Model or Disciples Prayer

Model Prayer

Not the Lord’s Prayer for what did He need forgiveness?

 

9  "Pray, then, in this way: 'Our Father who is in Heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
10  'Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.
11  'Give us this day our daily bread.
12  'And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13  '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.'] Matthew 6:9-13 (NASB)

Pray this way, not pray this.
This prayer is short & to the point – 3 to God & 3 to human needs

OUR – not just Jesus’ Father but He is now our – mine and yours who are in Christ

Father – one of the big problems today with people knowing and trusting God is the lack of godly fathers being an example of the unconditional love of God to their children.
in Heaven – The dwelling place of God

Hallowed or kept holy or honored as holy (3^rd commandment), Set apart – may our words and behavior honor His name

Kingdom come – His Kingdom coming with Him ruling & reigning on Earth
Luke 1:32-33 – Gabriel’s promise to Mary, Rev 19:11-16, Acts 1:11 – 2^nd Coming
Not the snatching out of the Church in 1 Thess. 4:16 & I Cor. 15

Will be done here on Earth as in Heaven – let His will be done in our life and cooperate with Him in being used by God.

The three things toward God we just looked at & now 3 toward human needs –

1. Daily bread – He promise us food, shelter & clothing and that we have been given everything we need for life and godliness. (2Pet 1:3) Anything else is ‘extra’. Don’t worry about tomorrow.

2. Forgive (spiritual debts – sins) if we are saved, we have judicial forgiveness
            “in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” Colossians 1:14, so not taking about being totally forgiven or Justified but sin causing a break in fellowship or walk with God.

Here was where there was some question so I’m putting in this commentary:
Matt. 6:5-15 (Luke 11:2-4). Jesus then spoke about the practice of prayer, which the Pharisees loved to perform publicly. Rather than making prayer a matter between an individual and God, the Pharisees had turned it into an act to be seen by men—again, to demonstrate their supposed righteousness. Their prayers were directed not to God but to other men, and consisted of long, repetitive phrases (Matt. 6:7).

Jesus condemned such practices. Prayer should be addressed to your Father, who is unseen (cf. John 1:18; 1 Tim. 1:17) and who knows what you need (Matt. 6:8); it is not "to be seen by men." But Jesus also presented a model prayer for His disciples to follow. This prayer is commonly called "the Lord's Prayer," but it is actually "the disciples' prayer." This prayer, which is repeated by many Christians, contains elements that are important for all praying: (1) Prayer is to begin with worship. God is addressed as Our Father in heaven. Worship is the essence of all prayer. (In vv. 1-18 Jesus used the word "Father" 10 times! Only those who have true inner righteousness can address God in that way in worship.) (2) Reverence is a second element of prayer, for God's name is to be hallowed, that is, revered (hagiasthētō). (3) The desire for God's kingdom —Your kingdom come—is based on the assurance that God will fulfill all His covenant promises to His people. (4) Prayer is to include the request that His will be accomplished today on earth as it is being accomplished in heaven, that is, fully and willingly. (5) Petition for personal needs such as daily food is also to be a part of prayer. "Daily" (epiousion, used only here in the NT) means "sufficient for today." (6) Requests regarding spiritual needs, such as forgiveness, are included too. This implies that the petitioner has already forgiven those who had offended him. Sins (cf. Luke 11:4), as moral debts, reveal one's shortcomings before God. (7) Believers recognize their spiritual weakness as they pray for deliverance from temptation to evil (cf. James 1:13-14).

Jesus' words in Matthew 6:14-15 explain His statement about forgiveness in verse 12. Though God's forgiveness of sin is not based on one's forgiving others, a Christian's forgiveness is based on realizing he has been forgiven (cf. Eph. 4:32). Personal fellowship with God is in view in these verses (not salvation from sin). One cannot walk in fellowship with God if he refuses to forgive others. The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures by Dallas Seminary Faculty.

I shared all that in case others might have confusion with being forgiven for sin but still having the need to confess sins to keep a close walk and fellowship with God!

We have been shown grace and we should show it to others; forgive because we are forgiven not because others deserve it – they may not, but neither do we deserve any forgiveness from God.
Our sanctification process as we grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord.

3. Don’t lead- this one is negative. Don’t lead us into temptation.
Strongly worded to implore God to keep temptation, hence sin, away from us. We also have the responsibility to flee sin. We are to not put ourselves in places and positions we know we may be tempted to give in to some thought or behavior we know we have a problem with.

I know this was long, but I hope you have enjoyed this look at the Disciples or Model Prayer.