Matthew 6:9-15—“Pray then in this way: 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 do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one. For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
Jesus taught His disciples very specific lessons on how to pray, and in Matthew, He teaches them what we now call the Lord’s Prayer. It is a model prayer that we should continue following even in the modern age. First, the prayer begins by acknowledging and praising God’s name. Throughout the Bible, God has many names, but here Jesus tells us to approach God as the Father. As Father, God is caring and all-knowing, warm and compassionate, and most of all a safe confidante. The word “hallowed” means holy, consecrated, sacred, and revered. We praise God and demonstrate our love and respect for Him by saying the words “hallowed be your name.” Second, Jesus says to pray for the coming of God’s kingdom. By praying for the coming of God’s kingdom, we are not so much praying for the arrival of some far-off, remote place. Rather we are praying a very personal prayer that God will become more alive in us because His kingdom already lives within us. Third, we are to ask for God’s will to be done on earth as it is done in heaven. In other words, we are asking God to take away our free will, at least some of it, to do as He sees fit rather than as we see fit. Our personal human desires are set aside in this prayer as we ask God to do His will. Fourth, we are to ask for our daily bread. Again, Jesus teaches us to be content with God meeting our basic needs, for which God will always provide. Fifth, we are to ask God to forgive our debts as we have also forgiven our debtors. This word “debt” is translated in many different ways: sins or transgressions are the other two most common words we see. What Jesus is driving at here is that the measure by which we have forgiven others who have wronged us is the same measure by which God will forgive us. When we pray this part of the prayer, we ought to be mindful of any grudges, ill will, and other anger we hold onto, because that failure to forgive will interfere with God’s ability to forgive us. Finally, Jesus instructs us to pray for deliverance from trials and evil. We know that by virtue of being human, we are going to encounter trials and evil circumstances in this world. God is all powerful to deliver us, though, and when we pray, we ought to continually seek God’s wisdom and deliverance.
Today, pray the Lord’s Prayer as your devotional, but pray it with a renewed spirit and newfound understanding of what Jesus was instructing us to do. Praise God openly and come to Him with a spirit of thanksgiving and rejoicing. Allow the kingdom of God to light up within you as you invite the Holy Spirit in. Sincerely ask God to do His will in your life, even if it is inconsistent with what you think you want. Forgive those in your life who need forgiveness and then ask God to also forgive your sins. Finally, ask God to send the Holy Spirit to protect you from evil at all times.
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