What Now? Humble Trust

 Wouldn't it be nice if God just did what we asked on our time schedule? We ask for good things and it often seems to take an extraordinary amount of time before anything happens. There are those moments when the Lord seems to answer even before we ask. However, it is not unusual for us to sit in  that heavenly waiting room to receive some response from the Almighty. As we have noted, 2020 has been a difficult year for many people and God's people are not exempt. For some, the turmoil from the American election goes on unabated. In addressing these things there are still things we can do. Advancing God's kingdom does not stop due to a virus or the outcome of an election. With that in mind we have been looking to the familiar verses of Matthew 6:9-13, what is commonly known as, "The Lord's Prayer".

First, we are called to keep going forward, knowing that our heavenly Father is with us. By His holy name we can find comfort and purpose. Second, we were reminded to advance His kingdom. We can do so in a variety of ways, one being the opportunity and responsibility to live out the nine aspects of the fruit of the Spirit. The world needs to see the children of God putting, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, on display. The Lord's encouraging words go on to instruct us to pray for God to give us our daily bread and to be those whose lives are marked by forgiveness. They are examples of holding a humble trust for the God and Father Who loves us.

For some of us praying for, "Our daily bread", might seem a bit of a waste of time. After all many of us live beyond abundance. Finding daily bread might seem easier that trying to curb the intake of bread to help reduce our waste-lines. The phrase would be more meaningful if we were Jewish folk following Messiah Jesus around the highways and byways of Judea. Daily bread was an absolute necessity for the Hebrews during forty years of wilderness wanderings. Manna was the daily bread that came down from heaven to allow the children of Israel to survive. Without God's daily provision the people would have perished. It was a powerful reminder that they were fully dependent upon the Lord for their survival. If you have food in the cupboard such dependence and trust might seem unnecessary. We live in the illusion of self sufficiency. It is humbling to recognize our dependence upon God. Jesus is our bread from heaven. We need Him daily, moment by moment, if we are to survive in this fallen world. John 6:35 explains, "And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst." We need to be humble, trusting, dependent, people if we are to advance His kingdom and move forward in the days to come.

Humility is one of those difficult things to foster and integrate into our lives. We prefer to be independent and self sufficient. This trait may become glaringly obvious when someone offends us. We say things like, "I don't get mad, I get even" or "I can forgive but I will never forget". We hang onto offenses and irritations like they were precious metals. Morbid jewels infesting our lives or closeted away in lock boxed memories. The guardian of pride protects the hurt and eventually sucks the very life from our bones. The Lord knows the danger. Thus, He instructs us to forgive those who have trespassed or become indebted to our wounded spirits. It takes a humble person to forgive. It is often much easier to proudly hold onto the trespass or emotional debt we maintain in their account. It is wise to remember this warning from James, "But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (James 4:6). If we are to ask our Heavenly Father's forgiveness we must forgive others as well. We cannot move forward anchored to past hurts and preserved transgressions.

The New Year is approaching. Many are praying this would be a year of revival and the outpouring of God's Spirit in new and refreshing ways. To see God's will done here on earth as it is in heaven. If we are to be a part of that revival or to have the power of prayer with us, we need to be those who live with humble trust. To come to the Lord fresh every morning asking to to nourished by the very Bread of Heaven Who rescues our souls. We must be those quick to forgive and slow to take offense. To follow Paul's directions to the Ephesians in 4:32, "And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you." 

There are yet a few more  forward thoughts here in Matthew 6, but this is enough to think about for this week. What now? Maybe we need a little more of that humble trust and forgiving spirit if we are to advance God's kingdom in the days to come. 

What Now? Going Forwrd.

 How do you feel about the past months? There are few places where the events of CoVid19 has not had an impact and if you are in the USA you can add the joy of a national election. Much of life has been disrupted. The question for all of us, and especially believers, is, "What now?" How do we move forward from where we are to where we need to be. For some it is a time of great distress. It seems the powers of darkness have gained more than a foothold and the future is uncertain in the midst of a growing darkness. Should the USA, indeed, be guided by a new administration things are likely to change. 

For some it is a time of rejoicing with the potential removal of an arrogant and un-presidential tyrant. Then there is the promise of free healthcare, free education, forgiven student loans, a guaranteed income with the government taking care of them. The government only wants what is best for us. We just need to be compliant. 

For others it will be the codification of the "right" to kill babies and to progressively move toward the elimination of those who lack the quality of life that would prove to be a drain on society. They see an expansion of government control that tells us religious practice is "nonessential" and religious conviction is disallowed as "hate speech". The pandemic has been an effective tool to limit worship meetings and penalize people of faith. Numerous governors has become lush with new powers that control the lives of the masses. All in the name of keeping us safe. The proposed plan is to regulate what you drive, where you live, how much energy you can use and how to protect yourself and your family. A false security with the price tag being your freedom and liberty. Either view leaves you wondering what to do from here.

It occurred to me that we, as followers of Messiah Jesus, have been given a plan, a guideline, to follow from the Word of God. That should not be unexpected. However, the truth that most of us have already memorized the directions might come as a surprise. In this, and a followup post or two, I want to give a possible answer that God impressed upon my heart in the quiet of the night while I recovered from some mild food poisoning. Yes, sometimes the LORD has to put me on the recliner looking up to see what He has for me. This is not a vision wrought from indigestion but just some thoughts that rolled over me when the silence outweighed the usual conflagration of my overactive midnight brain. Matthew and Luke give variations of the direction from the Lord. It is a simple answer given by the Lord as a response to a simple "How" question brought by His disciples. We will use Matthew's account but either gives us an answer to give us hope and remind us that. perhaps, nothing has really changed.

Mathew gives us this message in Matthew 6:9-13. I invite you to give voice to these familiar verses with me, "Our Father, Who art in heaven, holy is 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 our debts as we forgive our debtors, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one, for yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen" (a slightly modified version of the NKJV). These verses can serve both as a reminder and a map to follow as we continue our journey with the God of all creation and His Son, Messiah Jesus, empowered by His Holy Spirit. It helps keep my mind straight and it helps that I learned this through simple repetition as a child never thinking, "Oh, this comes from Matthew 6". Childhood memories to the rescue.

"Our Father, Who art in heaven". Turning our attention to our heavenly Father in times of foggy reality is never a bad place to begin. He is the personal God and Father Who invites us to call Him, Abba. The intimate name from a child to their daddy. He is the Father Who hears and understands. He is the Father that has a heavenly perspective. One Who sees beyond our limited existence and experience. He has worked in the past, through every difficulty we can imagine. He is not unaware of our situation or the thoughts that may bring unrest and discomfort to our thoughts and emotions. He is not bound by politics or elections. He was not absent through four hundred years of slavery or the forty years of wilderness wanderings. He did not forsake David as he cowered in the caves or Daniel as he stood, in faith, among the lions. He was not absent at the cross nor did He abandon the women at the empty tomb. I can trust my Heavenly Father to be with me today. Perhaps, I just need to hear His words to David and "Be still and know He is God" (Psalm 46:10). Like Elijah, I wait for the mighty wind, or earthquake, or roaring fire, and miss the "still small voice" (1 Kings 19). No matter what the day brings I can rest in Him.

"Holy is Your name". The name above all names. The unspoken name among His Hebrew children as they show deference and respect to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He is our loving Father. He is also the awesome God of all creation. He is not to be taken lightly or for granted. He name is separated from every other name. Our God shares this nobility with His Son, "Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth" (Philippians 2:9-10). Ephesians 1:21 offers a similar truth, That His Son Messiah is "far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come." No matter how the enemy works to turn God's name or the name of His Son into a meaningless profanity it does not change the reality of the holiness of His name. In time all of mankind will recognize that truth and bow before Him. We should not allow the turmoil of this present age to overshadow the wonder of His name or the power of His presence.

We have a more to consider from this familiar prayer given to us by the Lord Himself. Those will find their way to Torah Paranoia in the weeks to come. However, perhaps this will give you a few things to reflect upon and ponder. Perhaps it is a prayer you can revive as you enter each day and maybe, just maybe this prayer was given to us for such a time as this.   

Do We Really Want God's Kingdom?

