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Frances
...and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. (III)
“Forgive us what we have done wrong, as we too have forgiven those who have wronged us.” (Matt 6:12).
In preparing this ‘Thought’ for the week, I first considered the purpose of forgiveness, which is to bring about reconciliation. The first part of the above phrase is from us to God and is conditional upon the second part having happened between us and others. Immediately following the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus adds this rider: “For if you forgive others their offences, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others their offenses, your heavenly Father will not forgive yours” (Matt 6:14).
At this point I did a lengthy Bible study in order to share with you the understanding Jesus’ followers would already have had concerning forgiveness. It was very significant and I’d recommend that everyone does such a study, but God then prompted me to share something else with you this week.
Many years ago I recall a discussion that I had with a church elder. We were talking about forgiveness but had a difference of opinion. My experiences had led me to believe that I should pro-actively forgive someone who wronged me, even if they weren’t admitting the offence or showing any remorse. Ted was of the opinion that he should wait to forgive until the wrongdoer asked for forgiveness.
I will now tell you what had led me to my opinion and let you decide for yourselves which is right.
A Tale of Two Brothers
There was a young man who had an older brother, whom he thought the world of and in many ways made his role model. Both got married and had families. There came a time when the older brother did a very hurtful wrong to the younger brother, something that had the potential to destroy the younger brother’s family and life. Though the older brother tried to hide this deed, the younger brother still discovered it. Now the younger brother faced a dilemma. On the one hand he was in a position to make known the wrong done, demand justice and damage the older brother’s family and life in return. On the other hand, he could forgive his brother.
That same day he phoned his older brother and had him travel across the country to meet up. Upon meeting he told his older brother all that he knew. The older brother denied everything at first and then, upon being faced with fact after fact, he tried to share the blame elsewhere. At this point he realised the precarious position he was in. He showed remorse, though it was evidently for having been found out, not for the wrongdoing. Despite this, the young man forgave him, right there and then, not waiting for any repentance! Then he comforted his older brother that he would tell no-one about the sad events.
Over the next years the young man struggled with the consequences of the wrongdoing, to hold his own family and life together, at times fighting back a bitterness when considering that his older brother had apparently got off scot-free. But he kept his promise and said nothing.
As I said, this all happened a long time ago. Both brothers are now old men. Praise God that given time, the wounds of the past have now largely healed. Both families are still together and keep in fairly regular touch with one another. And the brothers? I know that they get in touch with each other from time to time and help each other when needed. They also pray for one another and each other’s family.
Limitless Forgiveness?
God taught in Exodus 23:4-5: “If you see your enemy’s ox or donkey straying, you must return it to him. If you see the donkey which belongs to someone who hates you lying down helpless under its load, you are not to pass him by but to go and help him free it,” thus telling people to give their enemy opportunities of reconciliation wherever possible.
In Matthew 18:21-35, in reply to Peter’s question about the limitations of forgiveness, Jesus says that it should be limitless. But He then goes on to tell a parable of a king who was extravagantly merciful with one of his servants who owed him more than he could ever hope to repay, only to discover that the same servant then was stingily unmerciful to a colleague who owed him a meagre amount. In anger the king withdrew his mercy and threw the servant into jail until he could repay.
Jesus sums up by saying in v35: “This is how my heavenly Father will treat you, unless you each forgive your brother from your hearts.”
I believe the younger brother in the story above can pray to our Heavenly Father with more confidence: “Forgive me what I have done wrong, as I too have forgiven my brother who wronged me.”
Author: John Quinlan
...and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. (II)
This week, I have fallen short of the glory of God. I have an inkling that we all may have – in one way or another, deliberately or quite by accident, whether by doing or by omission.
Coming to terms with the fact that our hearts are deceitful, that our bodies are fallible and that our own-strength attempts at righteousness are pitiful, is a difficult and humbling process. Nobody likes to be faced with the hopelessness of their own depravity.
But for the grace of God. But for His unfathomable kindness. But for the universe-changing power of Jesus Messiah’s death on the Cross - His blood poured out in payment for our debt.
Debt? What has debt got to do with it?
Harmatia, Opheiléma
The two versions of the Lord’s prayer recorded in the Gospels use different words in this phrase about forgiveness. In Luke’s account, Jesus says we are to ask forgiveness for harmatia, which refers in no uncertain terms to sin – meaning guilt, fault or moral failure - literally missing the mark, and by extension forfeiting or losing access to the benefits of holy living. The Bible reminds us that the chief blessing of holiness (Heb 12:14) and purity of heart is seeing God (Matt 5:8).
Matthew’s account does not use the word ‘hamartia’, however. Instead, Matthew uses the terminology of financial debt, preferring the word opheiléma – something owed, with its attendant consequences for the debtor.
