0:02 we call it the disciples prayer because
0:05 we need
0:09 it and U we've discovered that this
0:13 particular prayer is a pattern for us to
0:17 follow our God does things decently and in
0:18 in
0:22 order and in my own particular life in
0:24 my own prayer time I've discovered that
0:27 the disciples prayer is a good pattern to
0:28 to
0:30 follow it begins with of course with that
0:31 that
0:37 invocation Our Father in Heaven Matthew
0:42 6:9 our lord said in this manner pray
0:46 that means following this pattern this
0:49 sequence Our
0:53 Father in Heaven that's the
0:55 invocation and it tells me that prayer
0:58 depends upon
1:00 relationship our
1:04 that's my relationship to God's
1:07 people father that's my relationship to
1:09 God in
1:11 heaven and I've discovered that if I'm
1:14 not in good fellowship with God's people
1:16 I'm going to have a tough time talking
1:18 to my father my father wants his
1:26 other my Father in Heaven wants
1:29 me to love you he wants you to love me
1:31 it's difficult difficult but he wants us
1:32 to do
1:35 this to live above with Saints we love
1:38 will certainly be glory to live below
1:41 with Saints we know that's another story
1:45 and we all know this I've pastored three
1:48 churches and and sometimes I confess I
1:50 have prayed Lord don't you want to move
1:52 this fellow to some other
1:55 church and then the Lord rebukes me and says
1:57 says
2:00 why why don't you help him why don't you
2:01 learn to get along with him why don't
2:05 you love him much easier to send our
2:07 problem someplace else isn't
2:10 it relationship now we've talked about
2:14 the relationship to each other our all
2:17 of the pronouns in this prayer that
2:20 refer to God's people are
2:23 plural if a committee from your
2:26 denomination or mine were to write this
2:30 prayer it would read my father give me
2:34 this day my daily bread and Lead Me not
2:38 into temptation deliver me from the evil
2:40 one because we're very self-centered
2:42 we're very
2:44 individualistic in our Christian
2:47 life but this is a family
2:51 prayer and though each morning I pray in
2:54 solitude I never pray
2:58 alone when I begin my praying with our
3:00 God reminds me that your prayer
3:03 praying and many others are praying and
3:05 I thank God that they are and that we're
3:08 all part of one big praying
3:11 family but somebody here says well I
3:14 don't pray well then you're missing an
3:17 opportunity you can't say
3:21 our our father now that's what I want to
3:22 talk about
3:27 tonight Our Father in
3:30 heaven now let's admit right up front
3:33 that praying real praying is
3:36 difficult it's not difficult to go
3:37 through a
3:40 routine we can sort of work our way into
3:43 that kind of a thing it's not difficult
3:46 just to babble words and sound spiritual
3:48 but our Lord told us not to do that he
3:49 said don't be like the
3:52 Hypocrites their motive was wrong and
3:54 don't be like the the Heathen the
3:57 pagans uh their manner is wrong they
3:59 just Babble words our Lord wants us us
4:02 to come and speak to him as
4:05 intelligently as we speak to each
4:10 other Our Father real praying is
4:13 tough uh to begin with the devil doesn't
4:14 want us to
4:16 pray we all know that that's why later
4:20 on we pray Deliver Us from the evil one
4:24 the devil trembles when he sees what the
4:27 weakest Saint upon his or her knees
4:30 Satan doesn't like it when we pray
4:32 I don't think he minds too much how much
4:34 we do of other things that are spiritual
4:36 he doesn't like us when we pray because
4:39 when we pray we're invading the
4:42 heavenlies where he operates and Satan
4:45 does not like praying
4:48 Christians real prayer is tough because
4:50 my flesh doesn't want me to
4:53 pray I don't know about you I'm not
4:55 afraid to admit my own failings because
4:58 they probably are prevalent here but I
5:01 start to pray and I I get distracted I
5:04 think of something I should do I think
5:06 of and right away I keep little pieces
5:09 of paper near me when I'm praying so
5:11 that when some idea I write it down and
5:12 say now Lord take care of that and go
5:14 back to pray because I can get so
5:17 distracted if I'm not careful or you
5:19 feel some
5:21 pain I don't know why it is but that so
5:24 often happens you're praying and you're
5:26 you're just thrilled with talking to God
5:30 and then o something hits you
5:32 and you wonder if the old flesh isn't
5:34 just fighting you and you're praying
5:36 praying is
5:38 tough that's why you want to start your
5:40 praying early enough so the phone
5:42 doesn't interrupt you and the people at
