The Lord’s Prayer and Matthew’s Gospel: A Summary, Part 2

The previous post summarized how Matthew’s Gospel helps inform us how to better pray the Lord’s Prayer, and specifically, it was focused on the first four statements of the Lord’s Prayer. The traditional approach to the Lord’s Prayer categorizes each statement as a petition, but such a categorization seems to me to be a bit broad. The Lord’s Prayer, I believe, is better understood if it is seen as being composed of three different types of statements: praise, petition, and qualifier. Looking back at the statements discussed last week, we see that each fits one of these three categories, as follows:

Opening Praise: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.
Petition One: Your kingdom come,
Petition Two: your will be done,
Qualifier for Petition One and Petition Two: on earth as it is in heaven.

The Lord’s Prayer opens with a statement of praise before moving into the first two petitions. But these two petitions are qualified in such a way that the one praying understands the nature of what they are asking of the Father. With these qualifiers in mind, we see that petition one asks the Father to bring to earth a kingdom like the one that is in heaven; petition two, then asks that the Father’s will is performed on earth in the same manner that it performed in heaven, ostensibly by those living in the heavenly kingdom. This first half of the Lord’s Prayer first acknowledges God’s existence, nature, and supremacy before asking that God would bring to earth a kingdom of followers who would do his will.

The second half of the Lord’s Prayer is the topic of this week’s final summary. It may be helpful to first take note of the types of statements found in this portion of the Lord’s Prayer before moving into the actual summaries. They are as follows:

Petition Three: Give us this day our daily bread,
Petition Four: and forgive us our debts,
Qualifier for Petition Four: as we also have forgiven our debtors.
Petition Five: And lead us not into temptation,
Petition Six: but deliver us from evil.
Concluding Praise: For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.

This half of the Lord’s Prayer is also comprised of petitions, a qualifier, and a concluding praise. I will not repeat my discussion of the originality of the concluding praise as I have previously addressed the topic in the post for Matthew 24:1-2, but given this reading of the prayer, it is important to note that prayer begins and ends with praise. Secondly, as discussed in previous posts, it is important to recognize that the qualifier in this portion of the Lord’s Prayer guides our prayer for forgiveness from the Father: if we are unwilling to forgive others, the Father is unwilling to forgive us. Jesus did not give his disciples a prayer so they might sit back and reap rewards; Jesus provided a prayer that causes us to contemplate our own actions at the same time we petition the Father for his providence, forgiveness, and protection.

With that brief introduction, we now move into the third petition of the Lord’s Prayer and some key points Matthew’s Gospel makes regarding the meaning of this petition.

Matthew 14-17: Give us this day our daily bread,

This third petition of the Lord’s Prayer acknowledges a daily reliance upon the Father’s open hand to provide us with bread, but this prayer is not limited solely to food for the stomach. When seen through the lens of Matthew’s Gospel, when we ask the Father to give us this day our daily bread, we are asking for

• the Father’s daily presence during our times of grief and emptiness (Matt. 14:13, 23),
• a heart to have compassion on others even when we are hurting (Matt. 14:14-21),
• the strength to meet the needs of others even when we feel empty (Matt. 14:14-21),
• the faith to trust the Father to meet our daily needs (Matt. 14:14; 15:22, 30-31; 17:24-27),
• the faith to trust that the Father will comfort us even after we empty ourselves by helping others (Matt. 14:15, 20),
• the faith to expect, embrace, and trust the Father’s presence when we are caught in the midst of life’s storms (Matt. 14:24-33),
• the faith to persist in prayer for the Father’s daily gifts of grace and mercy (Matt. 14:34-36; 15:21-28),
• the faith to seek and trust only the Father’s wisdom for daily guidance (Matt. 15:1-9; 16:5-12),
• a heart that follows the Father, not merely lips that speak his praises (Matt. 15:3-20),
• the faith to trust the Father to meet all the daily needs of others (Matt. 15:32-39),
• the wisdom and vision to see the Father working (Matt. 16:1-4),
• the strength and courage to take up our cross daily and follow Jesus (Matt. 16:24-26),
• the faith to daily confess Jesus as the Son of the Living God (Matt. 16:13-20; 17:1-8), and
• the faith, strength, and courage to act at the moment when God is moving in our lives (Matt. 17:9-20).

