WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.759 The Lord's Prayer is the most important of all 00:00:05.759 --> 00:00:12.400 the Christian documents. And that's really saying 00:00:12.400 --> 00:00:19.519 something. But it's just like that. You and I 00:00:19.519 --> 00:00:22.460 have been having some very excellent heart -to 00:00:22.460 --> 00:00:25.600 -heart talks together on this glorious prayer 00:00:25.600 --> 00:00:30.320 that Jesus taught. You and he taught me to pray. 00:00:32.920 --> 00:00:37.920 And in teaching us how to pray, he begins with 00:00:37.920 --> 00:00:44.439 two words that are vitally important. Our Father. 00:00:45.960 --> 00:00:52.020 And this simple statement in itself constitutes 00:00:52.020 --> 00:00:58.119 a definite and a complete system. of theology. 00:01:00.619 --> 00:01:09.680 Our father. Before we come to our business, before 00:01:09.680 --> 00:01:12.760 the throne of God, there must be a solemn address 00:01:12.760 --> 00:01:19.519 to him with whom our business lies. There is 00:01:19.519 --> 00:01:25.560 a person into whose presence we come. We address 00:01:25.560 --> 00:01:30.219 a person person, not a spirit, not something 00:01:30.219 --> 00:01:34.140 that is just a figment of our imagination, but 00:01:34.140 --> 00:01:40.719 a person with a definite personality. And Jesus 00:01:40.719 --> 00:01:44.200 taught us that that person and the one to be 00:01:44.200 --> 00:01:53.519 addressed is God himself, our Father. And right 00:01:53.519 --> 00:01:57.230 here at the very beginning, we're taught to whom 00:01:57.230 --> 00:02:03.189 to pray. Oh, this is so important. Please pause 00:02:03.189 --> 00:02:07.010 for just a minute. Get to this all -important 00:02:07.010 --> 00:02:15.150 phase of praying to God. At the very start, we 00:02:15.150 --> 00:02:20.150 are taught by Jesus himself to whom we are to 00:02:20.150 --> 00:02:23.030 pray. It makes all the difference in the world. 00:02:23.419 --> 00:02:29.699 To whom you pray. When you pray, you are to pray 00:02:29.699 --> 00:02:36.960 to God only. Not to the saints. Not to angels. 00:02:38.840 --> 00:02:45.099 Not to Mary, the mother of Jesus. But to one 00:02:45.099 --> 00:02:51.759 and one only. God is the only person. to whom 00:02:51.759 --> 00:02:58.599 you are to pray. Consider a moment. The saints 00:02:58.599 --> 00:03:04.280 do not know your need. The saints do not have 00:03:04.280 --> 00:03:09.060 the power to answer your prayer. The angels are 00:03:09.060 --> 00:03:12.819 powerful, but the angels do not know your need. 00:03:14.939 --> 00:03:17.800 The angels do not have the power to answer your 00:03:17.800 --> 00:03:26.979 prayer. Mary does not know your need. Mary does 00:03:26.979 --> 00:03:33.060 not have the power to supply your need. Only 00:03:33.060 --> 00:03:36.919 one has that power, and that's God Almighty. 00:03:38.680 --> 00:03:45.520 Know that. And you dishonor God. You dishonor 00:03:45.520 --> 00:03:52.879 literally the eternal God You pray to anyone 00:03:52.879 --> 00:03:59.680 else except God Almighty. And so we're taught 00:03:59.680 --> 00:04:04.319 how to address ourselves to God and what title 00:04:04.319 --> 00:04:11.840 to give Him. It's just like that. We must address 00:04:11.840 --> 00:04:18.100 ourselves to Him as our Father. We must call 00:04:18.100 --> 00:04:25.519 Him our Father. He is in a very special manner 00:04:25.519 --> 00:04:30.199 a father to the saints by adoption and regeneration. 00:04:32.319 --> 00:04:37.740 And it's an unspeakable privilege that you and 00:04:37.740 --> 00:04:41.740 I have to be able to come into the presence of 00:04:41.740 --> 00:04:49.220 an eternal God, an almighty God, and say, Father. 00:04:50.480 --> 00:04:53.379 There's no greater privilege that men and women 00:04:53.379 --> 00:04:57.300 have. There is no greater privilege that I, as 00:04:57.300 --> 00:05:03.379 an individual, have here on earth than to come 00:05:03.379 --> 00:05:08.500 into the presence of an all -powerful God, the 00:05:08.500 --> 00:05:11.699 one who literally spoke the worlds into existence, 00:05:12.180 --> 00:05:18.399 who said, let there be light, and there was light. 