King James Bible Study – [And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. – Mark 8:34]
Date: Friday, October 10, 2025
Chapters: Matthew 6-7
Message: Matthew: The Lord’s Prayer
Hello My Friend,
As we continue in the reading of the Gospels, we learn from Jesus Himself how to pray to God as well as get His attention. I was thinking of how Jesus taught us in comparison to what God, The Father taught from the Law of Moses, when instead of an eye for an eye, Jesus teaches mercy and forgiveness. Since He is God, I wondered what changed His mind from wanting retaliation to mercy. As I think about it I realize that He has not changed at all, while He has always been a just God and quite often proved that whenever someone arrogantly tempted Him, but He has always been a merciful and forgiving God. In fact, it is because this that we are not all consumed, [Lamentations 3:22 It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.]
The world under estimates God, they see Him solely as this judge sitting on His throne while each and every person stands before Him in judgment. While that will be the case one day, [Revelation 20:11-12 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.], we are not quite there yet.
God, actually wants a relationship with us just as we would our earthly parents. Now, think about that, there have been some wonderful parents, but there have also been some horrible parents. However, God will turn every situation for good for those who loves Him, [Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.]
Yes, it says, “to them that love God”, and while He does love all the people He creates, all the way from Adam, that does not mean that He wants a relationship with all of them. God, will only respond to those who love Him and if they truly love Him then they will understand that they need to come to Him through His Son, [Luke 3:22 And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.]
Since God wants a relationship with those who love Him, it makes sense that He gave us His Word so that we can know how to do that. While those who loved Him before Christ came here in the flesh lived solely by faith and did not even have His Word to guide them, they still hoped for the written word to help them out, [Job 19:22-23 Why do ye persecute me as God, and are not satisfied with my flesh? 23 Oh that my words were now written! oh that they were printed in a book!].
Now, fast forward to when Jesus showed up and started quoting from the Scriptures, it was like He was a walking textbook. While those who loved God welcomed the preaching of the Scriptures, those who did not cringed as the truth was coming out. So, here is Jesus, standing on a mountain as not only His disciples, but the Pharisees and those who were curious listen to Him. He first talked about we ought to treat one another, but now He comes to what we are to do for God, beginning with tithes and offerings.
[Matthew 6:1-4 Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. 2 Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 3 But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: 4 That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.]
I use to write my name on the envelope that I would put my tithes and offerings in, but stopped doing that because of what Jesus says here. In fact, when the ushers take up the tithe at my church, they actually walk backward as to not see what people are putting in the plate. Unless I write a check no one knows what I put in the plate and it ought to be that way. I know people do it for tax purposes, but I do not believe in that either. Whatever I give to God is God’s, and He will give me tenfold what I gave Him without the government who just wants to see if I am giving more to others than them. Jesus, said it this way, [Luke 20:25 And he said unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which be Caesar’s, and unto God the things which be God’s.] and I will stick to that plan. I have to admit that I have not been working for the past three months so I am not been giving much to God in regards to tithes and offerings, but I know He understands. Now, is the perfect time to be praying like there is no tomorrow, but sometimes we do not know how to pray. Well, Jesus has a suggestion and goes on to teach us how to pray.
[Matthew 6:5-8 And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. 7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. 8 Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.]
Notice that Jesus says this again, [and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.] So, what is He talking about here? Vain repetition is referring to chanting as there are many religions who chant as part of their praying. In other words, when we pray to God, He wants us to be sincere, and not only to make ourselves look good in front of people, but all the time. Now granted we do have days when we pray and it is just words coming out, but there is a difference, which is why Jesus goes on to give us an example of how we are to pray.
[Matthew 6:9-15 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. 14 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 is where praying earnestly comes in, including forgiveness and also the reason why Erika Kirk could say that she forgives the man who killed her husband. Forgiveness, is not about letting the wrongs done to us go, it is about trusting God to handle it. We are continuously forgiven for things that we have done so we should expect that God wants us to forgive others as well. And by the way, when we forgive, it is not coming from our own personal reasoning, it is coming in the person of Christ, [2 Corinthians 2:10-11 To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also: for if I forgave any thing, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ; 11 Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.]
I will admit that I believe Satan has taken advantage of me over this whole thing with my mom and now I have no job. I have been struggling with my prayers, it feels like they are not sincere and my flesh is so weak that as soon as I say to God that I will stop doing something or do something, I fail Him instantly. Sometimes we need a little more than prayer to get God’s attention and that is where fasting comes in. Now, Jesus goes on to teach us how to fast in order to get God’s attention even more.
[Matthew 6:16-21 Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 17 But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; 18 That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. 19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: 21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.]