This third petition encourages us to trust the Father for the food we consume each day, but it also encourages us to thank him for the food he has provided. But this petition is not solely about the stomach. When tempted to turn stones into bread, Jesus replied by quoting Moses when he said, “Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matt. 4:4; Deut. 8:3). The Father provides for us all we need, we only need to ask him for it. For such we pray when we pray “Give us this day our daily bread.”

Matthew 18: and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

This fourth petition of the Lord’s Prayer must be read with its qualifier if we are to understand its meaning and if we are to truly be able to pray for the Father’s forgiveness. All theological wrangling aside, this petition links the forgiveness we receive from the Father to the forgiveness we give to others. If we are not able to forgive others, what right do we have to seek the Father’s forgiveness for ourselves? When we pray and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven others we are praying for

• the proper sort of humility to be part of the Father’s kingdom (Matt. 18:1-4),
• the humility required to always seek the spiritual good of others (Matt. 18:5-6),
• us to not be the cause of anyone else’s temptation to sin (Matt. 18:7),
• the strength and courage to sacrifice our physical well-being and freedom so as to avoid giving into temptations (Matt. 18:8-9),
• the humility required to always seek the physical good of others, even the lowest on the social ladder (Matt. 18:10-14),
• the humility needed to seek a proper resolution between us and those who sin against us (Matt. 18:15-17),
• the humility needed to submit to the body of Christ, the church, in all areas of forgiveness (Matt. 18:18-20),
• the humility needed to continually forgive others even if they persist in the same sin (Matt. 18:21-22), and
• the realization that the forgiveness we offer others affects the forgiveness the Father offers to us (Matt. 18:23-35).

This petition and its qualifier might be THE most practical of all the petitions in the Lord’s Prayer. Not only does it affect every relationship with have with every other human being, but it also appears to drastically affect the relationship we have with the Father. If we are unwilling to offer complete forgiveness to others, how can we expect the Father to forgive us? For such we pray when we pray “and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.”

Matthew 19-20: And lead us not into temptation,

This fifth petition of the Lord’s Prayer may seem a bit odd as it is a request that God would not lead us into temptation. I suspect that the general expectation regarding God and his leading would be that he would always be taking us closer to holiness and sanctification but never into any areas of temptation and sin. Like the fourth petition and its qualifier, this petition implies there is some participation on our part. The gate leading to the Father’s path is narrow and the way difficult, by praying that he lead us not into temptations, we are praying that we

• do not allow our selfish desires to request sinful permission from God (Matt. 19:3-9),
• pay close attention to and abide by the laws of God (Matt. 19:8-9, 16-22),
• have the strength to follow God’s ways even when they are difficult (Matt. 19:10-12),
• do not allow our pride to keep others from experiencing God’s love (Matt. 19:13-15),
• do not give into the temptation of thinking we can earn salvation (Matt. 19:16-22, 23-30),
• do not place more value in being moral than in loving God (Matt. 19:16-22),
• value humility and greatness in the kingdom of heaven more than greatness on earth (Matt. 19:23-30),
• rejoice with others when they receive rewards, both spiritual and material, from the Father (Matt. 20:1-16),
• do not place more value on our wants than on the Father’s plans (Matt. 20:17-20),
• do not demand that God work things out in our favor (Matt. 20:22-23),
• are not indignant with others but kind and forgiving (Matt. 20:24), and
• do not seek to lead others, rather that we seek to serve others (Matt. 20:25-28).

If we follow in the will of the Father then we can expect that he will lead us along the path wherein lies the least temptations. Furthermore, as we follow the Father’s will, we still need his hand to keep our sinful hearts from constantly seeking our own pleasure instead of the Father’s pleasure. For such we pray when we pray “And lead us not into temptation.”

Matthew 20-27: but deliver us from evil.

