Word of Salvation - Vol.49 No.16 - April 2004

Praying for Daily Bread

Sermon by Rev M P Geluk

on Lord's Day 50 (Q/A 125 Heid.Cat.)

Scripture Readings: Deuteronomy 8:10-20; Matthew 6:25-34

Suggested Hymns: BoW 153; 164; 24A; 454:5,8

Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ.

1. With the fourth petition in the Lord's prayer we have come to the part that focuses on our needs. You will recall that in the Lord's prayer it is first of all the honour and glory of God. Hallowed be YOUR name. YOUR kingdom come. YOUR will be done.

But now it is our living and working that are brought before God. This makes sense for it is God alone who is able to provide our needs. And so Jesus has taught us to pray: give us this day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins. Do not lead us into temptation. Deliver us from evil.

As we give our attention now to these prayer requests about OUR needs, it is very important for us to see that our whole life is bound up in them. Our need for bread, our need for forgiveness, our need to overcome temptation, and our need to be delivered from evil. It just about covers our whole existence. And that is really the amazing and wonderful thing about this prayer the Lord Jesus has taught us. With just a few words He had indicated that He has understood our whole struggle in this imperfect world. What He has taught us to pray for, covers our bodily, mental and spiritual needs.

Someone may ask, what about other needs not mentioned, like sexual needs and emotional needs. They are needs also, aren't they? Yes, they are, but these needs, and some others besides, have been pushed to the front in our generation more so than in any other. These needs, sexual, emotional, and a few others, have been made fashionable by our western society. There might be some truth in the claim that these needs have been ignored in the past. But when man pushes God out and pushed himself in the centre, as is happening today, then inevitably more emphasis is placed on people's needs. People are made aware of them more. They are sometimes called the "felt" needs, but people are conscious of them only at certain times of their lives. The very young and the very old have no sexual needs. But the needs Jesus mentions are needed by everyone at all times. The Lord Jesus is referring to essential needs that are there from cradle to grave.

And when the Lord provides food, forgiveness, victory over temptation and deliverance from evil, then He has met all our emotional needs also, because when we have our essential needs supplied, then we have peace with God and with ourselves.

So with this simple but profound prayer, the Lord Jesus shows Himself to be a wonderful and mighty God who understands our needs. And why shouldn't He? He is our Maker, isn't He? And He so understands our greatest and deepest need - separation from God because of sin - that He has also become our Redeemer!

Tragic it is, therefore, how in the lives of so many people there is little or no recognition and awareness of their dependence on God. Peoples and nations are so very, very busy looking after their basic needs and most of these are considered to be material. They organise, plan, legislate, and they will even go to war, in order to maintain a comfortable level of living standards. Society today is preoccupied with the economy. Daily we are hearing how the stocks and shares are going, the exchange rate of the dollar, how we are - or are not - on target with the economic forecasts. Progress or recession is measured in terms of economic downturns or upturns, but little attention is given to man's spiritual well being.

2. God's people will agree that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord (Mt 4:14). So isn't it then somewhat surprising that Jesus in His prayer taught us to pray for daily bread first and then for forgiveness of sins and so on? Why does the Lord place the material and physical before the spiritual? Why start with the body when it is the state of our soul that determines our eternal whereabouts?

It is important for us to know the answer because it has implications for evangelism and the diaconate of the church. Do we come first with the Bible and then provide the material needs? Or do we first provide food, shelter and clothing, and then come with the gospel message? We would probably be correct if we say that we must come with both, but if the Lord's prayer is our guidance, as it must be, then we may certainly not ignore the physical and material, or make them a late second.

In this prayer Jesus is teaching us that in order to be forgiven of sin, we need to continue to exist. Yes, if we are to glorify God's name, seek the coming of His kingdom, and obey His will, then we need to live, and to live we need food. It is refreshing for us to know that God, who is so concerned about our soul, is also very practical in that He knows we can't serve Him as the angels who have no bodies and do not need food. Our obedience has to be as willing and faithful as the angels in heaven, but while we are still here on earth we have to do our obeying with body and mind. But these need food, hence we first pray for daily bread.

Here, then, are just a few simple words from the Lord on the whole question of food and other material needs. Many books have been written on the subject, economists have devoted their lives to it, governments can fall from power because of it, and nations will go to war over it.

3. As men deal with this question of food and material needs, then it needs to be remembered that the earth no longer enjoys paradise conditions. After the fall into sin the ground was cursed. We can still eat from it, but it is with toil and struggle. With the food there are also the thorns and thistles. The process of harvesting the food and overcoming the obstacles will involve hard work and sweat. And after a lifetime of toil and effort in order to make a living from the earth, it will in the end conquer us and we will return to the ground. For we are dust and to dust we will return. And to add to our struggle there are the droughts, floods and fires. God has given man the task to subdue the earth and live from its resources, but it's far from easy.

