Praying the Lords Prayer

The Lord’s prayer as a Pattern of Prayer

Our Father in heaven, - remember what God is like.  What are 2 attributes of God?

1.                  __________________________________________________________

2.                  __________________________________________________________

Examples:  

God you are the good shepherd, I thank you for your leading, protection  and provision  

Or You are the Creator , thank you for the world you have made

You can sing this -  by singing the 23rd Psalm

or for something more modern - You are a good good father

May your name be honored -          What can you thank God for?

1.                  __________________________________________________________

2.                  __________________________________________________________

Examples:  

  thank you for the sunny day

                        Or Thank you for keeping me safe from ...

May your Kingdom come soon.     What are 2 ways the world would be better if God was in charge?

1.                  __________________________________________________________

2.                  __________________________________________________________

Examples:  

People would not feel anxious about the future because God will be with us - may this become a  reality

                    Or People who are ejected would find welcome and a family to belong to -
                    may this become a  reality

 May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.  where does the world need to look like heaven?

1.                  __________________________________________________________

2.                  __________________________________________________________

Examples:  

The world needs to experience healing from Covid and Cancer- may this become a  reality

The world needs to have peace under God's protection -may this become a  reality

Give us today the food we need,    What are your needs for today?

1.                  __________________________________________________________

2.                  __________________________________________________________

 

Examples:  

               I need food for my family and a job

and forgive us our sins,  What specifically do you need forgiveness for  today?

1.                  __________________________________________________________

2.                  __________________________________________________________

Examples:  

           I am sorry for my theft and my bad attitude towards .......

as we have forgiven those who sin against us.  Who has hurt you or do you resent?

1.                  __________________________________________________________

2.                  __________________________________________________________

Examples:  

           I forgive X for the words he said and Y for her betrayal

And don’t let us yield to temptation,    What inner temptations are you facing?

1.                  __________________________________________________________

2.                  __________________________________________________________

Examples:  

            God you know i struggle with my anger help me stay cool and trust in your love

 
    but rescue us from the evil one. What people or forces want to lead you astray?

1.                  __________________________________________________________

2.                  __________________________________________________________

Examples:  

           God you know when i am with X that i get sucked into gossiping - help me resist

            God you know my struggles with Doubt and Fear - deliver me

The version of the Lord’s prayer we say includes a final line of Thanksgiving – For yours is the Kingdom the power and the Glory for ever and ever amen.   

 

Here is a version of the lord's prayer that I really like to listen to.

If you want to listen to a good sermon on the Kingdom of God - i found this helpful

 

Conflict in The Kingdom of God

 

Kingdom Conflict

Listen to the Lord s Prayer sung

Readings Acts 17:1-9  & 1 Thessalonians 2:1-12

 Sing IN Christ alone

The Sermon - Listen Here

As I write this, I am hoping that the rugby games this weekend might go ahead.  I would like to see the Auckland Blues takedown Canterbury (I was cheering for Otago to do that last week but they missed out – hopefully that game will be delayed not cancelled.)  I always like seeing the All Blacks beat the Australians or any NZ versus Australia game.  Conflict on the sports field can arouse great emotions as does politics in some circles. Thankfully, we don’t have many real military conflicts in which the NZ military are involved at the moment. 

You do hear of church conflicts.  My favourite is the battle over what colour the hymn books should be. Conflicts in church are never trivial and people get wounded and the cause of Christ suffers for our lack of grace and using power for our own preferences. There are many tragic conflicts through Church History such as the tangled mess of religion and politics in Ireland or during the reign of Henry the 8^th and the next generation or two (should England be Catholic or Protestant?). If you have been involved in a church fight you will know how horrible they can become.

In the latter half of Acts, Paul, his companions come into conflict with those who wield local economic and civic power often fuelled by jealousy from Jews.  The first incident occurs in Pisidian Antioch, where “the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city” (Acts 13:50) are incited against Paul and Barnabas and expel them from the city. This occurs again in Iconium (Acts 14:5) Philippi (Acts 16:19-24), Thessalonica (Acts 17:6-9), and Ephesus (Acts 19:23-41). The conflicts culminate with Paul’s trial for disturbing the peace in Jerusalem, which occupies the final eight chapters of Acts.

The news of a new king, Jesus – who is the Messiah, the heir to the throne of David, the one who brings in the Kingdom of God, is not good news to those who seek to hold onto whatever power they used to have, whether in the synagogue or the City.  This power conflict is also behind the conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees and Sadducees.

In Matthew 10 where Jesus is warning the Disciples about approaching conflict and persecution, he says:

“Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. ³⁵ For I have come to turn “‘a man against his father,   a daughter against her mother,… a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household”. “Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me….Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it  Matt 10:34-39.

