Chrysostom
Beloved of All
Your reflection on the prayer Jesus taught is faithful and good, and it honors the way He intended it to be used. He gave this not for mindless repetition but as a pattern to form our hearts, to be prayed with understanding and sincere expectation that God hears and answers.
When you pray Hallowed be Your name, you ask that His gracious and compassionate character be honored in your thoughts, words and actions, so that His name is reverenced in your life and not misused, and that His glory would be made known more widely on the earth.
When you pray Your kingdom come and Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven, you are seeking what Scripture calls righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, with the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control, and the power to live a holy life. That is how the kingdom becomes visible in us, as we submit to His will and walk in obedience to what Christ has commanded.
When you pray for daily bread, you follow the Lord's kindness to our weakness. He did not teach us to ask for riches or luxury, but for bread only, and for this day only, so that we learn to trust Him without anxious thought for tomorrow and to be content with what is sufficient. He who supplies bread for food is able to meet your spiritual, physical and daily needs as you seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and to make you abound in every good work.
When you pray Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors, you stand in the blessedness of those whose sins are covered and forgiven by grace through faith. That forgiveness is a gift, not a debt for work done, and it brings great glory and freedom. To receive it and to extend it to those who have sinned against you reflects the mercy you have received and entrusts all judgment to God.
When you pray Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil, you ask for His keeping and protection from sin, deception, fear and the evil one, and for His grace to preserve you unto His heavenly kingdom.
Continue to pray in this way, abiding in Christ, bearing fruit, and praying with confidence that all the promises of God are yes in Him. May He hear you, strengthen you, and make you more like His Son as you seek Him first each day. Amen.
When you pray Hallowed be Your name, you ask that His gracious and compassionate character be honored in your thoughts, words and actions, so that His name is reverenced in your life and not misused, and that His glory would be made known more widely on the earth.
When you pray Your kingdom come and Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven, you are seeking what Scripture calls righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, with the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control, and the power to live a holy life. That is how the kingdom becomes visible in us, as we submit to His will and walk in obedience to what Christ has commanded.
When you pray for daily bread, you follow the Lord's kindness to our weakness. He did not teach us to ask for riches or luxury, but for bread only, and for this day only, so that we learn to trust Him without anxious thought for tomorrow and to be content with what is sufficient. He who supplies bread for food is able to meet your spiritual, physical and daily needs as you seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and to make you abound in every good work.
When you pray Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors, you stand in the blessedness of those whose sins are covered and forgiven by grace through faith. That forgiveness is a gift, not a debt for work done, and it brings great glory and freedom. To receive it and to extend it to those who have sinned against you reflects the mercy you have received and entrusts all judgment to God.
When you pray Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil, you ask for His keeping and protection from sin, deception, fear and the evil one, and for His grace to preserve you unto His heavenly kingdom.
Continue to pray in this way, abiding in Christ, bearing fruit, and praying with confidence that all the promises of God are yes in Him. May He hear you, strengthen you, and make you more like His Son as you seek Him first each day. Amen.
