In our message this morning, we are going to look at what is called “The Lord’s Prayer.” And I want to get started by sharing how the gospel writer Luke prefaces this prayer. We read in Luke 11:1-2, “Now it came to pass, as [Jesus] was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, ‘Lord teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.’ So, He said to them, ‘When you pray, say’” – and it is The Lord’s Prayer which follows. Jesus gave His disciples the following prayer as an example of how to pray. In fact, it is sometimes called “The Model Prayer,” and it is an outline for prayer that all of us, as His disciples, should seek to follow when coming before the Lord. So, with no further ado, let us stand in honor of God’s Word, as we read through Matthew 6:9-15:
9 In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. 10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. 13 And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. 14 For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Seeking God’s Face (v. 9)
In the beginning of this prayer, “Jesus teaches us to seek the ‘face’ of God first when we pray, not the ‘hand’ of God” (Dodd). In verse 9, we are told to call on God as “our Father.” In Matthew 11:27, Jesus said, “No one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.” So, if we want to call on God as our “Father” then we must know the Son; and the Son must reveal Himself to us through the Holy Spirit. Did you know that Luke quoted Jesus as having said these words (Luke 10:22) just twenty verses before The Lord’s Prayer? This means that before Jesus even began teaching The Lord’s Prayer, He wanted people to realize that they had to know Him as Savior and Lord, in order to pray unto God as their Father.
We are also told in verse 9 that we should acknowledge the Lord as being “hallowed” or holy. Because of our relationship with Jesus Christ, we can call on God as “our Father;” but that was not possible before Christ. To call on God as Father was an ancient Jewish expression so sacred that it could not even be uttered in prayer, because of the respect due to His holy name. We can call on Him as our Father now; but let us not forget the part about respect. In addition to meaning holy, “hallowed” also means “respected” and “reverenced.”
So, whenever we come before the Lord in prayer, we must begin by making sure we acknowledge that our heavenly Father is worthy of utmost respect. We should tell God how holy He is, and acknowledge His goodness and righteousness.
Seeking God’s Rule (v. 10a)
In verse 10a, we are told to pray, “Your kingdom come.” So, when we pray for the kingdom to come, what are we praying for? In Luke 10:9, Jesus told His disciples, “Heal the sick there, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you’.” So, what does the phrase “near to you” mean? Well, it means that God is “right here” and “within reach.” In Luke 17:21, Jesus told us how close the kingdom of God really is, as He declared, “The kingdom of God is within you.” The kingdom being “near you,” as Luke stated, meant that a new rule and authority was now present on the earth – not just in heaven, but also on earth – because of the arrival of Jesus Christ, the long-awaited Messiah.
Jesus preached that the kingdom had presently invaded the earth, and that God’s light had finally pierced the darkness. When Jesus arrived, the kingdom arrived; and with it came kingdom power and kingdom rule. It is the power to defeat the works of the devil. In Jesus was (and is) the power to defeat Satan; and Jesus granted this kingdom power to His disciples to heal diseases and cast out demons. In Luke 9:2, we read, “He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.” Jesus demonstrated miracles as proof of the arrival of the kingdom. He said in Matthew 12:28, “But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come unto you.” The kingdom of God arrived with Jesus to defeat the kingdom of this world, which has long been the devil’s domain.
There is a spiritual war going on at all times, as God’s kingdom continues to advance and pervade the earth with the gospel message. When we pray for God’s kingdom to come, we are praying for the advancing of God’s kingdom reign across the face of this earth. Luke 16:16 says, “The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it.” The kingdom is still being preached, growing, and advancing as people are added to it. So, let us pray for the advancement of the message of salvation; and that people would keep pressing into the kingdom of God!
Seeking God’s Will (v. 10b)
Look at verse 10b; the second half. When we pray for God’s will to be done, we see the attitude of humility and submission. Commentator Brian Dodd says, “When we pray ‘your will be done,’ we align ourselves with Jesus in submission to God’s will.” He adds that “there is no point in knowing what God wants us to do if we are not committed to doing what God wants to be done.” You see, too many times we are only concerned about “our own” role in God’s will and how it fits our agenda, our plans, and even our liking.
