Daily Bread 2010
Matthew 6
Prayer
5"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
9"This, then, is how you should pray:
" 'Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10your kingdom come,
your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
11Give us today our daily bread.
12Forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one. 14For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
Many people do not like to pray publicly because they heard others pray and think, “I could never pray like that.” As Jesus continues to teach in the Sermon on the Mount on what life is like in the Kingdom of God, he gives us valuable instruction on how spiritual disciplines can usher us into the Kingdom way of life.
Importantly through praying, giving to those in need and fasting are centered on our relationship with God, not showing off our spirituality to the world. Although there is an appropriate time for public prayer, Jesus advocates praying to God is a very intimate act do be done in private. Just like in any relationship where one needs quality alone time, we need time to be with God alone.
Jesus also gives us a model for prayer that can help us understand how to pray. It is not meant to be slavishly adhered to, but gives some basics for our communication and intimacy with God. For instance we start out by recognizing God is our Father in heaven. Right away we see the relational aspect of prayer, as Jesus revolutionized our
understanding of prayer by praying, “abba prayer”.
We also pray that God’s name would be “hallowed” or kept holy. Although God is like us and wants us to call him “Father”, we still must recognize His holiness and majesty and “otherness”. This is the reverence aspect of realizing we are coming in contact with the Creator of the Universe.
The other parts of this model of prayer have to do with orienting ourselves with God’s kingdom coming on earth as in heaven (this is our mode of operation as believers). Also we are to asking for God to meet our needs not our wants. And finally, we are to realize that as we cross boundaries with others in unhealthy and inappropriate ways with God and other, we need to ask for and give forgiveness.
This is the type of prayer that re-orients us and enables and empowers us to carry out the way of life Jesus offer us in the Sermon on the Mount! How is your prayer life lately? Is it drawing you into a deeper intimacy with Your Father in Heaven? Is it helping you to become a more influential agent for Kingdom activity here on earth? Is it helping you to give and receive forgiveness?
Let us pray…dear heavenly Father we thank you so much for the gift of prayer. Through it we say “Abba Father” and also lift you up as the Creator of all this is and will be. Help us to live today with an eye on how your kingdom can come and move through us in the power of Your Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Prayer
5"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
9"This, then, is how you should pray:
" 'Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10your kingdom come,
your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
11Give us today our daily bread.
12Forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one. 14For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
Many people do not like to pray publicly because they heard others pray and think, “I could never pray like that.” As Jesus continues to teach in the Sermon on the Mount on what life is like in the Kingdom of God, he gives us valuable instruction on how spiritual disciplines can usher us into the Kingdom way of life.
Importantly through praying, giving to those in need and fasting are centered on our relationship with God, not showing off our spirituality to the world. Although there is an appropriate time for public prayer, Jesus advocates praying to God is a very intimate act do be done in private. Just like in any relationship where one needs quality alone time, we need time to be with God alone.
Jesus also gives us a model for prayer that can help us understand how to pray. It is not meant to be slavishly adhered to, but gives some basics for our communication and intimacy with God. For instance we start out by recognizing God is our Father in heaven. Right away we see the relational aspect of prayer, as Jesus revolutionized our
understanding of prayer by praying, “abba prayer”.
We also pray that God’s name would be “hallowed” or kept holy. Although God is like us and wants us to call him “Father”, we still must recognize His holiness and majesty and “otherness”. This is the reverence aspect of realizing we are coming in contact with the Creator of the Universe.
The other parts of this model of prayer have to do with orienting ourselves with God’s kingdom coming on earth as in heaven (this is our mode of operation as believers). Also we are to asking for God to meet our needs not our wants. And finally, we are to realize that as we cross boundaries with others in unhealthy and inappropriate ways with God and other, we need to ask for and give forgiveness.
This is the type of prayer that re-orients us and enables and empowers us to carry out the way of life Jesus offer us in the Sermon on the Mount! How is your prayer life lately? Is it drawing you into a deeper intimacy with Your Father in Heaven? Is it helping you to become a more influential agent for Kingdom activity here on earth? Is it helping you to give and receive forgiveness?
Let us pray…dear heavenly Father we thank you so much for the gift of prayer. Through it we say “Abba Father” and also lift you up as the Creator of all this is and will be. Help us to live today with an eye on how your kingdom can come and move through us in the power of Your Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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