This is Robert Jeffress. In response to the horrific attack on Israel, I've written a brand new book called Are We Litting in the End Times?
Go to ptv.org to order your copy. Welcome to Pathway to Victory with author and pastor, Dr. Robert Jeffress. You know, whenever we face a crisis like maybe a sudden illness in the family or an unexpected layoff at work, we quickly fall to our knees in prayer.
But God desires to hear from us on all occasions, not just when we need a favor. Today on Pathway to Victory, Dr. Robert Jeffress explains why our prayers should always begin with praise. Now here's our Bible teacher to introduce today's message.
Dr. Jeffress? Thanks, David, and welcome to this Friday edition of Pathway to Victory. I don't know where today's program finds you, but I'm guessing that you're going through the normal routine of your day. Perhaps you're commuting right now, traveling to or from work.
Let me give you something fun to dream about. I'd like you to travel with us to the great frontier of Alaska this coming June 15th through 22nd. God often uses vacation time to restore our bodies and give us a fresh perspective on the demands of life. And there's no place quite like Alaska to clear your mind and reset your priorities. We've designed a one-week vacation for you with daily studies in God's Word, music of worship and praise from Rebecca St. James and Michael O'Brien, and lots of laughter with comedian Dennis Womberg. Along the way, I'll also be opening God's Word for us to study together. You can sign up for the Pathway to Victory cruise vacation to Alaska by going to ptv.org.
Look at the itinerary, but most importantly, reserve your spot because spaces are going very quickly. Now, just before we start today's message about prayers that really work, I want to draw your attention to a brand new children's book that my daughter Julia has written for your child or grandchild. It's brand new, is fully illustrated and ties in naturally with our current topic. Honestly, Julia has offered a perspective on prayer that I probably couldn't.
She's the mother of triplets. And this fully illustrated children's book is called You Can Pray Big Things. Can you imagine anything more important to teach your children than the power of prayer? This book does just that.
And right after my message, I'll explain how you can get a copy. Right now, however, it's time to give our complete attention to the study of God's Word. We're looking at Matthew, chapter six, and I titled today's message God's Pattern for Prayer. How can you pray in such a way to catch the attention of God and cause him to do things in your life he otherwise would not do?
That's what we're talking about in this series. And the basis for this series is the most famous prayer of history. We call it the Lord's Prayer. If you have your Bibles, turn to Matthew, chapter six. Matthew, chapter six. Beginning in verse nine, Jesus said, when you pray, pray in this way. Now, we're going to look at this first phrase today, the phrase that tells us that we're to begin with praise.
And the theme of the sermon is very simple today. We ought to always begin with praise to God. Our prayers should always begin with praise to God. Jesus modeled this when he began his prayer. Remember, he was teaching his disciples to pray. He said, pray in this way, our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Now, in those two phrases are two very crucial concepts to remember when you pray. First of all, the first phrase reminds us of our relationship to God, our Father who art in heaven. I want you to turn in your Bibles to Galatians, chapter four, to see what the death of Christ did to change your relationship with God.
Look at verses four to seven. Paul said, but when the fullness of time came, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, so that he might redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the, I want you to circle this word in your Bible, that we might receive the adoption as sons. Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Therefore, you are no longer a slave, but a, let's circle that word, son. And if a son, you are then an heir, circle that word, heir through God. Adoption, son, heir.
You have been adopted into his family. And because of that, Paul says, you can come before him with your heart crying out, saying, Abba, Father. Now, what does that mean, Abba? Now, the word Abba is an Aramaic term of endearment for a father. It means daddy, papa.
Now, honestly, some people have trouble with that. Some of you listening today, you have fathers that maybe were cold and distant and detached from your life, and it's hard for you to picture God as a loving, caring father. And if that's true for you, I want to encourage you when you pray, don't think of the father you have. Think of the father you wish you had when you come before God. And dads here today, remember this, your child's attitude toward God is largely going to be shaped by their attitude toward you. The most important thing you do is model the character of God to your children. When you come into the presence of God in prayer, remember, you have a father who loves you. Our daddy, our papa, who is in heaven.
He's a powerful monarch, but he is a loving father. Now, I know for some of you, maybe that just seems almost bordering on sacrilegious to think of God as your daddy or papa. I want you to notice in the second phrase how Jesus balances that truth when he talks about our reverence for God. He says, our father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. How many of you have ever prayed that prayer before? You've actually repeated those words, hallowed be thy name.
