In a few days, we’ll be moving into a period of 21 days of prayer and fasting together as a community. To help us make the most of that time, we’ll be taking an in-depth look at what is probably the most famous prayer in the Bible: The Lord’s Prayer. Jesus gave a famous teaching—called the Sermon on the Mount—and in it He included the Lord’s Prayer as an example of how we can pray and communicate with God. Today, we’re looking at how Jesus opens the prayer and what it means for us, how we view God, and what our first priority should be in our prayer lives.
Read Matthew 6.9–13.
In the first verse of this prayer, Jesus helps us understand who it is that we’re praying to and how that understanding can inform what we pray for.
In Jewish culture, it was very normal to refer to God as “Father,” so Jesus beginning the prayer with “Our Father in Heaven” wasn’t out of the ordinary for His Jewish listeners. Referring to God as a Father was a way for the Jewish people to affirm who God is: a loving God, a trustworthy God, and a providing God. The concept of God as Father, though, stood in contrast to a lot of misconceptions that other cultures had about God at the time.
These misconceptions about God are still prevalent in cultures around the globe today…and even closer to home. Some people view God as some sort of moral policeman who’s only job is to judge—from a distance—whether or not our behavior and attitudes are “good.” Some people view God as a cosmic pushover or wish-dispenser who will give us anything we want if we just ask. Others see God as a harsh taskmaster who’s only concerned with what we can do for Him and how we can work for Him. When Jesus refers to God as a Father, He goes against all of these misconceptions and gives us a much fuller, and much more redemptive, view of God. In fact, Jesus took it one step further and used the Greek word “abba” for father, which was an intimate term that kids used to convey love and respect to their dads.
Question: Which of the three misconceptions about God do you think is most common in your mind and the minds of people you’re close to?
God isn’t just our Father, He’s our Father in Heaven. Jesus sets God apart from all earthly fathers here. Because God is our Father in Heaven, it means He has all of the capacity of God without any of the limitations of humanity. Hebrews 12.10 says that earthly fathers discipline their children according to what they think might be best, but God disciplines us for our own good. Earthly parents hope they know what’s best for their children, but God—our Heavenly Father—knows exactly what we need and when we need it.
If God doesn’t have the limitations of humanity, it means that we don’t have to worry about the things we’re asking Him. It means that He’ll never tell us that something isn’t in the budget, that He’s too tired, or that whatever we’re asking is simply impossible for Him to do.
There’s no greater proof of God’s fatherly love for us than the cross. We see that He was willing to send His Son to die for our sins so that there would be nothing separating us from His dedicated, passionate, fatherly love for us. We were created to experience this kind of love. Our hearts weren’t made for some kind of moral policeman, cosmic pushover, or harsh taskmaster. Our hearts were made to experience the love of God our Father.
Question: What parts about relating to God as your Father are difficult for you? How can looking to the cross and what Jesus did for us there help redeem that?
Once we understand and grasp that God is our Heavenly Father who loves us deeply and wants a relationship with us, we begin to pray a little bit differently. In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus immediately prays that the name of God would be hallowed.
“Hallowed” isn’t a word we use a lot in conversation, but it means “to make something holy.” To hallow something means to honor and even glorify it. And throughout the Bible, God’s name is used to represent God Himself. So when we’re called to hallow God’s name, we’re called to honor and glorify God.
Jesus is saying that before we begin talking to God about where we’re hurting or what our needs are, hallowing God’s name and glorifying Him is how we should begin our prayers. There are two important reasons for beginning our prayers in this way.
1. Our Father is worthy of honor.
Read Psalm 96.8–9.
God gives us life, friendships, nourishment, contentment, and all of the other good gifts we can see in our lives. And if God is God, if He is our Heavenly Father, then He’s worthy of all our honor.
2. Where there is worship of the Father, there is restoration from the Father.
Read Ezekiel 36.28.
Prior to this verse, we see that God’s people are profaning His name, the exact opposite of hallowing it. God decides to work in their hearts so that there will be a desire for them to begin honoring Him again. And Ezekiel 36.28 tells us that once God’s people begin honoring Him, He redeemed and restored them.
Our lives were made to work best when God is our very first priority. Instead, when we come face-to-face with problems in our lives—whether it’s low self-image, problems with relationships, issues at work, or something else troubling us—our first reaction is to try and fix the problem and not to simply honor God for who He is. Sometimes these problems can be traced back to a root problem of God not being first in our lives.
We see in Ezekiel that where there’s worship there’s restoration. Maybe instead of throwing all of our energy into trying to fix our problems, we continue to focus on worshipping and honoring our God, who’s bigger than our problems.
Hallowing God’s name isn’t just something we do in prayers, it’s actually a way that we live our lives. There are a few practical ways that we can hallow God’s name in our everyday lives.
1. We can hallow God’s name by declaring it among all nations.
Read Psalm 96.3–4.
Question: What are some ways that you can help declare God’s name among the nations, even from right here at home?
2. We can hallow God’s name by showing compassion to the poor and doing justice.
Read Amos 2.7.
This doesn’t mean sitting back, looking at the injustices of the world, and hoping somebody decides to do something. This means actively engaging in the deepest needs of our communities, our cities, and our world.
3. We can hallow God’s name by giving Him our very best.
Read Malachi 1.6, 8, 14.
Giving God our best instead of our “leftovers” applies to finances, but it also applies to how we live our lives out in every area. It’s about doing the very best at our jobs, at school, as parents or siblings or children. It’s about giving God our absolute best no matter where we are or what we’re doing.
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