Prayer - Part 27

Matt 18:21 (NASB) Then Peter came and said to Him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" 22 Jesus ^said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. 23 "For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a certain king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. 24 "And when he had begun to settle [them,] there was brought to him one who owed him ten thousand talents. 25 "But since he did not have [the means] to repay, his lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment to be made. 26 "The slave therefore falling down, prostrated himself before him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will repay you everything.' 27 "And the lord of that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt. 28 "But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and [began] to choke [him,] saying, 'Pay back what you owe.' 29 "So his fellow slave fell down and [began] to entreat him, saying, 'Have patience with me and I will repay you.'30 "He was unwilling however, but went and threw him in prison until he should pay back what was owed. 31 "So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their lord all that had happened. 32 "Then summoning him, his lord ^said to him, 'You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you entreated me. 33 'Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, even as I had mercy on you?' 34 "And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him. 35 "So shall My heavenly Father also do to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart."

"The effective prayer of a righteous man avails much" - James. Does this mean "declared" righteous or declared and living righteously?

Prov 28:9 (NASB) He who turns away his ear from listening to the law, Even his prayer is an abomination.

Prov 28:13 (NASB) He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, But he who confesses and forsakes [them] will find compassion.

Isai 59:1 (NASB) Behold, the Lord's hand is not so short That it cannot save; Neither is His ear so dull That it cannot hear. 2 But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, And your sins have hidden [His] face from you, so that He does not hear.

Psal 66:18 (NASB) If I regard wickedness in my heart, The Lord will not hear;

1Pet 3:12 (NASB) "For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, And His ears attend to their prayer, But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil."

1Joh 1:9 (NASB) If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Jame 5:16 (NASB) Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.

Your conclusions summarized:

When Jesus said "forgive us our debts" … the debts He was talking about were our moral debts, our sins. We owe God absolute righteousness. To sin is to be in debt.

Have you settled your debts through confessing and forsaking them?

Isai 66:2 (NASB) "For My hand made all these things, Thus all these things came into being," declares the Lord. "But to this one I will look, To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.

A good prayer of confession is Psalm 51.