The Lord s Prayer. (Mat 6:7 15)

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1 The Lord s Prayer (Mat 6:7 15) I] The Structure (v.9 13) 1) Beginning address: Our Father in heaven (9a) 2) God s glory: Three prayers to address God s priorities (9b 10) a) Willfully worship God s name: Hallowed be your name b) Totally submit to God s reign: Your kingdom come c) Actively anticipate to accomplish God s will: Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven 3) Man s needs: Three pleads to address man s needs (11 13a) a) Rely on ongoing of God s provision: Give us today our daily bread b) Rely on ongoing of God s forgiveness: Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors c) Rely on ongoing of God s protection/deliverance: Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one 4) Doxology: Three praises to address God s glory (13b) a) Your kingdom b) Your power c) Your glory 5) Amen (13c) II] Meanings Pray, then, in this way: It is a model prayer not a fixed prayer, not a rigid form to be used for verbatim. But it is a model for disciples to fashion our other prayers o We should understand it as a model prayer to guide disciples in their devotional life. 1 o The ye is emphatic here, in contrast with the heathen prayers. That this matchless prayer was given not only as a model, but as a form, might be concluded from its very nature. Did it consist only of hints or directions for prayer, it could only be used as a directory; but seeing it is an actual prayer designed, indeed, to show how much real prayer could be compressed into the fewest words, but still, as a prayer, only the more incomparable for that it is strange that there should be a doubt whether we ought to pray that very prayer. Surely the words with which it is introduced, in the second utterance and varied form of it which we have in Lu 11:2, ought to set this at rest: When ye pray, say, Our Father. Nevertheless, since the second form of it varies considerably from the first, and since no example of its actual use, or express quotation of its phraseology, occurs in the sequel of the New Testament, we are to guard against a superstitious use of it. 2 Our Father who is in heaven, Who God is: He is our Father. We can be confident in our prayer: He knows our needs before we present to Him, and He is the Father who cares and willing to provide. 1 Morris, L. (1992). The Gospel according to Matthew (143). Grand Rapids, Mich.; Leicester, England: W.B. Eerdmans; 2 Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., Fausset, A. R., Brown, D., & Brown, D. (1997). A commentary, critical and explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments (Mt 6:9). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc. 1

2 Where God is: Heaven is the Father s dwelling place and where His throne is. God is in control. It is a creature asking divine favor from the Creator. He is the Father who knows our needs. Rely on Him as children with simple faith. He is a Holy and gracious Father. He is very much interested in our prayer. Who we are: His children. The prayer shows the humility and reliance of the one who prays. God s name (who God is and His reputation), God s rule (His Kingdom), and God s plan (His will) should be the first focus. Hallowed be Your name Willful worship and complete devotion Name represents the characters, qualities, and authority of the person. The name of the Lord is always the first thing believers care about. It is the utmost desire of disciples to honor the Father s Holy name. It is an act of worship that honors the Holy name of God. o This prayer is not so much a petition that God will do some great act that will show everyone who and what he is, as a prayer that he will bring people to a proper attitude toward him. It expresses an aspiration that he who is holy will be seen to be holy and treated throughout his creation as holy. 3 o The first three petitions have to do exclusively with God: Thy name be hallowed Thy kingdom come Thy will be done. And they occur in a descending scale from Himself down to the manifestation of Himself in His kingdom; and from His kingdom to the entire subjection of its subjects, or the complete doing of His will. 4 Hallowed be that is, Be held in reverence ; regarded and treated as holy. 5 It expresses our godly-fear to God. He is set apart (by Himself) as the God to be honored, revered, and even feared. The name of the father should be treated with utmost honor and reverence by disciples! Your kingdom come Total submission It is because of that honorable name, disciples pray for the Kingdom comes. Kingdom is where God reigns It means may the Father s reigns be honored on earth. It is a yearning in disciples hearts to have God s reign in the whole creation. May the will of the Lord be done in everywhere including disciples hearts and lives. It is a prayer that submits oneself totally before the will of the Lord. By God for us -- It asks for the establishment of the Kingdom of God, by God for us, not by us for God. 6 However, disciples are not passive. They are actively involving themselves in working out of the establishment of the kingdom under God s leadership. It is mission emphasized. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven Active participation 3 Morris, L. (1992). The Gospel according to Matthew (145). Grand Rapids, Mich.; Leicester, England: W.B. Eerdmans; 4 Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., Fausset, A. R., Brown, D., & Brown, D. (1997). A commentary, critical and explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments (Mt 6:9). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc. 5 Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., Fausset, A. R., Brown, D., & Brown, D. (1997). A commentary, critical and explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments (Mt 6:9). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc. 6 Morris, L. (1992). The Gospel according to Matthew (145). Grand Rapids, Mich.; Leicester, England: W.B. Eerdmans; 2

3 Priority We pray that God s will be done first, not ours. If there is any conflict between two, God s view should always be done. It is a litmus test whether a disciple desires for Thy Kingdom comes. If he does, his life priority will show a clear commitment to Thy will be done. Always pray about God s business first The plan of God is to build His Kingdom on earth. It is a spiritual battle! Evil does not reign in heaven. Satan is casted down from heaven and is the ruler of the world. Disciples are to submit to and carry out God s will on earth. Give us this day our daily bread Ongoing reliance of God s provision Emphasizes trusting the Giver Give us... The prayer emphasizes who the Giver is and counts on His gracious provision. Life and the mean to sustain life (bread) are the gifts from the Giver. Why bother to ask? The Father knows what we need before we ask Him. So, why bother to ask? It is an act of dependence of the Father. Acknowledging the fact that it is from Him we are blessed. Ask in a daily bases Daily bread is perfectly alright to pray to the Father to meet our daily physical needs. It focuses on one day at a time. We are supposed to go to Him and trust His provision in a daily bases. See Num. 16: God gave Manna in daily bases (except Sabbath) to teach people of God to trust God for the provision. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors Ongoing reliance of God s forgiveness Meaning of Forgive literally mean let go or send away. Condition to be forgotten debt is an image for sin (Mat 18:23 35; Lk 7:41 43). Forgiving our debtors is the condition to be forgiven by God (v.14 15). o Matthew thinks of forgiveness of others as a necessary condition for seeking God s forgiveness. This is not to say that the source of our whole understanding of forgiveness is not in the mercy of God (he is addressed as Father), but it is to say that failure to forgive closes the door to ongoing forgiveness. 7 Do not misunderstand o Taken absolutely, the Matthean wording of v. 14 is seriously in danger of being excessively formulaic (the forgiving person is automatically forgiven by God!), but that will not be Matthew s intention. The readiness to forgive is a necessary condition, but not a sufficient one. 8 Robinson remarks, The spirit open to receive love is of necessity open to bestow love. 9 And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil Ongoing reliance of God s protection/ deliverance Correct attitude to ask for forgiveness After praying for forgiveness, disciples pray to not sin against God. They see living a sanctified life is a very important and very natural when ones are forgiven by God. 7 Nolland, J. (2005). The Gospel of Matthew : A commentary on the Greek text (291). Grand Rapids, Mich.; Carlisle: W.B. 8 Nolland, J. (2005). The Gospel of Matthew : A commentary on the Greek text (294). Grand Rapids, Mich.; Carlisle: W.B. 9 Morris, L. (1992). The Gospel according to Matthew (147). Grand Rapids, Mich.; Leicester, England: W.B. Eerdmans; 3