Many find this verse hard to understand as we think Jesus came to bring peace and forgiveness so how can he say he came to bring a sword?  Maybe the reason is Jesus primary aim is not first the announcement of Peace – but an announcement of the Kingdom of God. Within the Kingdom of God there is peace and reconciliation, but to those who resist or reject the Kingdom there is a battle – which results in persecution and suffering. First for Christ who was crucified as a king, and then for his followers.

Conflict is not just external to ourselves- there is also an internal one.  The

conflict between what I want and what God wants. As Jesus says in Luke 9:23 “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.”  To say Jesus is King is to say I am not the king, Caesar is not the king. The old powers and people that controlled my life no longer have primary claim on my life – I belong to a new Kingdom, I have a new king.

 

We see this played out in our readings from Acts 17.  There it recounts how Paul reasoned in the synagogue from the Scriptures, “explaining and proving that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead. “This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Messiah,” (v 3). Verse 4 reports that some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and quite a few prominent women.

But, then you see the reaction from others – Luke writes:

“Other Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city…

Their accusation was “they are were defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.”

This incited a great deal of fear from the crowd for no one wanted a reaction from the Roman military.  Luke describes it with these words:  “the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil.” V 8.

 

One of the curious things in the New Testament is that Jesus refers to the Kingdom of God many times but Paul rarely does. But, he does call Jesus Lord and naming Jesus as Lord is the mark of a Christian for example in Romans 10:9 he says “ If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

 This led some theologians to speculate on whether Paul changed Christianity from the original message of Jesus.  Of course, their speculations did not stand up to scrutiny and while Paul does use different words because he is talking to Churches which have a predominately Gentile background, he very much conveys the same ideas (Jesus is Lord or King in the Kingdom). Supporting this is Luke’s summary of Paul’s message while under house arrest in Roman in Acts says this “He proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ—with all boldness and without hindrance! Acts 28:31 (See also Acts 19:8, 20:25, 28:23).  Paul also uses the idea that we are citizens of heaven in Phil 3:20 & Eph 2:19.

 

There are 16 references to the kingdom in Paul’s writings. One of which were made famous by the rugby player Israel Folau who got in trouble for tweeting  1 Corinthians 6:9-10  “do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men, nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.”   Or another is often spoken at Funerals regarding the hope of a future resurrection to eternal life (1 Corinthians 15:50 “flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable….”

 

 

For Paul the idea of the Kingdom had a future flavour just as it did with Jesus.   

Paul and Barnabas “strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,”  Acts 14:22.  But the kingdom was also a present reality (Romans 14:17 says “for the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit,”.

 

To call Jesus “Lord” was a rejection of others who claimed the title of ruler or Lord, primarily the Roman Emperor Caesar. That is why Paul got in trouble in Thessalonica.  To call Jesus Lord it is also an affirmation of whose rules and example we want to live by:

.  “…live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.”

1 Thessalonians 2:11-13

 

In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage… 2 Timothy 4:18

  

Paul speaks about the Christians conflict with spiritual powers who seek to rule over our lives such as Sin or the Law, as well as the more obvious battles with spiritual forces of evil (Spiritual warfare.) These battles about who or what controls or shapes our daily lives and conduct are part of the daily battle of living as a Christian in the Kingdom of God.  Who is our king or Lord? Who shapes our values and actions?  Is it Jesus or some other?

 ^“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms Eph 6:12  

“Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.” Romans 6:12

The inner conflict is resolved when we remember whose Kingdom we are a part of, and we reaffirm Jesus is our King

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸ Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.   James 4:7-8

The outer conflict with those who don’t like our beliefs or values, who don’t like their loss of influence in our lives just have to be accepter with grace.   Ultimately, we have to say they are not battling us but Jesus’ claim to be king – not just of our lives but all peoples’ lives. We belong to him, so he needs to defend us, and give us the grace to live as a citizen of the Kingdom of God

 

 

What am I saying today

1.       Being a part of the Kingdom of God can lead to conflict with others.  Becoming a Christian is a reordering of our lives around the new centre of Jesus as King, a prioritizing of our values of our new citizenship in God’s kingdom.  No one likes change and when you change to make Jesus the centre of your life this upsets the balance of your other relationships. This was Paul’s experience in Thessalonica.

2.       Paul makes it clearer that being a part of the Kingdom is no simple swearing allegiance to a new King (as important as that is), but an ongoing decision to live as a disciple, Living with Jesus as Lord.

3.       While Paul used different language to describe the Rule of God in a person’s life the meaning is the same as Jesus’s language on the Kingdom of God.

 

 

 

 

JOanne Magills prayer for Peace SUnday August 6th

 

Today is identified as Peace Sunday by a number of Christian organisations. It is worth noting that 2020 marks the 75th anniversary of the bombing of Hiro-shima and Nagasaki, and it is also the 70th anniversary of the start of the Korean War. This morning I would like to repeat three short prayers from the World Council of Churches resources on the occasion of the 70^th anniversary of the start of the Korean war that resonated with me this week.

