1st Quarter: A King Forever and Ever (December 2024 - February 2025)
Unit III: Life in God's Kingdom
Lesson 10: Kingdom Forgiveness (Lesson 1/4)
Daily Bible Meditations by Michaella Osborn
Sunday, January 26: Matthew 11:25-30
Jesus gave an invitation many of us are familiar with: "Come to me all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (v.28, CSB). With such a familiar saying, we can sometimes speed right past it in our busy, ever hurrying world. Let’s take some time to stop and reflect. What are the ways you are feeling weary? What burdens are you carrying? Are they recent or old? What do they look like? How is Jesus inviting you into rest? Jesus’ famous saying comes immediately after He praised the Father for His mysterious nature, and for only making Himself known through the Son. Jesus’ invitation then, to learn from Him, shows us that it is in knowing God that we are truly able to find rest and lay down our heavy burdens.
Monday, January 27: Psalm 4
When he wrote this Psalm, David must have been in a state of distress and desperation. We can feel his pain as we read the words he wrote. Have you ever cried out to God in a similar way? Throughout the psalm, he detailed the lies and doubts of the people around him, but ultimately returns to his trust in God for safety and rest. He even goes so far as to say, “You have put joy in my heart” (v.7). What are some ways that you can remind yourself of God’s protection and provision in times of distress? How can you allow Him to put joy into your wounded heart?
Tuesday, January 28: Luke 18:1-8
Do you ever find yourself wondering if your prayers matter? Although we sometimes do not like to admit it, most of us have struggled at times to believe that God will hear or answer our prayers. Jesus reminds us in this parable that if earthly powers like judges or rulers will respond to persistent requests, how much more will a good and loving God hear us? Take a moment and ask God to remind you of times that He has answered your prayers. Thank you, Lord, that you care for us and that you hear every prayer!
Wednesday, January 29: James 5:13-20
In this passage, James highlighted how prayer is designed to be an integral part of community in God’s Kingdom. How does your community pray for one another? Are you vulnerable and honest with one another about your requests? When we are experiencing hard things in life, the faith of those around us is meant to be like a safety net, holding us up when we feel we might fall. When I am weak, I need to lean on your strength. But next week, the roles might be reversed. We need each other. How can your community develop a culture of praying for and confessing sins to each other?
Thursday, January 30: Psalm 91
Sometimes the world feels full of evil and chaos; how comforting it is to know that God wants to be our safe place in the midst of all of that. Let’s take some time to sit in the imagery that the psalmist was using. What would it feel like to be under God’s wings? What does the wall of His faithfulness look like? What are the plagues, terrors, and destruction from which God is protecting you? In what ways can the Most High be your dwelling place? How are you being lifted up and securely set on high? Allow God to be the safe place to which you can always run.
Friday, January 31: Psalm 92
Isn’t the faithfulness of God amazing? Think about His wonderful works and all the ways He is worthy of our praise. How do you see God’s love in your life? How have you experienced His faithfulness? What are some of the works of God’s hands for which you want to praise Him? Where have you seen God at work this week? How do you want to praise God for His justice? Have you experienced God’s extravagance, like fine oils being poured out on you? How does God cause the righteous to flourish? These a but a sample of the goodness of God for which we should praise Him. If we do not stop to look for them, we might never realize they are there.
Sabbath, February 1: Matthew 6:5-15
How should we pray? It seems like Jesus’ example of prayer is for our own formation and not only for communication with God. We call God our Father to remind us of the way He loves us and of our identity as His children. We acknowledge that He is in heaven to remind us that He reigns above the whole world. We ask Him for His way, to remember that His ways are better than ours. We come to Him with our most simple needs to remind us that He is the provider of all things. We ask to experience His forgiveness as a way of helping us walk in forgiveness towards others. Next time you pray, spend some time paying attention to how God is shaping you as you turn your heart and attention to Him.
Bible Texts:
Study: Matthew 6:5-15
Background: Matthew 6:5-15
Devotional: Psalm 4
Key Verse:
Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:10).
Heart of the Lesson:
Many people struggle to achieve sustainable lives in a world of debt and obligation. How can we be released from the debt we owe to God because of our sin? Jesus taught us to pray for the forgiveness of our debt while at the same time extending forgiveness to others.
Questions for Studying the Text:
- Why did Jesus caution against praying to be seen by others (v.5-6)? What did He mean by going into your room and praying in secret? How does this instruction challenge your current prayer habits? What steps can you take to cultivate a deeper, more authentic private prayer life?
- Do you fall into the trap of “thoughtless repetition” (v.7) in your prayers? What is the danger in praying this way? How can you ensure that your prayers are heartfelt and meaningful rather than ritualistic? How can knowing that God already knows our needs (v.8) change the way we approach prayer?
- What does it mean to pray for God’s Kingdom to come and His will to be done (v.10)? How should this affect our priorities and desires? In what areas are you struggling to surrender to God’s will, and how can you pursue reconciliation?
- Why is forgiveness such a central part of the way Jesus taught us to pray? How did Jesus teach the importance of forgiving and being forgiven in God’s Kingdom? How does the realization that God’s forgiveness is linked to our willingness to forgive others challenge you to pursue reconciliation?
- How does the focus on God’s Kingdom, power, and glory impact the way we pray? What have you learned in this quarter that has shaped your understanding of God’s authority (see 1 Chronicles 29:11; Revelation 11:15)? How can you remind yourself regularly of His authority over all things?