00:05:19.069 --> 00:05:22.589 You do not have a greater privilege as a human 00:05:22.589 --> 00:05:25.689 being than to be able to come into the presence 00:05:25.689 --> 00:05:35.230 of God and address Him as Father. A privilege 00:05:35.230 --> 00:05:40.509 that's yours through Jesus Christ the Son. After 00:05:40.509 --> 00:05:44.790 your regeneration. After that glorious new birth 00:05:44.790 --> 00:05:48.509 experience. And you have accepted Jesus as your 00:05:48.509 --> 00:05:50.990 personal Savior in the forgiveness of your sins. 00:05:53.209 --> 00:05:57.149 The truth is that Jesus, the Son of God, has 00:05:57.149 --> 00:06:02.709 made all of this possible. After that marvelous 00:06:02.709 --> 00:06:05.649 experience of regeneration, the new birth experience, 00:06:06.329 --> 00:06:09.410 after you have accepted for yourself individually 00:06:09.410 --> 00:06:12.610 what Jesus did for you on the cross, in accepting 00:06:12.610 --> 00:06:14.829 that pardon, in the forgiveness of your sins. 00:06:14.889 --> 00:06:22.750 At that very moment, you belong to God by adoption. 00:06:24.250 --> 00:06:27.810 Beloved, now are we the sons of God. You and 00:06:27.810 --> 00:06:30.850 I do not have to wait until after death to be 00:06:30.850 --> 00:06:34.189 His through adoption. We do not have to wait 00:06:34.189 --> 00:06:36.350 until death to be able to come before the throne 00:06:36.350 --> 00:06:42.370 of God and address Him as Father. Now, this very 00:06:42.370 --> 00:06:50.129 moment. Beloved, now are we the sons of God through 00:06:50.129 --> 00:06:54.569 adoption to that which Jesus Christ did for us 00:06:54.569 --> 00:07:01.810 in the shedding of his blood. If you have, as 00:07:01.810 --> 00:07:05.819 an individual, accepted for yourself what Jesus 00:07:05.819 --> 00:07:09.040 did for you on the cross, literally by faith, 00:07:09.040 --> 00:07:17.980 accepting the pardon, then you are gods to the 00:07:17.980 --> 00:07:24.560 means of adoption. An heir of God and a joint 00:07:24.560 --> 00:07:28.199 heir with Christ Jesus. Doesn't that do something 00:07:28.199 --> 00:07:32.379 to you? Isn't that thrilling? Do you really know 00:07:32.379 --> 00:07:35.459 what salvation means? Sometimes I think we speak 00:07:35.459 --> 00:07:38.019 of it so lightly, we take it so matter -of -fact. 00:07:40.339 --> 00:07:48.959 When it's so great. I stand in awe sometimes 00:07:48.959 --> 00:07:54.540 when this experience and all that it involves, 00:07:54.819 --> 00:07:59.579 the inheritance of it all, literally overwhelms 00:07:59.579 --> 00:08:13.500 me. Our Father. My Father. Even in prayer, Jesus 00:08:13.500 --> 00:08:21.120 addressed him as Father. When Jesus prayed, he 00:08:21.120 --> 00:08:28.279 didn't address the saints. Consider that. Jesus 00:08:28.279 --> 00:08:34.389 did not address the saints. When he prayed, he 00:08:34.389 --> 00:08:45.850 always addressed God as Father. And as our Father, 00:08:46.090 --> 00:08:51.809 he'll pity us under our weaknesses and our infirmities. 00:08:53.450 --> 00:08:57.789 Who has the pity? Who has the love? Who has the 00:08:57.789 --> 00:09:03.440 compassion? Like a heavenly Father. Consider 00:09:03.440 --> 00:09:08.440 some things that are vitally important. He knows 00:09:08.440 --> 00:09:11.679 what's good for us. He's perfect wisdom. He's 00:09:11.679 --> 00:09:17.779 perfect knowledge. We can come to him with holy 00:09:17.779 --> 00:09:22.740 boldness. We have an advocate with the Father 00:09:22.740 --> 00:09:28.100 and the spirit of adoption when we come repenting 00:09:28.100 --> 00:09:32.350 of our sins. The saints cannot forgive our sins. 00:09:34.250 --> 00:09:39.590 Please know that. Mary cannot forgive our sins. 00:09:42.909 --> 00:09:48.730 No one can forgive sins but the perfect one. 00:09:51.490 --> 00:09:59.980 No one can give grace but the perfect one. When 00:09:59.980 --> 00:10:02.980 we come begging for grace, when we come begging 00:10:02.980 --> 00:10:07.039 for peace, and the inheritance and blessings 00:10:07.039 --> 00:10:10.539 