Prayer is an important Christian discipline. But how do we pray? The disciples requested to the Lord Jesus Christ to teach them how to pray.
When it comes to prayer, Christians were reminded not follow the ways of the religious people like Pharisees nor the way of the pagans.
1. Pray Sincerely. (Matthew 6:5-6)
Instead we are encouraged to pray with sincerity and not just to make an impression on others as holy. We should really seek God in faith recognizing that it pleases Him. Read Hebrews 11:6.
2. Pray Thoughtfully.
In relation to the pagans we are instructed to pray thoughtfully. Do not keep on babbling like pagans. Babbling means to talk rapidly and continuously in a foolish, excited but incomprehensible way. Babbling prayer is like the babbling of a stream, making a continuous murmur as the water flows over stones.
The Greek term is battalogeo which means to repeat the same words; to use the same words again and again without content or sense. Examples of Babbling Prayers: Transcendental Meditation (chanting), Rosary, liturgical prayers, empty phrases, and religious jargons.
Babbling also means speaking without thinking; all words and no meaning. Jesus forbids his people to pray with the mouth without engaging the mind. Aside from the fact that babbling prayers do not engage the mind, Jesus gave two additional reasons.
a) For they think they will be heard because of their many words. (v. 7)
Read Ecclesiastes 5:2. Some people think that the more they say, the more likely they are to be heard. God is not impressed by the mechanics and the statistics of prayer. Nor is he impressed by the volume of words we use and the number of hours we spend in praying. Instead Jesus emphasized the sincerity and thoughtfulness of our prayer. We should think before we say something to God. But we should also mean what we say.
b) For your Father knows what you need before you ask him. (v. 8)
Know means be aware of through observation, inquiry or information. This indicates that the Father actually knows what we need before we ask him. Read Matthew 6:32
God is not ignorant so that we need to instruct him, nor hesitant so that we need to persuade him. Then what is point of praying? We pray in order:
a. That we may express our dependence and faith on Him
b. That we may relieve ourselves of worries by pouring them into His bosom
Jesus intends our minds and hearts to be involved in what we are saying. It is only then, that we have true communion with our heavenly father. If the babbling of the pagans is not the right ways, how then should we pray? See vv. 9-14.
3. Pray Confidently. (v. 9)
Pray on the basis of our relationship with God. Our prayer should be addressed to our Father in heaven. (v. 9) We are not a beggar or lobbyist before God. We are His children and children pray confidently because the Father cares. The bible speaks that we are God’s children through faith in Christ. Read John 1:12-13; Ephesians 1:5; Galatians 3:26.
Because of what Christ did for us we also have confidence to approach God as our Father. Meaningful relationship is characterized by communication and transparency. Read Ephesians 3:12; Hebrews 4:16.
4. Pray for God’s glory. (vv. 9-10)
Our prayer should be comprehensive and characterized by God’s concern and our own needs. (vv. 9-15) Take note how the pronoun was changed from your to us. This implies that prayer is not just about us but first of all we are concerned first of the glory of God and ten with the needs of man.
e need to be reminded that it is all about God’s glory! What happens when we catch a fresh vision of God’s glory?
God’s concern will be given first priority.
a. Name of God – it stands for the person of God, for his character, and activity. Jesus taught to treat God’s name as holy. In prayer, we are reminded that we are approaching a holy God. Therefore we make sure that we spiritually clean, no unconfessed sin in our lives.
b. Kingdom of God – it stands for his royal rule. He is the reigning King who has absolute sovereignty over both nature and history. To pray that God’s kingdom may come means that He continues to rule over us and that his kingdom may grow to include everyone. Therefore our prayer should reflect submission to His authority. We give him the prerogatives on how he is going to respond. We acknowledge that we finite in understanding and He is all-knowing.
c. Will of God – it stands for his desires and plans for us. It was described as good, acceptable and perfect.Read Romans 12:2. Therefore we make sure that our prayers do not contradict the greatness and goodness of God. We pray in accordance to His will. Read 1 John 5:14-15.
Next, having expressed our burning concern for his glory, we now express our humble dependence on his grace.
5. Pray Humbly.
a. Give us our daily bread – this stands for everything necessary for the preservation of life, like food, a healthy body, good weather, house, home, wife, children, good government and peace.
Even though we work or earn our own living, this prayer is an expression of ultimate dependence on God who normally uses human means to production and distribution through which to fulfill his purposes. Read Deuteronomy 8:17-18.
b. Forgive us our debts – this implies that sin is likened to a debt because it deserves to be punished. But when God forgives sin, he remits the penalty and drops the charge against us. Read Matthew 6:14-15. This does not mean that our forgiveness of others earns us the right to be forgiven. It is rather that God forgives only the penitent and that one of the chief evidences of true penitence is a forgiving spirit.
c. Lead us not but deliver us – this implies the idea of being overwhelmed by temptation. Jesus taught us to seek deliverance from the evil one. This prayer signifies that the devil is too strong for us, that we are too weak to stand up for him but that our heavenly Father will deliver us if we call upon him.
The three petitions, which Jesus puts upon our lips, are beautifully comprehensive. They cover, in principle, all our human need – material, spiritual, and moral. This shows that we must be dependent on God in every area of our human life.