5:44 the front door and all the other things
5:47 that have to go on now to encourage me
5:48 in my
5:51 praying the Lord Jesus says look when
5:56 you start praying say our father in
5:59 Heaven now this is encouragement to me
6:01 you say I don't see much encouragement
6:03 in that statement oh it's loaded with
6:06 encouragement to begin with when I say
6:08 hour I realize I'm not praying alone
6:09 others are praying and they're praying for
6:10 for
6:15 me so often when uh I met people when I
6:17 was on the radio regularly I'm no longer
6:19 on but when I was on the radio regularly
6:21 people would come up and say oh we pray
6:23 for you I hope they still do even though
6:27 I'm no longer on the radio my uh my aunt
6:29 Lydia who's been with the Lord along
6:32 time good Swedish
6:34 Christian and she was a great prayer
6:38 Warrior and she prayed for me every day
6:40 I had a dear friend who had helped to
6:42 disciple me and she prayed for me every
6:44 day and when those two ladies went off
6:46 to Gloria I could tell the
6:49 difference so when I read the word hour
6:52 and when I say the word hour that
6:54 encourages me it's as though I'm saying
6:57 you're not here by yourself others are
7:00 praying you're a part of a great prayer
7:04 family what Paul called in Ephesians
7:09 3:14 and 15 the whole family of God part
7:12 of God's family is in heaven part of
7:15 God's family is on Earth and did you
7:18 know that no prayer is ever
7:21 wasted may not be answered when I want
7:24 it to be but no prayer is ever wasted I
7:26 read in the Book of Revelation that they
7:29 brought all of the incense the prayers
7:30 of the
7:32 Saints now I don't think that means the
7:34 Saints are praying for us up there I
7:36 think that means that God has just
7:38 gathered together down through the
7:40 centuries the prayers of the Saints your
7:42 kingdom come your will be done and one
7:44 day all of those are going to be
7:46 answered our but it's this word father
7:48 that encourages
7:50 me now I know you've got to be very
7:52 careful with this word
7:54 father as you do with the word mother
7:56 because it depends on the kind of father
7:59 or mother you had
8:02 some people have the wrong view of God
8:04 because their father was not the kind of
8:06 father he should have been I recall at
8:08 the Moody Church I had the privilege of
8:12 teaching the um student class all the
8:13 students from whatever School you went
8:16 to came to my Sunday school class we had
8:17 a great
8:19 time and one Sunday morning we were
8:22 dealing with the fatherhood of God and
8:24 after the class was over a young man
8:26 came up to me and he looked at me and he
8:29 said U you say that God is like a father
8:31 I said yes
8:34 sir well he said if God's like my father
8:35 I'm not
8:37 interested he turned around and walked
8:39 out I don't know what kind of a father he
8:40 he
8:42 had but God never meant for fathers to
8:45 be like that or for mothers to be like
8:49 that now when I pray Our Father in
8:52 Heaven that encourages me to keep on
8:56 praying because first of all God is a
8:59 father that's what Jesus came to teach
9:02 in the Old Testament you will find God
9:06 addressed as father about 14 times
9:09 that's not a lot he's named as father in
9:12 the New Testament about 250
9:15 times and in the gospels he's named as
9:20 father about 188 times it's rather
9:24 interesting in the upper room discourse
9:25 in John
9:29 13 through 16 and then let's add 17 our
9:33 Lord's Prayer in the garden in those
9:36 chapters the Lord uses the word father 53
9:38 53
9:41 times how did he encourage his disciples
9:45 he said you've got a father a father in
9:48 Heaven and so when I pray father that
9:51 encourages me to keep on praying because
9:54 God is my
9:57 father now in the Old Testament
9:58 scriptures and you know this I'm only
10:01 reminding you what you already know God
10:05 was a father to
10:08 Israel in Exodus chapter 4 God said
10:11 Israel is my
10:13 firstborn my
10:16 son and if Pharaoh does not let my
10:18 firstborn go I'll kill his firstborn and he
10:20 he
10:25 did in Deuteronomy when Moses was uh
10:27 reminding the Jews of all that God did
10:29 for them the word remember is one of the
10:32 key words in
10:34 Deuteronomy Moses said do you remember
10:38 that God carried you through the
10:40 Wilderness the way a
10:43 father carries a
10:45 child then lady Ronnie said do you
10:49 remember that God chastened
10:53 you like a father chastens his
10:57 son and so God was a father to
11:01 Israel but God is is a father to all of
11:05 his children you see we have been born
11:08 of God now let me pause to make a
11:10 statement that may shock some of
11:14 you the fact that God is spoken of as a
11:17 father does not mean the Bible is using
11:24 language I finished reading through a
11:28 translation of the Bible that has um
11:30 taken way all the sexist language all
11:32 they've done is made it plural you see
11:35 in the English language our singulars
11:39 have gender our plurals don't and so if
11:41 it says he they just make it
11:44 they okay instead of saying blessed is
11:47 the man or blessed is he who they say
11:49 blessed are they and there's no gender
11:53 in they our plurals are genderless well
11:55 you can do that if you want to but
11:57 you've got to remember that when God
11:59 says he's a father he's he's not using
12:01 what we call sexist
12:04 language in fact the Bible teaches the
12:05 motherhood of
12:08 God you see I never heard of that
12:11 sure the Bible very definitely teaches
12:14 the motherhood of God why because God is
12:16 Spirit Spirits don't have
12:21 bodies and therefore God is
12:23 sexless but he uses the image of a
12:27 father he uses the image of a son of a
12:32 king of a cre Ator of a
12:35 Potter of a valiant Warrior to
12:38 communicate to us what he's
12:40 like I have just finished reading
12:44 through the scriptures and marking every
12:49 metaphor every simile and every image that's
12:50 that's
12:54 there interesting I recommend it to
12:56 you whenever I find one just put a
12:59 little red X in the margin
13:01 and all of these different images of God
13:04 are amazing God's compared to a river
13:06 he's compared to a rock he's compared to
13:10 a fortress it's compared to the son he's
13:12 compared to a
13:14 mother say well where is that well if
13:16 you're insistent upon it we'll look at
13:20 it Isaiah chter 49 one of the most
13:23 beautiful passages in
13:26 scripture last year at the uh team
13:30 conference out in uh
13:33 elcone California at Dr David Jeremiah's
13:34 church it was Mother's Day the day we
13:36 started the conference and so I preached
13:38 on the motherhood of
13:42 God they thought weby had become
13:46 heretical Isaiah chter 49 verse
13:51 14 but Zion said the Lord has forsaken
13:54 me and my Lord has forgotten me have you
13:57 ever felt like that sure you have be
13:59 honest now
14:01 in my pastoral Ministry I can recall
14:03 walking into hospital rooms where God's
14:06 dear people were lying in
14:08 pain and on more than one occasion
14:11 they'd look up and say oh Pastor the
14:14 Lord's forgotten about
14:17 me the Lord's forsaken me and that's
14:20 what Zion was saying and God replies in
14:23 verse 15 can a
14:27 woman forget her nursing child and not
14:31 have compassion on the son of her womb
14:35 surely they may forget yet I will not forget
14:36 forget
14:39 you here God's comparing himself to a
14:43 mother the motherhood of God in his
14:45 ceaseless sacrificial
14:49 love so God is a spiritual
14:53 parent and when I remember that God is a
14:56 father this encourages me to
15:00 pray now if there are more male images
15:02 in the Bible than female the reason is
15:06 very simple this book grew out of a masculine
15:12 Society the uh the
15:16 Jewish people were accustomed to
15:19 masculine images the shepherd the
15:22 king the
15:24 ruler but this book does not
15:28 discriminate at all not in the least God
15:30 is a father that's what Jesus came to
15:34 teach us going back to Matthew chapter 6
15:36 we can just turn the page to Matthew chapter
15:37 chapter
15:41 7 and in verse 7 find that great promise
15:44 that all of us have claimed one time or
15:47 another our Lord says ask and it will be
15:50 given to you seek and you will find
15:53 knock and it will be open to you how is
15:57 that possible for everyone who asks
15:59 receives and he who seeks finds and to
16:02 him who knocks it will be open on the
16:04 basis of
16:08 what well he tells us or what man is
16:11 there among you who if his son asks for
16:15 bread will give him a stone or if he ask
16:18 for a fish we'll give him a
16:22 serpent if you then being
16:25 evil know how to give good gifts to your
16:29 children how much more will your father in
16:30 in
16:33 heaven give good things to those that
16:38 ask him you see prayer is based on
16:40 sunship not
16:43 friendship when I say sunship I'm
16:45 speaking generically that includes the
16:48 daughters as well as the sons prayer is
16:50 based on
16:53 Parenthood just as a parent takes care
16:57 of a child so the Father in Heaven takes
16:59 care of his children
17:01 at this point someone says well I I hate
