The recitation of the Lord's Prayer is often perfunctory. It is too profound and full of meaning to be rattled off thoughtlessly and mechanically. It should not be dragged through at a painfully slow pace but it must be enunciated with heartfelt conviction and vocal clarity. As a prayer addressed to God it is principally a plea for divine action and an affirmation of divine potency upon which we rely. The emphasis is on what God is and does. The one response that is called forth from us is humanly impossible. Its petitions express total reliance on grace.

Our Father – This prayer is the family prayer that only believers can pray. It is the prayer of God's adopted children. God is the creator of all men, but only the Father of the regenerate. The Fatherhood of God is not general but specific. We are sons and daughters through faith in the accomplishment of Christ, our elder brother. New birth brings us into a new relationship with God. His saving power makes him our Parent. “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God (John 1:12).

who art in heaven – Our relationship with our Father is intimate but not familiar. We are always lowly before him and he is lofty. In actuality he is above the heavens and descends to the region of the angelic hosts. His condescension towards us is the mark of the humility of the Most Highest. We stand in awe of him and wonder at his willing proximity to us in his Son, his word, and by his Spirit.

Hallowed be thy name – Although we are to hallow the name of God in our hearts and in public this request refers to God's manifestation of his own holiness in his presence and deeds in the midst of his creation. It expresses the desire that God should display his majesty and sovereignty in decisive action before angels and men. It sets the tone of the prayer, which is all about divine action and human dependence and wonderment.

Thy kingdom come – The kingdom is brought into being by God. It is not of human construction. We testify to its inauguration through the gospel and will witness its completion in Christ, but the kingdom is God-wrought. We desire it, plead for it, and announce it, but the kingdom can only come through God's grace and power. It invades and overthrows the kingdom of darkness which is man's natural environment from which we must be delivered by divine intervention.

Thy will be done – This petition is not enabling, or a concession we make to God. His will of decree is always fulfilled. His revealed will is mankind's rule and by his grace it is obeyed. It is the law of love and holiness and it will triumph over evil.

On earth as it is in heaven – Earth has rebelled against God after the pattern of the disobedient angels. These have been cast out and heaven is now the place of willing and instant compliance with God's purpose and commands. Heaven is harmonious and this part of the prayer desires that all discord between God and man be removed. Such a development is the floodgate of blessing. All of this world's ills and griefs will cease in submission to God's wise and beneficent sovereignty.

Give us this day our daily bread – Our very and basic existence depends upon God's provision. Bread is symbolic of the essentials of life. God is far more generous than that, but we are being taught, once again to rely on his sufficiency and to be content with what is sufficient when he deigns to supply it in whatever quantity. “Daily” refers to his reliability and our adequate satisfaction. We will not go without but we should not succumb to greed or covetousness.

And forgive us our trespasses – This is our most urgent need, pardon for sin and acceptance with God. Bread sustains us in this life; forgiveness admits us to the life to come. Forgiveness is God's prerogative and gift. It is the merciful action of his will performed in Christ. Forgiveness is a sovereign determination to grant us grace and restore us to fellowship and compatibility with God who has chosen to be our Father. Salvation is all of God. We have offended him and he offers reconciliation to which he moves us by word and Spirit.

As we forgive them that trespass against us – This is the difficulty that we must admit can only be resolved through grace at work within us. It is not the condition for salvation but confirmation that salvation is ours. As vessels of mercy we become the vehicles of mercy. It is ingrained in the new nature – this desire to be at one with each member of the family. Forgiveness is our disposition but it can only be released to another upon confession and repentance that leads to a sense of responsibility in the offending party and rapprochement with the party who has been wronged.

  And lead us not into temptation – God tempts no one to evil but for our humbling and chastisement he may leave us to our own devices and desires and the disasters into which temptation leads us. We ask that he will not remove his hand from our lives or his Spirit's influences from our minds and consciences. May he remain with us in every test of loyalty we encounter and keep us firm in faith and obedience. The great test is to remain faithful in any threat to our wellbeing. Jesus warns us of this in his Gethsemane agonizings.

