“ACKNOWLEDGING GOD’S ADDRESS”
Matt.6:9
“After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven…”
As I mentioned last week, the Disciple’s Prayer is a model or pattern containing the elements that should be in all our prayers. In this model, Jesus teaches us to begin our prayers with Our Father. However, Jesus doesn’t stop there, but He expands our concept of God by saying we are to begin our prayers, Our Father which art in (where?) heaven!
Jesus teaches us to pray Our Father to remind us of our personal, intimate, family relationship with God, but when we add the phrase which art in heaven (the place where God resides), our prayers take on a completely new dimension. Simply calling Him "Father" could cause us to lose the reverence we must have when we pray. However, to pray "Our Father who is in heaven," which is God's address, reminds us of at least 3 things...
GOD IS STATIONED ABOVE US
The Bible uses the word heaven more than 400 times. The word translated heaven means "lofty" or "that which is high up.
The Bible refers to 3 “heavens.”
2 CORINTHIANS 12:2 (NKJV)
I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago--whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows--such a one was caught up to the third heaven.
The first heaven is the atmosphere around earth. For example, the tower of Babel reached upward to heaven—the atmospheric heaven (Genesis 11:4).
The second heaven is the planetary heaven, which is the stars, moons, and planets (Genesis 15:5).
The third heaven is beyond the first and second and is where God dwells. 1 Peter 3:22
Therefore, the message Jesus is conveying to His disciples is that when we acknowledge Our Father in Heaven, we are submitting to His place of superiority over us. There is a clear hierarchy between where we are and where God is. God Is Stationed Above Us.
• ISAIAH 66:1 - Thus says the LORD: "Heaven is My throne, And earth is My footstool…”
What Is God Doing While Stationed Above us?
1. HE IS RELEASING TO US – Malachi 3:10 (NKJV)
Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in My house, And try Me now in this," Says the LORD of hosts, "If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it.
2. HE IS REBUKING FOR US - MALACHI 3:11A (NKJV)
11 “And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes…”
3. HE IS REGULATING THOUGH US - MALACHI 3:11B
So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field," Says the LORD of hosts;
GOD IS SET-APART FROM US
Calling God "Father" reminds us God is knowable and approachable, but the phrase "in heaven" reminds us of who He is and who we are. It reminds us that God is holy and sinless, but we're not. Although we can have an intimate relationship with our heavenly Father, we should never approach Him casually, with arrogance or presumption. The phrase "Our Father" reminds us of our family relationship, but the phrase "in heaven" reminds us God is holy or set apart from all sin
Isaiah 55:9 (NKJV) 9"For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.
God never acts in a selfish or unloving way, but we do. God never gets in a hurry, but we do. God is more concerned with our character than our comfort, but we are not. Remembering God's address reminds us of whom we are addressing. He is not some "cosmic concierge" who can be talked into giving us anything anytime we want it, He is a God who is set-apart from us.
• We Live in A House…God Sits on A Throne
God sits on His throne, which is…in heaven (Psalm 103:19). Almost the entire fourth chapter of Revelation describes God's majesty in His throne room in heaven. God's throne symbolizes His absolute authority and power.
As we pray, Jesus wants us to remember that our Father is in heaven, not sitting in a rocking chair, but on an awesome, dazzling throne. We are to keep in mind our heavenly Father is the majestic Creator and Ruler of the universe, who is in heaven surrounded by indescribable majesty and glory.
As Arthur Pink writes, the phrase in heaven gives a "blessed balance" to the phrase Our Father. The phrase Our Father reveals His love and care; the phrase in heaven reveals His holiness, greatness, and majesty. The phrase Our Father fills us with confidence and love, while the phrase in heaven fills us with humility and awe. If we are to have a "journey into powerful prayer," these two truths must permeate our minds.
GOD IS SEEING ALL AROUND US
God sees all from heaven
Psalm 33:13-19 (NKJV)
The LORD looks from heaven; He sees all the sons of men. From the place of His dwelling He looks On all the inhabitants of the earth; He fashions their hearts individually; He considers all their works. No king is saved by the multitude of an army; A mighty man is not delivered by great strength. A horse is a vain hope for safety; Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength. Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him, On those who hope in His mercy, To deliver their soul from death, And to keep them alive in famine.
HE SEES ALL THE SONS OF MEN.
HE LOOKS UPON ALL THE INHABITANTS OF THE EARTH.
HE CONSIDERS ALL THEIR WORKS.
However, there is one thing that God sees: the person who fears Him and hopes in His mercy. He sees this person to deliver his soul from death. This is one of the prime reasons the believer keeps his eyes upon heaven.

Acknowledging God's Address
A Journey Into Powerful Prayer
June 16, 2021 • Pastor Arthur Jackson III
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