The idea of debt is one that Jesus comes back and back to (e.g. Matt 18:23-35) – no doubt with great meaning for His listeners at the time. The mention of debt in 1st Century Palestine, then under Roman occupation, would have signalled fear and trepidation – the brooding threat of imprisonment or slavery for those who couldn’t pay. This would have chimed especially strongly with Matthew, the tax collector, whose former life may well have consisted of squeezing debtors for money they could ill-afford.
But why does Jesus, as recorded by Matthew, choose to conceive of our sins – our offences against God and against others (as well as those of others against us) - as debts?
Trespassing
Being in debt means you owe someone else (whether by their agreement or not) – you have taken from them and in some way are obligated to repay them for their trouble, kindness or cost. To use another common synonym, you have ‘trespassed’ – you have encroached on them in some way. In the context of sin, when we sin against others we trespass against them – somehow violating their capacity to live a Godly, fulfilled life.
Ultimately, of course, because human beings are subject to the just judgment of God for their every thought, word and deed, every sin we each commit is also an offence against the Lord, whether it seems to be at the time or not. Our errors lead us to trespass into territory that is not right or good, indulging attitudes and behaviours that violate His laws and fall far short of His glory. As Holy King and Righteous Judge of the entire universe, if our offences are against anyone, they are against Him - His goodness, character, laws and justice - and His loving relationship to us as our Father.
Since the wages of sin is death (Rom 6:23), all of Scripture is consistent and clear that our offences against God and against others can only be atoned for by blood sacrifice (Heb 9:22). We know that the blood of bulls and goats cannot truly atone for sin – only the perfect life of another as covering for our own blemished lives will suffice. It is Jesus Messiah’s sacrifice, and that alone, which was designed to take away the sin of the world – nailing millions upon millions of debt certificates to the Cross:
He forgave us all our sins, having cancelled [blotted out, erased] the charge of our legal indebtedness [other translations record this as our ‘certificate of debt’], which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. (Col 2:13-14)
Our Response
However, though the Lord has paid an immeasurable sum to wipe away the cost we have incurred, we each still have to enter willingly into this new agreement (Heb 4:11). In other words, a response is required from us – a response of repentance and faith.
I believe that this is, in part, why Jesus chose to speak about sin in the language of debt - because though being in debt binds the debtor with an obligation that enslaves them, removing their freedom, it also demands a response from them. It demands either repayment or a declaration of bankruptcy – casting oneself on the mercy of the creditor, who may choose to respond with mercy or with punishment.
Asking for forgiveness from God, through the precious blood of Jesus, is a declaration of bankruptcy on our part – a recognition that we are in no way able to repay our own debts. Spiritually speaking, we are brought to our knees. But oh! the joy of then discovering His willingness to lift that burden from us and fling it away, as far as the east is from the west, remembering it no more (Ps 103:11-12) – and not only that, but His desire to purchase [ransom, redeem] us – body, soul and spirit – to be His very own. We are no longer slaves to sin, but to righteousness – no longer in bondage to the evil one, but totally belonging to the Father – no longer ruled by the flesh, but by the Holy Spirit.
Have no fear, for I have paid your ransom. I have called you by name and you are my own. (Isa 43:1, NEB)
The blood of goats and bulls…sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God! (Heb 9:13-14)
You are not your own; you were bought at a price. (1 Cor 6:19-20)
My prayer today is that we will all – myself included - have our eyes opened to just how much we owe God – and that this dawning of understanding would cause such humility and thankfulness to spring up in our hearts that we would run towards the opportunity to ‘go and do likewise’, forgiving others just as we have been forgiven.
Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.
Author: Frances Rabbitts
...and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. (I)
Forgiveness is central to both the Lord’s prayer and the Bible as a whole. It was the foundational purpose of the ministry the Tabernacle and Temple and of the sacrificial death of Jesus. Jesus’ prayer for us from the cross, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34), resounds to us through history to release from the burden of sin all those who come to Him in repentance.
Immediately after teaching the prayer to His disciples, Jesus emphasised again the importance of our forgiving others so that we too might be forgiven (Matt 6:14-15).
God’s Heart of Mercy
The importance of forgiving others was also taught to Peter when he asked how many times he should forgive someone who had sinned against him (Matt 18:21-22). Peter offered a ‘generous’ suggestion of seven times, which Jesus multiplied up to a symbolic 70 times, to show how much we should have the attitude of forgiveness for others. This came as a surprise to Peter, just as it might to us, especially if we read the way many of the Psalms call down curses on the enemies of Israel.