17:04 to disagree with you but I have asked
17:11 it and I have sought and didn't find and
17:14 I knocked and that door stayed closed so
17:16 what are you talking
17:18 about what I'm talking about the same
17:20 thing Jesus was talking about do you
17:22 ever take that promise ask and it shall
17:24 be given to you seek and you shall find
17:26 knock and it shall be open and really
17:29 see what it says
17:31 ask and it shall be given you that means
17:35 my father's wealth is available to
17:44 is ask and it shall be given to you
17:45 that's the father's wealth but it
17:48 doesn't stop there seek and you shall
17:51 find that's the father's
17:54 will if I'm going to ask my father for
17:56 his wealth I'd better find out what his
17:58 will is or I'm going to waste what he
18:01 get gives me but he doesn't stop there
18:03 knock and it shall be open to you now as
18:05 you know from your own study of the
18:07 scriptures an Open Door in the Bible
18:11 speaks of service God opened the door of
18:13 Faith to the Gentiles and Paul went out
18:16 and preached I've set before you an Open
18:18 Door an Open Door speaks of the father's
18:22 work so that when I pray I may ask for
18:24 the father's
18:27 wealth if I'm submitted to the father's will
18:29 will
18:36 work that's the mistake the prodigal son
18:38 made do you ever notice in the parable
18:41 of the prodigal son there are two
18:44 prayers he prayed the worst prayer in
18:46 the best
18:48 place and he prayed the best prayer in
18:55 place at home he said to his father give me
19:01 out in the pig pin he said you know what
19:03 my father's servants have got more to
19:06 eat than I do I will go home and I'll say
19:07 say
19:10 Father Make
19:12 Me Now folks there's a Grand Canyon of
19:15 difference between Father give me and
19:18 father make me one has to do with things
19:24 character and when that boy came home he
19:26 discovered you don't ask for the
19:28 father's wealth without seeking the father's
19:31 father's
19:33 will and wanting to do the father's work
19:35 but he learned his lesson bless the Lord
19:36 some of us
19:39 haven't when he got home he said father
19:43 not give me make me the father said now
19:46 I can trust him now I can share with him
19:48 because his character is where it ought to
19:50 to
19:52 be God is a
19:55 father and that means that God is
20:02 a flood of books has come out of the
20:05 publishing scene in the last 10 years on
20:08 evil in the world today I think I have
20:10 two shelves of
20:13 them of course Rabbi kushner's book came
20:15 out some years ago on when bad things
20:18 happen to good people and he argued for
20:21 a limited God he said the reason we
20:23 don't have a cure for cancer is cuz God
20:25 hasn't found one
20:27 yet and this book was chosen by book of
20:29 the month club and it became a
20:33 bestseller and he preaches a limited
20:35 God process
20:37 theology now if you think process
20:41 theology is dead it's not dead it's very
20:44 alive where God is evolving and we're
20:51 Godlike but that's not the god I read
20:54 about in my
20:56 Bible the B the god I read about is a
20:59 compassionate God who makes no mistakes
21:02 like as a father pies his
21:05 children so the Lord pies those that
21:09 fear Him He knows our frame better than
21:12 the chiropractor does better than the
21:15 x-ray technician does he knows our frame
21:17 and he remembers that we're dust now we
21:19 think we're
21:23 steel we think we are so strong that
21:24 we're going to keep on going regardless
21:27 of what we do no no we're dust we're
21:29 dust and um
21:31 if we should die before our lord Jesus
21:34 returns we're going to go to
21:37 dust that's all right that's okay
21:39 because one day Jesus Christ will raise
21:41 us from the dead and we will have
21:43 glorified bodies and we can say goodbye
21:46 to the doctors and goodbye to Medicare
21:48 goodbye to the morticians goodbye to all
21:52 of these things and hello to
21:55 glory god is a father he's compassionate he's
21:57 he's
22:00 caring and so I can come to him if you
22:03 being evil take care of your children
22:06 you wouldn't give them a stone if they
22:08 asked for bread you wouldn't give them a
22:11 scorpion if they asked for fish you know
22:13 what he's saying there don't be afraid
22:16 of answered prayer if God doesn't give
22:18 you what you asked for you may have
22:21 asked for something wrong many times I
22:24 I've asked for a stone and didn't know
22:26 it I thought I was asking for bread I
22:29 was asking for a stone I thought I was
22:32 asking for fish I was asking for a
