgiven to the tormentors (torturers, scourgers) until he could pay his debt…which he would never be able to pay.
Can you imagine to gall; the nerve it took for this man to do this to his fellow-servant? There is absolutely no reason why this should have happened. The amount of pity, compassion, mercy and forgiveness the servant received from the King should have prompted his heart to feel obligated to extend that same mercy to his fellow-servant, especially since the debt that was owed to him was NOTHING in comparison to the debt that he was forgiven of.
Here’s the point – when you received forgiveness from God, you forever forfeited the right to hold a grudge against others! Why? Because forgiveness has a price tag. You cannot receive forgiveness from someone else and then not give it to others. More specifically – how can you see yourself on the precipice of Hell, deserving to be there, hear God’s voice of pardon, then walk away and send other people into the hell of your own making, and then try to justify your actions??? That is craziness, foolishness, wickedness.
We have all sinned against God, correct? We’re all the servant who was forgiven of the impossible debt? We all deserve the Lake of Fire for eternity?
Now, since we have been forgiven we all still sin, correct? On a daily basis? And we still come to God regularly begging his mercy and forgiveness about the same sins over and over again?
And he still forgives us, correct?
So why in the world would you ever think it is right for you to hold a grudge against anyone else in your life!!!???
You say, “You don’t know what they’ve done to me. They have ruined my life!”
Oh, really? Have you not marred the image of God on account of your sins? You have brought shame on the name of God in the presence of the King of the universe! You have played the harlot with devils in His presence. You worked for such a long time to destroy his kingdom. Was it not your sins that put Christ on the cross??? And yet is it not you who surrendered to God while his enemy? Was He patient with you while you were committed to defaming his name? “While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8) Have you had compassion, or pity, on that person who has wronged you? Have you hung on a cross for their offenses? Are you willing to go to Hell for them?
One might say, “But you don’t understand, they keep doing the same thing over and over and over. If they really meant it when they asked for forgiveness, then they would stop!”
Oh, ok. Well good thing that when you went to God for forgiveness, it was only for that sin you committed once! Good thing you don’t drag yourself to the mercy seat on a daily basis beseeching forgiveness AGAIN, for the same thing you always do…
Or, do you do the same thing all the time and keep coming to God for forgiveness? You don’t like the sin you keep committing, you love it and you hate it. You allow yourself to be deceived thinking it will please your flesh and bless your spirit at the same time. When it fails to do the latter, you come back to God for release from guilt and shame, and for his anointing to heal and restore your joy again. Have you ever thought that perhaps the people around you, who sin against you, are simply acting just like you are in your relationship to God? It would do you well, that when others sin against you, to try to see your face on their body. When you continually come back to God for forgiveness you expect nothing less than free, full, liberating forgiveness. Why don’t you give out the same, especially since what you are forgiving is nothing in comparison to what God forgave and continues to forgive you of? “Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.” You are under obligation to give pure mercy to others, forever, for the rest of your life. “Freely ye have received, freely give.”
If Ye Forgive Not
The King initially offered complete forgiveness to his servant, but when he heard what this servant did to his fellow-servant, the King changed his mind and now required him to pay the debt. What is God’s disposition towards those who refuse to offer mercy and forgiveness to others? Remember, the King in the story represents God. Jesus put it this way without mincing words: “So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.” Does this mean that if you are a professing Christian, and you refuse to release others of their sins against you, that you will not have eternal life? Does Jesus actually mean what he is saying here- that if we do not forgive others then God will not forgive us? Before we answer that, let’s look at a few other Scriptures, just to drive home the point:
“For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” (Matthew 6:14-15)
“And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.” (Mark 11:25-26)
“With the merciful thou wilt shew thyself merciful; with an upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright; With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure; and with the froward thou wilt shew thyself froward.” (Psalm 18:25-26)
The Scriptures are clearly telling us that in some way God is committed to dealing with us in the same manner that we deal with others. How can we truly, consciously be forgiven of Hell and then not give out forgiveness for something petty and earthly? If the Spirit of God has truly come to live in our hearts, how can we not have those same bowels of mercy? If you live in bitterness, unforgiveness, variance, strife, or any other sharp offense between you and others, then you should truly check yourself to see whether you are in the faith. On the other hand, if you know that you know that you know Him, yet are still an unforgiving servant, you must be in a horrific spiritual prison, under deep chastisement from God, and I urge you to simply repent, be reconciled to your brother, and be set free from your bondage. Accept any loss that comes as a result, so that you might gain back your joy. “Grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: and be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.” (Ephesians 4:30-32)
Living the Lord’s Prayer, Part 4 – – – “Give us this day our daily bread”
*The video ends a few minutes short. Make sure to read the last few paragraphs of the article.