Was something new released when Jesus taught His disciples to forgive as they also asked Father for forgiveness? The nature of God did not change at this time, who had made provision for forgiveness for His people when He led them as a nation through the wilderness. Nor were the principles of the Law of Moses compromised, nor the consequences of sin that is not atoned for and forgiven.
Jesus taught about God’s heart for mercy – a heart that He also wants us to have. The parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32) illustrates this. It was through the son’s returning in repentance that the father could give forgiveness. Nevertheless, the father’s heart was shown by the fact that even though the son was allowed to suffer the consequence of his sins, the father longed for his return.
Forgiveness: A Spiritual Transaction
So what is forgiveness? The two main Hebrew words used for forgive bring some understanding. One word is salach, meaning ‘to pardon’. The other is nasa, a word with wide applications associated with ‘lifting up’. Together these words show us that when someone sins, they carry a burden that must be lifted away through the one ready to pardon them.
The same willingness to pardon must reside in us so that when someone asks us for forgiveness, that person is totally released of the burden.
This is a spiritual transaction. Experience shows that if we have the nature of harbouring grudges and find forgiveness difficult, then we can bring spiritual harm to ourselves, like a cancer of bitterness or resentment eating into our inner being. That is how important it is for us to be like our Father in Heaven - sorrowful for division between ourselves and others on account of sin, and ready to lift away their burden immediately they ask forgiveness from us.
The Power to Forgive
The attitude and act of forgiveness bring spiritual healing and restoration. This is what Jesus wants between us all and between us and the Father. It is as important as His going to the Cross for us.
His sacrifice enabled the release of spiritual power that lifts our burden of sin when we ask forgiveness of the Father, and also enables us to forgive others when they ask for our forgiveness. In this respect it was indeed a new thing when He taught His disciples to pray in this way. We are now enabled, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to forgive just as we are forgiven.
Author: Dr Clifford Denton
Give Us Today Our Daily Bread...IV
When I was young, I remember when our family went to the coast for the day in April, and lunch was a picnic sitting against a little wall for shelter at the top of the beach. After a while an elderly couple came along and sat down near us. I watched them as they took out a sandwich, held the bread in their hands and said a prayer of thanks. In conversation later, they said that they were Polish and had strong memories of the war when food was very scarce, and they learned to survive by finding occasional small pieces of bread. But now when food is plentiful, they still acknowledged God's daily provision for them, and gave thanks. The Greek of the New Testament record of this first request in the Lord's Prayer for ourselves is instructive, because it emphasises our dependence upon God the giver of life. Literally, it says: The bread that is our needful sustenance for each day give to us on this day (Matthew 5:11) and the bread that is needful for us give us day by day (Luke 11:2). It is asking God just for what we need for each day.
We should recognise our dependence on God's provision
God knows that we need physical food to live, and He has provided seed and soil to grow it. Thanksgiving for this provision is echoed in the Jewish Shabbat blessing for bread – Baruch ata Adonai Eloheinu, melekh ha-olam, ha-motzi lechem min ha-aretz (Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the Universe, who brings forth bread from the earth) and this underlines our dependence upon His provision. Our independence from God results in reliance on our own resources which so often fail. It's when we have no resources that He can, and does, provide our daily bread, as he did for the ancient Israelites in the desert with daily bread-like manna. We recall that Jesus was born among fields of wheat in Beit-lechem (the House of bread), and He said, I am the bread of life (John 6:35). The word lechem can also mean 'food' or 'provisions' in general, so our prayer would be that God would give us everything we need to sustain us each day. In the 1984 famine in Ethiopia, the Times newspaper reported that the earth had produced in the past year 10% more food than the current world population needed. Yet today one-third of all food produced worldwide, worth $1Tn, is wasted in food production and consumption every year (in the USA)1. In a world full of hunger, that is morally outrageous, and constrains us to be more conscious of what we buy, eat, or throw away, and to acknowledge our apathy and ingratitude for God's daily provision for us. Maybe then we would be more grateful to Him, and share what we don't need with those who have little or nothing. Jesus tells us too: Let nothing be wasted (John 6:12).
Fellowship and reconciliation
Bread as part of a meal is synonymous with fellowship. In the Tabernacle, God instructed Moses to place a golden Table of Shewbread2 (lechem panim, literally the bread of the Face, or Presence) having two rows or piles of six loaves 'before the Lord continually', representing the 12 tribes of Israel. This was to present all the people before the Lord in close fellowship (face-to-face), as in a meal with God, like the elders did to celebrate their covenant together (Exod. 24:9-11) – amazing thought! God relates to His people at all levels, but especially through the breaking of bread in a fellowship meal, as with Jesus' disciples in the Jerusalem or in Emmaus after His resurrection (Luke 22:11; 24:30). He longs to do this with us today if we will but open the door to Him (Rev. 3:20). It is a tragedy that so many families today do not spend time eating together (face-to-face). In the ancient Middle East, hospitality for strangers or relatives was a welcome expressed in a fellowship meal, like Abraham or Jacob did (Gen. 18:6-8; 31:54). Today, this meal, even between Jew and Arab in tragic loss, can still be a place of peace and reconciliation (a sulha), because Jesus created in Himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace (Eph. 2:14-16). This table may be considered as an altar where we can lay down our sin and hostility, and this too is part of the sustaining power of our daily bread in Jesus, as we take Him into our heart, and welcome 'enemies'.
