One of the most popular passages people memorize is that known affectionately as “The Lord’s Prayer,” or, more accurately, “the Model Prayer”. This is likely because of the Catholic church, which, quite ironically, uses it as one of their ritual prayers, but Jesus taught it within the Sermon on the Mount as an example of Kingdom righteousness.

Throughout the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is combatting His contemporary religious culture, addressing the shallowness and hypocrisy of the scribes and Pharisees. This theme continues into His discussion of service to God. Jesus uses the examples: almsgiving, prayer, and fasting, which is exactly where we actually find the Model Prayer.

Jesus here teaches His disciples about a higher form of prayer than they were used to—a truly sincere prayer that pleases God.

We may not live in the days of the scribes and Pharisees, but God still expects sincere prayer.

“Pray, then, in this way:

‘Our Father who is 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 do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
[For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’]
 
 For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.” (Matt 6:9–15)

Sincere prayer exalts God, not yourself.

“Our Father who is in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matt 6:9–10)

You may notice that about half of the Model Prayer is God-focused. This is absolutely intentional on Jesus’s part!

God-pleasing prayer is not just about you. Prayer is not a political tool to show your superiority over other people.

Because prayer is about your relationship with God, the first part of the prayer emphasizes who God is, and lifts Him up.

These three expressions follow a similar format in the original text.

• Let Your Name be sanctified.
• Let Your Kingdom come.
• Let Your will come to pass.

In your prayers, exalt God’s holiness.

“Hallowed be Your Name.” (Matt 6:9)

Jesus teaches us to start by lifting up God’s Name in praise.

Recognize who God is—who am I speaking to? Prayer ought to humble us and help us remember how great the God we serve is.

If you want to learn to praise God in your prayers, read and learn from the psalms.

“I will extol You, my God, O King, and I will bless Your name forever and ever. Every day I will bless You, and I will praise Your name forever and ever.” (Ps 245:1–2)

Notice what Jesus emphasizes: Hallowed be Your name.

God has many names in Scripture. Jesus does not mean any particular name, but the authority and power of God!

Exalting God leads us to respect His authority.

In your prayers, exalt God’s authority.

“Your kingdom come.” (Matt 6:10a)

Usually, I hear this part brought up to tell us that the Kingdom has already come, and that we ought not pray this portion of the prayer.

While it is true that the Kingdom (the church) has already come, Jesus is making a bigger point.

By praying for the kingdom of God, Jesus emphasizes God’s reign and authority spreading within the world.

We can and should pray for the church. Pray for the growth of her members.

For example, Paul often told the churches he wrote to that he remembered them in all his prayers. He expressed his thanks for them and the encouragement they provided to him. He also asked God to help them to grow spiritually!

If we respect God’s authority, we should both submit ourselves to it and seek for it to overwhelm the world.

In your prayers, exalt God’s will.

“Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matt 6:10b)

Our role on earth is to make earth as much a model of heaven as we can. Place God’s will above all else in your life, especially your own.

No one lived this out more than Jesus Himself. He sacrificed His personal will to the ultimate will of God:

“He went away again a second time and prayed, saying, ‘My Father, if this cannot pass away unless I drink it, Your will be done.’ (Matt 26:42 )

By asking God to fulfill His will, Jesus confessed faith in and faithfulness to the Father.

It’s hypocritical to pray to God and try to exalt yourself. Prayer should be a time of humility when we hand ourselves over to the Creator and surrender to Him.

Sincere prayer confesses your need, not your worthiness.

“Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” (Matt 6:11–13)

When praying, the Pharisees told God how much they offered to Him. They used the opportunity to brag about their spiritual discipline (cf. Luke 18:11–12).

Jesus teaches His disciples instead to admit their inadequacy.

There is no need to tell God what you have to offer—you really have very little.

A.W. Tozer wrote this:

“I do not think I exaggerate when I say that some of us put our offering in the plate with a kind of triumphant bounce as much as to say: ‘There—now God will feel better!’ I am obliged to tell you that God does not need anything you have. He does not need a dime of your money. It is your own spiritual welfare at stake in such matters as these.”

You need God for physical sustenance.

“Give us today our daily bread.” (Matt 6:11)

This would remind His audience about the days in the Wilderness, when God fed the people with manna. Manna was true “daily bread.” God gave them each day enough for that day, except on the sixth day, when He gave two-days’ worth.

Even when times are tough and thin, trust in God to take care of you day-by-day.

“Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” (Matt 6:31–33)

You need God for spiritual renewal.

“Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” (Matt 6:12)

Our most visible needs are the physical. We feel hunger, cold, heat, pain. But our deepest needs are harder to see.

We need God to forgive our sins—because we do sin. Don’t pretend you can be righteous without God.

The Pharisee declared to God:

“I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get” (Luke 18:11–12).

Do not let your prayers become a time to make excuses for your sins. Confess your sins to God and appeal to His mercy.

You need God for spiritual guidance.

“And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” (Matt 6:13)

The last expression, “from evil,” could also be understood as “from the Evil One,” which is probably more likely.

Either way, we pull the same principle away: We need God’s guidance to help us avoid temptations and keep from falling into sin.

What are we praying for, however?

• We are not asking God to overcome our will and prevent us from sinning.
• We are asking for God’s providence to help us avoid tempting situations.
• We are asking for wisdom to see the “way of escape.”
• We are asking for God to take away sinful influences from our life.

“No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.” (1 Cor 10:13 )

Learning to trust in God requires a lifetime of spiritual growth. Pray in a way that confesses your need for God in all areas of life and reminds you of your insufficiencies.

Sincere prayer comes from your consistent life.

“For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.” (Matt 6:14–15)

After concluding the Model Prayer, Jesus goes back to part of the prayer to illustrate a specific point. God wants you to fix what is wrong in your life before you come to Him.

Imagine going to the big Thanksgiving or Christmas family gathering and your third-cousin asks you for a huge favor. You see this guy once a year at best, and you’ve never been close, and he’s never even feigned interest in having a close relationship. He comes up to you and asks if he can move in with you for a year, and if you can co-sign his car loan, and all this stuff—as if you’re just best friends!

That’s what it’s like coming to God and asking for all His blessings, while never even trying to live right with Him.

Seek effective prayer through righteousness, not repetition

The Pharisees and Gentiles thought their prayers would be heard if they repeated them enough. However, the truth is much simpler: God is the one who provides. What persuades Him is not some magic trick of repetition, but a consistent, righteous life.

“The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” (Jas 5:16 KJV)

God did not listen to the Pharisees’ prayers then. If you aren’t living right, He won’t listen to your prayers now either.

Live consistently with how you want God to treat you.  

The Model Prayer is not intended to be recited as a ritualistic, meaningless repetition. In fact, it is intended to teach us how to have deep personal conversations with God.

Don’t memorize it to utter emotionlessly before bed, but perhaps memorizing it will help you remember the lessons Jesus really wanted to get across.

It all starts with living the right life: Live a righteous life to please God.

Humbly lift up God in your prayers and you will grow closer to Him.

Focus your prayers on your spiritual needs before God.