Can any of us (at least in America) say that we pray this prayer for what it actually says? When is the last time you woke up in the morning and prayed, “Father, thank you for waking me up today. Among other things, I’m not sure what my family and I are going to eat today, but we trust you to take care of all of our needs. You are a good, heavenly Father, and you know what we have need of. Amen.” I can say that I have had days like that, but very few. I have to say as well that I had those days because of necessity, not because of choice (I’ll talk more about that in a little bit). Every day I think most of us give thanks to God for our bread (which we should), but how many of us actually pray for our bread. This article will discuss the spirit of the “our daily bread” prayer, and will also look at how we can embody that spirit, so we can actually see God answer this request in our lives.
Physical or Spiritual “Bread?”
Is Jesus instructing us to ask the Father for physical bread or spiritual “bread?” I think everyone would agree that “bread” here is representative of “necessities,” but is it referring to our daily physical or spiritual needs? The famous publication “Our Daily Bread,” which has daily devotional tid-bits, may have many people assuming that the prayer means, “Father, give us the words of wisdom we need to live by today.” Do we need God’s grace on a daily basis for our spiritual, mental, emotional, relational needs? Of course, but those concerns are covered under the headings of, “Hallowed be thy name…thy kingdom come…thy will be done…forgive us our debts (sins)…and lead us not into temptation.” The fact that Jesus had in mind physical bread (necessities) seems pretty apparent to me. It makes perfect sense that way; there is nothing in the context to indicate that he had otherwise in mind; and also, if Jesus did mean physical bread, how else could he have said it, to make it clear that that’s what he meant. It’s clear, but I’m afraid that we may have some intuitive hesitation to lean away from the literal meaning because of the implication it may have on our lives. If he does mean literal bread, how can we even begin actually praying this prayer if our cupboards are already full?
The Spirit of the Prayer
In Matthew chapter 6, Jesus is instructing his followers to practice three spiritual disciplines: giving, prayer & fasting. Each of these disciplines have practical benefits, but there is a greater purpose shared by each of them – we could call it the “spirit” or heart of the disciplines – which is trusting God. Does practicing giving meet real, practical needs? Sure, but a greater need is us learning to trust God with our finances. God doesn’t really need our money to get his work done. Does practicing fasting free up your mind, body and time? Sure, but a greater need is for us to trust God to be our source of satisfaction in life, and so on. I think that within this prayer, “Give us this day our daily bread,” Jesus is trying to communicate to us about A WAY OF LIFE, not merely leading us to ask God for our daily provisions.
Consider the Lilies
What is this “way of life” Jesus is speaking about? The same chapter as the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6) gives us further insight. In discussing the difference between being heavenly minded and earthly minded, Jesus says, “Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?” (Matthew 6:25) Jesus is telling us to not be anxious, worried or even concerned about our basic necessities. It should not be the focus of our lives. Why? Because there are deeper things in life that need to occupy our hearts, minds and time- “The life is more than meat, and the body more than raiment.”
