And let me ask you, who would be a greater authority?
Who would know more about prayer and how to pray
and how to receive an answer to prayer than the
Son of God? So just for a few minutes, I pray
that you'll just... empty your thinking of all
of the books that you've ever read on prayer.
And believe me when I tell you, literally thousands
and thousands of volumes have been written on
the subject of prayer. Thousands of sermons have
been preached on prayer. And yet, when Jesus
came to the place where he gave us... The pattern
for prayer. In exactly the same way that if one
was a cook and that one gave us a recipe for
something. In exactly the same way Jesus gave
us a recipe or a pattern for prayer, how to pray.
And sit there just for a few minutes. Just completely
empty your mind of all preconceived ideas, everything
you've ever read, everything you've ever heard,
and just like a little child, listen to the words,
the teaching of Jesus. I'm going to say something
right now. The Lord has constructed His prayer.
with more skill than ever yet a lawyer has displayed
in the casting of a deed. If you want to see
a masterpiece, behold the master's teaching in
this prayer. So simple a child can understand.
Only a few words spoken. And really in comparison
to the volumes that had been written. The many
books that had been written. And alongside of
that which Jesus spoke in giving us the pattern
for prayer. It's amazing. And I repeat. The Lord
has constructed. this prayer with more skill
than any lawyer has displayed in the casting
of a deed. We're coming now to that part of the
prayer that he has taught us to pray in Forgive
Us Our Trespasses. as we forgive them that trespass
against us. And this clause is the turning point
of the prayer. It's right in the middle of the
prayer. And right here, these words, this clause,
is the turning point of the entire prayer. Stop
for just a few minutes. We're going to go back
for just a second, and I want you to notice something.
Jesus has so arranged this marvelous pattern
for prayer, and that's exactly what it is. It
is not his prayer. We refer to it as the Lord's
Prayer. Really, it isn't. It is the prayer that
Jesus taught you and taught me to pray. And Jesus
has so arranged this marvelous pattern for prayer
covers the entire ground of unfoldment of our
souls completely. It omits nothing that is essential
for our salvation and to our Christian life.
If all that we had, if we had nor the part of
the Bible, if all on earth that we had was just
these words, this prayer that Jesus taught, us
to pray we would have all of the essentials for
our salvation and to our christian life and yet
this prayer is so compact that there's not a
thought or a word too much every move fits into
its place with perfect harmony and in perfect
sequence. Again I repeat, the Lord has so constructed
this prayer. He has constructed it with more
skill than any attorney, any lawyer has ever
displayed in the casting of a deed. Anything
more would have been too much. Anything less
would have been incomplete. The whole thing is
there. I'll prove what I've just said. He begins
the prayer, and I hope that all of you who are
listening to me this very moment have been following
me in our heart -to -heart talk regarding this
prayer. Because what I'm going to say today will
mean so much more to you if you have not missed
my previous talks. He begins the prayer with
the most beautiful words. Those first six words
are the most beautiful words that could leave
human lips. Our Father, which art in heaven.
And the very first thing that reminds us of is
our relationship. He tells us right at the outset
what God is. Our Father. Remember something.
Not... Every human being can say, my father.
There is no such thing as the brotherhood of
all mankind. The one thing that all men have
in common, and that is God as the mighty creator.
That's one thing all of us have in common. He
is every man's creator. But he does not become
that one's father until that one has accepted
Jesus Christ as their Savior in the forgiveness
of their sins. Beloved, now are we the sons of
God. But we do not become the sons of God until
we have accepted His Son in the forgiveness of
our sins. You have no right to continue the rest
of this prayer. The only prayer, if you are a
sinner, if you've never been born again, If you
know him only as a mighty creator, you cannot
claim his glorious promises for his children.
The only prayer that God is bound by his word,
his promise to answer for you as an unregenerated
person is the prayer of forgiveness. And it's
just like that. Right at the outset of this prayer,
he tells us our relationship to the Father. He
tells us what God is. And then he continues by
telling us what man is. What's the next step?
He tells us how we are to do our own work. Thy
will be done here and now on earth as it is in
heaven. You are important to God. You are personal
to Him. He makes it very clear. As an individual,
He has a perfect will for you in His perfect
knowledge. He holds the blueprint to your life
in his hand. Not every man and every woman is
living according to God's perfect will. Thousands
have never lived a day of their lives according
to God's great blueprint because man is so constructed
that man has a will of his own. You have a will
separate and apart from the will of God, even
as the Son of God had a will separate and apart
from the will of the Father. And before Jesus
could fulfill the perfect will of God, he had
to yield his will to the will of the Father.