Romans chapter 8 reminds us that the very creation that is to sustain us is also subject to decay. Yes, there will be glorious liberation and this tired old earth will make way for a beautiful new earth where there will be no shortage of anything. But that is still future. In the meantime we have to make do with an imperfect situation.

They tell us that the earth is capable of growing enough food to feed everyone living on it but in addition to the problems already mentioned, there are the really bad ones like greed and selfishness. And people can be terribly wasteful. The presence of sin deeply complicates the whole issue of everyone having enough to eat.

But it's not all bad. In our generation we have also seen the rise of humanitarian organisations, quite a few of them Christian, which have made public the plight of the hungry and needy in the world. And calls for help are made to the more affluent to assist those less fortunate. The sad thing is, however, that each year there are more hungry and needy people. In an age of plenty there is still an incredible want. In an age of technology there are still farming methods that do more harm than good. In an age of high living standards there is still mass starvation. In an age of luxury there are still millions of refugees.

4. But now in that complex and contradictory world of sinful imperfections, we may pray this prayer: "Our Father in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread." We pray "Give'. We do not demand from God but we humbly ask. It's when people forget that God is holy and they themselves are sinners that they begin to demand. When God is pushed into the background and men and women begin to assert themselves, it is then that we start hearing these cries of demand and that people have rights that should be recognised.

But the cries of demand are often legitimate when the poor and helpless have been exploited and ripped off. It's the age-old story of those in power manipulating the weak and powerless and the latter then rising up in revolt. But when in due course the strong are made powerless and the weak have become strong, then the new masters fall into the same or worse sins of the masters they've replaced. And so we have in history the rise and fall of peoples and nations.

But the Bible has always taught what the Lord Jesus so eloquently taught us to pray. That all people are dependent on God and that they must acknowledge this. All humankind, whether they be poor or rich, weak or strong, ought to humbly pray and say, "Father, give..." For only God is Almighty and He alone rules over all the earth and its inhabitants. No one but God has the power to give or withhold, to bring rain or drought, good harvests or poverty. Man's mandate is to work and subdue the earth but he should humbly look up to God and ask Him to bless the work of His hands. Man is to obey and serve His Maker and Redeemer. And, therefore, we people of the earth are to say, Father, you know our needs, please give.

Before God all men are equal but the Word of God does not teach that all men are to be equal among themselves. But instead of struggling and fighting amongst each other in order to get on top, all men are to obey God in their different roles and situations and serve and love God and one another. We all have to learn to live out of God's hand. How to live with various gifts of God, which we did not earn. How to live by God's grace, which we do not deserve.

Therefore, employer, wage-earner, self-employed, poor people, millionaire, they all have to look humbly to heaven and pray earnestly, "Father, give us this day our daily bread."

5. Then we also pray, "Give us..." It's not, "Give me this day my daily bread' but "Give us this day our daily bread." With regard to our material needs the Lord rules out individualism. The Lord does not want us to say or think - I'm all right, Jack; too bad about you. He wants us to love our neighbour and involve him or her in our prayer. What we are really praying when we say "Give us..." is: "Give us, Father, so that we all may have our needs supplied.' Yes, may all come to God and ask for daily bread and then our loving Father will graciously provide our necessities.

When people in the same house, neighbours in the same street, peoples in the same society, and nations in the one world, all pray, "Father, give us...', then greed, jealousy and theft will disappear overnight. For then all will look to God and not eye each other off. It means that the members of the same household have to start praying for each other. The boss prays for his workers and the workers for the boss. The government starts praying for its citizens and the citizens for their government. The rich pray for the poor and the poor for the rich.

That little word "us' is very important, therefore. When we are just in it for ourselves, then we are sowing the seeds of crime, chaos and anarchy.

The "give us' aspect in this petition for daily bread also means that those of us who can work and have work, ought to provide for those who can't work. Meaning that the unemployed, elderly, sick and disabled are not to be left out in the cold. The Lord Jesus in this prayer points to what we call the social, welfare system. In Australia we've had that for many years already and let's be thankful for it. It means, of course, that there is a positive side to the paying of tax, which upholds the welfare system. We should, therefore, not always complain about paying taxes. And those in society who selfishly try to live off others when they themselves are able to work and the opportunity is there, should be called to account, because they are abusing the "give us' aspect of the Lord's prayer. Yet, for all the abuse that may go on, let us not forget that we are not in it just for ourselves. It's not just me. But it's our neighbour and us.

6. We also pray, "Give us this day..." or "Give us today" We're not asking God for a year's supply but just for today. We don't pray for the end of the year whilst we are still in the beginning of the year.

Of course we must plan for the future. It's not that we are careless about tomorrow but we want to listen to Jesus and not be anxious about tomorrow. Each day has enough trouble of its own. There are enough cares and concerns in each day without us adding the worries about the time that isn't here as yet. "Give us this day." For today we need it. So whilst we make plans for the future, we do not panic about the possibility that our plans for the future may not see fulfilment.