How many of you would feel comfortable standing up and giving a precise definition of what that means? Hallowed be thy name. Now, there are two parts of that phrase. First of all, thy name. What do we mean by thy name? We sing a lot about the name of God. We're constantly talking about the name of God. What's the big deal about God's name?
Let me show you what the big deal is. I'm going to give you a name and I want you to tell me, think about what comes to your mind. When I say the name Robert, what do you think about? Some of you ladies think about Robert Redford, the actor, okay?
Some of you more literary types might think about Robert Louis Stevenson, the great writer. But if I say the name Robert James Jeffress Jr., there's a very definite image that comes into your mind. You think about my appearance, my voice, my mannerisms.
You think about the things you like about me, the things you don't like about me, but you definitely have a feeling when I say that name because that name simply represents my entire being. In 1 Samuel chapter 18 verse 30, it says that the people of Israel esteemed, they revered the name of David. What does that mean? They esteemed, they revered the name of David. Does it mean they liked the name David better than John or Wilbur?
No, that's not what it means. They were talking about King David. They esteemed, they revered King David.
His name was just a placeholder for who he was. It's the same way with God. In Psalm 9 10, the Bible says, They that know thy name will put their trust in thee. Everyone who knows the name of God will trust him.
But that's not true. The fact is, lots of people know the name of God. They can say God, but do they trust him?
No. That's not what the verse is saying. It's not saying everybody who can utter the name God will automatically trust in him. It's those who know who God is.
His character is described by his name. Those are the people who will trust him. When you understand that God is Jehovah Jireh, the one who provides, or Jehovah Rapha, the God who heals, or Jehovah Sabaoth, the Lord of hosts, when you understand the names of God that describe his character, when you really understand who God is, then you will trust him. So when the Bible talks about hallowed be thy name, it literally means hallowed be you, O God. Of course, that leads to the second part of that phrase, hallowed.
What does that mean? When we're talking about God's name, that is, his being, being hallowed, what do we mean? Contrary to how some children pray, it's not Halloween be thy name, okay? It's hallowed be thy name. Now that word hallowed is an Old English word that comes from the Greek word hagios. And the word hagios means holy. When we say our Father who is in heaven, what we're praying is holy is your name.
Holy be your name. Now what does the word holy mean? Some people say, well, that means to be free from sin. Well, that's one aspect of it, but that's not really the meaning of holy. The word holy comes from an Old Testament word that means to cut or to separate.
When we say God is holy, what we're saying is God is separate, he is different, he is distinct, he is a cut above anyone or anything here on earth. You see that uses in Exodus 28. Remember one of the commandments was? Remember the Sabbath day and keep it what?
Holy. Does that mean keep it free from sin? No, it means keep it different, separate than every other day of the week. In 1 Peter 2, 9, Peter says that we are to be a holy people. If you're a Christian, that means you're to live separately differently than the unbelievers around you. And in the same way, when we come before God, we are to remember that God is holy, he is separate, he is different than we are. Holy be your name. That's what Jesus said we ought to begin our prayers with. Now the truth is, God is holy regardless of whether you and I recognize it or not, isn't he?
There's nothing we can do to make God any holier than he is. So why should we pray holy be your name if your name is already holy? Why should we pray may you be holy God? What he's talking about is not making God holy in the world, making God holy in our own lives. That's what this prayer is about.
When we come before God, yes we remember he is our papa, he's our daddy, but we're to also remember he is holy. He is different than anyone or anything on earth. He's not our good buddy. He's not the man upstairs. He is the sovereign creator of the universe. He's our creator.
How do we remember that? How do we make God holy, different, separate in our lives? First of all, we hallow God's name. We make God's name holy through our worship of his being. We make God holy. We hallow his name through our worship of his being. There's something inside of us that wants to praise God.
And one way we make his name holy is through our worship of his being by praising him, by expressing our appreciation when we begin to pray for who God is. A great illustration of that is found in Psalm 86. David wrote this psalm when he was going through a lot of problems. He was having problems at home. He really had problems at home.
But not only that, he had problems at work, the kingship deal wasn't going that well, and he was weighed down with all of these problems. But when he came into the presence of God, instead of coming with a laundry list of things he wanted God to do for him, I want you to notice how David prayed. Look at this, Psalm 86 verses 8 to 10. There is no one like you among the gods, O Lord, nor are there any works like yours. All nations whom you have made shall come and worship before you, O Lord, and they shall glorify your name, for you are great and you do wondrous deeds.
