Weekend of July 5th and 6th, 2014

The Lord’s Blueprint For Prayer1. Today we pick up the second half of the Lord’s

Prayer.2. The last four lines of the Lord’s Prayer have to do

with our well-being, each phrase using the pronoun “US.”

A. Give USUS daily bread;B. Forgive USUS our sins;C. Lead USUS not into

temptation;D. Deliver USUS from evil;

The Lord’s Blueprint For Prayer1. Praying on the basis of a NewNew DependenceDependence.2. Has anyone here never, ever, eaten some bread?3. Bread is a common food

around the world and in many parts of the world, it is the primary staple for life;

The Lord’s Blueprint For Prayer4. For you and me, there is not the slightest doubt

as to whether or not we will eat today, but that is hardly the case in many parts of our world.

A. Our biggest concern is whatwhat will we eat today;

B. Not whetherwhether we will eat today;C. What a great blessing from God!D. Have you given your dearest

Father thanks for this wonderful blessing lately?

The Lord’s Blueprint For Prayer5. In this prayer, we are reminded, we are

absolutely dependant upon God for everything.A. We sometimes think we are

“independent” “independent” people.B. Nothing could be further from

the truth.C. Just suck the air out of this

room, and we will soon discover just how dependent we really are.

The Lord’s Blueprint For PrayerD. God made us with needs so that we would have to

look to Him to supply them, just like parents do for their children.

E. As Martin Luther says, “Daily Bread” includes everything we need for life and health.”

F. In this prayer, we are expressing our conviction that God will provide all our needs.

The Lord’s Blueprint For Prayer6. Notice the prayer says, “Give us thisthis dayday, our

daily bread.”A. Even here, Jesus is reminding us that we are to take

life one day at a time.B. If we try to add tomorrow’s problems to today’s

burdens, we will get totally stressed out.C. Jesus reminds us in Matthew 6:31-34

31 So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' … your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom …

The Lord’s Blueprint For PrayerC. … and his righteousness, and all these things will be

given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

D. When you and I worry about tomorrow, we are telling our Dearest Father we don’t believe He can take care us of.

E. I like the quote from Corrie ten Boom:

The Lord’s Blueprint For Prayer7. In this prayer, we are to request our daily bread

day-by-day.A. Life comes to us one day at a time;B. Beyond today, we do not know if we even have a

tomorrow;

8. In this prayer, we are also remind that “mankind does not live on bread alone” but we need the “Bread of Life” “Bread of Life” that only Jesus can give us.

A. But so many people believe that only one meal a week on the Bread of Life is sufficient;

The Lord’s Blueprint For PrayerB. As we take earthly bread daily to stay healthy and

strong, so ought we dine daily on the Bread of Life to remain spiritually healthy and strong.

C. This is where daily personal devotions and Bible reading are so important.

D. This is why I offer so many different Bible Studies with the purpose that I take you deeper and further into the text of Scripture so that you really thrive on the “Bread of Life.”

The Lord’s Blueprint For Prayer1. Praying on the basis of God’sGod’s PardonPardon.

A. In praying this petition, we are not justjust asking God to forgive our sins.

B. We are doing that to be sure.

2. Did you notice the little word that begins this petition?

A. “AndAnd forgive us our sins…”B. Since we daily ask for bread, Jesus is saying we are to

daily ask for forgiveness.

The Lord’s Blueprint For PrayerC. So many people question why they have to daily ask

for forgiveness when they are already saved?D. The simply answer is “I sin daily!”E. So as we daily eat bread and also dine on the Bread of

Life, we are to daily ask for God’s Pardon.

3. Notice also that when we ask for God’s Pardon, we ask Him to forgive us “as we forgive others “as we forgive others sins against us.”sins against us.”

A. We are asking God to use the pattern of our forgiveness of others for how He will forgive us.

The Lord’s Blueprint For PrayerB. So important is it that we

forgive others, that God will use that pattern when forgiving us.

