THE LORD’S MODEL PRAYER
A Devotion Based on Christ's Model in Matthew 6
The Lord's Prayer…=
"Our Father in heaven" -- We need to always acknowledge
first and foremost who we are talking to. He (God) is our heavenly Father. =
We
address Him with respect just as we should address our earthly father with
respect. He is the only true God who created all things in this universe,
including ourselves. He loves us and we need to =
show
our love for Him.
"Hallowed be your name" -- We must see Him as being hol=
y,
sanctified, consecrated; worthy of praise, honor and glory!
"Your kingdom come" - We acknowledge His coming kingdom=
. We
pray that Christ will soon return and establish His earthly kingdom where we
will reign with Him for eternity.
"Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" -- We n=
eed
to be praying for His will to be done in our lives, so that we might bring
glory to Him here on earth as He is also glorified in heaven. We need to do
things His way, instead of selfishly doing our own things to satisfy our own
desires.
"Give us today our daily bread" -- We should ask our Fa=
ther
each day to provide for our needs, just as He promised in His Holy Word. His
Word says that we don't have, because we don't ask. Of course, we must firs=
t know
God through His Son, our personal Lord and Savior. If we don't know Christ,=
God
won't acknowledge this request for daily provision.
"Forgive us our debts (or transgressions) as we also have
forgiven our debtors (transgressors)" -- This speaks about forg=
iveness
among our associates, neighbors, friends, family and loved ones. Any and all
persons in our lives that we come in contact with in social or business
situations are included as well. If we can't forgive others, how can we exp=
ect
our heavenly Father to forgive us?
"Lead us not into temptation" -- We need to ask our
heavenly Father to help us recognize every evil thing, every temptation bef=
ore
us. We need help to stay focused on our Father and see the evil that we mig=
ht
fall into, for what it is really is, a trap set by Satan to bring us down to
his level.
"But deliver us from the evil one" -- Help us, dear Fat=
her,
to steer clear of that liar and deceiver. Let us see clearly the path that =
you
want each of us to walk. By the power of the Holy Spirit that dwells within=
us,
may we never stray from your will and way...=
Lord's Prayer - A
Glorious Ending
Some commentators believe that the end of the Lo=
rd's
Prayer - "For thine is the kingdom, and=
the
power, and the glory forever" - was added by someone other than the
original writer. Whether that's true or not, this last phrase simply emphas=
izes
more praise and glory to God the Father - so it's absolutely biblical… a glorious ending=
to a
model prayer to God!