22:33 scorpion if God had given me what I
22:39 me it encourages me to pray because God
22:42 is a father secondly it encourages me to
22:46 pray because God is our
22:49 father it's
22:53 personal the house I was born in I was
22:59 mother when she saw me they took her to the
23:06 hospital but the house that I was born
23:08 in and grew up in and lived in for many
23:10 many years was right in the center of the
23:11 the
23:14 Block in our neighborhood right smack in
23:17 the middle which meant that every kid
23:20 gathered at our house and this was fine
23:22 my parents were very happy to have all
23:24 of our friends there ruining the lawn my
23:25 dad said I can always raise a lawn I
23:27 can't always raise a
23:28 family they wanted to see who our
23:30 friends were and what we were doing they were
23:31 were
23:34 smart but it was rather
23:36 interesting every kid on the block
23:39 called My Mother
23:42 Ma and my father
23:45 PA even my Jewish friends up the street
23:49 the marovich boys they would call hi Ma
23:51 worby hey P
23:53 worby and if a salesman ever showed up
23:56 at the back door with all these kids
23:59 there calling my mother Ma
24:01 a word of explanation had to be
24:04 given now they might call My Mother Ma
24:12 PA but Warren and Edward and Clarence
24:14 and Doris were the only ones who had the
24:18 right to say it and mean it we four
24:22 children belonged to Fred and glattus
24:26 weby we could say that is our father
24:30 that is our mother
24:33 now there's a sense in which God is a
24:37 father to everyone by creation man is
24:40 made in the image of God but that's not
24:43 what Jesus is talking about here when we
24:46 lift up our hearts and say our
24:48 father he's
24:52 ours he's ours in two ways by
24:55 regeneration we've been born again into
24:58 the family of God and by ad
25:01 adoption I want to talk about adoption
25:02 that's so greatly misunderstood you
25:05 don't get into God's family by adoption
25:07 did you know that adoption is a beautiful
25:09 beautiful
25:12 thing there there may be people here who
25:13 at a certain age you discovered that
25:15 you've been adopted and you went and
25:18 said to mother or dad tell me about this
25:21 and and they explained to you that we
25:22 have you in this family because we
25:25 wanted you and we love you it's a beautiful
25:26 beautiful
25:29 thing some people are bothered by this
25:32 and and some folks have problems but
25:34 it's a beautiful thing when someone will
25:36 adopt another and take them into the
25:37 family but that's not how you get into
25:39 God's family you see the only people who
25:41 are really in God's family have his
25:44 nature adopted children do not have the
25:47 nature of their adoptive parents but we
25:49 have God's nature you don't get nature
25:52 by adoption Paul talks about adoption
25:54 over in Romans chapter 8 I think we got
25:55 to look at that because it has to do
25:56 with our
26:10 14 for as many as are LED may I put
26:14 another word in there please willingly
26:16 LED that's what the Greek word means for
26:20 as many as are willingly led by the
26:23 spirit of God these are the sons of
26:26 God for you did not receive the spirit
26:30 of bondage again to fear but you receive
26:31 the spirit of
26:36 adoption by whom we cry out Abba
26:39 Father our father now the word Abba as
26:42 you know is the Aramaic word for Daddy or
26:43 or
26:47 Papa now we wouldn't talk like this in
26:49 public I don't think any Pastor would
26:50 get into the pulpit on Sunday morning
26:53 for the Pastoral prayer and
26:56 say papa it would be offensive to some
26:59 people but it would be
27:02 biblical our Lord in the garden said
27:06 Abba Father now one reason we know we're
27:08 born again is that the spirit of God
27:10 Witnesses down inside that God is our
27:15 father and we can say Abba Papa
27:18 father the spirit himself Bears witness
27:20 with our spirit that we are the children
27:23 of God and if children then heirs Heirs
27:26 of God joint HS with Christ if indeed we
27:29 suffer with him that we may also be
27:31 glorified together let's talk about this
27:37 adopted in the
27:41 Bible adoption is the act of God whereby
27:44 he gives to every one of his children an
27:47 adult standing in the family the Greek
27:50 word means son
27:54 placing now when I was born into God's
28:03 I was
28:06 born through the spirit of God using the
28:08 word of God every child has two
28:11 parents now if you didn't come into this
28:13 world with two parents I want to meet
28:15 you well we have two parents the spirit
28:17 of God uses the word of God to impart