You alone are God. Do you notice how he prayed? He began by saying, God, you're different than all the other gods.
You're holy, you're great, and you're majestic. And then notice in verse 17 how David closed the prayer. He said, Show me a sign for good, that those who hate me may see it and be ashamed, because you, O Lord, have helped me and comforted me. David began the prayer weighed down with anxiety and worry. He finished the prayer comforted and at peace. What changed? None of his problems had gone away in those moments he was on his knees.
What changed was his perspective. As he concentrated, as he began thinking about who God was, the power, the majesty of God, his problems melted away. And the same will be true for you. When you pray, don't rush into God's presence with all of your requests.
There will be time for that. But at least begin by remembering the holiness, the separateness of God. We hallow God's name through the worship of his being. Secondly, we hallow God's name through our obedience to his will.
Through our obedience to his will. That's how we make God holy in our hearts, by obeying his will. In 1 Peter 3.15, the apostle writes, But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts. That word sanctify is that Greek word I just told you about, hagios, to be holy. It says make Jesus holy as Lord in your hearts. Now again, you can't make Jesus any more holy than he is. But notice what it says is, make him Lord in your hearts. That is, put God on the throne of your life, just as he is on the throne in heaven.
Let God have the final say in your life, in everything about your life. Some of you are old enough to remember this. Remember the old Saturday Night Live, there was a comedian on there named Chevy Chase. Remember Chevy Chase? And Chevy Chase would do the weekend update. And he would begin his weekend update every time with this line. He would say, Hi, I'm Chevy Chase and you're not.
Remember that? I'm Chevy Chase and you're not. You know what Jesus is saying? When we come into the presence of God, we ought to begin by saying, God, you're God, I'm not.
And therefore you have a right to make every decision in my life. That's how we hallow make holy the name of God. By obeying what we already know to be true. Somebody has said, prayer is ever and always, first and foremost, a recognition of God's majestic glory and a submission to it. Third, we hallow God's name. We make God's name holy in our life through our awareness of his presence. Through our awareness of his presence. In Psalm 16 verse 8, David said, I have set the Lord always before me. I hope you'll memorize that verse. Psalm 16, 8, I have set the Lord always before me. Now what was he saying? How can a finite being like David take hold of an infinite being like God and set God before him?
That sounds kind of crazy when you think about it. No, what he was saying is not that he makes God any more omnipresent than he already is. God was always omnipresent. God was always before David. What David is saying, in my mind, in my thinking, I have set the Lord before me.
That is, I have trained myself to always be aware of his presence. Now there were times in David's life when he was aware of God's presence. Remember in Psalm 139, David said, where can I go from thy spirit? Or where can I flee from thy presence? If I ascend to heaven, thou art there. If I make my bed and shield, thou art there. David said, I don't care where I go, I can't get away from you, God. If I go up to heaven, you're there.
If I make my bed and shield, that is the grave, you're there as well. And yet there were times when David wasn't aware of God's presence. When he made his bed with Bathsheba, he conveniently forgot the presence of God. That's the only way he could have engaged in that act of adultery. It's the only way any of you and I can rebel against God when we forget the presence of God.
Ladies and gentlemen, the single most revolutionary thought you can saturate your mind with is this. God is always watching. God is always evaluating. God is always judging your every thought, your every action.
That's what David was saying in Psalm 68. I have always set the Lord ever before me. I'm constantly reminding myself that God is watching, He's evaluating, He's judging my every thought and action. That's how we make God's name holy in our life, through the constant awareness of His presence.
Now that's easier said than done, isn't it? How can we keep the Lord before us in a practical way? Well, one reason we come together on Sundays is to do just that. We need a weekly reminder through our prayer and our praise and the proclamation of God's Word. It is a way to remind us as we begin our week of who God is.
But once a week isn't enough. We need daily reminders that God is always present. That's why we talk about the importance of reading God's Word daily, of praying daily. I tell you, even if you're in one of those passages like I was talking about a few weeks ago in 2 Kings, that as dry as dust, at least in your own mind at that time, and absolutely has no application to your life, there is value in reading the Word of God, if nothing else, to remind you that God is ever before you. He's watching you.
He is ruling your life just like He did the Israelites. We do it through reading Scripture. But, you know, if you're like me, I need hourly, I need minute by minute reminders that the Lord is ever before me.