UNDERSTANDING AND LIVING by Norman Fearon
EXPECTED TO PRAY
Over years of being a Christian, I have prayed many times about many things. Still, as I look back at those years, there were several instances where I also forfeited numerous opportunities to pray when I should have. I am certain that I am not the only one who has had an inconsistent prayer life; there is probably more delinquency in prayer than we ever imagined. There are several possible reasons why Christians do not pray as we should. I will list four common ones here:
- a lack of confidence
- uncertainty of how and what to pray for
- the belief that prayer is unnecessary because God's plan will be fulfilled whether we pray or not
- the feeling of not having a close relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
Should these or any other reasons be enough to keep believers from praying?
Today’s lesson indicates that the Lord expects His followers to be in prayer at all times: “And when you pray” (v. 5). Prayer should not be seen only as an opportunity to ask God to grant our wishes or desires ,but as one of the ways through which one can maintain their relationship with Him. Whenever the believer prays, he/she should consider it a privilege to be a part of the work God is doing on earth; this may be the possible reason that Jesus took the time to teach His disciples the proper way to pray.
HOW WE SHOULD PRAY
Prayer is one of the many practices that have gone on for centuries, and many have witnessed life-changing results because of answered prayers. Sometimes, however, prayer becomes futile because it lacks sincerity or substance; an example of both is seen in verses 5 and 7. The first of two groups that Jesus referred to was insincere because their prayer was not about reaching out to God but was done to draw attention to themselves.
It does appear that they deliberately chose specific public places to pray. Their prayers were considered insincere, not because it is wrong to pray in public places, but because of their motive, “…so that they will be seen by people” (5). I am certain that we can think of other flaws that can make one’s prayer insincere; in fact, we may have been guilty of offering some insincere prayers ourselves. Therefore, Jesus’ message applies to all—God must always be the central point of our prayer.
The other reason for futile prayers is lack of substance. It took me a while to understand that prayer does not have to be complicated. It does not need special phrases or some mysterious code to communicate our needs to God; all we need is a believing heart intertwined with reverence. The second group mentioned by Jesus believed that prayer would be more affective or acceptable if they would “use thoughtless repetition” (v.7). They probably repeated certain phrases over and over until they worked themselves into a frenzy. The people of God should not approach prayer this way because it is unintelligible and seeks to manipulate God.
Jesus wanted His disciples to know that their approach to prayer could make a difference in their lives; they did not have to become involved in some unnecessary stunts to win the favor of God. It was also necessary for them to understand that God was not only the deity who is sovereign over all but was also their “Father”—one who cared about their existence (Matthew 6:28- 34).
THINGS WE SHOULD PRAY FOR
In addition to what I would call “Jesus’ do’s and don’ts of prayer,” He also gave His disciples a pattern they should follow whenever they went into prayer. This pattern includes praying for the forgiveness of debts. In the guidelines for preparing this lesson, I came across another perspective regarding “and forgive us our debts” (v.12). Debt in this perspective has to do with the poor who were struggling to make a living because of the system that overwhelms them with obligations. Therefore, those in such a predicament should pray for relief from debts. Jesus was very caring for the poor; He was also critical of the leaders and systems that exploited the poor; therefore, it would not be strange if He wanted people to pray for relief from their debts. But there was a much bigger debt that I believe Jesus would be more concerned about—the debt named sin.
According to John MacArthur in The MacArthur Study Bible, “The parallel passage (Luke 11:4) uses a word that means ‘sin,’ so that in context, spiritual debts are intended. Sinners are debtors to God for their violations of His law” (page number unknown). Sometimes we unconsciously sin against God and other times we are deliberate; whichever of the two scenarios applies to us we must remember that the forgiveness of sin frees us from all condemnation and puts us in a right relationship with God (Romans 8: 1-8).
Praying for the forgiveness of our debts/sins in our view seems reasonable, but what about forgiving others of the debts they owe us? Jesus told His disciples that in addition to praying to God for the forgiveness of their debt (violation against Him), they should also consider it necessary to forgive others who were indebted to them (have done them wrong). We do struggle at times with the task of forgiving others. However, this model of praying reminds us that we all are indebted to someone. Thankfully, the greatest of all our debts was forgiven, therefore we are obligated to forgive others as we have been forgiven.
Debts are a burden to everyone— it does not matter whether they are spiritual or physical—and we all desire relief to live in freedom. Jesus knows the struggles we all go through. He also cared enough to provide us with the path to relief. Jesus’ instruction to pray for relief was not intended to rid us of all the challenges in this world but to provide us a picture of what the Kingdom of God represents.
HINTS FOR TEACHING
LESSON GOALS:
- Understand that the debt Jesus addressed was likely both spiritual and economic.
- Focus on forgiveness as a sign of God’s coming kingdom.
- Commit to advancing God’s kingdom principle of forgiveness.
TEACHING ACTIVITY
Ask participants to rewrite the Lord’s Prayer in their own words, reflecting on how each phrase applies to their current circumstances, being specific about what it means to ask for daily bread, forgive others, or seek deliverance from evil in their life. Next, create role-play scenarios that depict situations where forgiveness is difficult (e.g., being wronged by a friend, family member, or coworker). Have participants take turns acting out how they would forgive the other person and discuss how practicing forgiveness reflects the command in Matthew 6 and advances God’s kingdom principle of forgiveness.
LOOKING FORWARD
Jesus model prayer encourages us to emulate God’s kingdom principle of forgiveness. Next, we will prepare for resistance we may face as we live out God’s Kingdom.