Add correct line breaks, correct capitalisation, correct punctuation, correct Australian English spelling, and correct KJV Bible verse quotations and references to my paragraphs where applicable. But do NOT — I repeat — do NOT alter or change ANY words from my paragraphs under ALL circumstances.
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We come to the last day of the camp, and I think we have... mixed kind of feeling. Both sad and happy, set to leave this place, and this fellowship that we have had, but also happy that we are able to go back home, and then to be with our family members. So, but we praise and thank God for this camp, and all the lessons we have learned, the fellowship that we have had, the campfire yesterday, all of us have saved it. It is so wonderful. For our devotion, for this morning, we have been studying the disciples' prayers, commonly known as the Lord's Prayer. We have come to the fifth and sixth petition. So let us read Matthew chapter 6, verse 9, all the way to verse 13. And our focus will be on the 5th and 6th petition that is found in verse 12 and verse 13. But let's read the entire passage, beginning with verse 9, in unison. Let's begin verse nine. After this manner, therefore, pray, our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thy is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen. Let us pray. Father in heaven, we give thee thanks for this brand new morning that we are able to wake up early, and also to have the breakfast that thou has provided, and we give thee thanks for the bread, who laboured in love, to wake up early, and prepare the meal for us. And all this is thy provision, as we have learned, also, to pray, give us this day our daily bread. And that includes all our physical needs, the meal that we have taken, and also our other needs. And as we continue in our study, in the Lord's Prayer, taught by our Lord Jesus to the disciples, we have come to the thief and sex petitions. We want to learn and to apply. So help us as we commit our lives into thy hands, that we not only be hearers only, but to be doers of thy word as well. So we commit this time into thy loving hands, praying all this in Jesus' name. Amen. So we have learned thus far that the source is our God, the person we pray to is our heavenly Father. And then the Spirit of God will help us to pray. We pray in the power of the spirit, and then we also pray by virtue of our Lord Jesus, because it is by the name of our Lord Jesus, that our heavenly Father will hear our prayers. That is why we always end with in Jesus' name. And here we have learned also that Jesus taught us this prayer, not for us to repeat it meaninglessly. It is not vain repetition. It is to give us a pattern that we be able to pray in such a manner. That means pray in this way, or pray along these lines. So we begin with God first, and then our needs, our interests. So it is God's glory, and then comes to our cash and concerns. So, beginning with thy name, thy kingdom, thy will, all this pertains to God, and then give us forgive us, lead us not, that pertains to our needs. So we have learned the 1st petition of our needs. That is, give us this day our daily bread. So we have come to the 5th and 6th. So look at verse 12. And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. This has to do with our spiritual needs. Forgive us. Now, there are two things we want to learn from this one petition that is praying for forgiveness as well as praying for a forgiving heart. Or a forgiving spirit. There are different words used for the term sin. At least five different terms, and here, the word sin is described as a debt, a spiritual debt. that we owe to God. For something that we have done wrongly. The sin that we have committed. So forgive us our debts. Our sins, a spiritual debt that we owe. We all know what sin will do to us. Sin separates men from God, and then there's also the wages of sin that is death. Not only the physical death, but also the spiritual and eternal death. Because of sin, man is separated from God, and then men will also have to face the eternal death. So one day, we will have to stand before God. This life is not all there is. We have on this earth. There's life beyond this earth. So we have to stand before God, with all our sins, and we have to give an account. And so God would have to judge our sins, otherwise he would not be a righteous God. But he is both a loving and righteous God. If he were to judge our sins, we'll be sent to the eternal lake of fire, but being a loving God, he wants to save us. So he sent his only begotten son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who took upon himself the penalty of our sins on the cross of Calvary, shed his precious blood, for without the shedding of blood, there's no remission of sins. So, the only way we can be saved is to believe in Jesus. So he is both a loving as well as a righteous God. As believers, we know that our sins have already been forgiven. So we are not afraid of the eternal punishment because we know that we have been saved from the eternal lake of fire. One safe, always safe. Jesus said so. No man can plug you out of my hand. So it would take someone greater than God to take us out of his hand, right? So once we are saved, we are safe forever. We know that we will not lose our salvation. So why do we still pray, forgive us our sins or our spiritual debts? So this is not a reference to the point whereby we believe in Jesus, and we are justified. So if I can explain it to you in this way, we always think of salvation as being safe from eternal damnation. We only think about being saved from the eternal lake of fire. But salvation actually includes more than that. That is justification. Positionally, we are saved... when we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ at the point of our conversion. But then as we live in this mortal body, known as the flesh, we are still prone to sin. None of us in this room would say that... Well, I would never sin. After my conversion I'm perfect. No. We still are prone to sin. And from time to time, when we disobey God and His word, we will fall into sin. So, we still need to be safe, right? And that is about our sanctification. So positionally, we are saved. Practically, we need to be safe. So we fall into sin, we ask God to forgive us, cleanse us by the precious blood of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. And ultimately, we would be glorified. And that is our ultimate sanctification. We would be ultimately saved. So positionally, practically, ultimately, we need to be saved. So, as believers, we are not afraid of losing our salvation, but as we leave our days on this earth, from time to time, we disobey God, fall into sin, we need to ask God to forgive us of our sins. So this is not about asking for justification. This is about sanctification, forgive us of the sins that we have committed, cleanse us by the precious blood of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. One very good example in the Bible is found in John 13, You do not need to turn to it, but I hope you can go back and read John 13 verse 4 to 11. And that was about Jesus washing the disciples' feet. We are very familiar with how Jesus, he took a basin of water, and then he stooped down and washed the disciples' feet. Then when he came to Peter, Peter says, No, you are our master, you must not wash our feet. Because in those days, it was the servant who washed the feet of the people. Not the master. So let it not happen. So Jesus says, If you are not washed by me, then you do not belong to me. So he was speaking about justification. So if you are not cleansed at the point of your conversion, wash by my precious blood, you do not belong to me. And then he went on to say that not every one of you is... washed and cleansed and saved because there was Judas is carried there. And then he went on to wash the disciples' feet, and he taught them this lesson about the need for daily cleansing. Why wash the feet? In our days, in our modern times, we don't wash the feet of one another, but in the Palestinian region, in Jesus' time, the war senders, they go out into the open. They may have washed, you know, the whole body. They are cleansed from top to bottom. But the moment they walk out of the house, because of the sand, because of the dust, so the feet will get dirty. Now, they need not wash the whole body again, from head to bottom, but they need to wash the feet, because their feet will get dirty. Okay? There will be dirt, dust, and all this. Peter did not understand, so Peter said, if that is the case, then wash not only my feet, but also my hand and my head, but Jesus says, No, you don't need to do that. Because you have already been cleansed. What you need is only the feed. So that also teach us that once we are safe, we are safe. As in our justification. But as we leave our days on this earth, we will be tempted, we may fall into sin, and then we need to be cleansed on a daily basis. So whenever we sin against God, we ask for forgiveness. So that's why that very illustration is very descriptive. It's based about us, living in this polluted world, corrupted with sin, we need to be cleansed. Every day of our lives. So it is about sanctification. So we need this daily forgiveness. That is why Jesus said, You must pray, this 5th petition, and forgive us our debts, our sins. Now, look at the second phrase there. As we forgive our adaptors, so this brings us to the second part that is, we must also pray for the forgiving heart, because when we ask God to forgive us, in the same way we forgive the one who sinned against us, It is just like telling God, Forgive us, and deal with us the way we deal with the one who has offended us. So if you are unforgiving, you are telling God that, you know, then do not forgive me or my sins, just as I do not forgive the one who has offended me, right? That is very serious. So that would teach us to have a forgiving heart, a forgiving spirit, always be willing to forgive. That is the reason why many people, they have their prayers unanswered. And the reason is because they themselves are unforgiving. Have you ever tried to pray when you are very little, angry, and unforgiving towards someone? And then you try to pray. You cannot pray. Because of this unforgiving hut. Only when you are willing to forgive, just as God has forgiven you, infinitely, then you know that you are able to pray with sincerity. Otherwise, it will hinder your prayer. Husbands and wives, when they quarrel, and then they pray for a blessed marriage life. It will not happen because there's unforgiveness. Friends who have this quarrel, maybe one is offended, and then refuse to forgive, and then pray that that friendship be restored. It will not be possible because of this unforgiveness. So that is the reason why many a time our prayers go unanswered. And there's also this blessedness of having a forgiving heart or a forgiving spirit. You know, when you are unforgiving, you are actually carrying a very heavy burden. You are very bitter, you are very angry, every time you hear about a person, you just cannot stand. You just want to hear something bad about the person, and then it creates in you this jealousy, envy, and then all sorts of other sins. The sin of the heart. So you need to remove this burden, and the only way to remove this burden is to be forgiving. And it also helps to free the person of the guilt. You know, when someone is very sorry, it's very remorseful because he or she has done something wrong to you. And that person comes to you, full of guilt and