"And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, 'Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples". Luke 11:2.
Someone noted that what we commonly call the Lord's Prayer is, in fact, how he taught his disciples to pray. He never intended us to simply parrot the words of this teaching, but to instead use it as a pattern for all their prayers.
"Our Father." I believe it was John Eldridge who wrote that if we can understand the first two words everything else will fall into place. What is this about if not about relationship, family, intimacy? To be sure, for many "Our Father" does not bring up warm fuzzies. Far from it. Too often, when we have a picture of God, our paradigm begins and ends with our experiences, or lack thereof, of our own earthly dads. It was not so for Jesus. He said "I and my Father are one". Spending time in prayer was as natural for Jesus as breathing. He invites his disciples to join him in this intimacy. If we can get beyond our own experience, we can join Jesus in this prayer as well.
"Who art in Heaven." Well, that seems rather far off, doesn't it? How intimate can we be with a God so distant? But He is not, in fact, far off, but near. Jeremiah 23:23. But what does it mean, that our Father is in Heaven? Saints, this is so exciting! He is "far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come" Ephesians 1:21. No matter who or what we are dealing with in this life, God our Father is above it. I find that reassuring.
"Hallowed be Thy Name". God's name = God's character. All knowing. All powerful. Ever present. He is good. He alone is worthy of our praise. When praying, we hallow His Name by reciting all that He is. We can't do this of course. Isaac Watts wrote "O for a thousand tongues to sing my great redeemer's praise". Watts also wrote, "Were all the realm of nature mine, that were a present far too small. Love so unending, so Divine, demands my soul, my life, my all". I just love the old hymns! Our praises should reflect His glory, giving Him all the credit.
"Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven". This is a great mystery to me. As God is sovereign, is not His will done at all times? Ultimately, yes, but He has given us an assignment: To hear His voice, and to say "Amen" to what He is doing in Heaven. Our words are powerful. When we are praying God's will to be done, as it has been revealed to us, somehow we are bringing Heaven down to Earth. Isn't this overwhelming? It is to me. Our prayers are the conduit for God's will being done on Earth as it is already done in Heaven. I can't easily wrap my mind around this.
"Give us this day our daily bread". There is Relationship, our Father, position, in Heaven, Praise, then agreement, and now, finally petition. But what are we asking for? Something to eat? No, that's a given. God takes care of His own like the birds of the air. No, Jesus taught as that "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word that proceeds from the Father". We are asking for revelation. If all we had is our own understanding, God's economy, what He does and does not do, would leave us in great offense. It is only by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit that we might understand the Cross that is before us. Even though He spoke to us yesterday, His mercies are "new every morning". Each day we need a Word to carry us through. This is what we are asking for.
"Forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us". There is something poisonous about holding a grudge. Our Father would want us to be clear of this. Our life is not only vertical, from us to our Father, but horizontal, the fellowship we share we others on life's journey. Jesus warns us, if we don't forgive our brother, neither will God forgive us. For those who are trapped in the pit of resentment and hate, I offer an invitation: Consider what God has done for you! While you were yet His enemy, He sent Jesus to die for you. No matter what someone else has done to you, you have been forgiven by God for something far more serious. In my experience, judgment and hate melts away when our focus is in the right place.
"Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one". God does not tempt anyone, per James. Perhaps the temptation is to believe that we, on our own, can defeat the devil. That is silly. Not even the archangel tried to do this. Jude tells us that when he was disputing with the devil over the body of Moses, he simply said, "The LORD rebuke you". If this was enough for the archangel, it must be enough for us. The devil is not scared of us in the least. He is constantly accusing us in our hearts. If we try to justify ourselves, we are lost. But if, when the devil comes knocking on our door, we let Jesus answer it, he will run away as fast as he can.
Let us then pray the way Jesus taught us to pray. We need it now more than ever.
