Sermon Response Guide
PRIMARY SCRIPTURE:
Matthew 7:7-11 ESV
7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? 11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
Key Points
- This prayer shows us:
1) No need is too small
2) No need is too big
3) All needs are met in him - Many of us have been crucified between two thieves: regrets of yesterday and worries of tomorrow. God wants to teach us to live one day, one moment at a time.
- The bread we pray for is the same bread we give to others.
- Jesus is the bread of life we long for and so desperately need.
- Our prayers reveal our dependence on God.
- The Lord’s Prayer isn’t so much a lesson on the process of prayer as it is a lesson on the priorities of prayer.
- Prayer is not first coming to God for his provision, but for his presence.
Memory Verse
Ask God to write this word on your heart this week:
“Pray then 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*
*Note: Through the rest of this sermon series, “Patterns of Prayer,” we will be working together as a faith family to memorize and regularly pray the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6:9-13 three times each day (morning, noon, and night). We invite you to pray with us in Ellis Chapel Monday through Friday from 11am to 1pm through April 15, 2022.
Questions for Reflection
Take time to reflect and respond to these questions on your own in the presence of the Holy Spirit, or with trusted friends or family members:
1: Read John 6:32-35. What does this passage teach us about the prayer, “Give us this day our daily bread?”
2: Read Deuteronomy 8:3 and compare it to Matthew 4:4. How does your understanding of the prayer, “Give us this day our daily bread,” shift when you consider what Jesus declared to Satan after 40 days of being tempted in the wilderness?
3: Reflect on the previous line of the Lord’s Prayer we explored last week, “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Now, look at what Jesus said to his disciples when they brought him lunch in John 4:34. How do these words of Jesus affect your understanding of his own prayer, “Give us this day our daily bread?”
4: What do you think is significant about the words “us” and “our” in the prayer of daily bread?
5: If you knock on someone’s door, what do you hope will happen? What does our primary Scripture for today (Matthew 7:7-11) have to do with the prayer of daily bread?
6: The prayer of daily bread is a prayer of daily dependence. Join us as we practice a prayer of dependence each day this week by applying the rhythms below to your own prayer time.
· Begin by meditating on who we are approaching in prayer – consider God’s character.
· Then, remember specific times in your life long ago or recently when God has proven himself faithful and trustworthy to you.
· Finally, be honest and humble before our Provider – our Father in heaven – about what you need from him for today.
7: Keeping in mind the language of “us” and “our,” and the promise of Jesus in Matthew 18:20, who could you personally practice the prayer of dependence with this week? Will you?
Pray
Lord, you are the bread of life. Your words are life. Only in your presence are we truly satisfied. Forgive us for gorging ourselves on the fleeting flavors of this world. Help us to taste and see you are good – what’s more, you are better – and blessed is the one who takes refuge in you. Our Father in heaven, give us this day our daily bread, and by your grace, make us bread for those who hunger – one person at a time.
references
For those interested in further study, our pastors want to share resources that have aided them in their sermon preparation (in conjunction with the Bible and the Holy Spirit):
· The Lord and His Prayer by N.T. Wright
· Living the Lord’s Prayer: The Way of the Disciple by Albert Haase
· Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes by Kenneth E. Bailey
· On Earth as It Is in Heaven: How the Lord’s Prayer Teaches Us to Pray More Effectively by Warren W. Wiersbe
· With Christ in the School of Prayer by Andrew Murray
· The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer
· Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference? by Philip Yancey
· The Practice of the Presence of God and the Way of Perfection by Brother Lawrence and Teresa of Avila
· Prayer: Finding the Heart’s True Home by Richard J. Foster
· Calling on the Name of the Lord: A Biblical Theology of Prayer by Gary Millar
