Just what is the purpose of prayer? It is no secret that there are many books on the market that seek to answer this question. In this short two-part devotion, I will do my best to cover this extremely important topic by focusing on the most important prayer outline in Scripture – the Lord’s Prayer.
In Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) we read what has been commonly referred to as the model prayer or the Lord’s Prayer. Down through the centuries Christians have memorized and recited this 66 word prayer but sadly many have never really understood its importance and application. To plumb the depths of these 66 brief words is a lifetime study but I believe we can glean several key points in this devotion.
The Lord’s Prayer is as follows:
“Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.” (Matthew 6:9-13).
For many Christians they just recite the prayer and move on to another section of worship in the church service. By doing this, however, they miss the whole point of what this monumental prayer entails. Somehow God has managed to distill all the elements of prayer into this power-packed model prayer. And if you don’t think that prayer is important then just look at how much time Jesus spent in communion with His Father.
I would like to say at the outset that in order to know what prayer is, how to pray, and what is the priority of prayer, it is imperative that we study the Word of God. As we do this we will see a wonderful world of conversation and communion with our heavenly Father open up to us. For it is in the Bible that we learn who Jesus is, how to worship Him, and how we ought to pray.
There are so many ways we can view the Lord’s Prayer. I would like to focus on three ways that I believe will give you a better and fuller picture of just how awesome prayer can be. Today we will discuss one of them and tomorrow the other two.
The priority of prayer (1)
If we study the order of the Lord’s prayer we will notice that the first three elements of the prayer deal with God and His glory, while the second three sections deal with man and his need. Notice the first three pronouncements are all about God and His glory: “Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done.” We (man) are not even in the picture yet – it’s all about God and His glory! But God didn’t forget about us for the next three pronouncements are all about our needs: “Give us this day our daily bread, forgive us our debts, and do not lead us into temptation.”
Here in this model prayer, we see the key priority of prayer – to glorify God. When we pray we should want to put God’s glory on display to the whole world. Meeting our needs is important, as the second set of pronouncements show us, but they are only secondary, because when God meets our needs we should be quick to give Him all the praise, honor, and glory. So, we see that in reality God’s glory is the key priority of prayer and should permeate every aspect of our prayer life. And isn’t this what we are ultimately created for: to glorify God and enjoy Him forever! And praise God for prayer is the perfect vehicle to do this. When we view prayer in this light it should become the most wonderful part of our day!
In tomorrow’s devotion we will look at two more aspects of prayer.
Jesus is our eternal covenant Savior, central to this covenant is the character of God the Father and He revealed His character in His Law. So, it should not surprise us that Jesus would entwine the Law in His prayers, the Lord’s Prayer being a prime example.
“Our Father”-We are His children who love no other god.
“Thou shalt have no other god before me.”
“Who art in heaven”-God is spirit and is not made of earthly materials like stone or wood.
“Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image.”
“Holy be your name”-His names set him apart from any other god and are never to be used in an empty way as though they have no power or meaning.
“Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.”
Can you recite the 10 Commandments from memory? Do you incorporate them in your prayers?
Dear Lord, You’re my Father. I worship no other god. Keep me from making idols out of earthly things like money, cars, fame or people. Your Word tells me we shall inherit the earth, so help me prepare it by bringing heaven down to earth. Deliver me from the sin and temptation of hate, adultery, stealing, lying or coveting anything that is my neighbor’s.
May I glorify you forever and ever, especially as I meet weekly with the saints to make the day holy.
Try it and see how God will use praying His Law to show you your sin and transform your life as you interact with God using that which will never return to Him void.