28:19 the life of God when I was born into
28:22 God's family he didn't leave me a
28:24 baby he said now
28:27 son I I know you've only been saved one second
28:29 second
28:30 but right now I'm going to elevate you
28:33 and give you an adult standing in my
28:34 family now what difference does that
28:38 make well number one a baby doesn't know
28:42 who its father is but God's people
28:44 instantly know that God is their
28:48 father a baby can't talk would it not be
28:51 remarkable if Daddy with his white gown
28:53 and his mask on came into the birthing
28:55 room you know they do it all differently
29:00 now and U and the baby looked up said hi
29:02 Daddy now that's just that just isn't
29:03 going to
29:06 happen in fact the baby has to learn who
29:09 his father is but that's not true of
29:12 God's people he adopted us the instant
29:14 that he regenerated us gave us an adult
29:17 standing so that one we know who our
29:19 father is two we can talk to
29:22 him that's why no Christian can ever say
29:24 well you know I've only been saved 3
29:26 years you can't expect very much out of
29:28 me wait a minute the instant you were
29:31 saved God gave you an adult standing
29:32 with all the
29:35 Privileges of adulthood which means you
29:37 can talk to your father that's prayer
29:38 you can understand what your father is
29:41 saying to
29:44 you some children have never learned
29:47 that we can understand his
29:52 word which means that um we can
29:54 walk you know the Bible doesn't say now
29:56 after you've been saved for 5 years you
29:57 can take three steps then you can take
30:00 four force it no no no he expects us to
30:02 start living like adults from the very
30:05 beginning that's
30:09 adoption we can talk we can understand
30:13 we can walk we have freedom now now
30:16 little children don't have
30:19 freedom uh they're wrapped up and
30:21 carried and then when they get a little
30:24 older you put them in one of these um
30:29 portable jails that you call a a crib
30:32 or a baby tender or a play pan that's
30:35 just a jail that's all it is children
30:39 live in fear and bondage we don't he
30:41 said God has not given you a spirit of
30:43 fear we have nothing to be afraid of we
30:45 know who our father
30:49 is we can talk to him he can talk to us
30:52 we have freedom we're not bound up like
30:54 papusas we can
30:58 walk we can talk we can can inherit no
31:01 baby can inherit
31:04 anything if a child's name is in a will
31:06 the lawyer has to fix it so that that
31:09 money is in trusteeship a baby cannot
31:13 inherit the instant I was born again I
31:18 inherited all that God had for me
31:21 potentially I am an heir of God and a
31:23 joint Heir with Jesus Christ that's
31:25 where prayer comes in the Lord Jesus
31:28 Christ hands me all these checks
31:30 now God has arranged that whenever a
31:32 check is cashed on the bank of Heaven
31:34 two signatures have to be on it mine and
31:38 the Lord Jesus we're joint
31:41 HS now no baby can inherit I can inherit
31:44 right now I can come to God and say you
31:46 have blessed me with all spiritual
31:48 blessings in the Heavenly places in
31:51 Christ Jesus and you have said to me
31:53 these are the things I'd like to give to
31:55 you now I'm going to sign a check but I
31:58 can't sign any check that Jesus did sign
32:05 name when I was pastoring at Calvary
32:07 Baptist Church in Covington
32:09 Kentucky the church had then and still
32:12 has now a very fine book room one of the
32:14 best I've ever seen in any local church
32:17 and they also sold school supplies paper
32:20 pencils erasers things like that and
32:21 sometimes our children would need some
32:23 school supplies and our Arrangement was
32:25 you go into the bookroom you tell Mrs
32:27 eastep what you need and she'll write it
32:29 down on the account the next day when I
32:31 come in I'll take care of it but they
32:33 come in and they they ask for other
32:35 things she won't give it to
32:39 them you I want one of these highlight
32:41 paddles they're not likely to ask for
32:43 that they'd know what we do with it I
32:46 think but or I want one of these yoyos
32:48 or whatever oh no no no I don't think
32:49 your daddy wants you to have that that's
32:51 that's what it means to pray in the name
32:53 of Jesus I come to my father and say
32:55 this is what I want and Jesus wants it
33:01 really that's where the first three
33:04 requests in the Lord's Prayer come in
33:06 Hallowed be your name if I give you this
33:09 yoyo will that glorify my
33:12 name your kingdom come will it Advance
33:15 my kingdom your will be done will it