But deliver us from evil – If we knew the strength and dimensions of evil within this world and ourselves we would pray this petition often and ardently. Evil is manifested enough for us to recognize the phenomenon, but it is often masked sufficiently well to cause us to underestimate its power and prevalence. It is a universal and unrelenting force manipulated by Satan through strategies that would amaze us. God is our only protector and rescuer, and the only one who can ingeniously remedy evil's ill effects. Deliver us is a constant plea.

For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory. Forever and ever – the Lord's Prayer is affirmative of God's greatness and goodness. All splendour and strength is his. He did not progress in majesty and might. He is eternal in his being and perfection. He is the God worthy of our reverence and trust. Amen.

RJS

(Genesis 22: 1 – 18)

    Our reflections are based upon a poignant and prophetic passage which yields amazing preparation for the comprehension of the gospel.  It makes you wonder if Luther was not being rash, after all, in calling Abraham a Christian. Was he indeed right? Luther knew what he was doing. His claim may not fit in with the historical dates concerning Abraham and Jesus but it is certainly in accord with the biblical data. And also with the insights of Christ himself in dispute with the Jews: Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad (John 8:56).

  When and how did Abraham see Jesus' day? Genesis chapter twenty-two is a vivid example. It reveals how strongly Abraham came to believe and trust in the Messianic Promise: It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned (Genesis 21:12).

  Abraham was the recipient of a momentous promise. God had made it and there- fore it must be reliable and irrevocable. Abraham could rest content in that divine pledge. The promise was supported by miracle. In spite of their infertility Abraham and Sarah produced a son. They were assured beyond doubt their late and impossible parenthood was through divine activity. The matter concerning Isaac's destiny and earthly security was therefore not a cause of further concern. They could watch the child mature and together mature in their faith in God. All would be well. And then came the horrific shock that put their calm faith through the most cutting test. Abraham was commanded by God to offer Isaac as a sacrifice. He was ordered to destroy the very vessel that contained, and was to continue, the validity and fulfilment of the sworn divine purpose for all of mankind. It would occur to any devout mind that the apparent change in God's mind was senseless and almost sadistic. Surely to build hope and then blow it up would be deemed radically unkind in man let alone the Lord himself. This incident and others have caused some people to regard God as unpredictable and arbitrary, someone of whom we have to be wary and constantly suspicious.

  It is true, as Luther alleges, that there are occasions when God seems to be our assailant, but this is not in order to be cruel but to increase our confidence, not in signs and appearances, but in his bare word alone, which in the most agonizing of circumstances eventually proves to be totally and marvellously wonderful. This was the ultimate trial now posed to Abraham. The experience must have been bewildering and excruciating and at the same time we observe a studied and resolute obedience in the patriarch.

  He complies with the unpleasant word of his Lord promptly – early the next morning (v3). He cuts the wood for the sacrifice himself, not employing his servants, but with his own hands preparing the act of slaughter to be carried out upon his own beloved son and sign of the redemptive covenant. He sets out with his “indispensable” victim toward the place where God had indicated the life- offering should take place – a vicinity specifically appointed, the region of Moriah. Abraham's behaviour indicates no hesitation. His heart must have been in conflict.  His faith seems to overcome the impending disaster: We will worship and then we will come back to you (v5). His trust must have been subject to great strain.

  It is unnerving to note the pathetic details of the story. Christian insight instantly begins to make comparisons. Is not Abraham unconsciously resembling the story of the Father who sent his Son as the sacrifice for the sins of the world? Are we not seeing dimly through human experience the pain in the procurement of atonement with God on our behalf? An only son is commissioned to die, for Ishmael is a stranger to the covenant forged with Abraham, which is a salvific arrangement mirroring the mighty plan of God for the salvaging of human souls. The cost to divine love for mankind is intimated here. The life-taking action of the Father with regard to Jesus is also a feature. Abraham himself carried the fire and the knife (v6 cf Isaiah 53: 4-10). Isaac's questioning of his father is deeply affecting (v7) and Abraham's answer matches the attitude of his contemporary, Job (v8). Abraham's convictions hint at resurrection, timely provision by God, and the notion of substitution in sacrifice. Abraham's ongoing perseverance in obedience is remarkable when his enormous mental pressure is considered. He deliberately does exactly what God tells him (vv8-10). The details are climactic and heart-wrenching to the extreme as they are played out in our imagination. The tension is huge. The divine intervention is astounding (vv11-12). God stays the hand of the believing yet grieving covenant man about to stab his precious boy and annul the promise sealed in him. This was a turning point in human history and human hope.

