Probably the first thing about this prayer our Lord teaches us is that it’s not so much about me, and it’s not so much about you...
It’s about us. “Our Father…Give us our daily bread…forgive us our sins…do not bring us to the time of trial.” This is a community prayer-because we are one body in Jesus Christ. Even when I pray this prayer in private, I pray it as it is-in the plural. It reminds me that we are in this together…we will always be together. And when I am praying this prayer in private, I am reminded that Christians all over the world and all throughout history are praying this prayer with me. For two thousand years now, followers of Jesus Christ have been praying, “Our Father…”
Another thing about this prayer is that the order is significant. Each part of the prayer builds on what comes before it. These are not random thoughts our Lord just put together. This prayer builds and reaches a climax, which we will see in a moment. But, first and foremost, "Our Father..."
It says a lot that the first thing we do in prayer is address God as our Father. We are adopted children of God. By God’s grace we have the privilege to call God, “Father.” God is our Father because God loves us, God gives us existence, God redeems us, God sustains us, provides for us, guides us, and ultimately God will bring us to himself where we belong.
Now, it’s tempting, and this is one of those fundamental mistakes people make, it's tempting to think that God is our Father in way that is analogous, that is like, our earthly parents. But actually, to think of our heavenly Father as like our earthly parents is to get the analogy backwards. God is not like our earthly parents. On the contrary, it’s the other way around. Our earthly parents are supposed to be like God-who is our Father. So, if earthly parents love their children and care for them, if they protect and provide for them, then they are a good reflection of God-who is “Our Father.” So, God is our Father and earthly parents are to be in his image.
But, as soon as we call God “Father” the very next thing we say is “Hallowed be thy name." “Holy is Your name.” On the one hand we refer to God as “Father,” which is a term of intimacy- a family term. As our Father, we can go to God and speak to God, we can trust God because God loves us. But, God is also Holy. God is not like us. God is the Creator, we are the creature. God is divine, we are human. God is to be honored and glorified. God is not to be trifled with, or treated in a trite manner. One way we keep the third commandment, which tells us not to take God’s name in vain, is by remembering every day in prayer that God is holy, and therefore God’s name is holy.
By the way, “God” is not God’s name. I am sure you have heard someone say in passing, “Oh my God.” And maybe someone else, who doesn’t have anything better to do, might say, “Ah, you took the Lord’s name in vain.” Well, that’s not quite accurate, is it? It’s true, using the phrase “Oh my God” seems to treat the word “God” in a trivial manner. But, that’s not God’s name. The word “God” simply refers to what kind of being God is. God is, well, God. To think "God" is God’s name would be like thinking my name is “human.” That’s not my name, that’s what I am. Likewise, “God” is not God’s name, that is simply our word for what God is. So, what is God’s name? We are given a name for God in the Hebrew scriptures. The Name consists of four Hebrew letters when translated mean something like, “I am,” or “I am that I am,” or “I am what I am,” or “I will be what I will be.”
If it weren't for John 8:58 we probably wouldn't know how to translate the divine Name because the ancient Israelites didn’t actually speak the Name, much less define it. And they didn’t speak the Name because it’s holy. To this day, when a person of Jewish faith is reading the Hebrew scriptures and comes to God’s name they will often say, “Hashem” which means “The Name.” Even in many current bibles, the Name of God is not written out. Instead, when we come to the divine Name the word "LORD" is often written in its place, in all capital letters. And, again, this is because God’s name is holy, God is holy.
We use God’s name in vain by not honoring God, by not obeying God. So, for instance, to call one’s self a “Christian” or a "Follower of Jesus Christ" and yet not live as Christ taught is to take the Lord’s name in vain. It is to use our Lord's name in a way that is not fitting. The scriptures say that Jesus Christ is the image of the invisible God, so we are to honor the Son just as we do the Father (Colossians 1:15). So, we say, “Our Father, hallowed be thy name…” which is a reminder that God is both our Father and Holy. God loves us and cares for us, but God is not to be trifled with as if it is a small thing that we can call on God. And then we pray for God’s kingdom to come.
Since the day our Lord returned to the Father, Christians have longed for a world where love and life, peace and joy are at home. When we ask for God’s kingdom to come, we are asking for a complete end to sin, suffering, sorrow, and death; and we are asking that life, love, joy and peace in God’s presence would become the absolute norm. Jesus said, “Seek first the kingdom of God…” and he teaches us to do just that in this prayer.
And here’s the thing, (and this comes out so clear in the scriptures), the early Christians were not sitting on their hands as they were waiting for the kingdom to come. They were already beginning to embody the kingdom's ways in their own lives. When we pray, “Thy kingdom come.” We are asking not only for a new heaven and a new earth (as the scriptures put it), but we are also asking for a transformation within us. We are given the Holy Spirit so that we will grow to maturity and be ready for God’s kingdom.
When I pray this part of the prayer, Thy kingdom come, this is the point in my prayers when I bring all my requests to God: requests for healing for those who are sick, comfort and strength for those who are struggling, peace among people, wisdom and discernment among our leaders, and so on-because all of these good things represent God’s kingdom. In God’s kingdom, the sick are healed, the dead are raised, mourning is turned to laughter, tears are wiped away. This is what we are waiting for, so this is the appropriate place within the prayer to lift up these requests.
Then we say, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Your will be done here where we are, just as it is there where you are. On the one hand, that sounds a lot like we’re asking for God’s kingdom to come. “They will be done” is virtually equivalent to “thy kingdom come.” But, let’s face it, we don’t have to ask for God’s will to be done as if God is waiting for us to ask in order for God to do what God does. Or, as if God’s will won’t be done if we don’t ask for it. Let’s have some humility here. God’s will is going to be done, with us or without us. So, what are we asking for when we say, “Thy will be done?”
Think about it this way. First we ask, thy kingdom come. This is what we want. This is what we are waiting for, and have waited for, for two thousand years. But it is not up to us when or how and at what pace this happens. We don’t get to decide when the sorrow and suffering and death ends. Only God knows the times and the seasons, so to speak. So, as soon as the words, “Thy kingdom come” leave our mouths, we are already following it up with, "...but, they will be done." We want the end of what does not belong, but we trust the Father and his will. If we have to wait for the kingdom, we would rather wait, be it God's will. And so, if we must wait, then we ask, "Give us this day's bread."
Give us our daily bread. If we must wait then we will need God to sustain us as we wait. This is the point I pray that we will have faith, that our hope will remain secure, that we will have courage to live according to God's kingdom, even in this world where love and life, righteousness and peace, are not at home. So we pray for bread, we pray for God to sustain us in life. Are we praying for physical bread or spiritual bread? The answer is "Yes!" Physical bread, spiritual bread-makes no difference, it all comes from God. And, we need both to live, to live according to God's kingdom here and now.
Forgive us as we forgive others. This is the pinnacle, the climax of the prayer. At this point in the prayer we are saying, "Father, we are your children because we are merciful just as you are merciful. Forgive us, because as your children we forgive others, just like you." Jesus teaches us: Be merciful just as your father is merciful (Luke 6:36). We already started the prayer by calling God "Our Father." Now we are saying, "We are your children. Be merciful to us, not because we are perfect, but because we are becoming like you in being merciful."
And then we close the prayer by saying, “Lead us not to temptation-or don’t bring us to the time of trial-deliver us from all evil.” Which is another way of saying, "Father we are wholly dependent on your grace. Keep us from trials and temptation-deliver us from all evil. We can do nothing, we can be nothing without you. Help us, for we are yours."
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