In Luke 22:42, Jesus said, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done.” Did Jesus have His own desire? Yes, He did. He wanted the cup of suffering to be taken from Him. But did He let His own desire get in the way of God’s will? No. There are some of us who need to realize that our will is not God’s will. Now, some of our desires may align with His will; and where they do, I believe God will use them. But our desires do not always fit into His plans. In order to truly take part in God’s will, we must learn to put aside “self” and what we personally desire.
So, what is God’s ultimate will? In 2 Peter 3:9, we read, “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness; but is longsuffering to us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” God’s ultimate will, according to this verse, is that no one should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Knowing God’s will, concerning our involvement in His plans, can be difficult to discern; but there is one thing that is always consistent with God, and that is for His kingdom to come and that all people will know Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. God wants to use us to save as many people as possible; and to do so, we must be sharing the gospel.
This brings us to our next statement: “On earth as it is in heaven.” I just discussed how the kingdom of God is “invading” and “pervading” the earth. The kingdom is present in great power. We must be careful about separating God’s power from the world in our own theological understanding. He is not somewhere off in the distance sitting and watching, but He is active in our lives. God wants His will to be done on earth just as it is in heaven. In heaven, Jesus is Lord in the hearts of all, and God wants Jesus to be Lord in the hearts of all people on earth.
In Matthew 18:18, Jesus said, “Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” If we apply this verse to carrying the gospel to the ends of the earth, it is an encouraging message; one that tells us we have been given the power of binding and losing. We can bind the forces of evil, and unleash the power of God. The Lord empowers us to carry the gospel to the world. Because God is present, His power is present, and He will work through us to see His will accomplished.
Whenever we pray for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven, first we are asking that God’s will be accomplished and not our own will. Secondly, we are asking for Christ to reign in the hearts of every person on earth, just as He reigns in the hearts of all who are in heaven. Thirdly, we are praying to be used by God in His kingdom coming, and that He empowers us to be His witnesses.
Seeking God’s Hand (v. 11)
When we come to verse 11, we move from seeking God’s face to seeking His hand; and this type of prayer is called “petition.” We are to seek God’s “hand” and not God’s “handouts.”
As God’s hand and guidance is upon our life, and as He is “present” with us, He is aware of our needs. If we move on down in this same chapter to Matthew 6:33, Jesus teaches us more about what “daily bread” means. He said, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” There are two things mentioned in Matthew 6:33 that are also seen in The Lord’s Prayer. Matthew 6:33 mentions “the kingdom,” and “these things.” “These things,” of course, refers to daily provision. These two items are seen in The Lord’s Prayer as “the kingdom” (v. 10) and “daily bread” (v. 11). Jesus is saying that if we seek the advancement of His kingdom, through prayer and by sharing the gospel, then all our daily provision will be met; as daily bread is daily provision.
Some say that “daily bread” refers to the daily manna that God sent the Israelites when they made their exodus from Egypt, but there is another explanation that makes more sense. Bread used not to have all the preservatives in it that we have in our bread today, here in America. In fact, many other countries do not even use preservatives, and bread gets stale very quickly. People must run out to the local street market and pick up just enough bread for that one day, and then they must do it all over again the next day, and the day after that. “In 1925 a scrap of paper [dating to A.D. 161] was discovered. On it was written a household account listing ‘everyday’ provisions, [and] the word . . . ‘daily’ appears in this list.”
When we pray, we must ask for what we need daily, and not come with our never-ending shopping list. We are not praying for just ourselves either. “Jesus teaches us to pray for ‘us,’ not ‘me.’ The plural pronouns ‘us’ and ‘our’ expand these requests to include [others] who live under [our] Father in heaven.” So, we are to pray for provision for others as well.