Jesus is the Living Bread from heaven
God's desire to dwell with His people brings an invitation to all who believe in Him to meet together panim-el-panim, face to face, to 'eat' this Living Bread who came down to bring us fellowship through eternal life (John 6:50-51). For Jesus is the full sustenance that we need, daily. Bread sustains those who eat it, but Jesus sustains all who take in this Bread of life, and we are complete (with everything we need) only in Him (Col. 2:10). He tells us that those who eat this Bread will live for ever (John 6:58). That is His answer to our prayer: Give us this day our daily Bread. Amen.
Author : Greg Stevenson
References
1. A report by UN Environment Programme and the World Resources Institute (WRI) on the World Food Day, October 2015
2. The word 'Shewbread' comes from the German word Schaubrot – bread required to be shown, or on display, evidence of the fellowship meal of God dwelling with His people.
Give Us Today Our Daily Bread...II
The Lord’s prayer begins by us acknowledging and praising who God is and declaring His Kingdom and will to be our first priorities after worship. Then, within this context, the Lord Jesus tells us to ask for three specific things for ourselves: daily provision of bread, forgiveness of sins and deliverance from evil.
To me, it makes sense for us to ask for forgiveness and for deliverance from evil. But why are we told to ask for the provision of our daily needs? After all, doesn’t God already know what we need before we ask (Matt 6:8)? Has He not promised to supply all the needs of His faithful saints (Phil 4:19), just as He cares for the needs of all Creation (Ps 145:15-16)? Is He somehow forgetful, that He needs reminding of our needs on a daily basis?
No, God is not forgetful – and yes, He has promised to supply all our needs. So why must we petition Him daily for bread? There must be something more to this request than meets the eye.
A Heart Exercise
I believe that, at least in part, asking God to provide us with our daily bread is an exercise in humility on our part – an opportunity for us to trust the LORD with deliberateness and purpose; to prepare our hearts intentionally to depend upon Him.
Asking for our daily bread reminds us that all we have is supplied by God, keeping us acutely aware of our need of Him. This goes beyond the provision of our material needs, including spiritual nourishment that we receive in the person of Jesus Messiah – the Living Bread from Heaven, the Bread of Life. As Jesus is the Word made flesh, we also feed on the word of God (Deut 8:3/Matt 4:4; Jer 15:16; Ps 19:9-10), as recorded in Scripture, for our daily spiritual sustenance.
However, our deceitful hearts are ready to betray God at every turn; our natural instincts are to rely on ourselves (or on others, or on worldly things) – not on Him. Unless we are intentional about fighting these inclinations, we will not naturally seek to depend and wait upon God.
Perhaps this is why Jesus taught us to pray in this way – and why we must ask daily for our bread: to keep us in regular dependence upon the Father, not allowing space for pride to grow. Accordingly, the spiritual manna God has for us each day is not designed to last into the next – for we were never created to exist independently of Him, but totally and happily dependent upon His loving care.
The eyes of all look to You, and You give them their food in due time. You open Your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing. (Psalm 145:15-16)
Accepting His Provision
We have all had it drummed into us over the years that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. What if every believer started each day on their knees before the Lord, humbling themselves to rely upon and receive His provision for that day, declaring: “Lord, I need you to provide for me materially today. Lord, I need to you to feed me with the Bread of Heaven. Lord, I need you to nourish me with the Word. I cannot go further until you meet me with the food you have prepared!”
As we celebrate this week the awesome provision of Jesus’s sacrifice, His body broken for us, may we become ever more aware of our need of Him as our Daily Bread to fulfil, nourish and sustain us to do His will.
May our hearts be humbled to seek Him daily, to rely on Him and to accept from His hand the sustenance we need. And may our experience of walking under the covering of His precious blood extend not only to our assurance of salvation ‘at the end’, but also to new life “in all its fullness” here and now, through the power of the Resurrection and the promised Holy Spirit.
Author: Frances Rabbitts
Give us today our daily bread...I
Soon after Moses led the Children of Israel out of Egypt, God showed them that they were to be completely dependent on Him, even for their daily food. The account of is in Exodus 20.
