The Lord's Prayer Part 1 Series

The Lord’s Prayer – Part 1

Matthew 6:5-13

David P. Nolte

What we call “The Lord’s Prayer” was given as an example to the disciples who made the request, “Lord, teach us to pray.”

They may have wanted Him to teach them just to do it (“Teach us to pray”); or they may have meant to teach them how to do it (“Teach us how to pray”).

*He did not teach them the Prayer of Jabez.

*He did not teach them the “sinner’s prayer.”

*He did not teach them a mantra to be repeated by memory.

*He did not teach them a showy, eloquent, stained-glass monologue.

He said, “When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’” Matthew 6:5-13 (NASB).

The prayer is a concise statement of praise, obedience, trust, request, confession, and recognition of God’s excellence.

The first statement is directed to seeing God as Father:

I. Our Father:

A. Here-to-fore, the Israelites considered God to be Father of the nation. Now Jesus teaches us that God is our personal Father.

1. The word, “Our” suggests

a. The Brotherhood and Sisterhood of all Christians.

b. Equal status in His eyes regardless of circumstances.

c. Sharing of life as siblings – both of Jesus, our elder brother, and of others of like faith.

2. The word, “Father” tells us that

a. He is the source of life and being. He is the Creator and the Sustainer of all life.

b. We should look to Him for a Father’s provision.

c. We may fly to Him for a Father’s protection.

d. We can turn to Him for a Father’s instruction.

e. We are assured of His compassion, as David wrote, “Just as a father has compassion on his children, So the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him. For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust.” Psalm 103:13-14 (NASB).

B. The Bible teaches that God is a Father in two senses.

1. First, He is the Father of the human family by virtue of creation.

a. Malachi 2:10 says: “Don’t all of us have one Father? Didn’t one God create us?”

b. Paul wrote, “there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him.” 1 Corinthians 8:6 (NASB).

2. Second, He is Father in the sense of a familial relationship, to those who are in Christ, but He is not the universal Father.

a. Jesus said to the Jewish leaders: “You are of your father the Devil.” John 8:44.

b. John wrote, “By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother.” 1 John 3:10 (NASB).

C. As His children, we have the privilege of enjoying that warm and intimate relationship mentioned by Paul, saying, “For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!.” Romans 8:15 (NASB).

D. When I was a child, whenever I spoke about my parents, even to siblings, it was always in the possessive: “My mother said or wants ...” or “My dad told me or promised ...” My sister Barbara, 11 years older, said, “She is my mother, too,” or “He’s my dad, too.” I didn’t believe her and for years felt like she was impinging on my territory! It was later I learned that it was, indeed, “our mother and our dad.”

The prayer begins, “Our Father” and continues: