Forgiveness | Prayer That Matters | Drew Moore

Prayer creates the space for amazing things to happen in us and around us. Jesus paints the picture of a forgiving disciple-maker in the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6:9-13. How will people follow a forgiving Father if they don’t experience a forgiving people? Sparking a movement of disciple-makers takes extraordinary prayer and being able to reflect the characteristics of Jesus, especially forgiveness. How is God inviting you toward a relationship with Him and His people?

Key Verses

• Matthew 6:7-13 NLT “When you pray, don’t babble on and on as the Gentiles do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again.Don’t be like them, for your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy.May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.Give us today the food we needand forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us.And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one.

• Matthew 6:9-13 NLT Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy.May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.Give us today the food we needand forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us.And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one.

• Matthew 6:11 NLT Give us today the food we need

• Proverbs 30:7-9 NLT O God, I beg two favors from you; let me have them before I die.First, help me never to tell a lie. Second, give me neither poverty nor riches! Give me just enough to satisfy my needs.For if I grow rich, I may deny you and say, “Who is the LORD?” And if I am too poor, I may steal and thus insult God’s holy name.

• Matthew 6:12 NLT and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us.

• 1 John 1:8-10 NLT If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth.But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.

• Matthew 6:12 NLT and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us.

• Matthew 6:14-15 NLT “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you.But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.

One of the best ways to hear what God is saying right now is to look at what He has said in the Bible with a few friends. Discovery Bible Study is an easy-to-use way to hear from God, make good changes in our lives, and share with others what God is up to. Grab some friends, pick a verse or story from above, and dive deeper into this week’s message.

Recap

• Reconnect

  To begin the study, each person answers these questions:

  • What are you thankful for?

  • What is causing stress for our neighbors and people around us?

  • What can we as individuals or as a group do to help?

• Recap

  • Have someone retell the story from your previous meeting.

  • Did you live out your response from last week?

  • Did you tell anyone else about the story from last week?

DISCOVERING WHAT GOD IS SAYING

• Read and Retell the Bible Story

  • One person reads the story out loud to the group.

  • Someone else in the group retells the story in their own words as they remember it, and others fill in what’s missing.

• Read and Look

  • Read the passage again (different version if possible)

  • What does this passage say about God, Jesus, or His plan?

• Read and Look Again

  • Have 1-2 more people retell the story as if they were telling a neighbor outside their home.

  • What does this passage say about people in general?

DISCOVER WHAT GOD IS SAYING

• Consider

  • What in me needs to change to better DO what God is showing me today?

  • How will you respond to/obey this passage in a tangible, perhaps even costly ways in the next 47 hours?

  • Have someone record these for prayer time, and for the beginning of the next meeting.

SHARING WHAT GOD IS SAYING

• Praying Together

  • Take prayer requests

  • Pray together

• Share

  • Who in your life needs to hear this story?

  • Who could you invite to study the Bible like this?

Become a Partner

Every time you give in Jesus’ name, you make a difference in others AND you make a difference in your own life! Partnering together in generosity helps accomplish things together that could never be accomplished alone! You can partner together in giving today with a single gift, or schedule recurring giving using your checking account, debit, or credit card.