That's the reason he prayed that marvelous prayer.
Nevertheless, not my will, but thine be done.
Father, I submit, I surrender my will, which
is separate and apart from yours, to you, so
that your perfect will can be carried out. God
has a plan for you. that he has for no other
person. No one else can do your work for you.
And he never willed. He never in a thousand worlds
willed that any creature of his creation should
ever live a defeated life. Never. Do you think
that God ever willed that any man should be a
drunkard? Do you think that God in his kinder
mercy ever gave life to you that you might live
the despicable, the defeated life that you are
living? The answer is no. You have chose to live
the life that you live. You have willed to live
the life that you are now living, a life contrary
to the will of God. That's why in this prayer,
watch it, Jesus begins. By telling us what God
is, then what man is, then how we are to do our
own work. There is a plan. God does nothing promiscuously.
Then he explains the way in which we're to receive
our true nourishment. He knows that we're living
in an old material world. That's the reason some
people, you know, get so ethereal, so impractical
when they come to living a Christian life. My
friend, the Christian life is a life. It's living.
It's the most practical thing in the world. God
the Father is not only interested in the spiritual
part of your life, He's even interested in your
bread and butter. He wouldn't be a heavenly Father
if He wasn't. And He goes all the way. He has
promised a daily rate. All the days of our life,
so long as we shall live. Not only the bread
and the butter. He knows that there would be
days when there'd be sorrow. There'd be temptations.
And always know, the cross will never be any
greater than his grace. Know that. you surrender
your will to His will. That He would make it
possible that all things would work together
for your good and to His glory. And that with
every day, with the beginning of every day, until...
the clock strikes the midnight hour closing that
day, that there would be a daily rate for every
day of your life. He will give you a full allowance
that would meet every need of your life for that
day. Now... we come to something. Hold on. Remember
what I told you when I began this little heart
-to -heart talk today? That the Lord has constructed
this prayer with more skill than any lawyer,
any attorney has ever displayed in the casting
of a deed. All is safe. You talk about an example
of psychology. You talk about skill. Do you want
to see perfect wisdom displayed in a pattern?
It's here. Up until now, he has said nothing
about the forgiveness of sin. Not one word. Had
he begun this prayer with sin, there'd be those
who'd be scared stiff. And that's one thing.
Let me remind you of something. The forgiveness
of sin is the central problem of life. I repeat
it. The forgiveness of sin is the central problem
of... every man's life. That's right. It is,
of course, rooted in selfishness. All men are
selfish. Oh, some woman says right now, goody,
goody, goody, goody. Now, when I use the word
men, I mean all human beings. And women are just
as selfish as men. I had to throw that in for
good measure. Just in case someone listening
in would throw it up to their husband tonight
when he came home. You do. If you are a part
of humanity. That's the truth. The forgiveness
of sins. Listen. It's the major tragedy of human
experience. And he leads us right to this subject
of sin. But prior to it, he tells us of God as
our Heavenly Father. Oh, and that's thrilling.
He tells us that... The father has promised to
take care of his children. Oh, what could be
more wonderful? I was in a department store when,
after I made my purchase, the clerk came very
close to me and said, Miss Grumman, I'm Roman
Catholic. And she said, would you please autograph
something for me? And I said, of course I will.
And then she came back in just a few minutes.
She'd taken out of her purse something that was
very precious to her. She said, you know, I belong
to the Order of St. Francis. And she had her
nice little card. She said, will you just autograph
this for me? And I did. I knew how much it meant
to her. And then after I had written my name
on the card, I looked up in her eyes. were brimming
with tears, and she said, and she whispered it,
she said, I get so discouraged, Miss Coleman.
How can I overcome my discouragement? What can
I do? I said, listen, when discouragement comes,
just look up and remember to whom you belong.
That's all you do. Just look up and know that
he is your heavenly father, your rich. And in
the light of his love and his power, you can
never be discouraged. In my next heart -to -heart
talk, We're going to come face to face with the
most important part of this prayer. The forgiveness
of sin.