The Gospel Of Matthew Chapter 6 Part 9 Jesus Focuses On Changing Our Hearts Through Prayer

A perfect pattern for the fervent, effective prayer of those who are "in Christ."

Matthew 6:9-13  After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. 10)  Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. 11)  Give us this day our daily bread. 12)  And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. 13)  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen. 

By now we know that Jesus is always aiming at changing our hearts, for this is what we all desperately need.

Thus He goes beyond the physical act of immorality to expose that lust in our heart triggers sin with our body.

Jesus showed that divorce, anger and lying are issues of a heart polluted by sin, that must be dealt with.

The law of retaliation promoted by Jewish teachers must yield to God's law of love when dealing with enemies.

In like manner, Jesus showed that our almsgiving must be done in a private manner

Jesus showed that our prayers should be in private so that God is glorified rather than praying publicly in order to be seen of men.

James helps us understand the kind of prayer life Jesus calls His disciples to maintain.

James 5:16  Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. 

The apostle James tells us that our hearts must be engaged when we pray.

Like the Lord's prayer, James reminds us that we must make the confession of our sins to our Father a high priority so that our prayers are not hindered.

He reminds us to have genuine zeal and passion for prayer and that we must pray effectively, with purpose and focus.

James connects this kind of prayer with the prophet Elijah who prayed fire down from heaven to consume his enemies and it was done. 

He prayed for a drought that lasted 3 1/2 years and it happened. He prayed for the drought to end and God sent abundant rains.

This is the prayer of a believing man or woman or young person whose hearts are fully engaged with the Lord while praying.

This kind of prayer "availeth much" meaning it has power at the throne of God because it is a prayer in alignment with God's will.

This is the kind of prayer Jesus calls us to in giving us this beautiful pattern for prayer.

Jesus targets our most important need to receive a new heart and a new spirit from God.

Matthew 6:14-15  For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: 15)  But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. 

Jesus continued His pattern of dealing with the issues of the heart and its connection with committing sin.

Root cause for the sin of adultery is a heart that is depraved and filled with lust.

The root cause for unchecked rage is a heart that is full of hatred.

The root cause of lying is a heart that is full of deceit and deception.

The root cause of attention seeking while giving alms or praying or fasting, is a heart full of pride.

Jesus is the King of kings and His Sermon on the Mount is filled with kingdom principles that will govern all nations and people.

Remember, we saw that the Jews in the time of Jesus were taught to seek revenge upon anyone who did wrong to them, or who injured them in same way.

Jesus commanded that His disciples should never retaliate or respond in kind against those who do us wrong (See Matthew 5:9-12).

We are called to depend upon Christ for deliverance from judgment and eternal salvation (See Matthew 5:3).

We are called to be humble and meek not proud or arrogant (See Matthew 5:5).

We are called to be merciful not hateful and vindictive (See Matthew 5:7).

We are called to be peacemakers not obstinate troublemakers (See Matthew 5:10).

Jesus gave a powerful governing principle of His kingdom: Overcoming evil with good.

Matthew 6:14-15  For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: 15)  But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. 

This principle strikes against having a hateful attitude or an unforgiving spirit.

The reason why Jesus singled out those who are unforgiving is because He knew the Jews tended to seek revenge and rarely forgave those who did them wrong.

This is why Jesus insisted that His disciples forgive men their trespasses and any wrongs done against them by word or action.

Jesus commands that we forgive fully and freely from the heart. 

We must do as our wonderful God does and not hold others' sins against us over their head, because God does not remember our sins when we confess them to Him.

Thus, our heart is to be a forgetting heart as well as a forgiving one.

Most of the petitions in the Lord's prayer were commonly used by the Jews in their devotions but the fifth petition, "As we forgive our debtors" was new and Jesus showed the reason for its inclusion.

Jesus promised that if we forgive, our heavenly Father will also forgive us. 

Certainly there must be repentance, faith and new obedience on our part because this is a fruit of genuine conversion to Christ.

He that relents and forgives his brother shows that he repented and was forgiven by God. 

A Christian should not retaliate, but must forgive and do good to those who do wrong to us.

Romans 12:19-21  Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. 20)  Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. 21)  Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good. 

Jesus taught this truth and He re-emphasized it through His apostles.

We must not think that Christ's admonition at the close of the Lord's prayer means that our forgiveness is suspended if we do not forgive others. 

We know this because the foundation of our pardon, forgiveness, reconciliation and acceptance with God is founded on Christ's merit and redeeming work for us. 

However, a forgiving spirit is a spiritual litmus test. 

If we claim to be born again and positionally "in Christ" but we refuse to forgive others, then we deceive ourselves.

Paul demonstrates the character of a renewed heart as a precious evidence of eternal life in us and of Jesus’ love reigning in our heart.

It is marked by being "kind one to another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you" (See Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 3:13).

Spiritual litmus tests from God closely correlate with Jesus' teaching on prayer.

1 John 2:3 -5 And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. 4)  He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5)  But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. 

I am blessed by these simple tests John gives to check our heart and whether or not our profession of faith in Christ is real.

On the other hand, those who claim to know Christ but fail to keep His commandments are liars, having deceived themselves.

Those who truly know Christ and are born again are those people who keep His commandments, many which we are studying in the Sermon on the Mount.

1 John 4:20-21  If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? 21)  And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also. 

This command of Christ given by John the apostle, is closely connected to Jesus' teaching about forgiving others because our Father forgave us.

If we do not forgive others as the Father forgives us for Christ's sake, then that is being hateful toward a brother. 

Those who love God will love others by forgiving them as Christ commands. 

Thus, the prayer pattern Jesus provided for our benefit contains a strong reminder to search our own heart as we ask our Father to search our heart, so that we might confess any sin.

Jesus told us that if we are truly His disciples, we will forgive others when they wrong us.

May these profound truths shape how we pray and cause us to ask the Father to give us a heart like Jesus' heart.

Bob