Later on the journey to the Promised Land, Moses explained why God made them dependent on Him for their daily bread:
So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live on bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord. (Deut 8:3)
When Jesus was hungry and tempted by satan to use His power to turn stones to bread, He answered satan with this same Scripture (Matt 4:4), indicating that there was more to the provision of daily bread than to satisfy physical hunger.
Nevertheless, Jesus recognised that human beings need food to live and brought miraculous provision in time of need for thousands who were also avidly feeding on his teaching (Matt 14:13-21; 15:32-39).
Feeding on the Bread of Life
At another time Jesus brought all this teaching together as follows:
Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in me has everlasting life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven… (John 6:47-51)
The prayer that Jesus taught his disciples – the Lord’s Prayer - begins by recognising who God is in all holiness, and acknowledging His authority in all matters of Heaven and earth. We then come to what on the face of it seems to be asking Him for our daily food - a small thing for One so great! In its smallness it is still great, since One so great is willing to deal with such small details as our daily needs.
Yet, it is great for another reason. Like those who received manna in the wilderness, we know that through learning to trust God for our daily needs, we are learning to trust Him for all things, especially our eternal life.
Great provision indeed. Within the small is the great.
Learning to Trust
This is a timely challenge for us in a world that seeks its own security whilst not believing in the Creator of Heaven and earth for daily provision. More and more it is a world driven by economic considerations more than desire to trust God. Surely this is especially a priority for us all at this time of our exodus from Europe, our so-called ‘Brexit’.
Author: Dr Clifford Denton
Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. (IV)
To pray this section of the prayer that Jesus taught His disciples is to acknowledge several things that are central to our life 'on earth'.
We have, if we believe in our Lord Jesus, an eternal life with Him after this present life on earth comes to its end (John 3:36). This prayer addresses not so much what we would desire for personal fulfilment but what God would desire for His earth (world) that He created.
The prayer matures from the “Lord, bless Mum and Dad, my brother and sister, my home, my job, my friend John, and me – Amen” approach to a genuine concern for God's will to be done for the benefit of all mankind and of His creation. But of course that concern is ours too.
A Little Matter of Authority
This is the uncomfortable bit. In praying for God's perfect will to be done on earth, we have to ask: who has the highest authority in the earth? Even though satan may have temporary legal authority over rebellious mankind, the final authority does not rest with him, or with Supreme Courts or national or political leaders; and looking at man's history, it's not with us either!
Jesus makes it quite clear that ALL authority has been given to Him (Matt 28:18) and since He and the Father (to whom we are praying) are one, it follows that God's will is expressed in what Jesus has said and done.
God's will, both for all people and for His earth, is bound up with the Kingdom that Jesus came to earth to bring in accordance with His character and nature – “Thy Kingdom come on earth”, and “Thy will be done on earth”, are two sides of the same coin. Although there are at least three heavens (2 Cor 12:2) and God is omnipresent, the 'heaven' in this prayer - the “highest heaven” (Ps 115:16) – is, in Jewish thought, God's primary abode. This word is a synonym for God, to avoid misusing or profaning His Holy Name (Ex 20:7). So this prayer is a request for Father's will, His good and perfect will of love, to be done in all the earth under His authority, partly through us, for the benefit of all His creation.
God’s Safe, Good and Perfect Will
Isaiah found this ultimate authority when he was given a vision of God in the Temple in around 740 BC, when he saw the sovereign Lord and King (Isa 6:1-5). Isaiah's response was total submission1 to the King and to His call for an apostle – Hineni sh'lacheni, “Here am I, send me” (shalach is Hebrew for a 'sent one'). God's will and His creation are tov me'od (very good), and is ALWAYS (even in discipline) the very best for us – good, dependable and fully trustworthy, because He is totally faithful. Who would not want this earth to be under the authority of the King whose will is “very good”?
We know that the physical earth is under His sovereign rule, but will we also be obedient to the authority of our Lord and King? Jesus said, “Why do you call me Lord, Lord, but do not do what I say?” (Luke 6:46). It makes no sense NOT to do what is God's best for us.
Jesus Himself submitted to His Father's will in His time of deep anguish and distress in Gethsemane, to bring in the Kingdom, and this could be true for us too in our times of suffering. God is our safe hiding place in these times, so let us not hide from our hiding place as Adam did, by seeking to be independent of God. Let us not stray from our safe place by seeking independence from God, but stay safe under His authority. We can follow Mother Theresa's encouragement prayer2 and the lovely poem by Minnie Haskins,3 quoted by King George VI in WWII. For God's hands are a safe place for us.
