How many words would you need to summarize the Old Testament? Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus… Moses, the Ten Commandments, The Exodus, King David, Solomon, Isaiah, Jeremiah – the whole thing: how would you boil it down and how many words would you need? Jesus needed 14 words. He said:
So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. (Matthew 7:12)
Elegant. Golden.
There is a gas station (It’s the Adams 66) in Council Grove, Kansas where the owner runs out to fill your tank, wash your windshield and polish your mirrors. Remember that? I’ve become so accustomed to waiting in line inside a “convenience” store while a surly dropout finishes talking on the cell phone that this guy was a shock. As I stood there, baffled by this flash from the past, he asked, “Anything else you need? Check your oil? Tires okay? Just ask…”
You think that’s amazing, check this out. The Creator of the universe has said, “Just ask…”
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” Matthew 7:7-8
It’s not that God is a genie in a bottle or a cosmic ATM. It’s that God invites us to engage with Him in a relationship. He invites us to ask. He encourages us to seek and knock. All these actions initiate a new experience in a relationship. It’s the relationship Adam and Eve had before they hid from God in shame. It’s the way God intended life to be.
Maybe you are reading this and thinking, “I’m not so sure there even is a God.” I’ve been there, hiding behind a wall of suspicion, for fear of being fooled. That is, until one day I asked and God responded. That was an astonishing and life changing moment for me. God knows it’s tough for us to engage with Someone we cannot see. He knows it feels safer for us to only trust in ourselves. That’s whats so cool about His invitation – ask, seek, knock. You do that, He says, and you will have the door opened to an amazing, interactive, personal relationship.
Questions? Just ask…
According to Jesus, some folks act like dogs and pigs. He said, give ’em a wide berth:
“Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces. (Matthew 7:6)
Maybe that doesn’t sound like Jesus to you. What does He mean? The first principle in figuring that out is to ask, what has He been talking about? What is the context of what He said? In this case, Jesus had just taught us not to condemn others (Matthew 7:1-2) but rather, to approach them to help with compassion and humility, fully aware of our own faults (Matthew 7:3-5). If this is a continuation of that topic, then He means, realize that there are some people who are not ready or able to receive your help. Trying to help those people may truly make it worse.
The dogs of Jesus’ day were not domesticated; they were wild and dangerous. Pigs, too – and they were also considered unclean for the observant Jew. We’ve all encountered people who, at least for the moment, were acting like dogs and pigs. The best and most compassionate help, as valuable as it may otherwise be, will have no value to a person in that condition. Don’t try to force it on him.
When Jesus refers to something sacred or holy, it is important to recognize that things we do in obedience to Him are sacred and holy. Water to the thirsty, clothes for the needy – these are sacred acts when motivated by an appreciation for Jesus’ teachings about reality and about God. So too, would be a genuinely compassionate and humble attempt to help someone stuck in destructive behavior. So too, would be an attempt to explain the amazing truth about Jesus and the wonderful life that awaits those who comprehend it. But, as sacred as they are, those acts only have value – they only really help – if they are received by the person to whom they are offered. When that person reacts with hostility and anger, it is time to back off, for your own well being and to preserve the value and effectiveness of what has been offered. There may be a better time.
As I write, I recall in my own life, the many times I acted as a wild dog and an irreverent pig. Those who tried to shove “help” down my throat were angrily turned away. I also humbly recall that God did not give up on me.
Bill O’Reilly really makes me mad because he interrupts so much. I get so frustrated with people that constantly interrupt – people like me. The things things that bug me most in other people tend to be the things I don’t like about myself. You too? Perhaps that’s because our own struggles make us more sensitive to these same faults in others. Plus, it is way more fun to correct those faults in others than to address them in ourselves, right? It’s human nature. That’s why Jesus said:
“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. (Matthew 7:3-5)
Jesus didn’t say we should pretend not to see our brother’s faults. He told us how to prepare so we are able to help “remove the speck from our brother’s eye.” Such help begins with an honest assessment of our own similar faults. “Seeing clearly” includes humility and compassion, attitudes that flow from honesty about our own struggles. Most people resent criticism from on high but respond well to someone who comes alongside with understanding and encouragement.
