SERIES: “When We Pray”
TEXT: Matthew 6:5-14
MESSAGE: “Your Kingdom Come”
And so, what is this pattern? (Daniel Henderson 4/4 Prayer)
- Upward to God — (v. 9 — Our Father in Heaven, Hallowed be your name)
- Downward in humility (v. 10 — Your Kingdom Come, Your will be done)
- Inward for needs (v. 11-12 — Give us this day (resource needs), forgive us our debts (relationship needs)
- Outward for battle (v. 13 — Lead us not into temptation, deliver us from evil)
TEXT: Matthew 6:5-14
What does it look like to pray for God’s Kingdom and will to be done in our lives? It’s a…(1. Reorientation 2. Releasing 3. Renewal)
- Reorientation (v. 10a) — “Your Kingdom Come”
“…the point of prayer is to get the heart back into its true orbit, to center on God…to worship, glorify, and center on God. That’s what prayer is…for example, if the moon would leave its true orbit, it would begin to crash and burn and hit things, and therefore, if the heart leaves its true orbit of centering everything on God, the same thing happens, only spiritually and cosmically we crash and we burn. We said that therefore, in prayer we make God central again. That’s the point of prayer. When we say the point of prayer is to return us to our true orbit, we do not mean that in prayer we simply affirm that God is central, or we just say that God is central, but in prayer, you actually make him central. That’s the hard work of prayer.” — Timothy Keller
- Releasing (v. 10b) — “Your Will Be Done”
“I am no longer my own, but thine. Put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt. Put me to doing, put me to suffering. Let me be employed for thee or laid aside for thee … Let me be full, let me be empty. Let me have all things, let me have nothing. I freely and heartily yield all things to thy pleasure and disposal. And now, O glorious and blessed God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, thou art mine, and I am thine. So be it. And the covenant which I have made on earth, let it be ratified in heaven. Amen.” — John Wesley
- Renewal (v. 10c) — “On earth as is in heaven”
“In the heart of the Lord’s Prayer, we have embedded the “inside-outness” of the gospel, the “upside-downness” of the gospel. Here you have it again, right in the middle of the Lord’s Prayer. If you say, “Thy will” before you say, “Give me” you’ll have both satisfied God’s heart and satisfied your heart. If you say, “Give me” before you say, “Thy will be done,” you’ll have neither heart satisfied.” — Timothy Keller
TAKEAWAYS: How can we learn to seek God’s face in prayer?
* Starting with reverence for God
* Responding with humility
“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
10 Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread,
12 and forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. — Jesus (Matthew 6:9-13)