Luke 11:1-28
English Standard Version, David Cochran Audio Bible
Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” 2 And he said to them, “When you pray, say:
“Father, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
3 Give us each day our daily bread,
4 and forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
And lead us not into temptation.”
5 And he said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, 6 for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; 7 and he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything’? 8 I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence [persistence] he will rise and give him whatever he needs. 9 And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 11 What father among you, if his son asks for [bread, will give him a stone; or if he asks for] a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; 12 or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
14 Now he was casting out a demon that was mute. When the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke, and the people marveled. 15 But some of them said, “He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the prince of demons,” 16 while others, to test him, kept seeking from him a sign from heaven. 17 But he, knowing their thoughts, said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and a divided household falls. 18 And if Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul. 19 And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. 20 But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 21 When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are safe; 22 but when one stronger than he attacks him and overcomes him, he takes away his armor in which he trusted and divides his spoil. 23 Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
24 “When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and finding none it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ 25 And when it comes, it finds the house swept and put in order. 26 Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there. And the last state of that person is worse than the first.”
27 As he said these things, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts at which you nursed!” 28 But he said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”
We eagerly want to repeat Jesus' prayer. We put this prayer up on walls, we memorize it, we offer it as corporate prayer. Corporate prayer is important, we offer prayers together in harmony.
Perhaps we need to remember this as well. Jesus said:
Matthew 6:7
And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.
If we offer up prayers just by rote, we are that swept house, put in order, without the Light of Jesus Christ. God is always looking towards the intentional, loving soul. I know in times of sheer trouble I've repeated the Lord's Prayer because I just was completely overwhelmed and almost incoherent. I know Jesus would say, "It's okay, I hear you."
How do I know? Scriptures say this about prayer as well:
Romans 8:26
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.
The next passage, after the Lord's Prayer tells us more. God Almighty, maker of the Universe, and Jesus Christ His Only Begotten Son, want to be addressed as a friend. A friend. Someone who intends good for you. Your LORD expects you to be impudent, persistent, like a best friend. God isn't looking for the safe prayers - He is looking for those great, late at night gab times when things somehow become clear. He expects you to inconvenience Him like He is your parent. He expects you to put time into your faith - your conversation - your heart. He is looking forward to seeing you live your Life by His way and His truth. Why? Just as John was asked to be Mary's son, you are God's Child.“Father, hallowed be your name. Father God, You are my parent. Just because You want
to be. Thank You.
Your kingdom come. Today has been a beautiful day. Thank You for spring. Someday I will live with You where we will see each other every day. I wonder if the Cathedrals show us even a glimpse of anything You have in Your Kingdom, since it is Eternity.
Give us each day our daily bread, Father God, I have some real needs I'd like to put before you. I need Your provision.
and forgive us our sins, Father God, today I made mistakes ....
for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. Help me to be forgiving and not resentful, bitter or full of grudges. Let Your living water flow into the peace of forgiveness I long to give.
And lead us not into temptation.” Abba, we create our own temptations, help us to get out of them. Not trapped like fly paper. Help us to see the exit in temptation.
Deliver us from evil. You've told us there is a spiritual battle greater than me, I trust in You for Your protection.
For thine is the Kingdom, the Power and the Glory. Lord, help me to align what I want for my life to Your Glory and Your plans. I do not do this on my own steam, but I rely upon Your mercy and Your acts. I rest in You. In Jesus' name. Amen.
<><
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment