Sermon Notes

INTRODUCTION
When Jesus taught His disciples to pray, He gave them more than words to repeat. He gave them a pattern for approaching the Father and inviting the reality of God’s Kingdom into their lives.

We have already prayed:
“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.”
“Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

Now Jesus teaches us to pray:
“Give us this day our daily bread.”
At first, this may sound like a simple prayer for food and physical provision. And certainly, we can trust our Father for every practical need.
But the biblical picture of bread takes us deeper.
The prayer points us toward our complete dependence upon the Father and ultimately toward Jesus Christ - the Bread of Life.

1. REVIEW — THE BOLDNESS OF THE LORD’S PRAYER
The Lord’s Prayer contains bold petitions directed toward God.
We ask the Father to:
- Make His name holy among us.
- Bring His Kingdom.
- Accomplish His will.
- Give us the bread we need.
- Forgive us.
- Lead and deliver us.

This is not arrogance. It is the respectful urgency of children approaching a loving Father. The Lord’s Prayer teaches us that we are not merely observers of what happens around us.

We are invited to pray:
“Father, intervene!”
“Father, let Your Kingdom come!”
“Father, change this situation!”

Prayer invites the activity of heaven into the circumstances of earth.

2. SOMETHING GREATER THAN FOOD
A common understanding of Matthew 6:11 is that Jesus is teaching us to ask the Father for our daily physical provision.

That is certainly consistent with trusting God for everything we need.
But later in the same chapter Jesus says:

Jesus is teaching us not to live anxiously focused upon our physical needs.
Our Father already knows what we need. Throughout Jesus’ teaching, bread can also carry a much deeper spiritual and Kingdom meaning.

3. THE FATHER GIVES GOOD GIFTS
Jesus uses the picture of a father and his child:

Jesus continues:

The parallel passage in Luke takes this even further:

This reveals the heart of our Father.

GOD IS A GOOD FATHER.
He desires to give good things to His children. When we pray,
“Give us this day our daily bread, ”we approach God as children who know the goodness of their Father.

4. THE CHILDREN’S BREAD
There is another fascinating use of the picture of bread in Jesus’ ministry.
A Canaanite woman approached Jesus because her daughter was severely oppressed by a demon. Jesus said:

The woman continued to believe and appeal to His mercy. Jesus responded to her faith, and Scripture tells us:

Matthew 15:28 (ESV)
“...And her daughter was healed instantly.”

In this passage, bread is connected with the Kingdom activity of deliverance and healing.

There is provision in the Father’s house.
There is freedom in His Kingdom.
There is healing in His Kingdom.
There is life in His Kingdom.

5. THERE IS BREAD IN THE KINGDOM
Luke 14:15 (ESV)

“Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!”

Notice the connection. Jesus teaches us to pray:
“YOUR KINGDOM COME.”

Then He teaches us:
“GIVE US... BREAD.”

There is bread in the Kingdom of God.The Kingdom carries:
Life
Grace
Freedom
Healing
Joy
Peace
Righteousness
The presence of God

When we ask our Father for bread, we are expressing our dependence upon everything that comes from Him.

6. THE TRUE BREAD COMES FROM HEAVEN
Jesus said: John 6:32 (ESV)
“Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven.”

Then Jesus explains: John 6:33 (ESV)
“For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

Notice three powerful truths:
THE FATHER GIVES.
THE BREAD COMES FROM HEAVEN.
THE BREAD BRINGS LIFE.
God does not merely want us to survive.
He desires that we receive the life that comes from Him.

7. JESUS IS THE BREAD OF LIFE
Ultimately, the bread is not merely something Jesus gives.
THE BREAD IS JESUS HIMSELF.
Jesus declares:
John 6:35 (ESV)
“I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”
And again:
John 6:48 (ESV)
“I am the bread of life.”

The deepest cry of Matthew 6:11 is therefore not simply:
“Father, give me more things.”
Our prayer becomes:
“FATHER, GIVE ME MORE OF THE REALITY OF CHRIST IN MY LIFE.”
Jesus is our life.
Jesus is our source.
Jesus is our hope.
Jesus is our provision.
Jesus is our Bread.
Before we ask God for things, we need to desire Him.

8. THIS AGE AND THE AGE TO COME
Scripture teaches us that Jesus rules both now and in the age to come.
Ephesians 1:21 (ESV)
“...far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.”

The Greek word translated “daily” in Matthew 6:11 is epiousios. It is an unusually rare word, and its precise meaning has been discussed by scholars for centuries. While “daily bread” is the familiar translation, interpretations such as bread “for the coming day” have also been
proposed. This gives us a beautiful Kingdom picture.

WE LIVE IN THIS PRESENT AGE... BUT WE BELONG TO THE KINGDOM OF THE AGE TO COME.

Through Christ and the Holy Spirit, we can already experience a foretaste of the Kingdom that will one day be revealed in its fullness.

9. TASTE TOMORROW TODAY
Hebrews gives us an extraordinary description of what believers can experience.

Hebrews 6:4–5 (ESV) speaks about those who:
“...have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come.”