of sons, oh, it's such an encouragement that 00:10:10.539 --> 00:10:16.059 we come to God, not as an unreconciled, avenging 00:10:16.059 --> 00:10:21.220 judge. No, my friend, no. When I come into the 00:10:21.220 --> 00:10:25.200 presence of my heavenly Father, and I say, Father, 00:10:25.220 --> 00:10:28.960 I've sinned, I failed. I'm sorry. I've come short 00:10:28.960 --> 00:10:31.919 of the glory of God. I've made this mistake and 00:10:31.919 --> 00:10:35.379 I'm sorry. And when I come into his glorious 00:10:35.379 --> 00:10:38.279 presence, I do not come to the presence of one 00:10:38.279 --> 00:10:45.440 who is an avenging God. But I come to the presence 00:10:45.440 --> 00:10:53.019 of one who is a loving, a gracious Father. My 00:10:53.019 --> 00:11:00.120 Heavenly Father. And as our Father in heaven, 00:11:00.279 --> 00:11:09.059 so in heaven all the saints of God who through 00:11:09.059 --> 00:11:13.799 generations have come to him receiving mercy 00:11:13.799 --> 00:11:22.679 and grace. Not one having merited the mercy and 00:11:22.679 --> 00:11:27.019 the grace that was given them. Oh, that's glorious. 00:11:28.850 --> 00:11:35.149 Our Father, who art in heaven. Remember something. 00:11:37.190 --> 00:11:44.350 Heaven is a place of perfect purity. And we must 00:11:44.350 --> 00:11:49.529 therefore lift up pure hands. We must study to 00:11:49.529 --> 00:11:54.100 sanctify his name. who is the Holy One, and he 00:11:54.100 --> 00:11:56.659 dwells in that holy place. That's one reason 00:11:56.659 --> 00:11:59.320 I believe that Jesus taught us that we are to 00:11:59.320 --> 00:12:02.879 say, our Father who art in heaven, we must always 00:12:02.879 --> 00:12:06.320 remember that heaven is a holy place, that God 00:12:06.320 --> 00:12:08.259 is the Holy God. Sometimes I think that we forget 00:12:08.259 --> 00:12:16.480 these things. Sometimes I think we forget. That 00:12:16.480 --> 00:12:21.179 heaven is a holy place. No sin can enter there. 00:12:21.700 --> 00:12:27.259 There is no sin in heaven. There's no unrighteousness 00:12:27.259 --> 00:12:31.179 in heaven. That's the reason when Lucifer, when 00:12:31.179 --> 00:12:34.019 he began to ascend into heaven to dethrone God, 00:12:34.259 --> 00:12:39.720 Lucifer the angel, with sin in his heart, becoming 00:12:39.720 --> 00:12:42.940 jealous of God, began to ascend, he was thrown. 00:12:44.139 --> 00:12:48.139 to the earth because no sin can enter heaven. 00:12:49.679 --> 00:12:57.679 Heaven is a place of purity. God is a holy God, 00:12:57.940 --> 00:13:05.720 greatly to be praised. Thus all of our prayers 00:13:05.720 --> 00:13:11.700 should correspond with that which is our great 00:13:11.700 --> 00:13:16.220 aim as Christians. And that is to be with God 00:13:16.220 --> 00:13:25.100 in heaven. Oh, this is something. Hallowed be 00:13:25.100 --> 00:13:31.340 thy name. It's the same word that in other places 00:13:31.340 --> 00:13:35.820 is translated sanctified. But here, the word 00:13:35.820 --> 00:13:40.429 hallowed is retained only because people. We're 00:13:40.429 --> 00:13:43.409 used to it in the Lord's Prayer. In these words, 00:13:43.649 --> 00:13:52.529 we give glory to God. Hallowed be thy name. In 00:13:52.529 --> 00:13:57.769 so saying, we recognize the fact that we're not 00:13:57.769 --> 00:13:59.950 coming into the presence of a mere man. We're 00:13:59.950 --> 00:14:02.250 not coming into the presence of one of the saints. 00:14:03.750 --> 00:14:05.830 We're not coming merely into the presence of 00:14:05.830 --> 00:14:13.820 angels. Hallowed be thy name. There is no name 00:14:13.820 --> 00:14:19.720 above the name of our Heavenly Father, God Almighty. 00:14:21.220 --> 00:14:27.980 We give glory to God. Remember that. It may be 00:14:27.980 --> 00:14:31.019 taken out as a petition, but as an adoration. 00:14:33.899 --> 00:14:39.769 As that. As an adoration, the Lord be magnified. 00:14:39.970 --> 00:14:44.490 The Lord God be glorified. For God's holiness 00:14:44.490 --> 00:14:48.970 is the greatness and the glory of all his perfection. 