Matthew 6:9-13 "After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen."
This is one of the best known and 0ften repeated prayers in the Bible. Many of us committed it to memory as children. This prayer is widely known as “The Lord’s Prayer.” If we look closely, we will see that this is not the Lord’s prayer, but a model for how WE should pray.
This prayer begins with an acknowledgement of our relationship with God. We are extremely blessed that it is God’s will that we should have such a closeness with Him. Through the work of Jesus Christ and the revelation from the Holy Spirit, we understand that He has chosen us (John 15:16), adopted us (Ephesians 1:5), and made us accepted (Ephesians 1:6).
Once we acknowledge that relationship, we should be very aware that God is not a man. Wherever God is, that place is heaven even when that place is in our hearts. Paul tells us in Ephesians 2:6 that God “has raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” Realizing that He has the power to lift us up to heavenly places (even while we dwell here on earth) is reason aplenty to dedicate our lives to His authority (hallow His name).
I have a particular fondness for Matthew’s expression of this prayer. It is certainly the desire of the disciples of Jesus to see the kingdom of God come in the hearts of His people. It is very moving to me that the next phrase of this model prayer is to ask for His will to be done “in earth.” While we certainly rejoice to see His will done ON earth, my life is made so much better when I can seek and see His will being done IN my personal life (in earth, since I am formed of the clay).
Praying for the grace to forgive others is a wonderful thing, and I believe that this is a part of our daily bread since these sentences are joined with the conjunction “and.” Asking God to measure His daily forgiveness toward me in the same manner (or measure) that I forgive others is a very sobering thought. This should be our guide in knowing how much and how often to forgive. All we have to do is ask ourselves how much and how often we want our Heavenly Father to forgive us.
Dear ones, as we go forth into our remaining days, let us remember these things when we pray. Let us trust Him to shelter us in times of temptation and to rescue us from ungodliness. Thank you, Lord, that the kingdom, and the power, and the glory all belong to You and they always will. Amen!