4 Express godly desire Meaning of Lead us not into temptation God does not tempt us into sin (Jas 1:13 14). It means admitting he is weak and his desire to live a holy life and do not want to stumble in temptation or give the evil one any foothold in life. The man asks God to stir his life away from evil intend. o The prayer is to be spared times of great pressure, times which would prove very trying. The prayer reflects a sense of one s own frailty and limitation, one s vulnerability to situations in which one is placed. This sort of thinking would apply to the turmoil of the eschatological period but is here quite general in scope. 10 Express confidence It is a total dependent on God to protect the disciples from sinning and from the evil one. The disciples express their confidence in the Lord (2 Tim 4:18). o Lead us not into temptation does not imply don t bring us to the place of temptation or don t allow us to be tempted. God s Spirit has already done both of these with Jesus (4:1). Nor does the clause imply don t tempt us because God has promised never to do that anyway (Jas 1:13). Rather, in light of the probable Aramaic underlying Jesus prayer, these words seem best taken as don t let us succumb to temptation (cf. Mark 14:38) or don t abandon us to temptation. 11 o It was precisely this which Peter needed to ask, but did not ask, when of his own accord, and in spite of difficulties he pressed for entrance into the palace hall of the high priest, and where, once sucked into the scene and atmosphere of temptation, he fell so foully. 12 [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.] The doxology reminds the disciples to praise the Lord. III] Lessons Learned About Prayer? A. What prayer is not Prayer is not for impressing man: Do not pray as the hypocrites, because God knows your intention (v.5 6). 2. Prayer is not for impressing/ manipulating God: Do not pray as pagans who keep on babbling (many meaningless repetition of words), because God knows your needs (v.7 8). βατταλογήσητε may be related to a Greek root βατ(τ) used for stuttering. If so, it is likely to be a deprecatory way of speaking about the formulaic repetition of either intelligible (names of gods, petitionary formulas, etc.) or unintelligible ( words of magical power or the language of the gods) elements in order to multiply effectiveness with the gods. 13 The term may also refer to the uttering of nonsense syllables common to magical incantations in the pagan religions of Jesus day. 14 a. Magical incantations (unintelligible) vs. intelligible. b. Reciting prayers (formulaic repetition) vs. communication to God with heart and mind. 10 Nolland, J. (2005). The Gospel of Matthew : A commentary on the Greek text (292). Grand Rapids, Mich.; Carlisle: W.B. 11 Blomberg, C. (2001). Vol. 22: Matthew (electronic ed.). Logos Library System; The New American Commentary (120). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers. 12 Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., Fausset, A. R., Brown, D., & Brown, D. (1997). A commentary, critical and explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments (Mt 6:13). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc. 13 Nolland, J. (2005). The Gospel of Matthew: A commentary on the Greek text (284). Grand Rapids, Mich.; Carlisle: W.B. 14 Blomberg, C. (2001). Vol. 22: Matthew (electronic ed.). Logos Library System; The New American Commentary (118). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers. 4

5 c. Controlling God: Think there is a formula that they can use to manipulate God, or think long prayer will impress God (1 Kg 18:26 29) vs. God is the Lord. d. Being self centered: Man fulfills their wish vs. Seek His kingdom and righteousness first. 3. Prayer is not for unforgiving people: Do not pray with unforgiving heart, because God knows your heart (v.14 15). B. What prayer is Prayer is worship Go to and focus on God. Submit us before God and seek God s honor first: His name, His kingdom, and His will. They pray, not to inform the Father on matters of which he is ignorant, but to worship him Prayer is an expression expressing faith and total reliance on God. 3. Prayer is a relationship It is a lively communication between a son and the Father. 4. Prayer is an alignment aligning one s desire/priority with God s desire/priority (v.9 10); one s faith with God s faithfulness (v.11 13); one s character with God s character (v.14 15). IV] Be a Man of Prayer Emphasize meaningful prayer instead of formalized prayer Pray and put God our in priority God first (name, Kingdom, and will) then self (bread, forgiveness of sins, and overcome the evil one). God always be our first concern, even before of livelihood. God desires His children pray It is an act of worship. It put us back to the right perspective of who we are and Who God is. Admire the Holy name of God. Pray with submission Instead of manipulating God to do our will. Pray daily with boldness and confidence there is nothing too hard for God, does it! Pray to win the spiritual battles against and strongholds including our hearts. Pray and forgive It is a time for self examination before God. It warns us about unforgiving attitude. V] Discussion 1. How often do we pray? 2. What do we pray about? 