Lessons on Faith from the Model Prayer
Responsible Faith
Matthew 6:10
October 19, 2003
Intro:
A. [$3 Worth of God, Citation: Wilbur Rees, Leadership, Vol. 4, no. 1.]
I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please, not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep but just enough to equal a cup of warm milk or a snooze in the sunshine. I don’t want enough of him to make me love a black man or pick beets with a migrant. I want ecstasy, not transformation; I want the warmth of the womb, not a new birth. I want a pound of the Eternal in a paper sack. I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please.
B. Today we continue our series on lessons of faith from the model prayer…
1. We began two Sunday’s ago with Confident Faith from the phrase, “Our Father in heaven…”
2. Last Sunday was Transforming Faith from the phrase, “…hallowed be your name…”
3. Today we come to Responsible Faith from the phrase, “…Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven…”
4. It is recorded in Matthew 6:10.
C. As we begin this study, let us pray that God will give us a responsible faith that seeks more than just $3 worth of God [pray].
D. [Living the Spirit Filled Life, by Jack Hayford, Regal Publishing, Ventura, CA, 2001, p. 207]
Listen to how Dr. Jack Hayford introduces this study in his book, Living the Spirit Filled Life…
“Jesus’ counsel on how to pray illuminates a truth that we often ignore: People need to invite God’s rule and power into the affairs of their lives through prayer. For if humans won’t pray, God’s rule in their circumstances is forfeited.” [repeat]
1. Of course many people think that if God wants to do something, He’ll just do it and it won’t matter whether they pray or not.
2. But that is not taught anywhere in the Scriptures.
3. The truth of what the Scriptures teach is exactly as Dr. Hayford describes it: We must invite God’s rule and power in our affairs!
4. In order to understand how to invite God into our affairs we must first understand why it needs to be done in the first place.
5. So first let us think about…
I. Man’s Relinquishment
A. Man relinquished his authority in the Garden of Eden.
1. In Genesis 1:28 (NIV) we see God’s original plan, God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground."
2. God’s original plan was that man would rule over and have dominion over the earth.
3. God’s original plan was that man would rule over and have dominion over the earth.
4. But when Adam and Eve bowed to the deceitful scheming of Satan, they tuned their God-given authority over the earth to Satan.
5. When Adam and Eve bowed to the deceitful scheming of Satan, they relinquished their God-given authority to rule the earth over to Satan.
6. Now 1 John 5:19 (NIV) describes the result, We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one.
7. We are children of God, but the whole world is under the control of the evil one.
8. Mankind betrayed God and relinquished his authority over the earth to Satan and now the whole world is under his control.
9. That’s a sorry state of affairs!
10. Since we have bowed to Satan we have turned the whole world over to his control.
B. So what has happened because of this?
1. Satan easily misleads us.
2. Confusion reigns.
3. We are easily led into sin.
4. We are easily led away from God.
5. Death is now a matter of fact.
6. Disease terrorizes.
7. Broken relationships are abundant.
8. Hopes and dreams are crushed.
9. Suffering is everywhere.
10. Fear abounds.
C. And unfortunately, we cannot blame it all on Adam and Eve because all of us have sinned and have added to the confused mess our world is in.
D. HOWEVER, all is NOT lost!
II. God’s Restoration
A. Even in the Garden of Eden, God had a plan!
1. From the moment man relinquished his role, God had a plan.
2. Genesis 3:14-15 (NIV), So the LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, "Cursed are you above all the livestock and all the wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel."
3. Right there, in the Garden of Eden, when God pronounced the curse upon the Devil, God announced His plan!
4. Yes, it sounded like God was cursing the snake, but we must realize that this wasn’t just a snake, it was Satan.
5. So what God was saying to Satan was that he was going to put enmity (hatred) between Satan and Eve and between Eve’s offspring and Satan.
6. Then God switches to the personal pronoun “he” in place of “your offspring.”
7. That “he” that is Eve’s offspring is Jesus.
8. God was announcing (right there in the Garden of Eden) that He was going to send His Son.
9. God said there would be enmity between Jesus and Satan.
10. God told Satan that he would strike Christ’s heal (by crucifying Him).
11. And God said that Christ would crush Satan’s head (by rising from the dead).
12. Even from the time that mankind relinquished his authority over the earth and turned it over to Satan, God had a plan!
B. God sent his son to announce the possibility of man’s restoration to God’s kingdom.
1. Paul said in Colossians 2:15 (NIV), And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
a. Jesus triumphed over Satan and his demons; He disarmed them; He made a public spectacle of them; He crushed their head just as God predicted thousands of years prior.
b. Man relinquished his authority to Satan, but Christ has triumphed over Satan.
