by Kaye Johns
From childhood, most of us have known the words of "The Lord’s Prayer"
-- the model prayer of Jesus in Matthew 6:9-13, spoken for the benefit of His disciples as
they began their life of fellowship with Him.
We know the words, but do we fully grasp the meaning behind the words? Have we asked
Him to make absolutely clear just why this pattern, this model, says so much about our own
life of prayer?
Dr. Jack Graham, pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church, Dallas, Texas, is a minister
devoted to bringing clarity to the truths of God so those truths can be assimilated into
daily life. The following points are from a message delivered by Dr. Graham to the men
attending Prestonwood’s Friday morning men’s Bible study:
1. The Person: Our Father...
The first words of the prayer establish the relationship in which the prayer can be
meaningful. Our Father... He is Father to all of us who accept His love and grace
and salvation. Our Father... He is more than a distant deity; He is the One Who has
given us life, Who has given us the right to become His children (John
1:12). This is a relationship of love, of His acceptance of us and of our obedience
to His authority.
2. The Purpose: Your kingdom come; Your will be done...
The purpose of prayer is not to get my will done in heaven, but to get God’s will
done on earth. To bring the reality of His kingdom to my life, and to the lives of those I
may meet.
3. The Provision: Give us our daily bread...
We are not to pray for selfish reasons, but we are to pray for personal needs. In the
most basic areas of life, we are dependent upon God for our sustenance. He wants us to ask
for His provision, and He delights in providing what we need.
4. The Pardon: Forgive us as we forgive...
Sin, rebellion and disobedience short-circuit our prayers. We are to be examples of
godly relationships with others. He is a forgiving God, and we are to demonstrate His
attributes in our daily lives. As we forgive others, He will forgive us. If we do not, He
will not.
5. The Protection: Lead us not into temptation...
A better way of translating this truth: Don’t allow us to be led into temptation.
Satan needed God’s permission to test Job, and to sift Peter like wheat (Luke
22:31); he must have God’s permission to test us as well. We should
ask God to deny the permission, and to empower us to live the life that justifies His
response.
6. The Praise: Yours is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever...
The power in our prayer lies in our praise -- in recognizing and exalting the One to
Whom we pray. As we lift Him up in our prayer, acknowledging that He is the One -- the
only one -- with authority, power, and majesty, we prepare ourselves to receive from Him
the proper response to our prayer, whatever its nature may be.
|