Following Through with This Prayer
So, how may we follow through with this prayer? The expression of will is made through the mind. When God created the heavens and the earth, He spoke His thought and will into being (Gen 1:3). Wonder-fully, this is also true for each one of us, as we see in Psalm 139:13,15. This psalm tells us that each one of us was a thought in the mind of God, created even before our conception (v16) in a specific time and place, in order to grow up to know and love Him as a Father, and to test and approve what is His good, pleasing and perfect will for us (Rom 12:2-3).
Paul reminds us that to do this we need to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. We may pray, “Lord, Thy will be done”, but that renewal starts with our “Yes, Lord”. Can we too, say, “Not my will, Lord, but Thy will be done”? If this were done in governments, local councils, families, even all believing church groups, what a different place this earth (world) would be.
Some of these do praise God (like in the annual Prayer Breakfast in New York last month, where President Trump closed with, “For us here in Washington, we must never ever stop asking God for the wisdom to serve the public according to His will”4), but individually it starts with us, as we submit our will to His authority. The choice to reject or be independent of His authority and seek power by secular thinking, or force, is the enemy of this process, to the world's great loss and distress, as we well know. Thank God that He gives people, and nations, a second chance to change our ways. But time is short. Let us pray this into being.
Knowing Him
Lastly, many of God's “I will...” statements in Scripture are linked with His purpose that people might know Him. This is a major purpose of God's will, that all might come to know Him (Heb. yada – a close Father/son relationship) but we cannot fully know the 'infinite and transcendent' so this can only be achieved through His self-disclosure in Jesus, who is the exact expression of the Father's being.
For us to say (by our lives), as Jesus did, “Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven”, is thus a pathway to our knowing Him (Jer 24:7), because His will done in us displays His nature, sanctifies and exalts His name, and echoes the seraphim's prophetic calling to one another in their worship of the King: “The whole earth is full of His glory” (Isaiah 6:3).
For this we can give thanks in all circumstances, and in this at least we can fulfil His specific will for us in Christ Jesus (1 Thess 5:18).
Author: Greg Stevenson
References
1 Submission - Latin, sub, mittere, to be put or sent under the authority of a superior being.
2 As Mother Theresa said, “Prayer is not asking. Prayer is putting yourself in the hands of God, at His disposition, and listening to His voice in the depths of His heart.”
3 GOD KNOWS by Minnie Louise Haskins (1875-1957):
And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year:
“Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.”
And he replied: “Go out into the darkness, and put your hand into the Hand of God.
That shall be to you better than light, and safer than a known way.”
So I went forth, and finding the Hand of God, trod gladly into the night.
And He led me towards the hills and the breaking of day in the lone East.
4 President Trump's closing prayer at the Annual Presidents' Prayer Breakfast, New York, February 2017, with representatives from 140 nations, quoted in Ari Sorko-Ram, It's a new day in Washington, Maoz Report, March 2017.
Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. (III)
In The Complete Jewish Bible that I have been using lately, the phrase “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven” is written as the second part of a sentence. As a prayer on its own it can be read as “May your will be done on earth as in heaven.”
I ask myself, what do I know about heaven or any things being done in accordance with God’s will there?
- We read of sounds from heaven. 1 Samuel 2:10 tells us that God in heaven will thunder against the wicked.
- We read of fire from heaven in judgment (2 Kings 1), but also in acceptance of sacrifice (Lev 9:24).
- We read of provision from heaven. Exodus 16:4 tells us that God fed Israel with bread from heaven.
- We read in Malachi 3:10 of floodgates being opened from heaven to pour out blessings.
- We read in 2 Kings 6:17 of a heavenly army when Elisha asks God to open the servant’s eyes and he sees “the mountain was covered with horses and fiery chariots.”
- We read in 2 Samuel 5:24 of David hearing marching in the tops of the balsam trees - God going ahead to war.
- In Revelation 12 we read that heaven is a place that has seen war, the adversary satan and his army being beaten and thrown out of heaven.
- In Revelation 21:1 we read that heaven, as well as earth, will need renewing.
These scriptures are somewhat different to my conception of heaven being a place of total paradise! They seem to paint a picture of heaven, where God dwells, as a place of free will, from which blessings and judgments can flow, but also as a place of armies and battles, all closely connected with earth.
The Book of Job
In chapter 1 of Job, the adversary (satan) visits God in heaven and is given permission to bring harm on Job, a man righteous in God’s eyes. A debate follows where Job and his friends try to understand God and His Creation. In chapter 38, God answers Job in such a way that Job realises this is all beyond his earthly intellectual understanding and in 42:3 Job comes to the conclusion that “I spoke without having understanding, of wonders far beyond me, which I didn’t know.”