2. Jesus preached in Matthew 4:17 (NIV), "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near."
a. Since God sent His Son, we now have the possibility of repenting of our role in contributing to the mess of the world and being restored into His Kingdom.
b. Since God sent His Son, we have the possibility of repenting from our sin and being restored to the Kingdom of God.
c. Since God sent His Son, we no longer have to remain a helpless victim of sin and hell!
Transition: Since man relinquished his authority and God has brought restoration, we need to understand…
III. Man’s Responsibility
A. How does His Kingdom come? How does His will be done on earth as it is in heaven?
1. Through us!
2. It is OUR responsibility!
3. We had the authority invested in us and we relinquished it, but God has restored it in His Son.
4. We now have the responsibility of establishing His Kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven in the name of Jesus.
5. We don’t have the authority anymore because we relinquished it to Satan.
6. But Christ came and took it back.
7. Jesus said in Matthew 28:18-20 (NIV), "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
8. We invite the rule and power of Jesus into our affairs.
a. Please understand that it is not inevitable.
b. It is not inevitable that Jesus will rule over our affairs.
c. It is not inevitable that Jesus will rule over our affairs simply because we got saved.
d. We must invite the rule and power of Jesus into our affairs.
e. We must invite the rule and power of Jesus into our sickness and disease.
f. We must invite the rule and power of Jesus into our trials.
g. We must invite the rule and power of Jesus into our suffering.
h. The power is Christ’s, but the responsibility is ours.
i. If we don’t invite the rule and power of Jesus into our affairs, we are still subject to forces of evil in this dark world.
B. When we take this responsibility we are taking our role as members of the race that betrayed the King and forfeited our intended purposes to the enemy.
1. And if we don’t take our responsibility, Satan continues to rule.
2. Christ made it possible to regain authority over this world.
3. We no longer have the power, but Christ does and it is available to us for the asking.
C. We have the responsibility to reach into the invisible and change one circumstance after another.
1. We have the responsibility of seeing that His Kingdom comes!
2. We have the responsibility of seeing that His will is done on earth as it is in heaven!
3. When Jesus said to pray that God’s Kingdom comes, he wasn’t just saying to just put wrong circumstances into God’s hands and let Him do as He pleases.
4. When things are wrong, we in faith in Jesus’ power, change them.
5. That includes prayer, but it also includes action.
6. We are responsible to change the circumstances that Satan is controlling.
7. We are responsible to change the circumstances that Satan is controlling.
8. Through Christ we have the power to change our circumstances!
9. Through Christ we have the power to change our circumstances!
10. Through Christ we have the power to confront the demonic forces of hell!
11. Through Christ we have the power to strike down the satanic forces that we encounter.
12. Jesus said in Mark 16:17-18 (NIV), And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."
13.Was Jesus telling the truth?
14.In His name do we have the power to drive out demons and bring God’s Kingdom?
15.In His name do we have the power to lay hands on sick people and bring His will to earth?
16.In His name do we have the power to change the circumstances of this life and see that His Kingdom comes?
17.In His name do we have the power to change things from the fallen order to God’s intended order?
18.In His name do we have the responsibility to see that His kingdom comes, that His will is done on earth as it is in heaven?
19.Do you see that when we believe this, we have responsible faith?
Conclusion:
A. Have you been living your life in depression, feeling sorry for yourself and those around you?
1. Stop it!
2. If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, the power is in you to overcome!
B. Listen to these Scriptures…
1. John 16:33 (NIV), "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
2. Romans 12:21 (NIV), Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
3. 1 John 4:4 (NIV), You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.
4. 1 John 5:3-4 (NIV), This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, 4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.
5. Revelation 3:21 (NIV), To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne.
C. “Jesus’ counsel on how to pray illuminates a truth that we often ignore: People need to invite God’s rule and power into the affairs of their lives through prayer. For if humans won’t pray, God’s rule in their circumstances is forfeited.” --Jack Hayford
1. Do you understand that if you are a believer in Jesus Christ, you do NOT have to sit around and feel sorry for yourself?
2. Do you understand that we have the responsibility to overcome?
3. Do you understand that we have the responsibility to invite God’s rule and His power into your affairs?
4. Do you understand that you have the responsibility to stand with others and invite God’s rule and power into their circumstances?
5. Are you sulking or inviting God’s rule and power into the affairs of your life?
6. We have the responsibility of drawing on the resources of the heavenly realms and changing one circumstance after another.
D. What circumstances do you need to invite God’s rule and power into today?