Seeking God’s Forgiveness (vv. 12, 14-15)
In verse 12, we are told to ask for forgiveness for debts or trespasses. So, who are we to pray for? The answer is both ourselves and others. First, we must begin with ourselves. Unfortunately, we still commit sin after having become a Christian; and out of respect for our heavenly Father, we need to confess those sins when we approach Him in prayer and worship. When we do, “He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). It is important to ask God to forgive us of specific sins that we are aware of; and we should also ask Him to forgive us of any unknown or forgotten sins.
Next, we come to “debtors,” meaning “others.” In Matthew 5:44, Jesus told us we should pray for our enemies; and in Acts 7:60, when Stephen was being stoned to death, he said, “Lord, lay not this sin to their charge.” It is good to pray that God will forgive others who have wronged us, but there is something else going on here. We are to pray that “we ourselves” will be able to forgive them. We are to pray that we will have the ability, and that we can truly forgive them and let go; and the reason why is so we can be free of bitterness and inner turmoil, and so we can walk in a right relationship with God. I think this can be better understood by looking at verses 14-15, which speak more about forgiveness.
Jesus said, “If you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (vv. 14-15). So, how does being forgiven by God depend on us forgiving others? Well, when we fail to forgive, we live in bitterness. Bitterness is painful and it hurts and hinders our relationship with God. Perhaps we are not able to be forgiven, until we forgive others, because bitterness is separating us from a right relationship with the Lord. Instead of “neither will your Father forgive your trespasses,” perhaps it is “neither can your Father forgive your trespasses,” as resentment and bitterness are standing in the way.
Seeking God’s Deliverance (v. 13a)
In verse 13a, Jesus told us to pray, “And do not lead us into temptation.” This is not a prayer for strength to endure temptation. It is something entirely different; something revolutionary. In The Prayer of Jabez, Bruce Wilkinson says, “Most Christians seem to pray solely for strength to endure temptations . . . Somehow we don’t think to ask God simply to keep us away from temptation and keep the devil at bay in our lives.” As we follow the Lord along the path of life and are guided by Him, we need to ask to be kept away from temptation.
The New King James Version says “deliver us from the evil one” and the King James Version says, “deliver us from evil.” Commentator Brian Dodd says this phrase is rightly translated as “the evil one” – and “the evil one” is the devil, or Satan. Since Jesus used this phrase “the evil one,” it means that Jesus believes in the reality of the devil – and we should believe in the reality of the devil too. We must realize that he seeks to destroy the plans of God.
We have already prayed to honor and glorify the Father; that God’s kingdom would advance and souls be saved; for Christ to reign in the hearts of all people; that God would provide for our needs and the needs of others; that God would forgive our sin and that we would forgive others; and that God would help us stay clear of temptation. These are things the devil does not want us praying; and the last thing we are to pray is that Satan would not be allowed to thwart God’s purposes. We must pray for God’s hedge of protection, and that the devil be kept at bay.
Seeking God’s Glory (v. 13b)
Verse 13b is not specifically a need or a petition, but a declaration of praise! Above all else, and above all other focus, we must seek God’s glory. Prayer and worship should both begin and end in the adoration of God. We began The Lord’s Prayer by declaring, “Hallowed be Your name,” or rather “Holy be Your name,” and here we end by declaring God to be our King having all power, and ascribing all glory unto Him. When we praise the Lord, we prepare our heart for intimacy with God. Psalm 22:3 says, “You are holy, enthroned in the praises of Israel.” You see, God draws near to us as He inhabits our praises!
Time of Reflection
We learned at the beginning of this message that the only way we can pray unto God as “our Father” is to know Him through a relationship with His Son, Jesus Christ. The apostle Paul said in Galatians 4:4-6, “But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, ‘Abba, Father!’” Jesus, the Son of God, was born of woman. He walked this earth, demonstrated the love and power of God, and died on the cross for our sins to redeem us from an eternity in hell. He also rose from the grave, victorious over sin and death! When we confess our faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 10:9-10), we are adopted by God; whereby, we can call on Him as “our Father.”