One way you might do that is by putting Scripture verses around your house, framing them, to have the Word of God all throughout your house. In your office, maybe put some mementos of spiritual milestones in your life. I have a picture taken on a trip to Philippi that sits in my office a few years ago. It's where I made a momentous decision at that point. It was a spiritual milestone in my life. For some of you, it might be a baptismal certificate or something else, just something that reminds you that your life is more than what you see.
That's how we keep the Lord before us, by constantly being aware of His presence. David Jeremiah tells a true story about one man who found a unique way to do that. Brendan Manning was a Catholic priest who one day received a phone call asking if he would go and see a man who was dying in the hospital. Manning went, and as he went into the hospital room, he saw the man laying in bed, dying.
And next to the hospital bed was an empty chair. The man who was dying said, Father, I realize I'm about to die. If that doesn't bother me, I'm ready to go meet Jesus. But I do have a question I want to ask you.
It's been bothering me for years. Father Manning said, well, what's the question? He said, years ago, I was having difficulty in my prayer life. I felt like my prayers never made it above the ceilings. And a friend suggested that if when I prayed, I would pull up an empty chair next to me and imagine that Jesus Christ was sitting in that chair, it would give new vitality to my prayer life.
And so years ago, I started doing that. I started praying with an empty chair next to me. I imagined that Jesus was there, and I found myself praying sometimes an hour at a time. Father Manning, I want to know now as I'm about to die, was that all right to do?
Father Manning says, not only is it all right, I think it delighted the heart of God for you to realize that prayer was an intimate conversation with your Heavenly Father. Father Manning left the hospital room. A few days later, he received a telephone call from the daughter of that man. She said, Father Manning, I wanted to thank you for coming to see my dad. I wanted to let you know that he went home to be with the Lord this morning. But Father Manning, when we went into the hospital room, we saw something strange. Our dad was in a strange position.
His head was leaning up against an empty chair. That man had discovered what prayer really is all about. Yes, when we pray, we're coming into the presence of a powerful monarch, the one whose throne is in heaven, whose footstool is the earth, yes. But when we pray, we're also coming into the presence of a loving Heavenly Father who cares about every detail of our life, the kind of father we may not have experienced, but the kind of father every one of us has longed for. Engaging with the living God is like pulling up a chair and chatting with a good friend. And when we create this imagery in our minds, it's so much easier to open our hearts and begin talking to God.
He longs to hear from us. Well, there's much more to learn together about prayer. And in the days ahead, we'll dig deeper into this study about prayers that really work.
Along the way, I'm recommending that you request the new book I mentioned earlier. It was written by my daughter, Julia Jeffress Sadler, and it's specifically designed for the child or grandchild in your life. Kids are fully capable of pulling up a chair and having a chat with God, but sometimes they need a little guidance and prompting from mom or dad. This brand new children's book will help you.
It's called You Can Pray Big Things. And again, it's beautifully illustrated and written for children. When you give a generous gift to support the ministry of Pathway to Victory, I'll be sure to send one to your home right away. Maybe you'd like to use it as a Christmas gift for your child or grandchild.
But that's not all. When you respond today, I'll also send you Julia's book for adults as well called Pray Big Things. Julia wrote this book on prayer in a season of waiting, suffering, and disappointment.
And as my daughter learned and shares with you, God has a surprisingly wonderful life in store for you when you're bold enough to ask. It's called Pray Big Things. Both books, the one for your kids, You Can Pray Big Things, and the one for you, called Pray Big Things, will be sent to your home with my thanks when you give a generous gift to support the ministry of Pathway to Victory.
David? Thanks, Dr. Jeffress. When you support the ministry of Pathway to Victory by giving a generous gift, we'll say thanks by sending you a copy of You Can Pray Big Things, the brand new children's book by Julia Jeffress Sadler. Plus, you'll also get Julia's bestselling book for adults titled Pray Big Things. Ask for both books when you call 866-999-2965 or visit our website, ptv.org. And when you give an especially generous gift of $75 or more, you'll also receive the complete CD and DVD set for this month's teaching series, Prayers That Really Work.
This really would be an excellent resource for your small group Bible study or Sunday school class. One more time our phone number, 866-999-2965 or go online to ptv.org. Or write to us at P.O. Box 223-609, Dallas, Texas, 75222.
Again, that's P.O. Box 223-609, Dallas, Texas, 75222. I'm David J. Mullins. When you bow your head in prayer, what's the first thing you say? Find out why the way you begin your conversations with God bears particular significance. Join us Monday for Pathway to Victory. Pathway to Victory with Dr. Robert Jeffress comes from the pulpit of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas.
