The Lord’s Prayer Explained
In this blog post, we will explore the significance of the Lord's Prayer. When viewed as an outline instead of a formula, we discover prayer’s transformative power of worship, aligning with God's will, addressing your needs, and finding strength.
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1 Now Jesus[a] was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” 2 And he said to them, “When you pray, say:
“Father, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
3 Give us each day our daily bread,[b]
4 and forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
And lead us not into temptation.”
An Outline, Not a Formula
When examining Jesus and how He did ministry, we know that He didn’t limit His time to just preaching and proclaiming to crowds. He gave greater critical mass of His time to pouring into 12 people (despite knowing one would betray Him). The future of Christianity would rise and fall on those eleven apostles, which is why He spent significant time investing in them.
The disciples spent much time observing Jesus, the power flowing from His life, and the miracles He performed. Yet, on multiple occasions, Jesus would depart to pray and pull away. They were curious about His prayer life, so they asked Him to teach them how to pray like Him.
When Jesus shared the Lord’s Prayer, it wasn’t a rote prayer intended to be recited as a magic formula. Instead, it was an outline for prayer. While it’s still important to recite in worship gatherings because it’s good to pray the pattern, but it’s an outline to be memorized for our relationship with God.
In church culture, it’s not uncommon that prayer has circumvented Jesus’ instructions for praying in this way. The Lord’s Prayer was rooted in love, and we’re commanded to pray according to His outline. By doing so, it will transform our life, church, and every culture beyond.
Exploring the Lord’s Prayer
“Our Father in Heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name.”
Jesus instructs us to start with God. We’re naming Him as Father, Holy, and Hallowed. We’re stepping into worship and reverence with Him. We’re to begin by praising Him and magnifying Him.
This is a posture of worship and surrender to God for the process that’s starting. This is so important in empowering our prayer lives because we’re getting in sync with God and heaven.
We see glimpses into heaven in Scripture (Isaiah 6 and Revelation 4). There are cherubim and seraphim surrounding the throne, worshipping the Lord. Thousands of years happened between the two passages, yet the same thing is happening. The more we praise Him, the more He reveals Himself. Therefore, the more He reveals Himself, the more desire we have to praise Him.
Whether worshipping corporately or privately, when we take a few minutes in our prayer to worship God, we’re getting in sync with the heavenly realm.
“Thy Kingdom Come, They Will Be Done on Earth As It Is In Heaven.”
That statement is nuclear. It carries and contains more power and punch than you may realize.
Sometimes, people say, “I don’t know what to pray.” Well, if you’re going to pray for the kingdom to come, we need to pray the words of the King. This is what Jesus intended because whatever we pray according to His will, He hears us.
So, your best prayer guide is to pray out of the Scriptures. This will change everything. When we pray for the kingdom to come, we’re praying the words of the King, and we’re also praying the words of the King into our circumstances.
“The will of God is the Word of God. The best way to talk to God about His purposes is in His own words.”
God didn’t give us Bible stories to entertain us but to equip us. When we read them, we must ask ourselves what is the relevancy of seeing God move into this kind of power in my circumstances? How can I personalize this to my city or an unreached people group somewhere on the earth?
Hebrews 11:6 tells us that without faith, it is impossible to please God. We recognize that to please God, we must exercise our faith. But that faith is activated by hearing the Word of God. From there, we pray it into our circumstances.
Prayer becomes dynamic when it focuses on knowing God and working with Him because He is up to much. When our spiritual eyes are opened through His Word, we join Him in praying for God’s will.
“Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we have also forgiven our debtors.”
Now, we’re moving into our needs.
Following His instructions per this outline, the priority of prayer is the glory of God, then the purposes of God. But Jesus understands us. He knows our needs and invites us to pray for resources and relationships. Yes, daily bread presents Jesus as our bread of life and our ultimate needs, but it is also a practical prayer, food, a roof over my head, etc.
“And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:19
Scripture is very clear: God seeks to glorify His name by meeting our needs, but that’s not just resources but also relationships. That is why we’re to forgive others as we have been forgiven. Forgiveness extends to your spouse, family, work associates, neighbors, etc.
The beauty of understanding this invitation is that Jesus understands your needs, which should comfort you.
“And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.”
Jesus understands that when you depart from a place of prayer, you enter a battlefield. The enemy will fire at you, and there will be difficulties you’ll face. However, in the difficulty, God will deliver you from the temptations the enemy fires.
A Holy Urgency
The best way to learn to pray is by praying. What fuels a prayer life is desperation. When things get tough in Acts, the disciples' desperation fuels their prayer life. The beauty of a loving relationship with Jesus is that we pray and depend upon the Lord.
“Where there’s much prayer, there is much power. Where there is little prayer, there is little power.”
Jesus had 36 months to complete His mission and to pour into 12 people. The future birth of the Church was dependent on these persons. Suppose your pastor took that same approach, 36 months at his church for its future.
Jesus moved with a holy urgency. It was not rooted in flesh and anxiety but in holy and calibrated urgency. Because Jesus knew the power and importance of prayer, He gave us this outline to guide all of our future prayers.
TL;DR:
Jesus emphasized personal prayer and taught the Lord's Prayer as an outline, not a rote recitation.
The prayer begins with worship and surrender to God, then praying for His kingdom and will.
It encourages praying in alignment with Scripture. It covers our needs, both physical and relational, and emphasizes forgiveness.
It concludes with seeking protection from temptation and evil because Jesus knows what happens when we leave a place of prayer.
The key to effective prayer is desperation and a loving dependence on Jesus, who understood the urgency of prayer in fulfilling His mission.
Related Reading
What is Prayer by William Merriman
How to Move Mountains with Prayer by Rev. Paul Lawler
Why Prayer Works by Bro. Chris Carter