say, you know, Jordan, please forgive me. And then you refuse to forgive the person. You know, that person would have to carry that guilt. So, as a believer, we do not want that to happen to anyone, so we are willing to forgive and free the person of that guilt. So there's this blessedness that comes with having a forgiving heart or spirit. So, we will not lose our salvation, as in. This is not about justification. This is about asking God to forgive us of our sins as we live our lives. It is about sanctification. But do you know something? Though we will not lose our salvation, but we will lose the joy of our salvation. So if you are unforgiving, and you hold on to this grutch, you are very angry, beetle, and all this, you will not have the joy of salvation. So that is why sometimes you see Christians walking around very gloomy, very angry, very beetle. Now, they may be believers, but they have lost the joy of salvation. Now, Jesus does not want us to be that kind of person. That is why he taught us in this 5th petition and forgive us our sins or our spiritual debts, as we forgive our debtors. So this is something that we must learn. Pray for forgiveness as well as pray for a forgiving heart. Then we come to the last petition. Maybe you read with me, verse 13. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen. Now, this last petition is something that has been debated, written about by many theologians, because why would God lead us into temptation? If he's a powerful and loving God, why would he ever lead us into temptation? Why would we need to pray for lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil? He knows what is evil. Why would he not deliver us from evil? So, we need to have a better understanding why we pray this last petition. Now, the meaning of temptation in the New Testament is a neutral word. In a positive sense, it is a test. And God allows trials and temptations into our lives as a test. so that we can be proven righteous and faithful. Our Chinese friends here would know the Chinese idiom, Lu Yao Zu Mali, right? I don't know whether I pronounce it correct, you know? And actually, it means that, you know, in the short distance, you know, the horse can run very well. Every horse can run, but it is only in the long distance that you really know that is a good horse. So, only through the test of the long distance, you know that that is a good horse, because short distance, every horse can run. So God also sometimes allowed trials, even temptations into our lives. Not that he's not in control, but he allows them into our lives not to put us down or to destroy us, but as a test. And then we pass that test and prove ourselves to be faithful, obedient, and righteous. So that is a positive sense, but in the negative sense, it is a temptation to fall into sin. to do evil. So there's a positive aspect, there's a negative aspect, and if I can give you an example in the Bible, if you remember Jesus, he was tempted in the wilderness, right? By whom? By the devil. And if you read carefully in Matthew chapter 4, verse one, maybe you can just turn with me to Matthew chapter 4, verse one. And that is very interesting because it begins. We verse one, let's read. Then was Jesus let up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. Can you say, Why would the spirit of God, who is the third person in the triumgon? Let Jesus into the wilderness for what purpose? To be tempted of the devil. Why would the spirit of God do then? Well, we know that to that account, Jesus was repeatedly tempted in the lust of the eye, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life. And he was victorious. Each time he was tempted, you know, Jesus says, It is written, it is written, it is written. So he used the word of God. to respond to the temptation, and he did not sin. Now, if Jesus ever sin, even just one time, he would be disqualified as the Messiah. He would not be the saviour of the world, because he would not be perfect. So he passed the test, proven himself to be 100% perfect, 100% sinless. So, he was led by the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil, not that he might fall into sin. No. that he might prove himself to be 100% righteous, perfect, and sinless. So in the devil's perspective, he wants all of us to fall into sin. He want all of us to be overwhelmed by sin. so that we would be rendered useless by God. We would be not effective, not efficient. But in God's perspective, he allows trials, even temptations, into our lives that we might be proven, faithful, obedient, and also righteous. So you must see that, in this perspective, if I may give one example in the Bible, and that is the person of Joseph, I think you have been studying about Joseph. Think about Joseph. God is in control of all things. Including the life of Joseph, the circumstances that surround Joseph. God knows, he allow all those things to happen. Imagine being betrayed by your own brothers. They even want to kill you in a sense, putting you into the pit, left to die. And then, one of them suggested, just sell him to the slave masters, your own brother, selling you into slavery. That is very hurting. He was so into slavery, and then he was a righteous man. And he proven himself to be righteous in Potiphar's house, managing the household. But then came Polyphus's wife, who tried to seduce him, and he did not want to sin against his master. He refused, but she persisted, and then she accused him of assaulting her. There was false accusation. And because of that, he was thrown into prison. And then when he was in prison, he rightly interpreted the dreams of the butler and the baker. And when those dreams that they have dreamt came to pass, the butler was restored, the baker was killed. He was forgotten. In fact, he told the butler that, remember