33:17 accomplish my
33:21 will so as adopted children given an adult
33:22 adult
33:25 standing we know who our father is we
33:28 can talk to him he can talk to us
33:32 we're heirs we inherit we can sign the
33:37 checks that's what it means to say our
33:39 father that's why the hmw writer said
33:42 Thou Art coming to a
33:45 King great
33:47 petitions with you
33:50 bring so he's he's a father that
33:53 encourages me he is our father that
33:56 encourages me let's quickly notice one
33:58 final encouragement
34:03 this father that we have is in
34:05 heaven now we have Earthly fathers we
34:09 have biological fathers on this Earth my
34:12 biological father is now in
34:15 glory we have spiritual fathers on this
34:17 earth now I know Jesus said in Matthew
34:20 23 call no man on Earth your father what
34:22 he meant by that was don't give anybody
34:26 on Earth the status of
34:28 God it it's it's really too bad the way
34:33 some of the weak Saints are so wrapped
34:36 up in celebrities religious celebrities
34:38 they've turned them into
34:40 Gods our churches today are filled with
34:44 celebrities we need more servants fewer
34:47 celebrities somebody introduced the
34:49 great missionary Jay Hudson Taylor as a great
34:50 great
34:52 missionary gave a long flowery
34:56 introduction and Hudson Taylor was so
34:58 embarrassed he just got up stood in the
35:00 pulpit and said I am the small servant
35:02 of a great
35:04 God some of you people belong to the
35:06 Christian Missionary Alliance Church and
35:09 of course you've heard Dr aw
35:12 toer and he was a great blessing to
35:16 me and at one of the alliance Gatherings
35:18 he was introduced with a an introduction
35:21 that was just
35:23 incredible and toer got up and stood in
35:25 the pulpit and
35:29 said may the Lord forgive that man for
35:34 said and may He forgive me for enjoying
35:44 much now when Jesus said call no man on
35:46 Earth your father he was not saying
35:48 don't recognize the fact that there are
35:50 spiritual leaders in the church Paul
35:52 said to the Corinthians though you have
35:56 had many instructors in Christ you've
35:58 had only one father for through Jesus
36:02 Christ I've begotten you through the
36:05 gospel and so I have a spiritual father
36:07 whose preaching brought me to
36:09 Christ but he hasn't taken the place of
36:12 my heavenly father and you may have led
36:14 people to the Lord and nurtured them
36:17 like a spiritual father or
36:19 mother but that doesn't mean you take
36:20 the place of God that's what Jesus was
36:22 warning about the Jewish people love
36:24 titles they just love the rabbis in
36:28 particular uh the word RAB means teacher
36:33 Rabbi means my teacher raboni means my
36:37 Lord my teacher and every Rabbi long to
36:43 raboni don't be like
36:47 that our father is in
36:50 heaven now that encourages me to
36:54 pray Psalm 115 I think is so cute that
36:56 maybe I shouldn't use that word it's
36:58 clever it's satirical
37:00 you can just picture when you read Psalm
37:03 115 you just picture some Egyptian or
37:05 Phoenician or Assyrian coming into
37:08 Jerusalem and taking one of the tours of
37:10 Jerusalem and he says Hey where's your
37:14 god I've been looking all over for your
37:16 God and the psalmist says why now should
37:19 the pagans the heathens say where now is
37:22 their God because if you went to
37:26 Damascus or or um any of these other cities
37:27 cities
37:31 Memphis or thieves or or any of these
37:33 other pagans You' see Gods all over the
37:35 place more Gods Than
37:37 People you go to Jerusalem you don't see
37:40 any Gods where's your God our God's in the
37:41 the
37:44 heaven he's done whatever he wants to I
37:47 like that our God's up in heaven and
37:49 he's completely
37:52 Sovereign so when I come and pray Our
37:55 Father in heaven I'm saying here is an
38:01 exalted sovereign and God of unlimited
38:05 power a holy God the last thing Jesus
38:08 said was all authority has been given to
38:10 me now get
38:12 going and so no matter where we are I
38:14 have prayed in the Intensive Care ward
38:17 of a hospital hovering between life and
38:18 death and you know what my Father in
38:24 me we've prayed in Plains we've prayed
38:27 in strange places you missionaries know
38:30 what I'm talking about we have prayed
38:31 sometimes sometimes we awake in the
38:33 middle of the night and we'll say just
38:36 just pray we've prayed our way through
38:37 burdens and
38:40 attacks you know why we can do that
38:42 because our father is in
38:45 heaven he who keeps us doesn't Slumber or
38:47 or
38:50 sleep he has all power and all knowledge