Terry Bolter escaped from the Gestapo by jumping across 6 feet of space to the roof of the adjacent building and then dropping down through a skylight. He was a British WWII pilot, downed behind Nazi lines, who eventually made it back. His journey ( It’s a hair raising tale; I’ll include the link below) was made possible by following guides from the Belgian resistance. Throughout this perilous escape, Terry was constantly faced with a choice: worry or trust. Worry would have paralyzed him. Putting aside worry and trusting his guide gave him the ability to make it through each day’s dangerous obstacles. Jesus taught the same principle in the Sermon on the Mount: Don’t worry; Trust. He said:
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. (Matthew 6:25-34)
Worry, stressing over having enough food, clothing or money, can prevent us from entering into life – real life. Instead of worrying, Jesus said, trust Him and follow His guidance. Bobby McFerrin had it wrong when he sang “Don’t Worry; Be Happy,” which is a potentially dangerous exercise in wishful thinking. Jesus said, “Don’t worry; trust God and follow Me, your guide.” There is a big difference.
So, what did Jesus, our guide, tell us to do? “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness.” He didn’t say, “Clean up your act and do righteous things.” He said, “Seek God’s righteousness, given to those who respond to Him as their King.” It’s not the self-righteous who enter the kingdom of God, but rather, Jesus taught, it is the “poor in spirit,” who “hunger and thirst for righteousness” (Matthew 5:3&6). In other words, it is those who know they cannot make it on their own, those who are ready to trust Him to guide them (“blessed are the meek” – Matthew 5:5). Terry Bolter couldn’t rescue himself. He was trapped in a building with the Gestapo hammering on the door. His only hope for safety was to put aside worry and trust his guide. That’s the situation we are in. Jesus says, “Don’t worry; follow me, seeking God’s Kingdom and righteousness.”
Here’s the link to the rest of Terry’s story: click here
A friend of mine had made millions in the oil business. He told me that the best thing that ever happened to him was when he literally lost it all. He discovered, he said, that when he made money the goal of his life, what he lived for, money held him in a very tight and demanding grip. There was never quite enough. You and I think a few million would be plenty, but my friend said he found real wealth when he was penniless. Here’s how Jesus said it:
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. … “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money. (Matthew 6:19-21 & 24 )
This sounds preposterous; everyone knows that the goal of life is to be rich. That is, except those who have chased that goal and, too late, find themselves unable to let go. It’s not that money is bad. The problem is our tendency to want more and more money as a goal in itself. When money becomes our quest, it is an addictive substance. And, in our quest for more, we trample the attitudes Jesus calls, “storing up treasures in heaven.” He was talking about living by the counter-intuitive principles He taught in the Sermon on the Mount. These are based on the truth that sets a person free, that produces a life lived in harmony with God’s design.
So why does this seem so upside-down? Jesus said it’s an eyesight problem, a consequence of how we see life:
“The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness! (Matthew 6:22-23)
When my friend lost his fortune, Jesus opened his eyes and showed him what living was really all about.
You can check this out for yourself. Ask Jesus to open your eyes and show you how to be generous. That’s a dangerous prayer. Jesus will certainly respond, and put you in some challenging situations. Real generosity is a struggle because it feels self-destructive. It feels a lot like the first time you decided to try a diving board. You grab onto the safety rail and think, “If I do this I’m going to hurt myself or drown!” But it is impossible to hold that rail and dive. You have to choose. But when you let go and bounce off the end of the board, you discover a new and exhilarating freedom.
Jesus is waiting for us in the pool of abundant life. He says, “Stop holding on to money for dear life. Let go and take a flying leap into real life. Come on in, the water is fine!”
Did you know you can get a reward from God? Jesus told us how. Three times, Jesus said “…your Father Who sees in secret will reward you.”. The first time, He was talking about giving to the poor. The second time, He was teaching how to pray. Once more, while teaching about fasting, Jesus explains how to be rewarded by “your Father”.
“And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. (Matthew 6:16-18 – ESV)
Once again, the point is the same: Do not try to impress people with your devotion to God; keep it private, between you and God. Generosity, prayer and fasting are all expressions of a deep rrelationship with “your Father”. When you use them to show others how religious you are, how good you are, they have the opposite effect. They show people your pride and hypocrisy and they diminish your relationship with God.
