Let me start by saying that The Lord’s Prayer is not a magical incantation for you to repeat and all your dreams and wishes will come true. The Lord’s Prayer is simply a guide on how to pray. Jesus was teaching this prayer to his followers. As part of the Inductive Bible Study Method we must first understand who Jesus was talking to when He introduced the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6 (also found in Luke 11). Jesus was talking to traditional Jews. They would have had an understanding of prayer.
Our Father who are in Heaven: We can go directly to the Lord where before, in the OT, they had to go to a priest and the priest went before the Lord once a year during the Day of Atonement. The Jews knew their fathers Abraham and Jacob but we are to pray to Our Father who art in heaven (God). You don’t need a mediator. This also suggests an intimate knowledge of God, He isn’t just some being but He is our Father. Jesus also uses the pronoun Our, not my but Our. He is inviting us into this intimate relationship alongside of Him.
Hallowed be Your Name: God’s name in the Old Testament couldn’t be spoken aloud or written out because it was considered extremely Holy. Why is His name Holy?? He created us, He brought all around us into existence. Hallowed means sacred, regarded with reverence, it involves love, respect and longing to please Him in all we say or do. God should be honored in everything, one of the commandments is do not take the Lord’s name in vain.
Our Father who are in Heaven: We can go directly to the Lord where before, in the OT, they had to go to a priest and the priest went before the Lord once a year during the Day of Atonement. The Jews knew their fathers Abraham and Jacob but we are to pray to Our Father who art in heaven (God). You don’t need a mediator. This also suggests an intimate knowledge of God, He isn’t just some being but He is our Father. Jesus also uses the pronoun Our, not my but Our. He is inviting us into this intimate relationship alongside of Him.
Hallowed be Your Name: God’s name in the Old Testament couldn’t be spoken aloud or written out because it was considered extremely Holy. Why is His name Holy?? He created us, He brought all around us into existence. Hallowed means sacred, regarded with reverence, it involves love, respect and longing to please Him in all we say or do. God should be honored in everything, one of the commandments is do not take the Lord’s name in vain.
Your Kingdom Come: What is the kingdom?? Matthew 10 describes the Kingdom as healing the sick, raising the dead, casting out demons, cleansing the lepers. Jesus did that. The Kingdom is in Heaven but should be brought to earth. This is an action.
Your Will be done on Earth: God’s Will is perfect. We are to ask God to be the guide on Earth; to guide our movements, our thoughts, our actions, not just ours but the whole earth and everyone and everything on it.
As it is in Heaven: Heaven is where our Father is (see beginning of prayer). God’s will is being done in Heaven as indicated by above statement. Heaven is described in scripture as having been created by God (Gen 1), the storehouse of his bounty (Deut 28:12), God’s dwelling place (1 Kings 8), God’s Throne (Isaiah 66), there are angels (Matt 18:10), powers and authorities in submission to Jesus (1 Peter 3:22), all praising God (Revelation).
Give us This Day Our Daily Bread: The Israelites were given Manna (bread) every day from God. They were instructed to only take what they needed for that day, some even tried to take more but it went bad. Everyday, without fail, God provided all that they needed. We are to ask God for our daily provision and expect it from Him.
Forgive us our Debts: The hebrew word for Debt is from the root kâshal meaning to topple or falter. We are asking God to forgive us for our faults, the times we mess up.
As we have forgiven our debtors: We are to forgive those who offend us before we are to ask God to forgive.
And Lead Us not into temptation: The hebrew word used here for Temptation means trial. We are to ask God to prevent us from failing, to keep us safe.
But deliver us from the evil one: The evil one is Satan. Ephesians 6:12 says that we struggle against darkness and the evil forces in the heavenly realms. In John Jesus asks not to take His disciples out of the world but protect them from the evil one. Matthew 13 talks about the evil one snatching away what is sown into the hearts of men (the word of God).
So next time you pray the Lord’s Prayer, remember all that it really means and as Psalms 19:14 says, let the words of your mouth and the meditation of your heart be acceptable in the sight of the Lord.
Your Will be done on Earth: God’s Will is perfect. We are to ask God to be the guide on Earth; to guide our movements, our thoughts, our actions, not just ours but the whole earth and everyone and everything on it.
As it is in Heaven: Heaven is where our Father is (see beginning of prayer). God’s will is being done in Heaven as indicated by above statement. Heaven is described in scripture as having been created by God (Gen 1), the storehouse of his bounty (Deut 28:12), God’s dwelling place (1 Kings 8), God’s Throne (Isaiah 66), there are angels (Matt 18:10), powers and authorities in submission to Jesus (1 Peter 3:22), all praising God (Revelation).
Give us This Day Our Daily Bread: The Israelites were given Manna (bread) every day from God. They were instructed to only take what they needed for that day, some even tried to take more but it went bad. Everyday, without fail, God provided all that they needed. We are to ask God for our daily provision and expect it from Him.
Forgive us our Debts: The hebrew word for Debt is from the root kâshal meaning to topple or falter. We are asking God to forgive us for our faults, the times we mess up.
As we have forgiven our debtors: We are to forgive those who offend us before we are to ask God to forgive.
And Lead Us not into temptation: The hebrew word used here for Temptation means trial. We are to ask God to prevent us from failing, to keep us safe.
But deliver us from the evil one: The evil one is Satan. Ephesians 6:12 says that we struggle against darkness and the evil forces in the heavenly realms. In John Jesus asks not to take His disciples out of the world but protect them from the evil one. Matthew 13 talks about the evil one snatching away what is sown into the hearts of men (the word of God).
So next time you pray the Lord’s Prayer, remember all that it really means and as Psalms 19:14 says, let the words of your mouth and the meditation of your heart be acceptable in the sight of the Lord.
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