A sermon preached at
Kowloon Union Church on Sunday 24 July 2016, the tenth Sunday after Pentecost, by Dr. Hope S.
Antone. The scripture readings that day were Psalm 138; Colossians 2:6-10; Luke 11:1-13.
“Lord, teach us to pray.” Out of 12 disciples, only one made this request.
We do not know his name. He could have been a former disciple of John the
Baptist, for he asked, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his
disciples." His request is a mark of a disciple. It shows a posture of
humility and openness to learn from his teacher. It is like saying, “Lord, I am
open to learn; please teach me.”
His request can mean several things – to know what to say (appropriate
content), how to pray (e.g. appropriate posture); when or where to pray (i.e.
appropriate time or place).
As a seminary student, I learned an easy way to remember 4 main types of
prayer through the acronym, ACTS: A
– Adoration, C – Confession, T –Thanksgiving, and S – Supplication. We were advised that
a good worship service is built on this A-C-T-S movement.
The gospel accounts show different instances, times
and places that Jesus prayed. He prayed alone, or publicly. He prayed very
early in the morning, during the day, or through the night. He prayed at a
solitary place, on the mountainside, among his disciples, or a distance away
from his disciples. Although standing was the most common way of praying for
the Jews, Luke (22:41-44) mentions that on the night before Jesus was betrayed,
he knelt down and prayed. Jesus prayed at different occasions: before meals;
before, during or after healing; or before making important decisions. In those
instances, he prayed to commune with God and submit himself to God’s will.
It must be in view of such instances that the disciple asked, “Lord, teach
us to pray.” Instead of discussing various types of prayer, or how, when and
where to pray, Jesus simply replied: "When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom
come. Give us each day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins, for we
ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us. And do not bring us to the time of
trial."
We have come to know this prayer as The
Lord’s Prayer. Some biblical scholars say that the prayer has a similar
structure as some Jewish prayers (e.g. hallowing of God’s name, praying for
God’s kingdom to come, asking for life’s provision, pardon, and protection).
Whether we use Luke’s short version or Matthew’s long version, what is
important is to regard this prayer as a framework or sample rather than as a
fixed formula to approach God.
Many of us learned to say The Lord’s
Prayer when we were small – at home, in church, or at school. We have
memorized it that we can recite it anytime anywhere. Young and new learners
learn by memorizing. We learn a new language by memorizing words and phrases.
But as we grow and learn more, we should be able to construct our own
sentences. Likewise, as we grow in discipleship, we should be able to come up
with our own prayers/petitions. [I introduced the singing of The Lord’s Prayer for our worship last
May 22, which we will sing again today. It is to say that praying can be in
different forms – by saying or singing, by crying or sighing, by dancing or
through action, by silence or quiet meditation, etc.].
So what can we learn anew from The
Lord’s Prayer?
First, when we pray, Jesus
invites us into a different relationship between us and God, and between us and
other people. Through The Lord’s Prayer, Jesus
shows us a way of addressing God – i.e. in a very personal and intimate manner:
as ABBA. Calling God as ABBA countered the old Jewish notion of hallowing God’s
name by not even pronouncing it, for it was considered a blasphemy to pronounce
God’s name. Addressing God as Abba is like calling God “my dear father” or
“Dad.” Some people who did not have a good relationship with their earthly
fathers may not find it very appealing to think of God as father. By calling
God ABBA, Jesus is not emphasizing the maleness of God, but that God is an
awesome, loving parent, who hears our concerns, and answers when we ask, search
and knock persistently.
ABBA was often used for God by prophets who
felt a direct connection with God. By showing his disciples to address God as
ABBA, Jesus was saying, ‘You, too, have that direct connection with God.’ ‘You
too are children of God.’
Our understanding of God and ourselves shows in how we relate with God and
with each other. Many of us have been conditioned to think of God as this great
Creator-Judge that we approach with fear and trembling; while we are like the
puny, helpless, hopeless creatures with a lot of guilt and shame because of our
sins.
This shows when we blame ourselves or someone when things go wrong – like
the estranged relationship between husband and wife, or between children and
parents. Loving parents would try to understand rather than judge and condemn
immediately.
To call God ABBA is to claim that we are
children of God, created and loved by God. And when we claim ourselves as God’s
children, we also claim that all God’s people are brothers and sisters to us.
If so, we are responsible for one another; and we should not readily judge and
condemn the other. The Lord’s Prayer
signifies the breaking down of divisions – social, ethnic, economic, cultural,
religious, denominational, or gender divisions. We all come to God ABBA, as
people who may be different, but still equal in the image of God.
