This, then, is how you should pray: "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one." - Matthew 6:9-13
There was a season where I only prayed the Lord's prayer every day. I had reached the end of knowing what to pray and decided to just put the Lord's prayer on repeat.
But recently I've been thinking about Jesus' command on how to pray and what if we lived this prayer. The Lord's Prayer has the potential to completely change us and, if we live it, the world.
"Your will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven."
In Love Wins Rob Bell talks about bringing heaven to earth and making life a little less like hell for people. Stephen Colbert describes hell as being separated from God's love. People describe heaven as a place of peace. Where sickness and pain and hurt and poverty and hunger and evil is abolished and God's love is everywhere. What is God's will in heaven that we are to bring to earth? God sent his son as a means to reconcile the world back to him. Jesus' time on earth was spent bringing healing, reconciliation, redemption, peace. Jesus said repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is here. Repent, turn from your selfishness, from your sin, so you can enter into the love of God. In the love of God comes healing, peace, restoration, that we are to share with the world around us because of those things that God has birthed in us. Bringing heaven to earth is not just about converting and evangelizing to as many people as possible, but by brining the life changing love that Christ offers to reconcile people to each other and to God, through healing and restoration.
"Give us Today our Daily bread."
I don't remember who posted it, but I saw someone tweet about our daily bread being just that, daily. It's what got me thinking about the Lord's Prayer. Give us today our daily bread. Jesus wants us to recognize that our reliance on God is daily. Not just when things are going poorly, but daily. There are moments when all I can ask is God help me get through today. But that should be our every day. Jesus is far too often our last option, our last resort when all our resources and energies fail. But God should be our daily dependance and where we turn to first.
We also spend much of our time asking God about the future. What's the next step? Who am I suppose to marry? When will we have kids? What's my next career move? Jesus said not to focus and worry about tomorrow because today has enough for us to worry and focus on. We should be asking God, what do you want of me today. What's in store for today.
The last note on daily bread is the bread itself. Bread isn't sexy. Sure, bread comes in a variety of flavors, shapes, and sizes, but ultimately it's just bread. I think most of the time we would rather ask God to give us today our daily steak or our daily lobster. We want God to do something big and flashy or use us to do something big and flashy for him. But God's commands, while not always easy, are simple. It's the bread that we need each day.
"Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors."
This is a verse where I would like it to read "Lord help us forgive our debtors as you have forgiven us our debts." It would be easier because it wouldn't be a conditional prayer. Lord forgive us in the same way that we forgive those who have wronged us. I need God's forgiveness. Daily! And if that's dependent on how I forgive others, then I'm in a heap of trouble! Now, I don't believe that God's forgiveness is conditional to my forgiving of others. But what if I lived like it was?
Just let that sink in for a moment.
The wages of sin are death and God's forgiveness, God's love covers you and takes you off of death row. We have wronged God to the point where the punishment is death and God has forgiven us that debt and we are called to show that same grace and forgiveness. If we put that into practice, it's revolutionary! That's a kind of forgiveness that could change the world if every christian lived their life forgiving people in such a radical way. Even if we prayed with that kind of grace to people and groups who have wronged us unintentionally! I forgive you and want you to find and have life!
"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."
Jesus says God is our father, and we are called to bring heaven to earth, rely on God every day, and forgive radically! And then Jesus says we need to make sure we ask God to help lead us away from temptation that could cause us to sin. Paul said he did not want to sin but what he doesn't want to do, he does. Sin and temptation is everywhere. And without the self-control that only comes from spending time with and being in God's presence, we will fall more often than not. Jesus understood that even if we could wrap our heads around the ideas of needing God to be our supply every day, and bringing heaven to earth, and radical forgiveness, that if we didn't have self-control and weren't looking to God to help us out of situations that could destroy us, we would fall and shortchange what God wants to do in our lives.
The Lord's Prayer is revolutionary if we take it to heart and live it out and not just let it be something we memorize and throw out in Sunday School. The power in this prayer could change the world.
This is a verse where I would like it to read "Lord help us forgive our debtors as you have forgiven us our debts." It would be easier because it wouldn't be a conditional prayer. Lord forgive us in the same way that we forgive those who have wronged us. I need God's forgiveness. Daily! And if that's dependent on how I forgive others, then I'm in a heap of trouble! Now, I don't believe that God's forgiveness is conditional to my forgiving of others. But what if I lived like it was?
Just let that sink in for a moment.
The wages of sin are death and God's forgiveness, God's love covers you and takes you off of death row. We have wronged God to the point where the punishment is death and God has forgiven us that debt and we are called to show that same grace and forgiveness. If we put that into practice, it's revolutionary! That's a kind of forgiveness that could change the world if every christian lived their life forgiving people in such a radical way. Even if we prayed with that kind of grace to people and groups who have wronged us unintentionally! I forgive you and want you to find and have life!
"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."
Jesus says God is our father, and we are called to bring heaven to earth, rely on God every day, and forgive radically! And then Jesus says we need to make sure we ask God to help lead us away from temptation that could cause us to sin. Paul said he did not want to sin but what he doesn't want to do, he does. Sin and temptation is everywhere. And without the self-control that only comes from spending time with and being in God's presence, we will fall more often than not. Jesus understood that even if we could wrap our heads around the ideas of needing God to be our supply every day, and bringing heaven to earth, and radical forgiveness, that if we didn't have self-control and weren't looking to God to help us out of situations that could destroy us, we would fall and shortchange what God wants to do in our lives.
The Lord's Prayer is revolutionary if we take it to heart and live it out and not just let it be something we memorize and throw out in Sunday School. The power in this prayer could change the world.
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