Prayer - A Manifestation of Faith

The Lord's Prayer in Hebrew at the Church of the Pater Noster, Israel. (Photo courtesy of http://gervatoshav.blogspot.com)

10^th Sunday after Pentecost (Ordinary Time/UM Kingdomtide), C

July 28, 2013

Luke 11:1-13

This sermon was delivered during the monthly chapel service of the college department of Philippine Christian University-Dasmariñas last July 26, 2013.

Introduction

The theme of today’s chapel service is “Jesus: the Foundation of Faith”. Jesus is the foundation of our faith. It is not enough to “have faith”—the word faith demands an object. The question is not whether or not you have faith but in whom do you have faith in.

According to statistics, even if the biggest Christian churches are in South Korea, around half of South Koreans are non-religious. In my former school, we had plenty of South Korean students. When we asked them if they believed in anything, one of them answered, “I believe in myself.” But by definition, you cannot believe in yourself! You do not need faith to “believe in yourself”. And as human beings, we have limitations physically, intellectually, & c. You will fail your friends and you will even fail yourself. You cannot put faith in yourself!

We can only pray because we believe in God. That is why Jesus taught us to pray, “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.” Once I read about a person who tried to pray but was not sure if there is a God who would be listening to him, so he prayed, “To whom it may concern….” Ano yun, excuse letter lang ang ‘peg’? We can pray with confidence because we believe that we have a Father in heaven who can hear and answer our prayers!

What shall we ask for?

I. “Thy kingdom come: Thy will be done as in heaven, so on earth.

First, we are to ask for his kingdom come and his will be done, as it is heaven, so it is on earth.

A.   By “the kingdom of God”, we understand as ‘the rule of God’ or ‘the reign of God’. The kingdom of God is not a territory as we humans understand territory, e.g., here is the Philippines and there is China. The kingdom of God is wherever his will is done. If you are following the will of God, you are a part of the kingdom of God. If your family lives by the will of God, your home will be a kingdom of God. If the people of Philippine Christian University follow the will of God, PCU will be the kingdom of God in this place!

B.   Whenever I lead prayer in class, whether at the beginning or at the end (my students know this), I always say, “In everything that we do, direct us to the fulfilling of your purpose.” The will of God is God’s purpose in your life. All of us have our own agendas in our lives; but the most important agenda is the agenda of God in our lives. Are you following God’s agenda for your life? “Thy will be done, as in heaven, so on earth.”

II. “Give us day by day our daily bread”

A.   First, this means we are to ask only for what is essential in life. (In Hebrew, the word for bread, לחם, lechem, is also the word for ‘food’; just as in Tagalog, the word for rice, kanin, is related to the word for ‘food’, pagkain.) If you keep on asking God for luxuries and gadgets, there must be something wrong with you! As for the essential things is life, like food to eat, water to drink, clothes to wear, money for your everyday needs, money to pay your tuition, & c. Kung magpapadala man ang Diyos ng iPad Mini o Samsung Galaxy Tab, extra na lang yun!

B.   Second, this means we are to ask only for what is enough for the day. “Give us day by day our daily bread.” We cannot ask God to give us this day the bread for the entire year. After that, “Okay God! See you when I pray next year!”  God wants us to trust him every day; that is why he taught us to ask only for our daily bread. Remember: Don’t worry about tomorrow; that’s God’s problem!

III. “Forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us.”

A. We should ask forgiveness for our sins. Even now and then, we commit sin. But the good news is that we can ask God for forgiveness. I will talk more about this in a while.

B. But connected with our asking God for forgiveness is forgiving our neighbor for the wrong they have done to us: “And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors”. If anyone has done wrong to you, forgive. Unforgiveness causes heart disease. If you don’t want to get a heart attack, forgive!

IV. “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”

There is temptation all around us. When we walk down the street, we can see plenty of things that can cause us to sin. Even if we close our eyes, we can have thoughts that tempt us: thoughts of materialism and lust (especially to those of you with girlfriends and boyfriends). These coming preliminary examinations, you may be tempted to cheat. Temptation is different for sin: The enticement to do wrong is temptation; but when you give in the temptation, that is sin. So when you are tempted, pray: “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil”.

Conclusion

Jesus is the foundation of our faith. And prayer is a manifestation of faith. Because we have faith in God our Father, we can pray with confidence. Let us ask for his will for our lives; for our daily needs; for forgiveness of our sins and the strength to the forgive others; and for power over temptation. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.