Second, when we pray, Jesus invites us to a different purpose for praying. For many of
us, we pray because we need something. Praying is like an “ambulance” or a
“firehose” that we must get hold of when we are faced with a difficult
situation. For some, praying is like a magic wand to get a miracle done. For
others, praying is like a wish list that is brought before God.
But as Jesus shows through The Lord’s
Prayer, communing with God begins with what is most important to God: God’s
reign, or God’s kingdom. The Jewish notion of kingdom was the return of the
glory of Israel to be carried out by a political Messiah. Jesus countered this
notion by teaching that God’s kingdom is not an earthly, human, political
kingdom; rather, it is the reign of righteousness, justice and peace.
We sang the song, “Seek Ye First” which is a timely reminder that when we
seek first the kingdom of God and God’s righteousness, everything else will be
added to us (Mt 6:33). With God’s reign of justice, righteousness and peace,
people will care more for one another, rather than abuse or take advantage of
the other. There will be enough provision for all (bread is symbol of what is
necessary to sustain life); there will be pardon (forgiveness) for all – no
more harboring of grievances and the desire for revenge which only leads to a
vicious cycle of violence; and there will be protection and guidance during
times of trial, temptation, or persecution.
Centering on the bigger purpose – God’s great purpose for life for all –
helps to keep us from dwelling too much on our own little concerns, which may
just be our wants rather than our needs. Centering on God’s purpose helps us
from being self-centered and self-serving in our living and in our
praying.
Third, when we pray, Jesus
invites us to a different expectation of God’s response. Sometimes we think that
after we have made our petitions known to God, we then leave everything to God.
In fact, all the petitions – to hallow God’s name; for God’s Kingdom to come;
give us each day our daily bread; forgive us our sins; do not bring us to the
time of trial – all of them entail a lot of action, commitment and
determination on our part.
To have our daily provision, we still have to work (because food does not
just appear on our table). In order to be forgiven, we need to learn to
forgive, make amends with those we hurt, and work for reconciliation with those
who hurt us. In order to be protected from trials or testing, we need to muster
our strength to overcome temptation. We pray to pass a school exam, a job
interview, or to find a loving partner. But we still need to study for the exam
or interview; while we long for a loving partner, we need to learn to be loving
and caring too.
Sometimes we pray expecting particular responses from God. We expect the
return to good health of someone who is sick; the mending of relationship
between friends or couples; another job for someone who just got fired – and so
on. But God’s answers may not be what we expect. Someone said these words:
If our request is wrong,
God says, "No."
If our timing is wrong,
God says, "Slow."
If we are wrong, God
says, "Grow."
If our request is right,
our timing is right, and we are right, God (usually) says, "Go!"
But it is not always easy to discern what is wrong or right especially with
our honest to goodness prayer.
My friend, the Rev. Dr. Wati Longchar, a Northeast Indian theologian,
shared with me that when his father was sick with cancer, many church people
visited him to pray for his recovery. Everyone prayed for his father to get
well, and for the cancer to go away. One day, after the group of visitors, his
father asked his son why people only prayed for his recovery. For him, going
home to God was the healing he was waiting for.
Bishop Elmer Bolocon (of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines)
has a different story. When he was diagnosed with bone cancer, he tried various
forms of treatment – chemotherapy, alternative medicines. His family, church
people and friends kept praying for him. When the doctors said they could not
do anything anymore, some people prepared for the worst; a few started working
on the funeral liturgy for him. Then one day, he got up from his sick bed and
started walking again. And now he is back in the ministry.
These two stories show that God’s response to prayer can greatly differ
from people’s expectations.
Conclusion:
Prayer is communion with God. Real communion happens when we listen more to
God who might speak in a still small voice or in silence. Isn’t it in the
stillness and the silence that we get a clearer illumination of what God
intends for us? Jesus taught The Lord’s
Prayer as a blueprint or model of how to pray: When we pray, we must affirm
a new relationship with God as our just and loving Parent (ABBA) and with all
people as our brothers and sisters. When we pray, we must affirm a different
purpose by starting with God’s reign of justice, righteousness, and peace. When
we pray, we must affirm a different expectation of God’s response which may be
beyond our imagination.
Some researchers have conducted studies on prayer,
looking at the tangible or measurable effects of prayer. They were not so much
interested in whether the prayers were answered, but on how praying affected
those who prayed regularly. They concluded the following, based on the
respondents’ answers: (1) Prayer improves self-control; (2) Prayer makes one nicer; (3) Prayer makes one more forgiving; (4) Prayer increases trust; (5) Prayer offsets the
negative health effects of stress.
So as someone has said, prayer
should not be viewed as something to change our circumstance but to change our
character. The more we do it, the better it will improve our relationship with
God and with those around us. So when we pray, let us submit our whole beings
to God – our body, mind and soul.
# posted by Kowloon Union Church : Sunday, July 24, 2016