3. Which part of the Lord s Prayer encourages us to change our spiritual walk with God? 4. Why are we not willing to involve in prayer? 5. How to improve our prayer life? Appendix #1 Examples of human obedience: Noah (Gen. 6:22), Abraham (Gen. 11:28 32, cf. Acts 7:3; Gen. 12:1, cf. Heb. 11:8; Gen. 22:2 ff., cf. James 2:23); Joshua (Josh. 5:13 15); Samuel (I Sam. 3:1 10); Simon (Peter) and Andrew (Matt. 4:19, 20); Simon (Peter) once more (Luke 5:5); James and John (Matt. 4:21, 22); Peter and the 15 Morris, L. (1992). The Gospel according to Matthew (142). Grand Rapids, Mich.; Leicester, England: W.B. Eerdmans; 5

6 apostles (Acts 5:29); Mary of Bethany (John 11:28, 29); Paul (Acts 16:6 10; 26:19); and the Philippians (Phil. 2:12). The greatest example of all is Jesus Christ himself (Luke 2:51, 52; John 15:10; 17:4; Phil. 2:5 8; and Heb. 5:8). It was he who in the garden said, Not as I will, but as thou wilt (Matt. 26:39). As to the manner in which obedience is rewarded, from a host of passages that could be listed the following few should suffice: Josh. 1:8; Matt. 7:7, 8; John 7:17; 8:29; 14:21, 23; 15:10; Phil. 2:9, 10; Heb. 12:1, 2; and Rev. 3: Appendix #2 Now since God s names reveal who he himself is, it is necessary for us to know them. This, moreover, is very rewarding. In the Old Testament the Supreme Being is called El, that is, God, viewed as the Mighty One. This name occurs in various combinations. El-Shaddai is God Almighty, the source of salvation for his people (Gen. 17:1; Exod. 6:3). Elohim (Gen. 1:1) is a plural, and refers to God in the fulness of his power. Elyon indicates the Most High (Num. 24:16). Adonai points to God as Master (properly my Master ) or Lord; cf. O Lord, I am not a man of words (Exod. 4:10). The meaning of the name Jehovah is to some extent explained in Exod. 3:13, 14; cf. 6:2, 3. It is a form of the verb to be, and has been interpreted to mean I am that I am, or I shall be what I shall be. In the original Hebrew this name consists of the four letters YHWH, and is therefore called the tetragram (maton). There came a time, perhaps about 300 B.C., when the Jews, owing to a. their reverence for God, b. their interpretation of Lev. 24:16, and c. their resulting fear of becoming guilty of the sin of desecration, ceased to pronounce this name. In reading Scripture they substituted for it Adonai or, less frequently, Elohim. The Masoretes, those Jewish textual experts who flourished between the destruction of Jerusalem (A.D. 70) and the tenth century, but whose activity in a more general sense antedated the period of the Maccabees and extended to the year A.D. 1425, attached to the four consonants (YHWH) the vowels of Adonai (or of Elohim). It is sufficiently clear from such passages as Exod. 6:2 4; 15:1 3; Ps. 83:18; Isa. 42:8; Hos. 12:5; and Mal. 3:6 that the name Jehovah, however it be vocalized or transliterated, emphasizes God s unchangeable covenant faithfulness toward his people. 17 Appendix #3 What the passage does not forbid:long prayer or repeating prayer, but condemn formalism and deception of length will persuade God, as God does not know our needs. o Jesus is not, of course, forbidding long prayers; he himself on occasion could pray all night (Luke 6:12) and on one occasion he taught his followers that they should always pray and not grow weary (Luke 18:1). Nor does he forbid repetition, for in Gethsemane he repeated his prayer (26:39 44). It is prayer based on the view that length will persuade God that he discourages. 18 Now it certainly is not wrong to make frequent use of this prayer if the worshiper, when he does this, is able to do it with heart and mind. On the other hand, very frequent use may easily lead to the sin of formalism which the Lord has been condemning Hendriksen, W., & Kistemaker, S. J. ( ). Vol. 9: New Testament commentary : Exposition of the Gospel According to Matthew. New Testament Commentary ( ). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House. 17 Hendriksen, W., & Kistemaker, S. J. ( ). Vol. 9: New Testament commentary : Exposition of the Gospel According to Matthew. New Testament Commentary ( ). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House. 18 Morris, L. (1992). The Gospel according to Matthew (142). Grand Rapids, Mich.; Leicester, England: W.B. Eerdmans; 19 Hendriksen, W., & Kistemaker, S. J. ( ). Vol. 9: New Testament commentary : Exposition of the Gospel According to Matthew. New Testament Commentary (325). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House. 6