Notice that expression:
“THE POWERS OF THE AGE TO COME.”
We are living today...but through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit we can already taste something of tomorrow. Therefore our prayer becomes:
Father, give us today a foretaste of Your coming Kingdom.

Let us experience:
Your presence.
Your power.
Your freedom.
Your joy.
Your peace.
Your healing.
Your life.

LET THE REALITY OF THE AGE TO COME BREAK INTO THIS PRESENT AGE!

10. WHAT DOES THE COMING KINGDOM LOOK LIKE?
Revelation gives us a beautiful picture.
Revelation 21:3–4 (ESV)
“Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people...”

Then Scripture says:
“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore...”

This is where history is going.
A world filled completely with the presence of God.
A world without death.
A world without mourning.
A world without pain.
A world completely restored under the reign of Jesus Christ.

11. HEALING FOR THE NATIONS
Revelation continues:
Revelation 22:2 (ESV)
“...the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for
the healing of the nations.”
This is the future toward which God's Kingdom is moving.

And yet Jesus teaches us to pray now:
“YOUR KINGDOM COME.”
Therefore we pray:
Where there is sickness — Father, bring healing.
Where there is bondage — Father, bring freedom.
Where there is sorrow — Father, bring joy.
Where there is fear — Father, bring peace.
Where there is darkness — Father, bring Your light.
Where there is brokenness — Father, bring restoration.
Where people are spiritually hungry — Father, reveal Jesus, the Bread of Life.

12. RECEIVE THE BREAD — THEN GIVE THE BREAD
The Bread we receive is not meant to stop with us.
Jesus said:
Matthew 24:45 (ESV)
“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their
food at the proper time?”
We are called to become faithful stewards of everything God gives us.

WE RECEIVE — THEN WE GIVE.
We receive His presence — and carry His presence.
We receive grace — and extend grace.
We receive forgiveness — and forgive.
We receive hope — and bring hope.
We receive healing — and pray for the hurting.
We receive His Word — and share His Word.
We receive the love of Christ — and demonstrate His love.

GOD BLESSES US SO THAT HIS KINGDOM CAN FLOW THROUGH US TO OTHERS.

PERSONAL APPLICATION
Ask yourself today:
1. What am I hungry for?
Am I only seeking what God can give me, or am I hungry for Jesus Himself?

2. Where do I need the Kingdom of God to break into my life?
Is there an area of sickness, fear, bondage, sorrow, confusion or brokenness?

3. What “bread” has God already placed in my hands?
Who around me needs the encouragement, grace, prayer, hope or truth that God has already given me?

4. Who can I feed this week?
Who needs to experience something of Jesus through my life?

TODAY’S DECLARATION:
FATHER, GIVE US TODAY THE BREAD OF YOUR KINGDOM.
Give us more of Jesus.
Let Your Kingdom come.
Let Your will be done.
Let heaven touch earth.
Let the life of the age to come touch our lives today.
And make us faithful servants who carry Your Bread to a hungry world.

RESPONSE
Today, choose to move from:
Anxiety → Trust
Need → Dependence upon the Father
Spiritual hunger → Jesus, the Bread of Life
Receiving → Giving
Watching → Participating in the Kingdom

We are not merely waiting for heaven one day.
Through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, we are called to become people through whom the reality of God's Kingdom touches the world today.

CLOSING PRAYER
Our Father in heaven,
Thank You that You are a good and loving Father.
Today we pray as Jesus taught us:
Give us this day our daily bread.
Give us more than what we need physically.
Give us more of Jesus, the true Bread from heaven.
Fill us afresh with Your Holy Spirit.
Let us taste the goodness of Your Word and the powers of the age to come.
Where there is sickness, bring healing.
Where there is bondage, bring freedom.
Where there is sorrow, bring joy.
Where there is fear, bring peace.
Where there is brokenness, bring restoration.
Let Your Kingdom come and Your will be done in our lives, our families, our church, our communities and
our nation.
And Father, do not allow us only to receive Your Bread.
Make us faithful servants who give what we have received to others at the proper time.
May our lives reveal Jesus to a hungry world.

Your Kingdom come.
Your will be done.
Give us this day our daily bread.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.

KEY SCRIPTURES
Matthew 6:11 — Give us this day our daily bread.
Matthew 6:31 — Do not be anxious about what you will eat or drink.
Matthew 7:9–11 — The Father gives good things to His children.
Matthew 15:26–28 — The children’s bread and the healing of the daughter.
Luke 14:15 — Bread in the Kingdom of God.
John 6:32–35, 48 — Jesus, the true Bread from heaven and Bread of Life.
Ephesians 1:21 — This age and the age to come.
Hebrews 6:4–5 — Tasting the powers of the age to come.
Revelation 21:3–4 — God dwelling with humanity; sorrow, death and pain removed.
Revelation 22:2 — Healing of the nations.
Matthew 24:45 — Giving food at the proper time.

MAIN THOUGHT
“GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD”
Father, give us today the life of Your Kingdom, reveal Jesus the Bread of Life to us, and make us faithful stewards who carry that Bread to others.