C. That’s a little scary, since I am not always ready or willing to forgive others.

D. We can never fully enjoy our gifts of forgiveness until we are ready to extend it freely to others.

E. True believers are both forgivenforgiven and forgivingforgiving.

The Lord’s Blueprint For PrayerF. While this is never easy to do, the

very struggle to forgive others is evidence of God’s Forgiving Grace God’s Forgiving Grace to each of us.

G. Could it be that we are touching on one of the main reasons for so much unanswered prayer?

i. When we do not forgive, we set up a roadblock to answers to our own prayer;

ii. Jesus encourages us to forgive as we have been forgiven;

The Lord’s Blueprint For Prayer1. Praying on the basis of God’sGod’s ProtectionProtection.

A. As we asked God for forgiveness in the previous petition, here we ask that God would protect us from falling into new sin.

B. Temptations are all around us.i. Some are of a more simple variety;

ii. Others are of a more sinister variety;

iii. And with the Internet, all this is just a click away;

The Lord’s Blueprint For PrayerC. By praying this petition, Jesus is not suggesting that it

is God who is tempting us.i. James 1:13 says, “God does not tempt anyone.”ii. But God will allow us to be tested.

D. So, what is the difference between “tempting” “tempting” and “testing”?“testing”?

i. The answer is what is the desired outcome of that event?a. Satan wants to destroy our faith, so he temptstempts us.b. God wants to strengthen our faith, so He teststests us.

ii. Example: When my brother was killed – seen from Satan’s perspective, he wanted to destroy me; seen from God’s perspective, He wanted to strengthen me.

The Lord’s Blueprint For PrayerE. So where does Satan get his ideas of what to tempt us

with?F. Just think about going fishing:

i. What do you bait your hook with?ii. I like strawberries!iii. Don’t you?iv. But how many fish

will I catch with strawberries?v. While I like strawberries, fish don’t.

G. Satan looks at our desires and likes, and then forms his temptations accordingly.

The Lord’s Blueprint For PrayerH. James 1:14-15 says “Each one is tempted when, by his

own evil desireown evil desire, , he is dragged away and enticed. 15

Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

I. Satan studies each one of us, determines what we like, and then orchestrates his temptations according to our desires.

J. God allows these things to happen, because in essence that’s where our weaknesses are also.

K. God’s desire is to test and strengthen us in those same areas of our lives, to build us up stronger than before.

The Lord’s Blueprint For PrayerL. When we pray this petition, we are agreeing with

Jesus’ High Priestly prayer in John 17:15: “I do not pray, Father, that you take these disciples out of

the world, but that You should keep them safe from the Evil One.”

M. Jesus knew that Satan’s temptations would be used by God to strengthen and mature us into the kind of disciples He wants us to become.

N. Therefore, do not fear temptation, but welcome them as God’s “proving ground” for your faith and life with Him.

The Lord’s Blueprint For Prayer1. Praying on the basis of God’sGod’s PowerPower.

A. So real are temptations and evil that Jesus gives us this petition to ask for God’s power.

B. The word evil in the Lord’s prayer is a masculine noun, meaning “thethe evil one” = Satan himself.

C. In this way, we are admitting life is a struggle against a real enemy who opposes us.

D. This enemy is too strong for us!

theOne

The Lord’s Blueprint For PrayerE. Have you ever felt that life as a Christian is a struggle?

i. I have felt that Satan is like a “monkey on my back,” kicking and scratching constantly;

ii. I have wondered why the Christian life can’t be a little easier than it often seems to be;

iii. Then I realize just how serious Satan is, in wanting to take the whole world to hell with him.

iv. That is also comforting in the sense that Satan never attacks those who already belong to him, just those he still wants to get!

v. Guess who that is?

The Lord’s Prayer can be summarized in 77 WORDSWORDS::

The Lord’s Blueprint For Prayer

The Lord’s Prayer

1. 1. PositionPosition“Our Father”

2. 2. PraisePraise“Your Holy Name”

3. 3. PurposePurpose“Kingdom & Will”

4. 4. ProvisionProvision“Our Daily Bread”

5. 5. PardonPardon“Forgive Us as We Forgive”

6. 6. ProtectionProtection“In Temptation”

7. 7. PowerPower“against the Evil

One”

The Lord’s Blueprint For Prayer