"If we are not harder than iron, this exhortation ought to soften us, and render us disposed to forgive offences. Unless God pardon us every day many sins, we know that we are ruined in innumerable ways: and on no other condition does he admit us to pardon, but that we pardon our brethren whatever offences they have committed against us. Those who refuse to forget the injuries which have been done to them, devote themselves willingly and deliberately to destruction, and knowingly prevent God from forgiving them."--John Calvin, Commentary on the Harmony of the Evangelists, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Vol. 1, 330.

"The event of the resurrection, the empty tomb, and the risen Lord breaks every mold that would imprision God in the rationalism of a fallen world. But it is the starting point for a new kind of rationality, for the possibility of living hopefully in a world without hope, for the perpetual praise of God who not only creates order out of chaos but also breaks through fixed orders to create ever-new situations of surprise and joy. "The church's witness among nations is at heart the overflow of a gift. The boldness and the expectancy are the marks of those who have been surprised by joy and kinow that there are still surprises to come, because God is great."--Lesslie Newbigin, Foolishness to the Greeks: the Gospel and Western Culture, 150.

"These words remind us that, unless God feed us daily, the largest accumulation of the necessities of life will be of no avail. Though we may have abundance of corn and wine and everything else, unless they are watered by the secret blessing of God . . . we shall famish in the midst of plenty.'--John Calvin, Commentary on the harmony of the Evangelists, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Vol.1, 325.

Open Discussion, April 6, 2025

"We are constantly under pressure to conform to the self-centredness of secular culture. When that happens we become concerned about our own little name . . . about our own little empire . . . and about our own silly little will . . . But in the Christian counter-culture our top priority concern is not our name kingdom and will, but God's. Whetyher we can pray these petitions with integrity is a searching test of the reality and depth of our Christian profession."-John R.W. Stott, The Message of the Sermon on the Mount, 147-148.

"The name of God is not a combination of the letters G, O and D. The name stands for the person who bears it, for his character and activity. So God's 'name' is God himself as he is in himself and has revealed himself. His name is already 'holy' in that it is separate from and exalted over every other name, but we pray that it may be hallowed, 'treated as holy,' because we ardently desire that due honour may be given to it, that is to him whose name it is, in our own lives, in the church and in the world."--John R.W. Stott, _The Message of the Sermon on the Mount_, 147

"This address lends a twofold character to the entire prayer. On the one hand it pervades it with a childlike trust ("Our Father"), on the other hand, with reverence and an awareness of distance ("in heaven"). Such a frame of mind grants God the honor that is His due and grants the person praying the certainty that he will be heard."- Herman Ridderboss

"We have good biblical and theological reasons for our fasting and abstinence. Through our fasting we are acting as living sacrifices, living memorial stones, asking God to heal our world, a world that we can surely see is in desperate need of His healing touch."--Tim LeCroy, _And When You Fast_

Encouraging believers to more frequently consider God's holiness and mercy.