00:14:49.529 --> 00:14:52.590 And so we must begin our prayers with praising 00:14:52.590 --> 00:14:59.190 God. We must begin our praise praising the Holy 00:14:59.190 --> 00:15:04.200 One. He is the one to be served first. We should 00:15:04.200 --> 00:15:06.940 give glory to God before we make any petition 00:15:06.940 --> 00:15:12.100 known. Before we expect to receive mercy and 00:15:12.100 --> 00:15:15.340 grace and forgiveness from him, we must first 00:15:15.340 --> 00:15:22.360 of all magnify him and glorify him. Give him 00:15:22.360 --> 00:15:28.840 the praise of his perfections and then let us 00:15:28.840 --> 00:15:33.960 have the benefit of his mercy. And his power 00:15:33.960 --> 00:15:38.120 and his giving. Oh, if only I could get you to 00:15:38.120 --> 00:15:42.500 see something that means so much in my own life. 00:15:43.059 --> 00:15:45.100 And it'll mean everything in the world to you 00:15:45.100 --> 00:15:47.840 if you learn his glorious secret. That is the 00:15:47.840 --> 00:15:49.799 reason why it's very often in a great service. 00:15:49.879 --> 00:15:52.080 You've heard me say it over and over. Perhaps 00:15:52.080 --> 00:15:54.720 standing before thousands of people on the stage. 00:15:56.559 --> 00:15:58.870 Posing right now. at the very beginning of the 00:15:58.870 --> 00:16:01.230 service and say, now, we're going to pause for 00:16:01.230 --> 00:16:05.529 just one full minute. Not asking him for a single 00:16:05.529 --> 00:16:12.110 thing, but just stand quietly and worship him. 00:16:12.169 --> 00:16:20.389 Don't say a word. Be absolutely quiet. We have 00:16:20.389 --> 00:16:26.679 forgotten that there's such power in quiet. It's 00:16:26.679 --> 00:16:30.000 so noisy out there. Oh, there's so much confusion 00:16:30.000 --> 00:16:32.679 out there. That's the reason there's so much 00:16:32.679 --> 00:16:36.700 frustration. That's the reason most people are 00:16:36.700 --> 00:16:40.340 suffering from a nervous condition, a nervous 00:16:40.340 --> 00:16:43.879 disorder. They've never learned that wonderful 00:16:43.879 --> 00:16:52.419 secret of blessed quietness. Blessed stillness. 00:16:55.149 --> 00:17:01.789 Blessed worship. Worshiping a holy God as we 00:17:01.789 --> 00:17:05.710 come into the presence of the one altogether 00:17:05.710 --> 00:17:11.710 holy. Be still, be quiet. There's such strength 00:17:11.710 --> 00:17:20.890 in quietness. Oh, there's such strength in just 00:17:20.890 --> 00:17:27.279 being still in his presence. There's such encouragement. 00:17:30.380 --> 00:17:37.880 There's such glory in just being still in His 00:17:37.880 --> 00:17:44.640 presence. In silence there can be worship. Sometimes 00:17:44.640 --> 00:17:49.680 I think we've lost the art of worship entirely. 00:17:49.920 --> 00:17:56.359 We've forgotten how to worship God. It'd be so 00:17:56.359 --> 00:17:59.420 wonderful in all of our services if we would 00:17:59.420 --> 00:18:06.920 just take so much time to just worship you. That's 00:18:06.920 --> 00:18:12.339 the reason I did the chorus. Alleluia. Only one 00:18:12.339 --> 00:18:17.559 word is spoken. And that one word is universal 00:18:17.559 --> 00:18:23.769 in all languages. That's one reason that that 00:18:23.769 --> 00:18:27.349 little chorus is literally sweeping the world. 00:18:28.269 --> 00:18:31.150 We began singing it in our services in the Shrine 00:18:31.150 --> 00:18:33.990 Auditorium, and it wasn't long until the whole 00:18:33.990 --> 00:18:37.450 world was singing it. If I could get the whole 00:18:37.450 --> 00:18:44.170 world to adore him, to worship him. Just the 00:18:44.170 --> 00:18:53.150 one word, Alleluia. In the book of the Revelation, 00:18:53.250 --> 00:18:56.210 under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, heard 00:18:56.210 --> 00:19:03.210 the saints, the voices of the saints, worshipping 00:19:03.210 --> 00:19:17.009 and adoring him. Alleluia. Our Father, who art 00:19:17.009 --> 00:19:29.839 in heaven. Hallowed be thy name. Hallowed be 00:19:29.839 --> 00:19:39.000 thy name. We adore you. A God to be magnified. 00:19:39.480 --> 00:19:46.680 A heavenly Father to be glorified.