He then says to consider, or think carefully about, the ravens (Luke 12) and the lilies. The ravens do not plant, harvest, or store up food in barns, yet they eat and survive. They do not have a job with a guaranteed weekly pay stub, bank accounts, refrigerators, pantries, deep freezers, investment funds, or insurance policies, yet they are not worried about life at all. We got some serious issues. If God feeds his pets, how much more can we be guaranteed that he will feed his children? Not only the ones made in his image, but those remade in the image of his Son, those who are washed and in his favor eternally?? What about the lilies? They do not labor (toil, struggle), nor do they take great pains to make their appearance, yet Jesus says they are more beautifully clothed than even Solomon was in his glory! Now, this is crazy, because at least the ravens do something to get their food – they hunt or scavenge. Yet, the lilies do nothing except rest and soak in what nutrients God brings them. Wow. These are presented as examples for how careless we should be about the acquisition and security of our physical necessities in our lives.
Did Jesus practice what he preached? He sure did. One day a man wanted to follow Jesus, and Jesus warned him, “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.” (Matthew 8:20) I love how it is put in the hymn “Thou Dids’t Leave Thy Throne,” “The foxes found rest, and the birds their nest, in the shade of the forest tree; but Thy couch was the sod, O Thou Son of God, in the deserts of Galilee.” Jesus did not have a home; he didn’t have a guaranteed weekly pay stub for his labor; he didn’t have a bank account, savings account, credit card or investments. Yet, he survived. He thrived. There was no one happier, more secure, more useful, more giving than Jesus, even though he did not have a guarantee of all of these necessities.
Jesus was on a mission – to seek and save the lost. He said, “I have meat to eat that ye know not of…My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.” (John 4:32,34) No one worked harder than Jesus; no one had more responsibilities than Jesus; yet no one was more free in life than Jesus.
He understood the perfect balance of working hard/laboring/discipline combined with rest/freedom/spontaneity. He worked hard, without guarantee of pay, mostly misunderstood, and yet was loved and provided for. He was free from the demands of man, yet fully devoted to the demands of God. “You cannot serve God and mammon.” Jesus understood that if you seek first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; all these things shall be added unto you (Matthew 6:33) He didn’t say that if you value God in your life that God will give you the strength to work and provide for yourself. He is saying that if you work for God, the provision will be brought to you, like the liles.
Was Jesus a pauper? He actually was. Pauper: poor person. He was a pauper, but he wore a seamless robe, which from my understanding was a unique and expensive garment in his time. How did he get the robe? The Father brought it to him somehow. There were rich people who ministered to Jesus at times.
Jesus lived a very ascetic life, one of self-discipline and abstention, yet there were times when Jesus fellowshipped and feasted. But it was always when the Father said so. And I believe that he enjoyed the spread, the laughs and the experiences more fully than anyone else, because they were always gifts, unearned but deserved (because of his labor for God) and timely.
Was Jesus a monk? No, he was on a mission, but he was certainly truly pious, often praying alone for long periods of time. I’m not suggesting we all become monks, but I definitely think us American brothers could use a couple extra shots of monkish flavoring.
I struggle to find to the right words to express what I see in Jesus – He truly did live like the ravens and the lilies. May God help us to have this kind of freedom, carelessness and obedience to God our Father!
The Manna Story
God wants his people truly trusting him, even for our necessities, on a daily basis. This is illustrated well by the story of the Manna in Exodus chapter 16. Yahweh gave his people miracle bread from heaven, mainly as a rebuke against their murmurings, but also to teach them that God is more than able to be trusted for everything on a daily basis. Notice how carefully God instructed his people to only gather what they needed: “This is the thing which the LORD hath commanded, Gather of it every man according to his eating, an omer (approx. 1 gal. dry measure)for every man, according to the number of your persons; take ye every man for them which are in his tents. And the children of Israel did so, and gathered, some more, some less. And when they did mete it with an omer, he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little had no lack; they gathered every man according to his eating. And Moses said, Let no man leave of it till the morning. Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses; but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and stank: and Moses was wroth with them. And they gathered it every morning, every man according to his eating: and when the sun waxed hot, it melted.” (Exodus 16:16-21)
Yahweh laster told the people why he fed them with daily bread in this fashion, “And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no. And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.”