Fasting does not earn us any points with God, it simply clears away the clutter and distraction so we can commune with Him more fully. There are times, when you sit down to talk with someone, that it is natural to do it over a casual lunch. There are other circumstances when lunch would simply get in the way: you just need to be together and talk. It’s times like that with your Father that Jesus says are just for the two of you. Don’t ruin them by using them as an occasion to show off to people. What is the reward? That too is just between you and your Father, but you can be sure that it is primarily the relationship itself.
This is radical stuff! People almost always picture God as a distant and demanding figure. Jesus says He is your Father and desires a relationship with you that is intimate and genuine.
When you screw up while leaving a recorded phone message, you usually can’t erase it, I know a guy who ended a message with “…in Jesus’ Name, Amen.”. He was so used to saying that at the end of a prayer that he just did it without thinking.
Sometimes our prayers get said without thinking, too. You can probably recite the Lord’s Prayer without thinking about it. For many, saying the “Our Father” is a ritual, like the Pledge of Allegiance, done by rote so we can all sit down and get on to the next thing. The irony of that is that Jesus taught that prayer as a way to help us avoid meaningless, empty prayer. He warned us, “Don’t think you get brownie points from God by special words and a religious tone of voice.”
But, that raises the question: When you dare to speak with the Creator of the universe, what should you say? How should you pray?
Jesus answered those questions with a profound but simple outline for prayer. He said, not, pray this, but “pray like this:”
“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
( Matthew 6:9-13 – ESV)
Begin your prayer, He said, by acknowledging the majesty and awesome holiness of the One you are addressing. At the same time, remember His love for us, His children. “Our Father, Who exists in Heaven, may Who You are, fill me and everyone else with a sense of reverence, wonder and humility.” Use words that have that effect on your heart.
Secondly, as you pray, intentionally align your heart with God’s purpose and plan. Pray for the eventual establishment of His Kingdom on earth, the day in which everyone naturally and gracefully lives in harmony with the will of God, their King. Tell God how you yearn for Heaven’s conditions to be lived out here on earth.
After these important attitude adjustments in prayer, Jesus taught us to pray for our needs. We don’t say, “God, gimme this…” but rather, we are to pray with gratitude, knowing God already knows our needs. We pray for our daily needs – bread for the day. There is a childlike trust and surrender reflected in such a prayer.
Our prayers for forgiveness from God are soaked in the awareness that such forgiveness can only be received by those with forgiving hearts. Read that again and ponder the truth of it.
Jesus taught us to pray for protection from Satan and from the many ways we are tempted by him. Because our battle with sin is spiritual in nature, we need more than willpower; we need spiritual armament.
And that’s it. That’s the outline for prayer. All that other business about “For Thine is the… ” is the kind of religious ritualistic verbiage Jesus was teaching us to avoid.
Next time you pause to talk with God, try Jesus’ outline, putting each idea into the words that flow from your own heart.
In Jesus’ Name, Amen. 🙂
Did you ever hear someone else praying and think, “That guy is a phony?” Jesus did. And he warned us against phony praying. He said:
5 “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
7 “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. ( Mat 6:5-8. – ESV)
The essence of prayer hypocrisy is paying more attention to people than you do to God. God knows your heart, knows what you need, and loves you. He invites us to pray as a natural part of our relationship. Nothing we can say will impress Him or manipulate Him. He wants us to keep it real.
The temptation to impress others causes some to love to pray out loud. The flip side of that same temptation causes some to hate praying publicly, fearing that others will not be impressed. Jesus says we can avoid all that by praying privately – honestly talking things over with Our Father.
That doesn’t mean it’s wrong to pray with others out loud, but when we do, the same principles apply: Remember Who you are speaking to, pray what is truly in your heart, and keep it real between you and God.
You know what happens when a dad comes home from serving overseas and pays a surprise visit to his daughter in school? When she see him and runs to him, the last thing on her mind is how she looks and sounds to everybody else. Pray like that…
This needs no explanation, or comment:
1 “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.
2 “Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. ( Mat 6:1-4 – ESV)
FRESH BREAD OF LIFE 