  With immense relief Abraham releases the lad he loves and espies a ram caught in a thicket (v13). The discovery is decreed just as our Saviour was caught in the thicket of human evil, envy, and viciousness (Acts 2:23). How readily Calvary springs to mind! We must be cautious, the scholars warn, as to what we read in this powerful and evocative narrative. We can't be sure what Abraham did see and conclude, but we know what we see in the unity of the divine purpose. The incident of an exchange of victim and the vindication of God's word and the validation of Abraham's faith all coalesce in the region of Moriah, the site of Solomon's temple and our Saviour's suffering. Can we help but tie in this stupendous geographical fact with the full apostolic explanation of the gospel, especially when we hear its echoes in the teaching of John who has stated himself that Abraham rejoiced in Jesus' day? Abraham's forward-looking faith was saving, and so he is kin to all believers. We are privileged to be his descendants.

  God's gospel was given to Abraham (Galatians 3:6-18). This man's trust was placed in the coming Messiah. His gaze was set upon the heavenly country (Hebrews 11:8-12). He now resides in the kingdom of heaven: I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 8:11). So identified with the kingdom and its King is Abraham that that blessed realm is called Abraham's bosom or side (Luke 16:220. Abraham is described as the father of the faithful – the prime believer whom we resemble if we share like faith in the beautiful Son of God. Through promises and the graphic details of his experience Abraham peered into the future to grasp Christ. What he looked forward to, we see more fully. His faith was pre-adventist. What he anticipated we know as actual. Christ's day has come and we are in it. As Paul says, “I tell you now is the time of God's favour, now is the day of salvation.

  Let us rejoice in it as did Abraham and with equal earnestness and sincerity rely upon the same promise - future for him, fulfilled for us. For we trust in the same gracious God, invisible to Abraham, incarnate for us. “'I tell you the truth' Jesus answered, before Abraham was born, I am!'” (John 8:58).  O, that joyous exclamation of Christian heart and hymn, “Christ, my God!”.

RJS

ACTS 12: 1 -11

  The above warning is not necessarily alarmist. It follows sober advice from the Saviour (John 15:18-21).  Persecution broke out early for the apostolic church (Acts 8:1-3). Paul himself was notorious for his cruel action against believers. Herod, the perpetrator of violence against James and vicious intent against Peter, characterizes the nature of persecution. The outrage was expected by the Jews among whom were the agitators for this policy. Herod was the willing ally and agent. As a non-Jew and Edomite he was always uneasy about his position as ruler. A campaign of terror against the Messianic movement would please the people and purchase popularity. Guidance “by the polls” is not a new phenomenon. Principle is often sacrificed by reason of the sway of public opinion. Bad government gives in to popular preference and acclaim. Herod is a prime example – a man with a religious facade but a faithless heart. By his hand James was murdered and Peter arrested.

  In Peter's incarceration nothing was left to chance. He was heavily guarded until the show trial. The religious and civic leaders were salivating over the prospect. Persecution is always the product of pure and blind hatred. Any possibility of justice is set aside. Peter is in grave and imminent danger. The fate of James is proof of that. Everyone knows what is likely. The church doesn't seem to panic but resorts to fervent prayer (v5). How ominous the night before the trial could have been for the apostle. It is difficult to contemplate Peter's mood. It may have been sombre but he doesn't seem to have been intimidated. He sleeps. Was it soundly or through nervous exhaustion? We notice from the prison writings of the English martyr in the time of “bloody Mary”, John Bradford, the composure of God's people in the crucible. The measures taken by the authorities in Peter's case seem extreme (vv4&6). It is evidence of the paranoia of the Herods. What excessive precautions he ordered against one solitary prisoner and his peaceable companions.

