(Further reflections on "Our Father"--Sunday 19-June-2022)
Jesus taught us how to pray. Obviously this should not be the only prayer we have nor it should be treated as a magical formula or in a mechanical way. Two things stands out in the immediate context. First, don't be like the hypocrites (like the Jews) who love to be seen and perceived as godly in the public space (cf. Matthew 6:5). Second, don't pray if you don't believe or mean it (cf. Matthew 6:7). In other words, don't try to impress others by heaping up with many eloquent/big words (like the Gentiles). In short, a prayer's motive matters. The Jew-like or Gentile-like prayer are no longer fit for those who follow Jesus Christ.
So when (not if) Christians who are God's children desire to reflect His attributes and carry out His image pray, we first need to check our motive and then:
(1) Call on His holy name. This means the name of the Lord must be revered through our lifestyle, including our daily languages at work/home.
(2) Desire His kingdom and will to be done in and through our life. This means, our will (what we want or desire) must be submitted to God's will like what Jesus did from the manger to the cross.
(3) Ask the Lord for His provision, which is daily food. Oftentimes, we don't ask and give thanks because we think what we have on the table is the result of what we work for. We deserve it or are entitled to it. We are prone to worry about tomorrow's provision as we try to provide for ourselves in case the Lord might have failed to provide. Not asking the Lord for daily provision is the same as relying on our own ability to provide and not trusting the Lord for His provision. This does not mean that we need to work. There is huge difference between someone who works with joy, thanksgiving, and asking the Lord everyday and someone works with grumbles, ungratefulness, and not asking the Lord everyone (since it's so trivial comparing our ability). It's subtle here. We usually don't ask for what we are already able to do. Popular cultures preach, dream big and ask for the impossible and spend your life pursuing it. The Lord's Prayer teaches, ask the Lord for the most basic necessity of daily life, daily food. Humility and gratefulness are required.
(4) Ask the Lord for His forgiveness on the sin that we committed and sins that we might have not been aware of. If you need to start somewhere, check out this short list in Romans 1:29-32 to see if you need to pray this line. Now prayer life is not so much about being "wordy" (empty phrases that don't reflect in the lifestyle), but living an "exemplary" life. Those who were rescued and given forgiveness from the Lord must forgive others because if they don't, they will not be forgiven (cf. Matthew 6:14-15)
(5) Ask the Lord every day to deliver us from evil (thoughts/feelings/actions). It is a practice of Christ's followers who understand that the Lord never temps anyone (cf. James 1:13-15), but people are being tempted by their own desire.
May the Lord God our father who is in heaven always hear and respond to prayers that have pure motives, coming from a clean heart, with sincere thoughts, and with godly lifestyle. Amen.
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Pastor Lap
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