The purpose to pray is for us to engage in a meaningful conversation with the Creator. Every religion has it’s own methods of prayer. One of the most popular methods to pray are repetitions of prayers. But Jesus says when we pray, there is a right way and a wrong way to do it.
Table of Contents
The Condition of your Heart
What stands out to me in verses 1-8 of Matthew 6 is that Jesus doesn’t say, “if you pray” but “when you pray”. His point is on the heart of the one praying. Are we praying to impress others, or are we praying to communicate with our Father in heaven? Are we praying repetitious prayers or are we speaking from our heart?
Prayer should be a conversation that comes from the heart, and like all communication, it has a sender, receiver, and a message. The believer is the sender and the message are the thoughts of our heart.
Pray Without a Script
We see examples of Old Testament characters, like Moses, David, and Nehemiah praying without a script. When these men prayed, they cried out to God from their hearts as God intended. But by the time of Jesus, the unbelieving Pharisees had instituted repetitious prayer, because that’s all they knew of God.
Jesus tells us not to pray in this way, because it’s a hypocritical way to pray.
Jesus’ Model of Prayer
Looking at Jesus’ teaching on how to pray, we acknowledge that this prayer might be the greatest irony in the Bible. The irony here is that many Christians use this prayer in a way that deliberately contrary to what Jesus intended and expected. He just finished teaching the Church not to engage in repetitious prayer and yet people commonly chant verses 9-13 in unison, even though Jesus said in v7 do not use repetition.
So, knowing Jesus did not want us to recite prayer mindlessly, why did He give it to us? Because every good conversation required sensible structure and logic. Our prayers aren’t repetitive, but they should be planned and thoughtfully constructed.
Notice v9, Jesus says, “pray in this way”. He did not say, “Pray this prayer”. This shows that He wasn’t asking us to pray these words verbatim. But when we engage in personal prayer with the Father, we should not recite prayers assuming they have magical properties. Instead, we are to pray according to this format, this model.
Direct Your Prayer to God
V. 9 “Our Father in heaven,
Direct your prayers to the Father and as you do, take note that Jesus says He is your Father in heaven. By our faith in Jesus, scripture says we have been adopted into the family of God (Ephesians 1:5). As you pray, recognize you are speaking to the Heavenly Father Who cares for you.
God Alone is Holy
V.9 “Hallowed by your name”
The word “hallowed” means “sanctified”, set apart for holiness. So we are saying God alone is holy, set apart from the rest of Creation. We are testifying of His uniqueness and unequalled in all time and space. Nothing can compare to our God. Jesus’ point is that our prayer life should include a time of glorifying and praising the Father for Who He is what He has done for you in Christ.
Be Kingdom Minded
V.10 “Your kingdom come your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
Jesus gives us this example to pray for the arrival of the Kingdom and yearning for God’s will being done on earth. Jesus is saying we need to have eyes for eternity in our prayers. Yes, our lives on earth will give us reason to pray for material. But don’t forget that this world and all it’s problems are passing away. And one day, Jesus will return and establish His Kingdom on earth.
Meanwhile, for a short time, we endure this sinful world. Don’t spend all your time praying about fleeting things of the world. Spend more time praying about eternal things to come. Pray in excitement and expectation for the chance to see a world ruled in perfection and justice by our King Jesus.
Personal Needs
V.11 “Give us this day our daily bread,”
Pray for personal needs and not wants. Remember this is a model prayer. Our daily needs vary, and so will our prayers But Jesus’ point is that prayer for daily needs is both expected and appropriate for the Believer. So whether that’s financial need, a health need, a relationship need, bring them before the Lord. Notice where this request falls in the priority. It comes after praising God’s goodness and sovereignty.
Forgiveness for Yourself and Others
V.12 “and forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors.”
Jesus says make room for your prayer life for forgiveness, both for you and others. We should spend time confessing our sins to the Lord and seeking his forgiveness. Likewise, we should spend time resolving our bitterness, resentment, and anger toward others who have hurt us. Ask the Lord to lead you to a resolution with others offenses against you.
Protection Against Spiritual Warfare
V.13 “Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.”
Jesus says our prayers should include a request for protection from Spiritual warfare. Satan is real and so are the demonic angels that followed in rebellion. As born-again Believers in Jesus Christ, we are enemies of the enemy and his focus. Therefore, we are going to experience attacks from time to time- even more as we become more effective witnesses for Christ. We need prayer-covering to withstand their attacks.
In the original Greek, this verse means, “Lead us away from the enemy’s temptations”. So we should pray that as the enemy schemes to tempt our flesh that the Lord would rescue us from ourselves.
Approach God Boldly- He made this possible through Jesus
Finally, we don’t want to practice our prayer life in a hypocritical way, which is pray like those who don’t have a relationship with God. Instead approach God boldly and engage with Him in a meaningful conversation. Take advantage of what He has made available to us through Christ.
Read The Passage
“Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2 Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 3 But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you [a]openly.
The Model Prayer
5 “And when you pray, you shall not be like the [b]hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 6 But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you [c]openly. 7 And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8 “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. 9 In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10 Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
13 And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
[d]For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
14 “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Resources
Steven Armstrong Matthew Study
John V. Mcgee Matthew Exegesis
Thank you for crediting our late pastor, Stephen Armstrong. His phrase, Eyes for Eternity, has become a way of life for many around the world. This was a great post. I’m so happy to see younger people studying and teaching others the Word. This was a great post.
Hi Pat,
I’m so blessed by Stephen Armstrong’s teachings and all of the Verse by Verse Ministry teachings. I look forward to one day, God willing, to visit your home church. Thank you for stopping by.
Be blessed.
Anda