Yesterday I told God that was going to fast and pray until I get a job, but four hours later I found myself haphazardly eating two Tic Tac’s and felt so bad that I immediately asked God to forgive me. That was when God reminded me that fasting is not just abstaining from food, it is about renewing our mind, body, and spirit with God’s promises and letting Him know that we are trusting Him, [Psalms 56:3 What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.]
Let me tell you, for the first time in three months I started to feel my spirit lifting up and I felt hopeful. From the beginning that job was not for me, and God knew it, but He used the entire situation to not only give me some time with my mom, but show me that what time I have left here on earth is precious and ought not be wasted on things that have no value. So while abstaining from food, cell phones, social media, and other means of personal gratification is good for the soul, the point is to give our problems over to God. This is what Jesus is trying to convey here, which is why He goes on to remind us that we need to stop worrying about our flesh.
[Matthew 6:25-29 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? 28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.]
This is how much God loves us, of all the creatures that He created, humans were not only created in His image, they were given a soul. In fact, we are so valuable to Him that He came here in the flesh and gave His own life to save it from hell. If we do not realize that that is what true love is, then we have a big problem. God, knows what we need and if we trust Him then we have nothing to worry about, which Jesus goes on to reiterate.
[Matthew 6:30-34 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? 31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.]
I absolutely love this, stop worrying about tomorrow, if we are saved, then even if this were our last day on earth Jesus has us covered. We cannot do anything about yesterday so all we can do about that is move forward from any mistakes and do better today. God, will give us everything we need, we just need to ask Him, [Matthew 7:7-8 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: 8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.]
Now, I cannot tell you how many times people take this passage out of context, asking for something outrageous, then rejecting God because He did not give it to them. There are two reasons why God does not answer prayers the way that we expect. One; He answers us as He sees fit and according to our faith, and two; He will not be tempted, which is what they are doing when they say they will only follow Him if He does something they want, [1 Corinthians 10:9-12 Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. 10 Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. 11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. 12 Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.]
Do you see that? The second that we think that we are untouchable because of our faith in Christ or that we can fake our way to salvation that is when we will fall. Jesus, goes on to explain this, [Matthew 7:12-15 Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets. 13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. 15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.]
I am not going to lie, I have been duped before, no true and faithful Christian will encourage one to deliberately go against God. Now, it is one thing to be ignorant to God’s Word and sometimes we fall because we do not know any better, but it is another to go against Him. And to be honest, we do have a conscience so we ought to know that some things are just plain wrong. I mean that are some morally sound people who are not saved that understand right from wrong, but then again, we have no idea how people are raised or who they get around. It is sad, but not every person knows that abortion, mutilation, and murder is wrong, and right now we can see that clearly. There is a reason why Jesus goes on to explain that not every person turns out good.
[Matthew 7:18-23 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. 19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. 21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.]
Okay, so, right here is where many people believe that God picks and chooses who gets saved from birth, and there are actual religions that believe that. Stay away from religions like that, they are part of the wolves in sheep’s clothing, headed straight for hell. Yes, God knows what will become of us, but He still gives all the freewill to make our own decisions. We are promised two things once we are birthed into this world and that is life and death, what we do in between is what changes us, [Romans 1:20-21 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: 21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.]
We need to understand that God, wants to give us things, especially eternal life, and if we are faithful He will surely take care of us way beyond what we expect. However, we must know Christ as our Saviour on nothing we do will ever get His attention, [Matthew 7:24-29 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: 25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. 26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: 27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it. 28 And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine: 29 For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.]
Do you see how Jesus words what all boils down to whether or not we believe in Him? [Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them,]. Religion tells us, “Do this, and you will get to heaven.” and this is why many will stand before Jesus the second they die and He will tell them He never knew them. And let me tell you, the second they see Him they will know who He is and be on their knees begging, but by then it will be too late, [Luke 13:25 When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are:]
Today’s Prayer: God, You have called us to follow Your Son, and in order to do that we do need to enter in at the gate that is strait. When we do, You promise that we will receive all that we ask within reason. The first step of entering that gate is putting our faith and trust in Your Son alone for our salvation. Everything else comes as we begin to shadow Christ in the works that we do. Lord, lead us and guide us, give us Your Holy Spirit power to learn, discern, and walk the path that is narrow and straight, and let us live our lives to please and glorify You alone. Give us also Your mercy and grace to walk the path that leads to Your blessing our lives with even more than we could ever ask for. Keep us grounded on the Rock upon which we stand so that when the winds and rains do beat us up, we are left standing strong in Christ. I ask these things in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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