38:52 and the fact that he's enthroned in
38:54 heaven means he sees everything just the
38:57 way it ought to be and so when I come to
39:00 him him and say our father in
39:04 Heaven he says son I hear
39:08 you you know prayer is a mighty
39:10 Miracle have you ever tried to get the
39:13 attention of the president of a
39:15 bank you know the sign out in front and
39:17 says a friendly Bank about as friendly
39:23 cobra how many weeks in advance do you
39:25 call to see your doctor I'm not
39:27 criticizing them they're they're busy
39:28 people my doctor is a dear precious
39:30 Christian friend I love
39:33 him but um how long does it take to get
39:41 doctor just think of
39:45 it would you say our father you have his
39:47 heart you have his
39:50 ear try to see the president as much as
39:52 he's trying to be popular with the crowd
39:54 try to see him I dare
39:58 you last time I was in Washington DC and
40:00 we went down to the White House boy I
40:02 mean you had to see a senator and get
40:04 this and get that and then they checked
40:06 you at the gate and you never did see the
40:07 the
40:10 president I can go to the god of the
40:13 universe The God Who made me The God Who
40:16 wrote the book of instruction for Life
40:19 The God Who Saved Me The God Who has a
40:20 purpose for my life the god who's
40:23 working out his purpose I can go to him
40:25 at any time in fact he says don't ever
40:27 leave me you know sometimes we pray pray
40:28 like this father we come into your
40:30 presence and I feel like saying Lord
40:32 Lord what have I been doing out of your
40:38 that and so here are three great
40:41 encouragements to prayer I should say
40:45 four our you're never praying
40:47 alone you're never praying Alone by the
40:49 time you think you're going to quit
40:51 somebody's praying for
40:54 you God has awakened me sometimes in the
40:55 middle of the night to pray for
40:58 somebody doesn't happen too often but
40:59 sometimes I just get the impression we
41:01 better pray for
41:04 people Our Father God is a father he is
41:10 heaven and so don't
41:13 quit don't give
41:17 up keep on
41:19 praying I think you've noticed that our
41:20 hym books are changing have you noticed
41:23 that yours isn't you've had it for some
41:26 time but uh out in the churches our our
41:28 hym books are are changing you can't
41:30 sing from memory anymore they've changed
41:33 the words we used to raise our Ebenezer
41:34 we don't do that anymore Ebenezer has
41:36 been kicked
41:38 out I guess that's all right a new
41:40 generation of biblical illiterates maybe
41:47 know but what bothers me is some of the
41:49 great songs are are Vanishing they're
41:52 disappearing I guess this has to
41:54 happen it happened in My Father's Day
41:58 and it'll happen in my day and so I'm
42:01 not complaining I'm just stating a
42:04 fact one of my favorite prayer songs was
42:07 written by oswal J Smith who wrote
42:09 hundreds of
42:11 songs I used to preach up at the
42:13 People's Church many many times when Dr
42:15 Smith was still living
42:18 OJ and um oh he could
42:21 pray his son Paul would say now father
42:22 is going to lead us in prayer and this tall
42:24 tall
42:27 lanky man would get into that pul but
42:30 and Heaven would come
42:34 down and one of my favorite hymns he
42:37 wrote and whenever I get discouraged in
42:40 my praying I sometimes pull this out
42:41 I've got a copy of the people's song
42:44 book that I received at the People's
42:46 Church and it's the I think it's the
42:48 only book you can find it in I don't
42:50 think any modern himno still has this
42:51 song in
42:54 it goes like
42:59 this pray on oh soul of mine pray
43:04 on this night of sin will soon be gone
43:07 the break of day will come air long till
43:09 then my soul pray
43:13 on pray on oh soul of mine pray on
43:16 Temptations cannot last for
43:20 long thou soon shalt sing the Victor
43:24 song with faith my soul pray
43:28 on pray on oh soul of mine pray on the
43:30 Lord will keep thee true and
43:36 strong and answer all thy prayers airong with
43:37 with
43:40 joy my
43:42 soul pray
43:44 on don't
43:47 quit when you feel like quitting just
43:49 say our
43:51 father in
43:58 praying we're grateful our
44:01 Lord that you encourage us to pray
44:04 you're never too busy all the millions
44:06 of people who talk to you and yet you
44:09 hear us you know our names you've
44:11 counted the hairs on our
44:13 head you know all about
44:18 us and you Delight when we
44:22 pray and now encourage us to pray
44:25 on through Christ Our
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