Tag: Matthew 6:9-13
Divided priorities fail
Scripture reading for January 8: Matthew 6
“”Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. . . .No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”” Matthew 6:19-21, 24
Our world is obsessed with accumulating the ‘treasures’ of this earth. We have basic needs of food, clothing and shelter and should be concerned about those, but our appetites always outpace our basic needs. As I began my life on the farm with a new wife and a degree from a state university, my goal was to become a big farmer and find success. We started out small and began to accumulate land, animals and equipment. Borrowed money was used and debts grew as well. Then the economy took a turn and interest rates skyrocketed. I learned that the borrower becomes a slave of the lender! (Proverbs 22:7) That’s when our Lord revealed to me the truth that I couldn’t serve Him and ‘money’. My heart was tied up in worry about the things and money and not in worship and love for God.
But thanks be to God, He loved me enough to call me to follow Him. He called me to come to Him and learn His ways. He taught me that if I would seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, everything I truly needed would be supplied in my life! (Matthew 6:33) He taught me dependence on Him for my daily bread! (Matthew 6:11)
Where is your ‘treasure’ laid up today? Is your heart divided trying to serve two masters? Have you given all your love and devotion to your true Master Jesus Christ? Are you worried about your daily needs?
Prayer: “Our Father in heaven, hollowed by Your Name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” Amen! (Matthew 6:9-13)
Talking to our Father in Heaven
Scripture reading for January 8th: Matthew 6, Psalm 6, Prov. 6 (Reading through the New Testament, Psalms, and Proverbs one chapter a day, five days each week in 2019–please join me in the trek!)
Key Scriptures: Matthew 6:9-13 “Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.””
Jesus taught His disciples a pattern of prayer. Prayer was not to be empty repetitions and vain babbling. Prayer is humble and vital communication with a loving Father who hears our every cry. Prayer declares our alignment with the Father and His will and Word and our dependency on Him for daily provision, protection and deliverance from temptation and the evil one. Prayer keeps our alignment right with God and others made in their Father’s image. Prayer is the basic language of the kingdom of heaven.
Faith’s confession: I believe that my Father in heaven hears and answers prayer. I am dependent on Him for provision, protection and forgiveness of my sins and forgiving others. (Action: Search your heart today for unforgiven sins or bitter roots and ask God and/or others for grace to let go and receive restoration.)
Psalm 6:9 “The Lord has heard my plea; the Lord accepts my prayer.”
Pattern for prayer!
Scripture reading for January 8th: Genesis 18-21, Matthew 6
Key Scriptures: Matthew 6:9-13 “Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and for give us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.””
Jesus, in teaching His disciples how to pray, gave simple instructions. He laid out a pattern for them. God was addressed as ‘Our Father in heaven’, implying family relationship. Really, the term ‘Father’ is more like ‘Daddy’! The priority was to His will being done, not ours! We were to acknowledge our dependence on Him for everything: provision, forgiveness, and protection from evil and the evil one.
Genesis 18:23-25 “Then Abraham drew near and said, “Will You indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will You then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from You to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked. Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?””
Prayer: Father, thank you for Your simple instructions and the ability of Your people to come before you and ask questions and declare our needs! In Your Holy Name, Amen.