On to the topic of today's post: the Lord's Prayer. I've grown up reciting this in church (using some fairly archaic language, I might add), but until now I had never stopped and really broken down what Jesus was praying.
I figure, since this is what Jesus prayed when he was teaching his disciples how to pray, it would probably be a good idea to slow down and think about what's actually being said. I've copied this passage (Matthew 6:9-13) from the ESV, but I added in the part that was in the footnote, since I grew up reciting that part in church.
Our Father in heaven,
I think is fairly self explanatory. But have you ever stopped to think about this? Many of us have fathers here on earth, but it is important to remember that we also have a father in heaven. It's also important to consider why Jesus told us to address God as "Father". When I was younger, I would often start my prayers "Dear God." While I don't think that was wrong necessarily, there is an accessibility to a father that doesn't always seem to be there with God.
Hallowed be your name.
I don't know about you, but sometimes I feel like saying this line transfers me from speaking in English to speaking in a foreign language. The term "hallowed" isn't exactly widely used anymore, you know? According to Dictionary.com, hallow is a verb which means "to honor as holy." So when Jesus was praying this line he was praying that God's name would be honored as holy. Unfortunately, I don't always do that. Too often, I use God's name flippantly, like he was anyone else. This is a great reminder that I should be conscious in trying to honor God's name as holy. How can you honor God's name as holy?
Your kingdom come,
As Christians, we acknowledge that God's kingdom came with the first coming of Jesus, yet at the same time recognize that what we live in isn't the fullest realization of his kingdom. We believe that, one day, Jesus will return and bring with him the full realization of the kingdom. In fancy theological terms, we call this "the inaugurated kingdom" and describe this with the vague statement of "already but not yet". If this makes it any easier to understand, think of a president who has been inaugurated, but is not yet in office. He's already president, but not yet president at the same time. I think in Jesus' prayer, he's teaching us to look forward to the coming of the kingdom. This "looking forward" is evidenced by our asking for it. Do you look forward to heaven?
Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Reading this I think, "Well, duh, we'll follow God's will in heaven. It's his home." But how often do I ask God that his will be done here on earth, too? How often to I go out of my way to try to discern what God wants me to do in a given situation? How often do you?
Give us this day our daily bread,
I feel like so often this is where our prayer starts. "Dear God, please give or do stuff. Amen." I think it's important that this line of petition doesn't come until about halfway through the prayer. After honoring God as holy. After looking forward to his future kingdom. After asking that we would be able and willing to do his will. Only now do we get to the point of petition. And what did Jesus ask for? Not for an "A" on a test that we didn't really study for. Not for a new car, or a mountain bike, or a puppy. Jesus prays for "daily bread". In other words, he prays for those things that we need. I know that, so often, I pray for help with this or I pray that I can get this thing. This is a good reminder not to simply take the provision for our needs for granted, and to check our hearts as we pray.
And forgive us our debts,
This is commonly considered to be a fundamental tenet of the Christian belief system. The Bible says we must confess our sins to God and repent of our sin in order to be saved and brought into his family. Here Jesus is setting the foundation, showing that we don't just pray for forgiveness of our sin once, but that it's an ongoing process of asking for forgiveness and repenting of our sin.
As we also have forgiven our debtors.
I think that this line is often misinterpreted as we nonchalantly recite this prayer. The "as we also" sets itself up to be almost a prerequisite of the preceding statement. Have you ever thought about it in this way? That we don't really have the right to ask for forgiveness unless we have already forgiven those people who sin against us. I know that I have presumed on God's forgiveness by asking him to forgive me of a sin while I harbored bitterness and resentment against someone else who had wronged me. Do you every presume on God's forgiveness and grace by doing this?
And lead us not into temptation,
This seems like a strange thing to ask, to me. I mean, James says in his letter that God does not tempt people. So why would Jesus tell us to ask God not to lead us into temptation? I don't really have an answer to that question. Maybe it's because, even though temptations are going to come, we are to ask that God will clear the way for us? Maybe we're asking that God will convict us as we're walking into temptation. I know that I don't pray this line, although I should. Temptation is a daily part of my life, wouldn't it be wise to ask the Almighty God for help?
But deliver us from the evil one.
Satan is actively out looking for Christians and trying to take them down. Though I don't like to admit it, he is smarter than I am, more cunning than I am, and more powerful than I am. Again, it only makes sense that I would ask God for help. I mean, if anyone can help me escape from Satan's clutches, it's the one who created Satan, right? I mean, this isn't a situation of Dr. Frankenstein and his out of control monstrosity (Think Jumba and Stitch if you're too young to catch the reference). God created Satan knowing full well what he was capable of and what he would try to do. But God is not intimidated by him. In the last book of the Bible, John got a sneak peak of what's going to happen at the end of time. **spoiler alert** God wins! Go figure right? But God's victory isn't contained just to the end of time. He is victorious in and throughout time as well. Isn't that what Jesus' first coming was all about?
For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever.
This ending statement is about correctly attributing to God what is God's. In the end, God owns the land, the power, and the glory. He owns everything, and everything exists to bring more glory to him. Why? Because he's God and he deserves it. Yet far too often I find myself trying to nab some for myself. Maybe I want to feel powerful, so I cut someone else down. Maybe I want to be glorified, so I get proud. I need to remember and remind myself that I am nothing apart from the will of God. All life is sustained by Jesus. If he stopped wanting me to live, I'd be dead, and there's nothing I could do about it. That's humbling.
Amen.
You may have heard this before, bnot a command, but a request. Connecting this to the beginning, it's a request from a child to his or her father. When you pray, do you approach God as a child asking for something from your daddy?
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