Ecclesiasticus 48: 1-15,
Psalm 97: 1-7,
Matthew 6:7-15 Full Readings
How to Pray
Brethren, today Jesus warns us about the way we pray and then teaches how to pray. We should not use many words, beat around the bush but we should be direct to the point and Jesus provides us the model of all prayer: "The Lord's Prayer." The Lord's prayer is the most common said and known prayer and a prayer which Jesus Himself gave us. However most of us just pray it for sake without paying attention to what it contains and what it means. The Lord's Prayer prayer starts with the invocation of God as our Father and then divides into halves the Seven petitions. The first three are addressed to God and the last four address human needs. Let us try to look at each one briefly with a reflective mood.
The invocation of invocation of God Our Father has a significant meaning. Firstly God is the Father. This is the Father who loves His children beyond telling and even if they sin He is ready to receive them back. He provides His children with whatever they need. We must see ourselves as God’s children and approach Him with the confidence of a child. A child with a loving parent is not afraid of that parent. Rather, children have the greatest trust that their parents love them no matter what. Even when they sin, children know they are still loved. This must be our fundamental starting point for all prayer. He is "Our" Father. God is not the Father of a certain culture or people or country, He is the Father of us ALL. Matthew inserting “Our” in his Lord's Prayer passage denotes that this prayer is a community prayer and ‘in heaven’ to avoid confusion with an earthly father. We have one Father in heaven though we have individual fathers on earth.
The first petition is Hallowed Be Thy Name which tells us that the Sacred name of God has to be revered and glorified. His Name should not be put into vain as we see in the second commandment. It is also the way Ezekiel 36.20-23 describes the complete vindication of God’s name and honour at the re-establishment of God’s people in a free Jerusalem.
The second petition is Thy Kingdom Come. This is central to the first three petitions and it is a prayer for the completion of God’s plan, may the kingdom of God be fulfilled, an eschatological yearning that God’s sovereignty over the world be totally accepted and unimpeded. It is invoking God to be the only sole king over the earth.
The third petition is Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. This is only found in Matthew and invites us to do the will of the Father here on Earth. It stresses that it is not enough to cry ‘Lord, Lord’ without actually doing the will of the Father. It also forms Jesus’ second, heartfelt prayer in Gethsemane, ‘may your will be done’.
We now turn to the human petitions. First Petition is Give us this day our daily bread. This is asking God to keep us fed not just on bread but all foods, for the Hebrew word for bread is often used more widely for food in general. Jesus doubly emphasizes our daily need for nourishment, both physical and spiritual. Though humans can go many days without eating food and many years without faith in God, it results in malnutrition of body and soul, depleting a person of the life God desires for us. The Church provides times of fasting from food, such as Advent, Lent, and Fridays, so we have temporary opportunities to feel the ache from lack of nourishment. Hunger pangs hit our stomachs and serve as an uncomfortable reminder that life without God’s daily providence is impossible. That is why we need to pray daily for our daily bread, and also hep those who do not have anything to eat.
Second, is Forgive us our Trespasses as we forgive those who Trespass against us. This is really a dangerous prayer for we ask forgiveness on condition that we forgive others – a petition which must always be accompanied with searching our own consciousness for forgiveness of others. This again is the central petition of the four human petitions, and is further stressed by Matthew by repetition at the end of the prayer, and by the parable of the Unforgiving Debtor. Brethren, if we don't forgive others and we pray this prayer, we are just liars and condemning ourselves in front of God. So we should be careful. Anyone who has not forgiven from the bottom of the heart the brother or sister who has done him wrong will only obtain from this prayer his own condemnation, rather than any mercy
The third and forth petitions are complementary prayers, ‘lead us not into temptation’ and ‘deliver us from evil’ These are prayers for protection against the evil one, and protection against falling into temptation. They confirm that Evil exists and always tempts us and therefore we need the intervention of God to conquer as Jesus did.
Brethren, now we know briefly what The Lord's Prayer contains and that it is a very powerful prayer. Take some time today to reflect on each Petition in a meditative way, try to understand it and see if you have been living what you pray in the Lord's prayer especially that of forgiving others.
Let us pray.
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen
Be blessed
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