me, when this... came, this come to pass. So when you are restored, remember me. was forgotten, and then later on, then, he was remembered. And then God... racing up to be the second most important person in Egypt. Today, we might call him the prime minister of Egypt. Second only to the pharaoh. So if you think about his life, the betrayer that he received from the brothers, then all the other adverse circumstances that happened in his life, God knows, God allows those things to happen. And Joseph knew that. And I love this verse in the Bible of what he said when the brothers were very afraid, because their father, Jacob, had passed away. So they thought that maybe now Joseph might. might punish them, might hurt them. So this was what Joseph said. Don't be made to Genesis chapter 50, verse 20. And this will summarise how we look at the positive and negative aspect of temptation. Read with me, Genesis 50 verse 20, where Joseph said to the brother, But as for you, ye taught evil against me, but God made it unto good, to bring to pass, it is this day, to save much people alive. In other words, as for you, yes, you taught even against me. You meant... evil against me. You want me to fall? You saw me into slavery, you did all these things to me, but God allowed those things to happen, but it is for good. And what is that good? That God might bring to pass, it is this day to save much people alive. So we can see very clearly from that, just one verse, if I may put it this way, from the devil's perspective, he wants us to fall into sin. From God's perspective, he allowed things to happen not to destroy us, but to do good to us. So there's this positive and negative aspect, and God is not the source of temptation. The devil is the source of temptation. God tempteth no man. He's in control of all things, but he allows temptations to come into our lives, whether it be trials, or temptation to fall into sin, to do evil. Why? Because he wants us to be strengthened. He wants us to be proven righteous, obedient, and faithful. So God allows. So when we pray this prayer, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil with this perspective in mind, we are acknowledging that God alone has the power to keep us from temptation. He's the one who is powerful. He is able to keep us. So we pray. This particular last petition. And not only that, we know the heart of Jesus. You know, the heart of Jesus is that he does not want believers to fall into sin, and to constantly rely on God's strength, and so we need to pray. Lord, you know, strengthen me. lead me not into temptation, but deliver me from evil. Now, we pray this prayer, knowing that trials and temptations are the common experiences of every man. All of us here have faced temptations, right? Anyone here has never faced temptations before. Anyone? No one. Anyone in this room has never faced trials. Anyone? No one. Triers and temptations are the common experiences of every man. You know, it is just like one pastor. He used this illustration of ambulances. When you are on the plane, you will face turbulences. Whether it be a bit, sometimes the turbulence will be so bad that, you know, people will be injured. Recently, I read in the news that there was a very serious stabulence where the plane fell into the air pocket, then almost 20 feet. You know, it dropped suddenly, and I think two persons died. And then many were injured. And those two persons died because did not put on the seatbelt. So, probably hit the roof of, you know, where you put the baggage. So suffered serious injuries, died. So there will be turbulences. Whether it be small, it be great. So just like triers and temptations, there will be, sometimes, very overwhelming, sometimes, there will be little trials we face. So there will be. So we are not praying that we will never face any temptations, or we will never face any trials. We know there will be sooner or later. So when we pray this prayer, it also has this aspect of knowing that it will come. But lead us not into it when we are not ready. You know, sometimes we are not ready for something. We know that we will surely fall. When we are not spiritually mature enough, when we are not strong enough, the trials come, the temptation comes, we will not be able to be victorious. But when we are strong enough, we are mature enough. We are ready to face it, then let it come. We will be victorious by God's grace, by His strength. So, we are praying that God lead us not into temptation, When we are not ready, when we are not spiritually strong and mature, When we are not ready for it, deliver us out of it. Otherwise, you know, we will fall. So, in this aspect, we are praying. You know, there was a story of two Christians during the time of the wicked queen known as the bloody queen Mary. She was known for that. Which she shed much blood. She killed the Christians, so there were two Christians. They were about to be executed, and two of them. And one of them was very proud, and he felt that he was very ready, very strong. And he, you know, did not pray. The other was afraid. You know, and he pleaded with God, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Because he knew in his heart that, based on his own strength, he was so afraid. He was not ready. So he pleaded with God all night. The other Christian laughed at him and said, you know, you weak Christian. You should not pray this prayer. You should be strong enough. But that Christian continued to pray and plead with God all night. You know, the next day, when they were about to face the execution, the seemingly strong Christian recanted. and renounced his faith, because he was so afraid. But the seemingly weak Christian was already, and he was strong enough to face the execution, trusting in God, because God knew he was ready. And he went