I think that, whilst the debate was a necessary part of Job’s journey, it was meeting God that brought him to the realisation that God, heaven and all of Creation are totally beyond the understanding of us mortals. It needed God to open Job’s eyes - not answering questions but changing Job’s total perspective on God and his Creation.
So, perhaps “May your will be done on earth as in heaven” was not a prayer to bring a wonderful paradise where all is peace and managed in accordance with God’s perfect will, to earth, even though this is our sure hope for a future heaven and earth.
Instead, I am wondering if it means that an act of God’s will had been done in heaven and that Jesus was telling his disciples to pray for the continuation of this act of God’s will to be completed on earth.
What Act of God’s Will?
So, what will of God might we be talking about? I put to you a small number of clues that I think I have uncovered:
- The Garden of Eden clue: Genesis 2:4 tells that God made earth and heaven. Reading the account of Creation in Genesis, there appears a close relation between heaven and earth. Mankind was made on earth in the image of the God of heaven. The Garden of Eden was the place of growing relationship between Adam and Eve and God, a heavenly connection in a state without sin. But following their disobedience, in Genesis 3:8 Adam and Eve heard the voice of God, walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze and in verse 9 God called to the man: “Where are you?”
- The Mosaic clue: In Exodus 33:12-23, Moses has a conversation with God where God reveals more of Himself and reassures Moses that He will go with the people of Israel.
- The Tabernacle clue: Exodus 40:34-38 tells how God lived with Israel throughout their years in the wilderness. The tabernacle with cloud and fire made visible the reality of God’s presence.
- The Jeremiah clue: In Jeremiah 31:1-14 God expresses his joy over an amazing future reunion with Israel and including the nations.
These and other references show me that God wants relationship with you and me. God’s method of achieving this desire of His heart was to send His only and unique son (Jesus / Yeshua / Salvation), to live a perfect, sacrificial life on earth (Isaiah 53). God’s heavenly will.
When Jesus taught His disciples how to pray, He was well into His ministry years, and the time was drawing close for Him to complete that sacrifice. So perhaps this short phrase could be expanded to say “May Heavenly Father’s will, started in heaven, be completed on earth by Jesus.” Was Jesus telling his disciples to pray that he would be able to complete God’s plan for salvation with his upcoming sacrifice? Partly, I think.
Ongoing Prayer
Look at John 17. Jesus’ prayer just before His sacrifice reveals more than anything else our Heavenly Father’s will, especially in verse 11: “…so that they may be one, just as we are.” And verses 20-21: “I pray not only for these, but also for those who will trust in me because of their word, that they may all be one. Just as you, Father, are united with me and I with you, I pray that they may be united with us…”.
This might be the ongoing part of this prayer that you and I can pray, until we are together, united with our Father. It encompasses both the prayer for unity of us believers, both Jew and Gentile, and Jesus’ Great Commission of Matthew 28:18-20 to reach out to the ends of the earth to bring all who God calls into His Kingdom.
“May your will be done on earth as in heaven.”
Author: John Quinlan
Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. (II)
I most associate this phrase with moments in my life when I really did not want to do God’s will. In fact, I would rather have done anything else than God’s will – even though I knew very well what He wanted, deep down. My heart and soul were yearning for some other way and my flesh was shouting loudly, drowning out God’s still, small voice.
It takes courage and persistent faith, in those times, to fight against the overpowering yearnings of the heart and subject them to the will of the Father. It takes raising the eyes of our souls up to Heaven and crying out for a higher and greater perspective, though we might not be sure what that looks like. It takes, in short, praying “Thy will be done”.
Yielding to the Father
Coming to terms with one’s own sinfulness is not an enjoyable process. It is painful to learn (often the hard way) that the heart is deceitful above all things (Jer 17:9) and that the mind does not naturally think in the ways of Heaven (Rom 12:2). Little by little we start to expect less – even nothing – of ourselves (not even the inclination to goodness) and transfer our trust instead to God.
Realising that we are unable to walk in His ways – unable to even believe or want to obey without God’s direct intervention and help – is truly terrifying. And yet, it is also liberating – for that realisation is the gateway into the life of faith. Recognising our weakness is an essential step, I believe, to truly comprehending His strength – how much we need Him, but also how much He is able and willing and desiring to save.
It is in this place of humility that God has the greatest opportunity to change us, and that we are most eager to cry out “Thy will be done!”, having come face to face with our own fallenness. The Lord has chosen, for this life and this world, to keep us in a [hopefully lessening] degree of imperfection – that His glory might shine out more perfectly from our jars of clay, and that His power might be made perfect in our weakness (2 Cor 12:9).
We can take comfort that even Jesus Himself needed to pray “Thy will be done” - in the Garden of Gethsemane, when the terrible-yet-wonderful portion allotted to him was looming so close (Luke 22:42). How much more do we need it, then, in our hours of trial and temptation!