Let's face it, everything in this life, except the work of Christ, is perishable. The future may turn out to be completely different than we anticipate today. It's all in the Lord's hands. So we are best off to live by the day. If today, and each day after that, we have somewhere to live, something to eat, and something to wear, then our heavenly Father has answered our prayer.

We may wonder sometimes why we pray, Give us today our daily bread," when the food is already on the table and there is plenty more in the fridge, freezer and pantry. But with this petition about food and other material needs, we should realise that in order to have food in the house and clothes in the cupboards, a complex process is involved. In that process there is sowing, growing, production, harvesting, manufacturing, marketing, buying and selling. Indeed, when we finally put food into our mouth, or wear our clothes, a great deal of planning and work has gone on before it. And in that whole process one day follows into the next, the weeks into months and months into seasons and years. Asking God for today's needs implies that God continues to bless the whole process that makes up the economy.

7. We further say, "Give us today our daily bread." Jesus did not say "God's bread' but our bread. It would even make sense to speak of God's bread, for isn't God the maker and provider of it all? The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, says the psalmist. And yet the Lord wants us to say "our bread' because we do not come to our Father in heaven as beggars or slaves but as His dear children in Christ. Our own children do not have to see the food they eat as their parents' food. It's their food. Parents provide it for their children but we say, "here is your food.' And by teaching us to pray for our food, the Lord Jesus acknowledges the fact that we are the ones who are subduing the earth in order to eat from it, just as He has commanded. This involves planning, work, organisation and many more things. We don't just sit back like baby birds with our mouths open waiting for the Lord to put food in it. It's pray and work. We have a hand in it, even though the strength and ability to do it is supplied by God. But the Lord acknowledges our contribution and says we should pray for "our daily bread.'

8. The second last word in the fourth petition is "daily'. Jesus did not actually say "daily'. He used a word that according to the scholars is not used elsewhere except in the Lord's prayer. The meaning of this rarely used word would seem to be stressing the needs of every day. We're praying for the things we need in order to exist this day and for the next day. The Lord will provide for us on a day-to-day basis, and that's an expression we are all familiar with.

But we have already referred to this "daily' provision when we looked at the words "this day'. It may seem as if we are praying for the same thing twice, "Give us this day our daily bread." However, Jesus said literally, "Our daily bread give us this day." The whole idea of moderation and the provision of just the basic things on a day-to-day basis is being emphasised.

9. The last word is "bread'. And by now you will have realised that much more than actual bread is implied. We may understand that "bread' includes all our basic material needs.

10. Summing up, then, with this fourth petition, the Lord Jesus is teaching us a number of important things that we need to remember when we pray for our needs. Praying, "Father, give...' means to be humble in our prayer, for we are but creatures of our maker and provider. To say, "Father, give us..." causes us to be generous to others, for it's not just my needs but their needs as well. The words "this day' and "daily' remind us to be moderate in our asking. We don't have to have everything, just the provision of our needs. Whatever we receive more is luxury.

To pray for "our' daily bread suggests that we don't come to God as beggars but as dignified people who have been re-made in the image of Christ and placed on the earth to subdue it and live from it. And "bread' refers to all our physical and material needs. It's a wide enough term to include the whole economic cycle. It points to God's providence and our need to trust Him. To pray, therefore, "Give us this day our daily bread" means that we need to be humble, generous, modest, dignified and trusting.

But if there is one word that sums up this prayer for daily bread, then surely it is dependence. We are totally dependent on our Father in heaven. Surely the supreme folly of our time is the thinking and attitude that there is no God and man has to look after himself. Modern science and technology have been in many respects wonderful tools to subdue the earth for man's benefit and well being. But it is a terribly sad thing that many people do not realise that science and technology are given to us by God in order to understand better the intricate workings of the human body, the interacting laws of nature, and the complex components of things physical and chemical. People who can't see God's hand in these things tend to turn man into a god. Man then becomes a rule unto himself and responsible only to himself.

Indeed, there are people who say, "Look, I might have to work for a boss, but I am not responsible for him, or for you, or anybody else. I am responsible only to myself.' There is nothing new in that attitude. It first appeared in Cain who said, "Am I my brother's keeper?" Cain still offered to the Lord but his heart was not in it like his brother Abel's. Cain's defiant attitude came out even stronger in his offspring. They rejected God altogether and became a violent and destructive people with the primitive science and technology of their day.

Since then there have been a countless number who walk in the footsteps of Cain, proud and arrogant. But they all end up destroying themselves. No one can live without God. How important, then, for us to look up to our Father in heaven, confess His great and holy name, humbly confessing our survival and dependence on Him, and praying as the Lord Jesus taught us, "Give us this day our daily bread."

Amen.