Episode Transcript
PRAYER OF CONSECRATION
Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.
Abba, I belong to you.
I lift up my heart to you.
I set my mind on you.
I fix my eyes on you.
I offer my body to you as a living sacrifice.
Abba, we belong to you.
Praying in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, amen.
Matthew 6:9–13 (NIV)
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.’”
CONSIDER THIS
When Jesus taught us to pray, he said go into your room, close the door, and speak these fifty-three words to God. So why don't we do it? Why do we tend to do just the opposite?
Let’s do a high-level overview today and save the deep dive for later. Seven major prayer points: PERSONAL. PRESENCE. PRIORITY. PURPOSE. PROVISION. PEACE. PROTECTION.
Our: the prayer is relational. Though we may be praying this prayer alone in our prayer closet, we never approach God as an individual. Our praying is always both personal and communal as opposed to the way we are primarily formed by our Western culture, which is individualized and private. God sees us personally but not outside of our relatedness to others. It’s why forgiveness is so critical—coming later in the prayer.
Father: PERSONAL. The typical way a Jewish prayer would open was, “Blessed are you, O Lord, our God, the King of the Universe . . .” Remember, Jesus is not merely teaching us to pray like he prays. He is bringing us into his relationship with “our Father.” Our is also Jesus saying, "me and you," or "me and all y'all!" Father language is not intended to attach gender to God but to imply the nature of the relationship. The word Father signifies family, character, or nature and role.
In heaven: PRESENCE. Where is God? From the great fall in the garden, God has dwelt in the realm of the heavens. The holiness of God could not abide the presence of our corrupted humanity. It is not because God despised humanity that he departed from our presence in Eden. It was because he loved us. The unadulterated presence of his holiness would have consumed us in our fallenness.
Hallowed be thy name: PRIORITY. Though a bit jarring, it makes sense that “Our Father” would be followed by “Holy is your name.” We must remain mindful that we are on earth and God is in heaven. Though he be our Father, he is holy. Though he be holy and in heaven, we must not assume this means he is distant. Heaven is not somewhere out there. It is the unseen realm just through the veil. It is right here, right now. To say "Holy is your name" is not to keep our distance but to retain our reverence. We approach with confidence and in a familial way, but not casually and presumptuously.
Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. PURPOSE. This is God’s great plan. Jesus makes this the first petition. He wants for God’s great plan to become our great purpose in all things. Hence, we make it the prayer within all our prayers. This is the ultimate prayer for awakening. Here's what it means: Let there be light displacing darkness. Let there be life destroying death. Let there be new creation breaking through the chaos.
Give us this day our daily bread: PROVISION. This is code language for, “Remember manna.” Remember how manna worked? Each morning, it was provided. They gathered enough for the day's need. On the day prior to the Sabbath, they gathered enough for two days. Anything gathered beyond what was needed rotted. Bottom line here: there will always be scarcity in our hoarding but over abundance in God’s provision.
Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us: PEACE. We need to live at peace with others. We begin by taking stock of the debts owed us— our accounts receivables, if you will. Not literal debts but anything done to us, directly or indirectly, intentionally or negligently, offensively or defensively, we need to wipe the slate clean— cancel the foul. Next, we take our own sins to God to ask for the same from him for ourselves.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one: PROTECTION. We are far more vulnerable than we realize. The reason we don’t realize it is because we spend so much energy trying to protect ourselves. Jesus does not want our energy and resources going into self-protection; rather, he wants us to trust in his protection. Temptation concerns our weakness. Deliverance from evil concerns our exposure.
Seven P’s: PERSONAL. PRESENCE. PRIORITY. PURPOSE. PROVISION. PEACE. PROTECTION.
When Jesus taught us to pray, he said go into your room, close the door, and speak these fifty-three words to God. So why don't we do it? Why do we tend to do just the opposite?
THE PRAYER FOR PRAYER
Almighty, ascended Lord Jesus Christ, you are high and exalted, yet nearer than our breath. Thank you for this prayer of faith. Thank you for making clear to us that the measure of our praying does not consist in making sure we ask for everything, but in a lived faith that you are taking care of everything. Make that a real place for me and not just an ideal. Praying in your name, Jesus, amen.