We are told we should pray and probably feel like we may not pray enough but, did anyone give you a tutorial on prayer when you began your walk with Him? If not, you re not alone. Even the disciples of Rabbi Jesus looked for direction. Even if you think you have prayer down to an art, there are likely some things you can glean from these instructional verses found in Matthew 6. We looked a bit deeper into verse 9 recognizing the balance between God as Abba Father and the holiness of His name. What follows is probably the most difficult aspect of the Lord's instruction on prayer. It seems pretty safe on the surface. However, if we return it to the context of a Jewish rabbi speaking to his Jewish disciples and a whole lot of Jewish people on a hillside, we may find that it takes us where we do not want to go. Maybe it will give us some second thoughts about praying for God's kingdom to come.

Matthew 6:10 is as follows, "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven"(KJV). Do you pray for God's kingdom to come? Would you like to be living in that kingdom now? There is a glorious future to be had when the Lord Messiah rules and reigns, but, what about today? Do you really want to be involved in Kingdom living today? The Jewish disciples were certainly interested in the Kingdom of God. They had waited for generations for Messiah, the anointed one of God, to come and establish that kingdom. Their hope was that this rabbi they followed was indeed the long anticipated deliverer. However, their expectation was that of an earthly kingdom where Messiah would rule with power and authority. Israel would have all of their promised land and would never be sub-servant to anyone ever again. They would be free from Roman tyranny and be the unrivaled world power. We also wait in expectation for that kingdom. We know that it will come, in God's time. So we are in agreement with those first century Jews up to this point. "Even so, come Lord Jesus" is a pretty good prayer in the light of the condition of the world today.

Kingdom living does have a few perimeters that the disciples understood as well. "Thy will be done" is a directive we should also place in context. The disciples and the Jews on the hillside know what God's will was. He had written it down for them back at Mount Sinai. It was known as Torah. It's application and consequences were recorded and exemplified in the Writings and the Prophets. God's will for His people was to follow His directions and instructions as to how best to live. These were God's commandments and directives. They were not suggestions or a list of things to pick and choose from. For the disciples to pray, "Thy will be done" was to express their desire to be obedient to Torah and obedient to all God had revealed concerning life and worship. God had not left them in the dark and unlike the gods and goddesses worshiped by the surrounding nations, God's directions were firm and consistent. They knew what God, their Heavenly Father, required of them.

This prayer for the application of God's Word and will was not just for the Jews but "on earth as it is in heaven". It iis to apply to the whole earth. God's will is always done in heaven, there in His dwelling place. His angelic messengers do what He tells them to do. There are times when God takes counsel from those in His heavenly court (see 1 Kings 22:19-22) however, His word is final. The disciples are instructed to pray that the will of God, obedience to His commandments and instructions, become world wide and followed without question. We know that a time is coming when Messiah will reign over all the earth. We also know that, at that time, His Word, meaning Torah, will be universally obeyed as well. Jeremiah 31:31-34 makes that clear. Having Torah written on everyone's hearts and in our minds is an aspect of His coming kingdom.

The question for us is what do we do with this now? Was this prayer just for the Jewish disciples and the Jews who listened to the words of Messiah? Do we really want to pray that God's will, revealed in Torah and God's Word, be obeyed in our lives and the lives of those that inhabit this planet? Perhaps, we can conclude that this is a prayer for life in the coming kingdom. "Thy will be done", as the disciples would have understood it can't possibly apply to believers today, can it? Or maybe God's will has changed. We are told the Law does not apply to those under grace. Now we just need to love God and love people like Jesus said in Matthew22:37-39. You know, where He quoted Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18. But, how do we know how to love God and people? Matthew 22:40 helps us out, these two commandments are a summary of Torah and the Prophets. We can find all the details as how to love God and people there. If it only applied to us.

The reality is we agree with most of those 613 directives the rabbis have found in the Law and the Prophets. Remove those directives given specifically to the Levites and those pesky dietary laws and we, as modern followers of Messiah, are in agreement far more often than we might think. If we applied just the basic Ten Commandments world wide this might be a nicer planet to live on. It might even feel a bit like heaven on earth. Maybe, "Thy kingdom come thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven" isn't such a bad prayer after all.