The life is more than meat. Israel had a purpose, to be a light to the nations. That kind of task is too grand for his people to be too concerned with mundane and earthly things. God provided miracle bread for his people, his disobedient people, for forty years, in the desert. It is a miracle how God provides for us, I’m not denying that at all. But experiencing miraculous provision doesn’t necessarily say anything about your spirituality, godliness or effectiveness in partnering with God to be a light to the nations. Miraculous provision should be understood for the child of God – especially one desiring to do his will. If we can’t trust God to miraculously put bread on the table, how are we going to trust him to supply the Spirit for abundant life today? Or to add new souls to the church? Over-abundance is a very dangerous thing. It is a huge temptation to forget the faithfulness of God and begin trusting in ourselves. Hear how God warned his people about over-abundance, “When thou hast eaten and art full…Beware that thou forget not the LORD thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statutes, which I command thee this day…And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth.” (Deuteronomy 8:10-11,17)
“There’s nothing wrong with having nice things”
Have you ever heard a preacher or another Christian say, “Now, there’s nothing wrong with a Christian having nice things, we just can’t let them become idols or a distraction in our lives.”? O.K. Yes, I agree in general, but this is hardly the kind of thing that American Christians need to hear! Instead, they need to be WARNED that their STUFF can easily and subtly rob them of revival, quench the Spirit, distract them from prolonged prayer, meditation in Scripture and winning souls! American Christians by and large have nooo problem with being too puritanical, too frugal, or too cautious about indulgence! “Make sure all those believers know that it’s ok for them to have nice things!” Are you kidding? We are over-worked on over-time, over-fed on over-abundance, and over-spent on over-drafts! We are the church of Laodicea. We are the generation of Haggai who laid the foundation of the temple, but then left off raising the walls because we are too busy meticulously wainscoting our own homes. No, we need to be told to fast; sell things, get rid of things; stop buying stuff you don’t need; stop buying stuff at the price and quality you do – even if you can afford it; downsize; stop being so busy. Sacrifice for Christ; pray more, longer; read more, longer; evangelize more, disciple more. Make time and money for Christ! These are the types of things I believe we should be proclaiming to our people! Why? Because there is a danger in being surrounded by abundance…
Feed Me My Portion
In Proverbs 30:8-9 we find the prayer of Agur, “Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient(my portion; prescription; necessary) for me: lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the LORD? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.” He is in effect saying, “God, you know what I need. If I determine how things go in my life I’m sure I will mess it up in some way. You know the adequate amount of resources that I need to live on and be happy with, but also will keep me trusting you well.” There is a danger in having too much. We can become like Nabal the Fool who derided David’s servants, “Who is the son of Jesse!”
1 Timothy 6
In the midst of Paul’s polemic against greedy people and wealthy society, he gives these warnings, “But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” (1 Timothy 6:9-10) In inordinate view of money or possessions can unwittingly lead us into temptations, traps, foolish lusts, perdition, apostasy, many sorrows, and many more dangerous thing not listed here. How are we doing, as American Christians, in our relationship with “things” and money? Are we content and moderate?
Paul here defines for us what contentment truly is, “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.” (1 Timothy 6:6-8) Having food and raiment (covering – clothes and housing) is God’s definition of what we need. God is saying that if you have food to eat, clothes on your back and a roof over your head, then you should be satisfied. We know full well that Paul here does not have in mind five-star dainties, elegant costly attire and mansions. He is certainly not saying, “Be content with your luxuries.” In another place he said, “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” (Philippians 4:11-13)
What should we do? “Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; that they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.” (1 Timothy 6:17-19)
(1) Don’t be high-minded, high-maintenance or attracted to high-society, “Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.” (Romans 12:16) Having nice possessions and high status can trick us into thinking that we are godly somehow on account of those things. (2) Don’t trust in your riches, because they make wings and fly away. If it was all taken away from you today, would your faith be shaken? Would you be shaken? If so, repent, and ask God to help you to get your trust right. (3) Learn to find pleasure and enjoyment in the simple things that God brings to us. Also, learn to wait on God and enjoy the earthly things as God brings them to you, not you going on and procuring them for yourself. (4) If you have the ability to have a high standard of living, don’t choose to. God gave you a lot of money or resources because that is a major part of how he wants to use you for his kingdom. “To whom much is given much, much will be required.” (Luke 12:48) If your wages are above average, then so should your giving. If a large percentage of your time is spent earning a large salary, then a large percentage of your pay should go to those working in the Lord’s harvest fields. He says here to the rich to be “rich” in good works.