A New Mindset
I also believe that the phrase ‘Thy will be done’ is not merely to be saved for those moments of deep obedience when, through gritted teeth, we choose to follow God over strong temptation to compromise. Really, it represents a totally different way of seeing one’s life and the world around - a mindset that does not come naturally to us, but which we need to ‘put on’ daily, with the help of the Holy Spirit.
Praying “Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven” means consciously, daily and deliberately devoting ourselves – including all our weaknesses - to a way that we take on faith to be higher than ours is and to thoughts that are higher than ours could ever be. But how does that work in practice?
First, it must start with the acknowledgement – however obvious it may seem - that God is higher than we are, and worthy of our complete submission and surrender, in everything. This is not a lesson we learn once and can then assume for the rest of our days – but a perspective that needs to be reinforced daily if we are to protect against the subtle encroaches of arrogance.
Second, and by extension, it means holding loosely our desires and boundaries, our ways of thinking and our private agendas, in willing surrender to the Holy Spirit to come and re-adjust them. Whatever you are going through, are you truly seeking Heaven’s perspective – or are you seeking to persuade God to adopt yours? Are you willing to pray “Thy will be done” even if it means things unfolding in a different way than the way you plan and desire?
Finally, I believe it means pursuing a heart-felt humility which acknowledges that in everything, from the most mundane daily tasks to the most controversial and divisive problems of our day, we desperately need God’s perspective, far more than that of the world.
For His Glory and Our Good
Learning to pray “Thy will be done” demands devotion and joy – and also fear and trembling. But in all this we can take heart, because God’s will is for our good as well as for His glory. Here are some verses from Scripture that remind us about God’s will:
- “God our Saviour…wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.” 1 Timothy 2:3-4
- “…this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.” John 6:38-40
- “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, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Matthew 28:19-20
- “…the Lord Jesus Christ…gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father”. Galatians 1:3-5
- “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28
- “It is God’s will that you should be sanctified.” 1 Thessalonians 4:3
- “…what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8
Author: Frances Rabbitts
Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
So far in this weekly series on the Lord’s Prayer, we have asked for God’s Kingdom to come into our lives and eventually to fill the entire world as the waters cover the sea.
We now, in adding this phrase “Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven”, are recognising that in Heaven (of which we know so little) God has complete authority and all that he wills to be done is done.
We know that above this earth there is a perfect place where righteousness dwells. We have a vision of perfect light, perfect worship, wonderful music, no sickness, no pain, no wars and perfect harmony. So we can easily add to our prayer for God’s Kingdom to come to earth that “thy will be done”.
Do You Mean It?
Who would not want to pray this prayer? Surely we all want our Almighty, all-wise and powerful, all-seeing, sacrificially-loving Father to take control of our lives and do what only he can do, perfect in every way.
Yet, do we really mean it? Sometimes words, however beautiful, like a costly masterpiece hanging on our walls, can become like wallpaper after a time – so familiar that we do not continue to appreciate both their beauty and their full reality as we once did.
So what is in that picture of the outworking of the Lord’s prayer?
Our Surrender
Here on earth, the perfect answer to our prayer “thy will be done” involves the imperfections of mankind being dealt with and all our struggles and strivings being counteracted with love and heavenly discipline.
We would like to think that we were ready to be in absolute submission to the will of God. Sometimes we are moved to long genuinely for it as a deer pants for cool, living water - to find the abiding place in Jesus where his will becomes our will in all things, and where prayer finds immediate answer.
To find such a place of total submission, one must also accept the truth expressed by God to Isaiah (Isa 55:8), “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways”. There are implications to the prayer we are praying and we must be ready to accept them. We cannot pray this prayer “thy will be done” and alongside it present God with our formula for how it is to be answered. He will answer in his way, and this could be costly.
Christians have wrestled with the concepts of the sovereignty of God and the free will of man for centuries, but this prayer is a declaration of the desire for the sovereignty of God.
Consider Afresh
Many of us have prayed for revival in our nation, having heard about the wonderful fruit of revival in past eras. “Come down O love divine and visit us once more!” Yet, mostly we gloss over the cost of such revival in terms of human struggle when the convicting power of the Holy Spirit descends on a person or an entire nation.
Indeed, it is a truth borne out of experience that the prayer “thy will be done” is most heartfelt at a time of desperation, when perhaps we have expended all our own efforts to little gain.
Let us – for we must – pray this prayer together, but let us consider again what we are truly praying. May we count the cost before we pray it next time. Let’s not miss the depth of what is being asked, so that we can truly mean what we pray.
Author: Dr Clifford Denton
