On the Road to Jerusalem: Teaching Us To Pray

“And He said to them, ‘When you pray, say:
 

"Father, hallowed be Your name.

Your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread,
and forgive us our sins,

for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us.

And lead us not into temptation."

—Luke 11:2-4

The Lenten season is to be a time of focused prayer, introspection, humility, confession, restitution, and devotion. It is an extended period of time when we quiet our souls, focus on Christ, and do business with God. And while we read and meditate on His Word and the last several weeks of Christ's life, we must be in communion with Him through prayer. But how do we pray? The disciples asked a similar question when they said, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples”—Luke 11:1. Such a request is completely in accord with the will and purposes of God—to want to know how to properly commune with Him is a worthy and worthwhile request. Jesus answered by saying to them, “When you pray, say:

“Father, hallowed be Your name. 

Your kingdom come. 

Give us each day our daily bread, 

and forgive us our sins,
 

for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
 

And lead us not into temptation."

Jesus was giving them a template for prayer—not that this was the only way to pray, because we know from several prayers recorded in Scripture, including Jesus’ own, that there are many different ways to pray. The important thing is to see some of the essential elements included in His prayer.

He begins by addressing God as “Father,” and saying, “hallowed be Your name.” He was acknowledging God as holy and separate from all of creation. When we approach God, we must be careful, or as Solomon said, “Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few”—Ecclesiastes 5:2.

He is God and He is holy; we must be aware and acknowledge that fact whenever we enter His presence. Secondly, Jesus said, “Your kingdom come” which is a recognition that this world is passing away, but God’s eternal kingdom is coming. Jesus is pointing forward to the end of time when all wrongs will be righted, wickedness will be judged, and the righteous in Christ vindicated. We pray with eternity in focus, knowing that no matter what happens on earth, God’s plan and kingdom will not be stopped or delayed.

Thirdly, He says, “Give us each day our daily bread.” Here Jesus is looking back and connecting His prayer with the Israelite experience in the wilderness and with Moses’ words, “…man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD”—Deuteronomy 8:3. We are not sustained by mere foods, but by that which comes from the mouth of Almighty God. Which is why James could write,

“Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit’—yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.’ As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.”—James 4:13-16.

We are sustained by the hand and will of Almighty God and we must be continually reminded of that fact.

The fourth thing that Jesus draws our attention to is forgiveness: “forgive us our sins.” God is the only one who can forgive our sins (Mark 2:7; Luke 5:21) and He is the only one, ultimately, whom we have sinned against (Psalm 51:4). As the Psalmist wrote, “But with You there is forgiveness, that you may be feared”—Psalm 130:4. It is a healthy fear, an intense awareness of His person and presence that helps us know how to conduct ourselves in His presence.

The fifth item is forgiving others. If we are to receive God’s forgiveness then we must forgive others. This is a principle found throughout the New Testament. It has been said, “Forgiveness is a bridge we all must travel. If we burn it for someone else, we deny ourselves passage.” If we are going to be forgiven by God, we have to forgive others, because no matter what someone has done to us, it pales in comparison to the sins we have committed against God. And if God is to forgive us, then we must forgive others.

The sixth and final item in Jesus’ prayer is a request not to be led into temptation. We all are tempted by our own sinful desires (James 1:14-15). But God wants us to know that He Himself will not lead us into temptation—on the contrary, He will provide a way out for us (1 Corinthians 10:13).

As we continue on with Jesus on the road to Jerusalem, may we claim the truth of James 4:8, that if we “Draw near to God, ... He will draw near to you.” Let’s take the time to pray to Him, to lay our burdens down before Him, asking Him to sustain and guide us so that we might experience the joy of knowing and communing with Him. May our hearts be lifted up in prayer as we look to Him who is our hearts' desire and greatest joy—Jesus Christ our Lord and God. Amen.