Here is how I would try to concisely describe the Christ-like way of life we should be striving to live: Every believer (especially men) should be a hard-worker – expect no one to pay your way; strive to increase your productivity and earnings while decreasing your standard of living; fast often; strive to give away more of what you earn, while receiving and living more on miracles; if you haven’t done this in a while – prove God’s faithfulness in your life by giving away all of your money, or a large enough amount to where you have to trust God for the outcome (Luke 21, the poor widow cast in all that she had); find out a way to prove to yourself, in a measurable way, that you are actually living by faith; that you are truly able to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread.”
Press Toward the MarkPaul said, “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.” (Philippians 3:13-15) I in no way am saying that I live up to what I have presented in this article, though it is my heart’s desire and aim! I confess that it is the standard and that it is possible. Similar to the fact that God’s command, “Be ye holy, as I am holy” is the standard, though we all seem to fall short of it, so it is with the spirit of this prayer, and the way of life Jesus lived- we all seem to fall short of it, but may we strive after it, to become more like our Lord and so that his kingdom can be strengthened and furthered in the earth!
Canada just passed a new law (Bill C-4), which makes it illegal to freely teach the Bible’s doctrine on sexuality, calling it a “myth.” Anyone (including pastors and even parents!) could be sentenced to 5 years in prison for teaching that the only right form of sexuality is between one man and one woman in lifelong holy matrimony.
Pastors from around Canada and the US committed to defy this ubiblical, unrighteous, evil, hateful law by publicly preaching sermons yesterday on January 16, 2022. I decided it was appropriate to do the same. This video is the sermon that I preached yesterday.
Our Papa is a King. He is the King. He has a domain, or realm over which he reigns, and his royal rule is absolute. Where is this country, or territory that is ruled by our heavenly Father? It is everywhere! When Jesus ascended back into heaven he proclaimed, “All authority is given unto me in heaven and in earth.” (Matthew 28:18) How much authority does Jesus have?All authority. Does he have all authority now? “All authority is (present tense) given unto me.” There is no place where Jesus is not King. Jesus has the right and power to give orders, make decisions, and enforce obedience everywhere. This article will substantiate from Scripture how Jesus’ kingdom has already come, is in the process of coming, and one day will be fully consummated. Our prayers and our lives must be seeking for and submitted to his kingdom.
Jesus’ dominion is already established.
Heaven, of course, has been and is under the complete sway of Jesus. All of the angels receive commands from him and turn not to the left hand or to the right. All of heaven worships Jesus on his throne as God, Lord and King.
What about among demons and their god, Satan? Surely there must be some dark den somewhere that is ruled only by the Devil. Fortunately, they too fall within the jurisdiction of King Jesus: “And having spoiled (disarmed, stripped off) principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly (public disgrace, shame), triumphing over them.” (Colossians 2:15) At his first coming, Jesus came upon the Devil, disarmed him and fatally wounded him. Most specifically this happened at his crucifixion and resurrection:
“Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out.” (John 12:31)
“And I will put hostility between thee (the serpent) and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it (Jesus) shall bruise (compress with violence, trample) thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” (Genesis 3:15) This promise came to pass at the cross.
“It pleased Yahweh to crush him (Jesus); he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin (the Crucifixion), he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days (The Resurrection), and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand…Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong.” (Isaiah 53:10,12)
“When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace: but when a stronger than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armor wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils.” (Luke 11:21-22) Jesus penetrated the Devil’s fortress, disarmed him, bound him and carried away the spoils.
