Living The Lord’s Prayer
Ice Breaker: Who is the one person you could spend the most time with on the phone? What is it about that person that makes it easy to talk with them?
Jesus has been teaching in the local synagogues and healing people from all over the neighboring regions who came to him. Jesus began teaching His disciples and the crowd. The Lord’s Prayer is contained within the Sermon on the Mount found in Matthew 5-7 and is part of a section on prayer in Matthew 6:5-15.
Matthew 6:5–15 5 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 9 “This, then, is how you should pray: “ ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’ 14 For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
1.What is prayer?
2. What did Jesus teach about prayer in the section leading up to the Lord’s Prayer? (Matthew 6:5-8)
Matthew 6:9 “This, then, is how you should pray: “ ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
3. What does the opening of the prayer teach us about God and our relationship with Him? (Matthew 6:9)
4. What does this opening imply about how we should approach God in our prayers?
Matthew 6:10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
5. What does it mean for God’s Kingdom to come (on earth as it is in heaven)? (Colossians 1:13–14, 2 Timothy 4:1, 1 Corinthians 15:22-26, Revelation 20:12–15, Revelation 21:1–4)
Colossians 1:13–14 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
2 Timothy 4:1 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge:
1 Corinthians 15:22-26 For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. 24 Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
Revelation 20:12–15 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done. 14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. 15 Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.
Revelation 21:1–4 Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
6. What does it mean for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven? (1 Timothy 2:3–4, Matthew 28:18–20, John 13:34–35, John 17:20–23, Ephesians 4:11–13, among others)
1 Timothy 2:3–4 This is good, and pleases God our Savior, 4 who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.
Matthew 28:18–20 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
John 13:34–35 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
John 17:20–23 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one—23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
Ephesians 4:11–13 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
7. How would focusing on what God’s Kingdom coming and His will to be done, before asking for our needs, help us in our prayer? (Matthew 6:33)
Matthew 6:33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
8. What are ways we could implement focusing more during our prayer on who God is and what he is doing before taking our needs to Him?
Matthew 6:11 Give us today our daily bread.
9. When should we ask for our daily bread?
10. What might be included under the category of “daily bread”?
11. Since it is true that “your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” (Matthew 6:8) Why do you think we should ask anyway?
12. What are ways we could make prayer a daily habit?
Matthew 6:12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13. Since it is true that Jesus has died for our sins, why do you think it is important to both ask for forgiveness and to forgive others? (See note- More on the forgiveness of sin – at the end of these questions.)
Matthew 6:13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’
Note: “The Bible teaches that God does not tempt man to sin (Matthew 6:13; cf. James 1:13–14). The words of Matthew 6:13 meant “Do not allow us to succumb to temptation.” Tyndale Concise Bible Commentary.
14. What is Jesus’ teaching about God’s power over our own evil desires and over Satan?
15. How does knowing that God has power over temptation and the evil one help us when confronted with their influence? (1 Corinthians 10:13)
1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.
16. When praying, what do you find is your biggest challenge? What can you do this week to overcome that challenge?
Prayer is a relational engagement, not a transactional arrangement.
More on the forgiveness of sin. The following note from the ESV Study Bible is provided for clarity on the meaning of Matthew 6:12,14-15.
6:12 Forgive us our debts (the fifth petition) does not mean that believers need to ask daily for justification, since believers are justified forever from the moment of initial saving faith (Rom. 5:1, 9; 8:1; 10:10). Rather, this is a prayer for the restoration of personal fellowship with God when fellowship has been hindered by sin (cf. Ephesians 4:30). Those who have received such forgiveness are so moved with gratitude toward God that they also eagerly forgive those who are debtors to them.
6:14–15 forgive others. Jesus reemphasizes the importance of forgiving others, indicating that there is a direct relationship between having been forgiven by God and the forgiveness that his disciples of necessity must extend to others. As in v. 12, forgive your trespasses here refers to restoration of personal relationship with God, not to initial justification (cf. note on v. 12).
Also remember that these words from Jesus were spoken prior to his death on the cross and subsequent to the new covenant.