ahead. He was executed, not afraid. So that tells us that, you know, we need to pray. We may not be ready, we may not be spiritually mature. We may not be strong enough, so we ask God, God. Strengthen me. Help me to be mature, that I may grow in my spiritual faith, that I may face all these temptations and trials and overcome them. If I'm not ready, then lead me not into them. So that is why we ought to pray this prayer, and if I may add this one more thing. When you and I pray this prayer, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, also reminds us that we must not wilfully walk into sin. So if we are praying that sin is evil, wicked, then we must not wilfully walk into it. We must not make provision for it. You know, when you think about sin, there's always temptation that precedes sin. No one walks into sin without being tempted. You don't just walk into sin. There will always be temptation that precedes the sin. And then you give in, and then you fall, and you commit the act of sin, right? So there will be this temptation preceding it. And you do not make provision for it. Don't provide yourself the avenues for you to commit that sin. Flee from youthful lust. You know that that last will tempt you, and then you will commit the act. So you flee from it, go as far away from it as you can. Don't run into it. Just like the little boy. You know, the father told him, We have a swimming pool here, right? So the father told him, Don't swim in the pool. Because it's dangerous. You do not know how to swim. Don't ever go to the swimming pool. Then one day, the father found him with this swimming trunk. And then it was wet. So the father knew that he went to the swimming pool, and he swam. So the father asked him, Why did you swim in the swimming pool when I told you not to do it? He said, Well, I just happened to walk into it. Then the father told him, That is not true. Because you already prepared for yourself the swimming trunk. So you brought along the swimming trunk. It is not that you just walk into the pool. You make provision for yourself. And that is why you fall into the sin. I hope you understand that. Sometimes we know that these are all provisions that we have made. And then comes the sin. So when we pray, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, we must remind ourselves never to make provisions, never to put ourselves in positions whereby we may fall into sin. Flee from it. Run as far away from it as possible. This is what it means to pray this last petition. I think I've given you quite a number of illustration. Maybe you're tired of it, but I can't help but to remember one that I think, hopefully, will stress this particular point. My youth, maybe, will remember this illustration. I've always given. Maybe they've forgotten, but I'll still repeat it. You know, there was a king. He... lived at the top of a mountain, and the only way to go up the mountain is round the edge of that mountain. There will be a road that winds around the mountain all the way to the top where the king lives. And once you go off that road, it will be thousands of feet down the cliff. because it is just a narrow road So one day, the king wanted to find a personal driver. So three persons came for the interview. So the first person said, I want the job. So the king asked him, how close can you get to the age? before you fall over? When you drive the car, how close can you get? So that driver said, well, I can drive as close as one foot. before the car will fall over. So, one food is just that. So very skilful driver. Then the king asked the second driver. How close can you get to the age of that road before your car will fall over? He says, I can get X close as one inch, one inch like that. So he's even more skilful. Then the king asked the third driver, How close can you get to the age before your car fall over? And he said, I will go as far away from the edge as I can. I will keep the car as far away from the edge as I can. Now, if you are the king, which one of that three driver would you engage? Abigail? First one? The third one, right? Go as far away as possible. So when we pray such a prayer, that means we ourselves also must know that we don't put ourselves into the positions whereby we may fall into sin. Go as far away from it as possible. Don't make provisions. And, of course, we begin with God, his glory, his name, his kingdom, his will, then comes our interests, gave us, forgive us, lead us not, and then we end with God's glory again. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen. So we begin with God, we end with God. So when the next time you consider this prayer, don't take it as a vain repetition. Consider each petition and understand that God meant it as a patent. And he wants us to consider each and every one of those petitions, and to pray meaningfully. Begin with God, then us, then end with God. Then that will be the way we ought to pray. So made a lot, continue to help us, and made this message also stays with us as we have our prayer lives, we've gone. Let us pray. Our Father in heaven, we give thee thanks for this opportunity, for us to consider the prayer taught by our Lord Jesus to his disciples. And we are his disciples too. And this is the manner in which we ought to pray. We ought to pray in this way, we ought to pray along this line. So, as we consider, the 6 petitions in this prayer, may we also take into consideration each and every one of them, and may it also be the pattern in which we would pray in our own prayer life with thee. So, help us, for we know that prayer is truly a spiritual work. It is the spirit of God that will help us to pray. And made the Spirit of God reminds us to thy word, this is how we ought to pray. And we commit our lives into thy hands, praying in Jesus' name. Amen. Thank you.