  The fortress, the stronghold of evil, is quiet and confident in its malicious grip upon Peter. Meanwhile the church is praying – a blend, perhaps, of fear and faith. This is often the very human condition of the Christian heart in crisis. We know the power of God. We also observe his sovereignty – but James was not delivered. What about Peter? What is the will of the Lord in this particular situation? It is shown in the divine SUDDENLY! (V7). The people's intercession is accompanied by God's intervention. In the cell where Peter was kept there was an air of urgency.  Verse seven describes it: an angelic appearance, shining light, Peter is struck on his side, which causes a sudden awakening. He is given a sharp command: “Quick, get up!” Iron chains fall from Peter's wrists as if suddenly dissolved. Peter the captive is loosened by God's power. Nothing can hold God's people down when he is resolved to deliver. Peter is advised to dress and prepare himself for the night air. God's sovereign intent is echoed down the ages in the apt cry, “Let my people go!” It is a command no enemy of the Lord can ever resist. Nothing can frustrate his act of liberation. Not a king. Not a prison. No amount of guards. No chains of iron.  The Lord is setting Peter free.

  The process dazes the fisherman used to early rising. Mentally he cannot keep pace with developments. Physically he complies. With sleep in his eyes he supposes he sees a vision. But it is real. His rescue is underway (v10). God makes the progress smooth and easy. The power that awoke Peter probably deepened the slumbers of the soldiers – for God is in command. Past the first watch goes Peter – no one stirred. Past the second watch – they were probably snoring. So far so good.  But, Peter and the angel remain in the prison precincts still. What about the awesome prison gate? More iron to contend with – the forbidding barrier to freedom. It opened for them – the arrested one and the angel pass through the exit that opened by itself.  An automatic way out was provided for the Lord's cherished servant who still had much work to do. God flung the obstruction wide open. What he opens no man can shut until his will is performed. He is the invisible power in this remarkable event. One moment ago Peter was helplessly in chains. Now he is in the street. The angel accompanies him to safety and suddenly leaves him.

  Peter rubs his eyes and clears his head. It was not a dream based on fragile hope. His extrication from confinement was wonderfully real just as it was for Sundar Singh the great preacher and evangelist from India. When he was cast to the bottom of a grim Tibetan death pit littered with the bones of the dead Singh was visited by a mysterious individual who tossed him a rope and led him from the gloomy jail. When the lama enquired as to who had stolen the key in order to release Singh he found the only one available still securely attached to his person. Such are the divine marvels sometimes wrought in dire situations on behalf of God's dear ones if their task is yet uncompleted.

  Herod's clutches had been broken. He came to a miserable end (vv12-23). His campaign did not proceed as he designed and the leaders of the Jewish people desired.  Peter was released, and, so it is recorded, was the word of God (v24). But all of this is not equivalent to a pleasant fairy tale. Persecution is to be expected. In fact, it is promised as part of our preparation for glory. It need not automatically end in deliverance but may often bring suffering, injury, heartbreak, and even death – the ultimate deliverance from the point of view of faith. To our eyes God's interim purposes in his ultimate plan vary.

  We are to be expectant of the world's hatred. Perhaps we should anticipate its persecutory action soon. It is evident everywhere in various degrees and can be readily inflamed through perverse public opinion that drives the exercise of political and judicial authority. But we have the resort of prayer and the protection of God as our refuge against foe and flame. God will deliver us in time of acute danger – even if it is deliverance into the kingdom through the ultimate means of martyrdom. James was as beloved as Peter. God had simply designed for each his own particular schedule.

  Peter's episode exhorts us to be prepared for whatever God has prepared for us in his wise and gracious providence.

“Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. [this was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and said, 'Lord, who is going to betray you?'] When Peter saw him, he asked, 'Lord, what about him?' Jesus answered, 'If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me'”

  Our different fates, as it were, bear no hint of favouritism. They are premised on vocation, and every believer's vocation is honourable. Whatever the duration of our calling in the mind of God so the extent of our earthly life shall be. We leave the field of labour at different intervals but the same constant love enfolds us all.

RJS