Matthew 6:9-15
Pray then like this:
“Our Father 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 lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
We must not forget that prayer is an offering up of our desires to God, for things agreeable to His will, in the name of Christ, with confession of our sins, and thankful acknowledgment of His mercies.
God has given us directions on how to pray in the Bible alone. Therefore, the whole Word of God is of use to direct us in prayer. The Lord’s Prayer is the special rule of direction which Christ taught His disciples.
The Lord’s prayer has the essential elements which must not be lacking in any prayer. After all when the disciples asked the Lord to teach them how to pray, the Lord gave them a model prayer. It is not that the Lord’s prayer should be repeated thoughtlessly, but it is a kind of mould upon which we must base our prayers. It has the following essential elements of prayer:
The preface of the Lord’s Prayer
The preface of the Lord’s Prayer is, “Our Father in heaven,” This teaches us to draw near to God with all holy reverence and confidence, as children to a father, who is able and ready to help us. That He is ‘our Father’ shows that we should pray with and for others. Yet, we must also acknowledge that the phrase “Our Father” presupposes adoption into God’s family. Not every person on earth is a child of God. Only those who are in Christ, washed by his blood, regenerated by the Life-giving Spirit are truly children of God. But to all who did receive Him, who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:12-13).
If you have not been saved by the grace of God, then you cannot pray, “Our Father” because God is not your Father. God is only the Father of those who believe in His Son and are indwelt by His Spirit. If you call on the name of the Lord today, you will be saved. When you are saved, you become a child of God and you receive all the privileges of being children of God. God being your Father is willing to listen to and answer your prayers, exceedingly and abundantly beyond what we ask or imagine.
What a great privilege it is to belong to God as his own child! What a blessing to have the heavenly Father as our Father? Behold, what manner of love the Father has given to us, that we are should be called children of God; and so we are! … Beloved, we are God’s children…! (1 John 3;1, 2).
What do we pray for in the first petition?
In the first petition, which is, “Hallowed be your name,” we pray, for two things;
a) That God would enable us and others to glorify Him in all that He makes Himself known. The chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy him forever. We were created by God to be instruments of his praise. We are to glorify God whether we eat or drink or whatever we do (1 Cor. 10:31). We are also to call and invite others to come and glorify God. Those who are redeemed, are also called to live in such a manner that God would be glorified. Therefore it is our prayer that God would be glorified in us, and so we petition the Lord to give us the ability to glorify him.
b) That He would dispose all things to His own glory. We are also to pray that God would act in such a manner, for us, that all things around us will bring glory to Him. May the Lord God in his grace cause and dispose all things to bring glory to Him.
What do we pray for in the second petition?
In the second petition, which is, “Your kingdom come,” we pray for:
a) That Satan’s kingdom may be destroyed. The gospel is the primary weapon which has power to demolish the kingdom of Satan. The Lord is building His church as the primary instrument for pulling down all the strongholds of the evil one. The church destroys the kingdom of Satan by building Christ’s kingdom on earth, as the gospel is proclaimed, the saints are gathered to worship God, to live upright and godly lives in the present evil world, hastening the glorious appearing of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ. The church will ultimately be the only kingdom.
b) That the kingdom of grace may be advanced, ourselves and others brought into it, and kept in it. The advance of the kingdom of Christ as more sinners hear the gospel, believe in Christ, added to the church, conveyed into the kingdom of Christ, and so the kingdom of Christ is established in different parts of the world. When we pray that Christ’s kingdom may come on earth, we are also commiting to be instruments of building the kingdom by our witness. Our testimony must showcase the glories of Christ.
c) That the kingdom of glory may be hastened. We pray that the Lord Jesus Christ may soon return. Waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God is our business. We are waiting for new heavens and new earth in which righteousness dwells.
This is a big petition for we have the interest of the progress and prosperity of the kingdom of Christ. We are not just thinking of ourselves, but we are thinking of Christ, and his kingdom.
What do we pray for in the third petition?
In the third petition, which is, “Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven,” we pray that God, by His grace, would make us able and willing to know, obey, and submit to His will in all things, as the angels do in heaven. There is no better will than the will of God. God being holy and omniscient, disposes only good things to his people. His will is the best and we wiser to trust his will more.
What do we pray for in the fourth petition?
In the fourth petition, which is, “Give us this day our daily bread,” we pray that of God’s free gift we may receive a competent, that sufficiently satisfying portion of the good things of this life, and enjoy His blessing with them. We have material needs. We need food and clothing. We need good health. We need work to meet our needs and those of others. We need God’s provision every day and so we are to look to Him to provide for us. He is willing to provide for us, just any father provides for the needs of his children. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! (Matt. 7:9-11)
What do we pray for in the fifth petition?
In the fifth petition, which is, “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors,” we pray that God, for Christ’s sake, would freely pardon all our sins; which we are the rather encouraged to ask, because by His grace we are enabled from the heart to forgive others. We are to be willing to forgive others more liberally, seeing how much the Lord has been merciful to forgive us such a great debt of sin. Forgiveness should flow in every vein of every child of God.
The Lord speaks about this some more in verse 14, where the Lord says, “For if we forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
What do we pray for in the sixth petition?
In the sixth petition, which is, “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,” we pray that God would either keep us from being tempted to sin, or support and deliver us when we are tempted. This aknowledges that we are in a fallen world with many enemies of our souls. The devil, the world and the flesh are an evil trinity which seeks to destroy our souls. But thanks be to God who delivers us from all of them!
What does the conclusion of the Lord’s Prayer teach us?
The conclusion of the Lord’s Prayer, which is, “For Yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen,” teaches us to take our encouragement in prayer from God only, and in our prayers to praise Him, ascribing kingdom, power, and glory to Him.
In testimony of our desire and assurance to be heard, we say, Amen.
