Bible Devotion - 6/9/2021

June 9th, 2021

Living the Christian Life Day by Day (Vol5)

As we continue looking at the occurrences of the words "day by day" in the Bible, we find them in what is often called "The Lord's Prayer." In this prayer the Lord is teaching us to pray and how to pray.

Someone has said that many Christians offer their prayers like sailors use their pumps -- only when the ship leaks. Another has said that we treat prayer like a spare tire -- we only use it when we need it. However, the "Lord's Prayer" teaches us that there are some things we should pray for "day by day."

The prayer can be broken down into two divisions. The first half of the prayer concerns the nature of God and the second half of the prayer concerns the needs of man. We find our words "day by day" in the second half that concerns our needs.

In Luke 11:3 we are taught to pray, "Give us day by day our daily bread." In teaching us to ask for bread day by day, Jesus was teaching us to pray and ask God to supply the daily needs of our life.

In speaking of "bread," Jesus was speaking of more than just cornbread, loaf bread, and biscuits. Bread is symbolic of the physical needs of life. The Bible says in Philippians 4:19, "But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus."
So what is God telling us when he gave us this model prayer?

First of all He is say….
1. I’M INTERESTED IN YOU!

When I think of the fact that a petition that involves our daily needs is included in the prayer that is the model and guide for our praying, it tells me that God is interested in our life and cares about the needs we have in life. It says to me that we are more than a name in a book or a number on a list.

The Psalmist declared in Psalm 40:17, "But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinketh upon me..."

When Jesus taught us to pray, "Give us day by day our daily bread," He was telling us that God is greatly interested in our life. Why does He have such an interest in us? I think it has to do with the fact that “He Calls us his Children”.

Notice how this prayer begins -- "OUR FATHER." God is "Our father which art

in heaven." We call Him "our Father" and because He is our Heavenly Father, we are His children. Paul said in Galatians 3:26, "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." We read in John 1:12, "But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name."

It thrills my heart to be able to say that God is my Heavenly Father. But, what is even more amazing is that God claims me and calls me His child. I was an undeserving sinner that should be in hell, or at least on my way to hell, but He saved me by His grace and has made me His child and calls me His child. The very thought that I can call God my Father blesses my heart. The fact that He calls me His child leaves me standing in awe.

Furthermore, I also believe that when God gave us this model prayer He is saying….

2. I CARE ABOUT YOU!

He shows us that He cares about the needs in our life and He invites us to pray -- come to Him -- about the needs in our life. When Jesus taught us to pray, "Give us day by day our daily bread," he is giving us an invitation to bring our needs to Him.

Jesus is inviting us to bring our physical needs to the Lord and tell him what our needs are.

I love the study of words and the word "daily" in Luke 11:3 is a very fascinating word. The particular word translated "daily" is the Greek word epiousios and the word only occurs here and in Matthew's record of the Lord's Prayer (Cp. Matt. 6:11).

For many years this was the only known occurrences of the word in all of the Greek language. Some even suggested that Matthew invented the word. But then a papyrus fragment turned up with this word on it and it was actually a shopping list of a woman. Against a certain item on the list was the word epiousios. It was a note to remind her to buy supplies of a certain food for the coming day. Jesus is inviting us to bring our "shopping list" to Him.

The two words "give us" remind us of our dependence on God. When we say to God, "Give us," we are acknowledging two things. First, there is something we do not have that we need to get; and secondly, He has it to give us. It is a petition that reveals that we are trusting God to meet our need.

Dear Christian, have you told God today what your needs are? If so, are you trusting Him to meet those needs? In Matthew 6 Jesus taught us not to worry but to trust the Lord with our needs.

When Jesus said, "Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life" (6:25), He was telling us not to worry. Instead of worrying, He reminds us that our heavenly Father knows what our needs are and that we are to, "seek ... first the kingdom of God and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" (6:33). He is telling us trust the Lord to meet the daily needs of our life instead of worrying about them.

Jesus said, "Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?" Jesus was saying that all the worry in the world cannot add one inch to our height. In other words, worry never helps or accomplishes anything. Instead of worrying, trust the Lord.

God is inviting us to bring our needs to Him. The writer of Hebrews said in Hebrews 4:16, "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."

The final truth that I see in the words, "Give us day by day our daily bread," is that God is saying….
3. I CAN MEET EVERY NEED YOU HAVE!

God would never invite us to pray for the supply of our daily needs if He could not and would not supply our needs. Did the Lord not say in Philippians 4:19 that He would supply our needs? David said in Psalm 37:25, "I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread."

As I look at how Jesus is teaching us to pray I see that there are boundaries to what God is saying. As one has said, God is telling us that He will give us our daily bread, not our daily cake. In other words, He is promising to meet our needs, not necessarily our wants. God has promised to meet our needs, not our greeds. It is bread, not bread and gravy. It is the necessities of life, not the niceties of life.

When it comes to our wants there are boundaries. Yet, when it comes to our needs there are no boundaries. God is telling us that He wants to meet those needs and that He will meet those needs. When we tell Him about our needs and trust Him with our needs, we experience the blessing of His supply.

Dear Christian, Do you have a need in your life? God teaches you to pray, "Give us day by day our daily bread." He is saying to you, "I will meet your needs."

I close with a story I once read about a man who owned a little country grocery story. It was just before Christmas and one evening a poor-dressed woman came into the story and asked if she could have just enough food to make Christmas dinner for her children. The grocer asked how much money she had and she replied, "My husband was killed in the war and I have nothing to offer but a little prayer." The store owner was not a religious man and there was not an ounce of sympathy in him. He laughed and said mockingly, "You write your prayer on a piece of paper and I'll weigh it and give you what it is worth." The lady reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of paper, handed it to the man and said, "I wrote this during the night while watching over my sick baby."

The grocer took the piece of paper and spoke loud enough for everyone in the store to hear, "I will give you all the food that these scales will hold until they are perfectly balanced." He began to put food on the scales, but to his surprise the scale would not go down. In his embarrassment he continued putting food on the scales, but still the scale refused to go down. He kept piling food on until there was enough to fill two large bags. He became angry and frustrated and said, "That's all these scales will hold, but you will have to put the food in the bags yourself, I'm busy." With trembling hands and tear filled eyes, the woman filled two bags of food, thanked the store owner and left.

After everyone left the story, the grocer examined the scales and found they were broken. The man would never forget what happened. Why had the scales broken at that particular time? Why had the woman come in at just that time? He never saw the woman again but through the years he kept the piece of paper on which her prayer had been written -- "Please Lord, gives us this day our daily bread."

The needs of life are daily, but the Lord has promised to meet our needs "day by day."

Praise His Name,

Bro. Jeff