At the cross & resurrection Jesus put the dominion of Satan and sin to death. His return home to heaven was a glorious, triumphal procession! “When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.” (Ephesians 4:8) It was a common practice during the Roman Empire for a city to host a festive victory parade for conquering soldiers as they were coming back home, a part of which they would give gifts to the soldiers. Imagine what the heavenly parade was like when Jesus came home as the conquering Son of God! Jesus not only defeated the most formidable foe, but he also rescued countless prisoners from him; and instead of the host of heaven showering Jesus with gifts, Jesus himself as the conqueror gave gifts to us, the redeemed, rescued souls!!! Ultimately he gave us the gift of the Holy Spirit! He, “delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son.” (Colossians 1:13)
Do you remember when wicked Haman had to parade Mordecai through the streets of Shushan? Try to imagine Satan, that old serpent, the devil, who deceived the whole world- bruised, bloody, defeated- parading Jesus through the streets of Heaven, proclaiming, “Jesus is Lord!” Glory, Hallelujah!!!!!!! “Thank you, God!” We could stop here, but we’ll continue on…
Is Jesus the Sovereign only in heaven, or the spiritual realm? “All authority is given unto me in heaven and in earth.” This verse should be sufficient for us to see that his sovereignty is also currently over all of the earth, but in case we need more proof:
God the Father “raised him (Jesus) from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: and hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things…” (Ephesians 1:10-21) Jesus lord’s over Biden, Trump, C*v*d, mandates, America, Democrats & Republicans, the Supreme Court, Facebook, Google, China, Bill Gates, the Taliban, Islam, etc…Whatever new infamous name crops up in the future Jesus will lord over them as well.
The Father has given to Jesus “authority over all flesh…” (John 17:2) Authority not only over all spirits in the heavenly realms, but also over all flesh and bone bodies in the earthly realm,
Daniel, “saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.” (Daniel 7:13-14) Notice that this ‘coming’ would happen when the Son of man would come to the Ancient of days, not from the Ancient days. This is a vision of the Ascension of Jesus, not the Second Coming, which means that this is already in play. If this is true, according to this verse Jesus already has dominion over all peoples, nations and languages of the earth.
Coupled nicely with Daniel’s prophecy is Isaiah’s, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.” (Isaiah 9:6-7) Jesus has an increasing government that will have no end.
Jesus’ kingdom is in the process of coming
If Jesus truly is reigning right now over all people and places, how do we explain the presence and power of evil still at work in the world? There are still wiccans, prisons and evil politicians; sickness, sinners, sin and death are still here?
God has always been completely sovereign over all things. He works everything after the counsel of his own will. In his lordship he has given his creatures a certain level of freedom to make choices. Evil has a certain allowance, but only according to the authorization of Christ. However, something decisive did happen at the first coming of Christ, which we have already seen biblically. The Gospel is the beginning of God actively beginning to reclaim the kingdoms of this world. But the process by which he has chosen to do this is a slow process (at least by our standards).
A couple parables in Matthew 13 help to demonstrate this point:
“The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.” (Matthew 13:31-32)
Jesus came into the world establishing his kingdom with small beginnings, but at the end of the first century it was beginning to take over an empire. The kingdom does not plop down out of heaven on a completely evil world. The seed of the kingdom was planted at Christ’s first coming. The tree has been growing ever since. Branches have been growing around the world. Some branches have even been cut off, but others shoot out this way and that. One day the tree will be fully grown.
“The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.” (Matthew 13:33)
Here leaven is used in a positive sense to illustrate how the kingdom of God comes. Like the yeast in dough, it is invisible at first, but slowly permeates the entire loaf. This is how the kingdom comes.
Since the advent and enthronement of Christ, God has been actively enforcing his Lordship in new and permanent ways in the earth: The Gospel has been unlocked to the nations; the house of God is now worldwide instead of isolated in Jerusalem; The gift of the Spirit has come to reside forever in his people, to purge the conscience and make our bodies holy temples for him; “Christianity” is the largest religion in the world; freedom and the rule of law has gained ground like never before in history; etc. The tree has been planted and is growing, certainly. The house of God is past the design phase and is under construction.