This sixth and last petition of the Lord’s prayer has been rendered as both “deliver us from evil” and “deliver us from the evil one.” While the latter rendition is probably a more dramatic favorite the former is a more universal interpretation that includes every sort of evil ranging from that coming from the evil one all the way to such evil as is found within our own hearts. With this broader interpretation in mind, Matthew helps us understand that when we pray for deliverance from evil we are praying that we would

• have our eyes opened so we can see the world as it truly is (Matt. 20:29-33),
• see Jesus as he is, not as we want him to be (Matt. 21:1-17),
• have strong faith and would produce the fruit of the kingdom (Matt. 21:18-22),
• accept the authority of Jesus (Matt. 21:23-27),
• perform actions and speak words consistent with the Father’s will (Matt. 21:28-45),
• accept the Father’s call and remain prepared for the Father’s coming kingdom (Matt. 22:1-14),
• not live as hypocrites (Matt. 21:15-22; 23:1-39),
• not merely act morally, but would Love God with our entire being (Matt. 22:34-46),
• not be deceived and led astray by false prophets (Matt. 24:3-4),
• remain constant in our faith even while experiencing trials and tribulations (Matt. 24:5-25:46),
• show proper love for Jesus while we can (Matt. 26:6-16),
• not be like Judas and betray Jesus for those things that we think will benefit us (Matt. 26:14-25, 47-56; 27:3-10),
• not abandon Jesus during times of difficulty (Matt. 26:30-56),
• trust the Father even when we don’t understand how he is working (Matt. 26:47-56),
• not give up hope of forgiveness even after we have sinned greatly (Matt. 27:3-10),
• have the strength to do all that our abilities and position allow us to do as a service for God (Matt. 27:57-61),
• be protected from the antagonists to the gospel (Matt. 27:62-66; 28:11-15), and
• praise Jesus for taking all of our sins and paying the price we should have paid (Matt. 27:15-54).

When we pray for deliverance from evil, of course, we want to live free of the influence of Satan, the evil one, but we also are praying that we would not give into various temptations that would start us down the path of evil. With the close of this last petition, we now turn to the final phrase of the Lord’s Prayer, a statement of praise.

Matthew 24-28: For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.

This final statement of the Lord’s Prayer is a praise that brings to a conclusion all that has been prayed since we began affirming the superior nature of Father in heaven and his holy Name. The Father’s kingdom has the power to break through the veil of this present world and overcome every kingdom, power, and temptation; its glory is the sort for which every kingdom in human history has sought but been unable to grasp; and its reign will never end. When we pray “For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.” we are affirming that,

• while all the kingdoms of the earth will fall, the Father’s kingdom will remain (Matt. 24-25),
• even though many may plot against the Father’s kingdom, they will never be victorious (Matt. 26:1-5, 14-16,47-67; 27:1-10),
• the Father is always working to establish his kingdom even if we don’t comprehend how (Matt. 25:47-56),
• God has power over death (Matt. 27:52-53; 28:1-10),
• God has work for each of us to do between now and the end of the age (Matt. 28:5-7; 16-20),
• Jesus has risen from the dead and is currently alive (Matt. 28:1-20),
• Jesus has empowered us to make disciples of all nations (Matt. 28:18-20), and
• Jesus will always be with us as we bring the gospel of the Father’s kingdom to earth (Matt. 28:20).

When we conclude our prayers with praise for the power and glory of the Father’s eternal kingdom, we are placing all of our requests in the proper perspective. The desires of our hearts are proven futile if they do not inevitably point in the direction of a kingdom whose power does not wane and whose glory does not diminish.

The Lord’s Prayer, just like Matthew’s Gospel, begins with a display of the Father’s holy and powerful name and concludes with an affirmation of his kingdom that is soon to come. We may not always pray the exact words as found in the Lord’s Prayer, but we would be fools if we did not make a regular habit of praying as Jesus taught his disciples. The Lord’s Prayer is not merely a formula, nor is it reserved for special occasions. Jesus’s prayer was meant as a way to assess our own desires while accessing the Father’s will. It is a prayer that encompasses the life of Jesus and is a path we ought to follow should we desire to become disciples of Jesus, the Son of the Living God.

Next week, we return to the Sermon on the Mount and will summarize how that teaching of Jesus adds more depth to our understanding of the Lord’s Prayer. Until such time, however,

Pray then like this:
“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 also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.

• Click HERE to go to the page containing all the posts for this study on The Lord’s Prayer and Matthew