 

From Erich Weingartner, from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada

God of love,

We confess that we have been unable to love our enemies, as you have commanded.

We confess that we have been more efficient in waging war than in negotiating peace.

We confess that we have lost our trust in your guidance as the Lord of history.

Grant us faith, that peace is possible on the Korean Peninsula even after 70 years of war.

Grant us hope, that our feeble efforts to promote peace with justice will bear abundant fruit.

Grant us love, that encourages us to overcome suspicion and hatred with open hearts and minds.

Prince of Peace, help us to discover the truth in ourselves so that we can become agents of reconciliation; pour your mercy upon Korea, and likewise on the rest of this troubled world.

Amen.

 

Prayer for a world without war from  Yaein Kim, Mirae Elementary School, Seoul, South Korea

God,

I heard that even at this moment there are both large and small-scale conflicts in every corner of the globe. Can you stop wars and let there be peace all around the world?

Lord, You told us to love one another, but we wage wars, I ask you forgive our sins.

God, I also heard that the region of Northeast Asia is a place where long conflicts have continued.

I pray that people repent of their sins so you, dear God, keep peace preventing the dark clouds of war.

Lord, The painful things of the past cannot be repeated again today.

May the wrongdoers first admit that they did something wrong and apologize to the victims! Lead us to only in good ways!

May the region of Northeast Asia be a place of world peace!

We pray in Jesus’ name,

Amen.

 

I will finish with A Prayer for Unity, Hope, and Compassion from Dr Jerome Sahabandhu, Mission Theologian in Residence, Global Ministries, UMC.

God of Peace

We come to you amidst the vulnerability and chaos, the isolation and loneliness resulting from Coronavirus. This virus has now become a global crisis. So many have died, so many are still suffering, and so many have lost their loved ones. We yearn for peace in our hearts yet are filled with anxiety.

We also come to you in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in the Korean Peninsula, lamenting the brokenness of war yet hoping for lasting peace and unification. We pray with all People who yearn for their families to be reunited and who long to build one nation. Let that day arrive soon.

Grant thy Peace O God, so that right in the middle of this crisis, we shall have peace in our hearts and homes, cities and villages, churches and temples, nations and cultures.

Remind us once again of the truth that “Blessed are the Peacemakers, for they shall be called Children of God”. We lift all people who day and night work for peace from everywhere to everywhere.

You are the God of Peace.

God of Justice

We bring to You all injustices happening around the world, which is too often filled with greed and profit, poverty and human suffering, marginalization and isolation. Unjust structures have kept human communities apart from each other, denying our oneness and common humanity. Even during this global health crisis, we have seen how vulnerable our communities are, how many do not have a decent living, who live under severe oppression, and who are on constant migration.

We lift up all those who are victims of coronavirus, especially those in the hardest hit regions of Korea and throughout southeast Asia. We praise God that healthcare personnel and leaders were able to flatten the curve of the virus and controlled its spread. We also pray that their wisdom shall be shared globally to eradicate the pandemic.

Give your Justice O God, so that we shall engage in the prophetic and disturbing work of justice. We shall work for justice for our neighbor and justice for the children and justice for the most vulnerable.

Return us to your call that “justice will roll down like waters and righteousness like an overflowing stream”. We earnestly call on you, so that all shall be awakened to the mindfulness of justice and to the heartfulness of mercy.

You are the God of Justice.

God of Compassion, We denounce all forces of hatred and violence, anger and wrath, abuse and division; they are too many. Enough is enough! People are longing for love and grace, compassion and care, connection and solidarity.

In your Compassion look towards us all O God, so that we shall be empowered to be a people of compassion from Korea to Nigeria, from Ireland to Sri Lanka, from America to Taiwan, from everywhere to everywhere. Even as COVID-19 requires mandatory times of social distancing, may we not forget to be compassionate to the people near and far. Give your compassion to all humanity. You are the God of Compassion.

God of Unity, We recall all disunity that we have caused, marked by race and ethnicity, caste and class, political ideologies and geographical boundaries, even gender barriers, even social affiliations. Transform all that divides us.

Bestow your Unity O God, and help us recognize that we are one single humanity. Remind us that our diversity is to be celebrated and cherished, respected and heard. Help us understand that we are one human family called to take care and look after one another. We pray for the countries that are struggling to be united, churches that are thirsting to be together, nations that are yearning to be equal in dignity.

Unity is your gift, so help us to be in unity at all times striving together in community. You are the God of Unity.

God of Hope, We know that amidst crisis you create something new, amidst conflict you create hope, amidst vulnerability you create resilience, amidst darkness you create light, amidst death you create resurrection. Deliver us from the spirit of fear and give us “courage to be”!

Help us to be resilient O God, and empower us to be agents of hope and practitioners of your Good News.

You are the God of Hope, you are the God of a New Life.

God of Life - Lead us to light,

God of Shalom - lead us to peace,

God of People - lead us to unity.

Amen