I remember one day my mother-in-laws cat had cornered a mouse in the driveway. The cat wasn’t killing the mouse, but rather abusing and taunting it before it would kill it. I have never experienced a cat move or make sounds like this cat did as it tortured the horrified mouse. The cat would dance around it, and if the mouse tried to escape the cat would pounce its paws on it, securing it’s soon death again. I think this is a good picture of the relationship that the devil has to our King, Jesus. The devil is the mouse, Jesus is the cat. The cross and resurrection “cornered” the devil. Jesus in his infinite wisdom and good plan, is allowing the devil to continue to be active in the world, but only according to his perfect plan.
This truth is similar to our relationship as believers with sin as well:
“Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin…death hath no more dominion over him. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin…” (Romans 6)
As believers we are free from sin and death, they do not have dominion over us. But sin and death are still active. They are pests, but not princes Christians.
Jesus’ kingdom will fully come one day
“Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down (destroy, abolish, do away with) all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.” (1 Corinthians 15:24-27) There will be an end, when Jesus will completely abolish, or do away with the devil, sin and death. He is currently reigning, until he puts every enemy under his feet. This is going to happen at his second coming.
Paul charged Timothy that he should, “keep this commandment without spot, unrebukeable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ: which in his times he shall shew (make manifest), who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;” (1 Timothy 6:14-15) Jesus is currently the blessed and only Potentate. It may not look like it right now, but there is coming a day when he will make it clearly known to the whole world who truly reigns over all.
How are you relating to the kingdom of God?
Are you in the kingdom of God?
“The kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.” (Matthew 13:45-46)
This kingdom is worth forsaking all for to obtain. This world and everything in it will come to an end. God’s kingdom is the only eternal kingdom. Is Jesus your king? We must experience the new birth in order to enter into his kingdom:
“Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3) To experience this spiritual birth we simply must confess our sinfulness to Christ, humble ourselves at his feet and receive him as our Lord and Savior. His promise is to receive all who truly come to him, “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.” (John 6:37)
To believers – Are you merely a citizen in the kingdom or are you a soldier?
Are you glad that Jesus has rescued you and brought you into his kingdom, but are content watching others labor with Christ to advance his kingdom in the world?
“See ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33)Place God’s kingdom work at the top of your priority list. Don’t be afraid. God will lead and feed us if we serve him.
“Father in heaven, thank you for coming into this world and gaining victory for yourself. As you said, “Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world,” help us to understand the kingdom you have won. May every soul who reads this be rescued and joined to your kingdom. Help us to yield our minds, hearts, bodies, homes and family to your service. May your kingdom be more and more established in our cities and nations we live in. We look for and long for the day when it is fully manifested that you are the blessed and only Potentate. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.”
The “Lord’s Prayer” gives us amazing insight into what is important to God. It’s as if God is saying, “Look, this is what you really need to focus on in your life.” The Lord here condenses all that we could pray for into six concise statements. Now, if God laid out a template for our prayers, wouldn’t that also serve as a good template for our priorities in life? How can we pray a focused, passionate prayer about specific things, then leave without those same things being the focus of our lives? I want to focus on how the Lord’s Prayer-Template can also be a good Lifestyle-Template. Take a few moments of meditation on each one of the six themes in the Lord’s Prayer, and ask yourself this question, “Am I cooperating with God in my life as well as with my prayers?”
Matthew 6:9-15 After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. 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. For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Hallowed be thy name
Each of the requests in the Lord’s Prayer is in the imperative mood, which means that they are actually commands (in Greek study we called it a “sweet command” because it is being addressed to God; more like an entreaty). So, an accurate way of translating this would be, “Father, Make your name holy.” We are requesting of our Father that he would, by his power, make his name (which represents all of who God is) consecrated, or hallowed in our experience. The desire is for God and his reputation to be viewed as sacred, holy, unique, special, or elevated above all else to us. If this happens anywhere, it is surely a work of God- only the Spirit of God can create reverence for the one true God. But our question is- “Am I cooperating with God after I pray this prayer?” Are you requesting for God to make himself special above all else to you, but your decisions are not working towards that end?
Where should we expect this prayer request to begin to be fulfilled? Would it not be in our inner life: inside of our heart, mind and soul? Why should we expect the White House, Wall street or White-Castle to consecrate God in their midst if we ourselves are white washed tombs? “Father, make me a holy place. May all my thoughts be pure and pleasing to you. May my soul tremble and rejoice when you speak.” Are you praying this prayer? And are you cooperating with God in your choices?
Romans 13:14 commands, “But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.”
Are you putting on the Lord Jesus Christ, or only putting on the t.v. or your phone?
Are you putting Scripture into your mind, or putting on pornography and ungodly entertainment?
Are you putting on modest clothing and surrounding yourself with God’s humble, holy people, or putting on skimpy, immodest dress and finding fellowship with unholy people?
We could go on, but you get the point.
We cannot pray for God to make our minds a holy temple if we are desecrating it with our choices. This would be like an Old Covenant saint praying for the Temple to be filled with God’s glory after offering swine on the altar and hanging up a picture of Chemosh near the veil.
“What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)
After the inward parts, we must move to our home. The plea is, “Father, may your name have a sacred, holy place in my house and among my family. May it be clear to everyone- dwellers and visitors, that God is specially honored, respected and obeyed. Amen.” This is a great prayer. Are you doing what is in the power of your hand to facilitate that happening? Is there anything unclean or dishonoring to God on your walls, in your movie cabinet or in your closets? Would your heavenly Father be at ease in your home the way it currently is? Would you be at ease if he came for an unexpected personal visit?
Do you pray that God’s name would be respected in your home, but as a parent you cheapen or even defame his name through hypocrisy your children regularly see? Perhaps the Lord would stoop down to bless your home if he saw you stooping down more often to ask your children to forgive you for the sins you commit in front of them? Do you long for God’s blessed presence to fill the air in your home, but you allow bitterness, unforgiveness, verbal fire-darts and unclean media to fill the air? If you allow devilish things to come through the screens into your home, what kind of spirits do you think will literally visit your home? Clear out the air with repentance, humility and confession. Give family Bible-time and prayer an honored time-slot, and then ask for God to hallow his name there. Make church attendance and service to others in Jesus’ name a priority over sports and extracurricular activities, then request his anointing on your family.
Thirdly, we should pray for God’s reputation to be celebrated in all of the world around us. “Father, make these streets clean and safe; make all of these churches faithful to you, glorifying Christ and his Word only; make our schools academies of truth and godliness; make our businessmen honest and fair; make our law-makers, police and judges upright and just. Make every person and every place humbly submitted to the Lordship and adoration of Jesus Christ!” Amen. Those are good prayers. We should be praying them regularly with specific names attached. But are you cooperating with these prayers?
Are you praying the church-house is hallowed but you spread gossip about the saints? Do you stride into the service dressed so all eyes look upon you and then sing “Turn your eyes upon Jesus.”? Do we ask for the manifest presence of God while employing fleshly music and tailoring our preaching to the unregenerate?
Public schools are committed to training up animals and you still send your children there, but you’re begging God that they come home saints??? And you don’t speak out at the meetings?
Are you praying for an awakening in your society, but you don’t preach the Gospel? Praying for the seeds of the gospel to sprout up new conversions but you are not sowing the seed? Praying that God would send forth laborers into his harvest and not considering it might be you that he wants to send?
Our Lord Jesus Christ is worthy of deep, unrivaled respect and adoration. This is a work of the Holy Spirit of God that we should beg God for. But our prayers should have feet on them.
“Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” (Isaiah 40:3). Make room for God to do his work and then wait upon him!
In this prayer-template given by the Lord, holiness is at the top of the list. Should it not be at the top of the priority list in our lives? Remember, this prayer is addressed to your heavenly Father. He does not deal with us as criminals, but as favored sons and daughters. If we simply confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). He is not looking for a slight slip to judge you. Not at all. He is very patient, kind and long-suffering. But we must yield to his authority. A broken and a contrite heart God will not despise (psalm 51). If you have not been cooperating with God, be humbled before him today and ask him to give you strength to yield your life to him. Amen.
Brother Lee 