An Expositional Study Of The Sermon On The Mount
FAMILY PRAYERS
Scripture Reading: Matthew 6:9-15 (KJV)
AFTER THIS MANNER THEREFORE PRAY YE: OUR FATHER WHICH ARE IN HEAVEN, HALLOWED BE THY NAME. THY KINGDOM COME. THY WILL BE DONE IN EARTH, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN. GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD. AND FORGIVE US OUR DEBTS, AS WE FORGIVE OUR DEBTORS. AND LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION, BUT DELIVER US FROM EVIL: FOR THINE IS THE KINGDOM, AND THE POWER AND THE GLORY, FOR EVER. AMEN. FOR IF YE FORGIVE MEN THEIR TRESPASSES, YOUR HEAVENLY FATHER WILL ALSO FORGIVE YOU: BUT IF YE FORGIVE NOT MEN THEIR TRESPASSES, NEITHER WILL YOUR FATHER FORGIVE YOUR TRESPASSES.
The Master gives us a family prayer. Some call it the Lord’s Prayer; but it is His prayer only in the sense that He gives it to us, but not in the sense that He prayed it. One of its petitions makes that quite certain, “Forgive us” – He never needed to say that. Also, the opening words present a difficulty because He does not associate Himself with us in a common sonship, as if He and we were alike sons. True, in every one of His seven prayers, He addressed God as “Father.”1 Further, He taught us to address God as “Father.” We are sons in a real sense; but He is Son in a unique sense.
Therefore, He does not say “our Father,” but “My Father and your Father” (John 20:17). So, perhaps “the Lord’s prayer” is not the best title for it – the disciple’s prayer, the family prayer, the Christian’s prayer, or the children’s prayer, would be better. And, because there are six prayers within the one, family prayer is not much off the mark. There is another version of the prayer in Luke 11:2, containing several variations. Our Lord gives it here in response to the request of “one of His disciples” who perhaps was not present on the earlier occasion. The first is given as a model, “after this manner, pray ye”; the second is seemingly offered as a form, “when ye pray, say,” i.e. these words. Family prayers, then; well, notice first that
The head of the family is addressed
It is good to contemplate what He is – “our Father.” That is the normal way of directing our prayers. We sometimes address our prayers to the Lord Jesus; and that cannot be wrong, because He is God; and sometimes, especially in our hymns, we address our prayers to the Holy Spirit; and, again, that cannot be wrong, because He is God. But the normal way is to address the Father, through the Son, by the Spirit. It is, then, to a Father that we come – One whose love wants the best for His children, whose wisdom knows the best for His children, and whose power does the best for His children. An earthly father may want and know the best, but not be in a position to do the best; our heavenly Father has all three qualities in perfection, and it is to such a One that, as His children, we speak.
Where He abides
Notice where He abides – “which art in heaven”; or, as the Greek has it, in the “heavens,” plural. The New Testament speaks of three heavens: “Behold the birds of the heaven” – that is the atmosphere envelope around us; “I will show wonders in the heavens” – in the stellar spaces that we usually think of as the sky; “One caught up to the third heaven” – the dwelling place of angels and God. He is in all the heavens, looking down on all His creatures and all His children, overlooking their needs, supplies, and lives. A little military drummer boy was once asked if God is everywhere then why does the Lord’s Prayer speak of Him as “in heaven”? With the smartness of an officer, he answered, “Because that’s headquarters.” We may safely leave it there.
Who are His children?
Who are His children? – Who have the right to say “our”? In a loose, and merely creational sense, all people are God’s children; but in the real, deep, spiritual, and eternal sense, only those who have trusted and obeyed Christ and have been born again.2 On His side, our sonship comes through Jesus and, on our side through faith and obedience to His Word3 – there is no other way. Every one of us has the amazing privilege of trusting and obeying Him and then calling Him “our Father,” and of living with Him forever. Every good and proper human father loves for his children to tell him things and to ask him for things; and that is the happy relationship that is meant to subsist between Christians and the Father. We need to more fully use our access to Him. The next point about this prayer is
The interests of the family are sought
For all Christians, the consuming interests are not their own things, but His. In the Christian life, there is a reversal of the order of person, in life’s grammar. The old style is – first person, I; second person, you; third person, he. The new way, the Christian way is – first person, He, the Master; second person, you, the other fellow; third person, I. His affairs take precedence over our own in the family prayers. First, there is a concern for His name – “hallowed by Thy name.” That is, may it come to be highly esteemed among men, and honored for its holiness throughout the world. As so often happens, we can in some measure help to answer our own prayer; for we bear His name – “that worthy name by the which ye are called” (James 2:7), and if we do not dishonor it people may come to esteem Him for what they see of Him in us – Immense responsibility, immeasurable honor.
A concern for His kingdom
Moreover, we have a concern for His kingdom – “Thy kingdom come.” That kingdom – promised by Scripture, heralded by John the Baptist, introduced by Christ, rejected by men, ensured by the Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. The tense of the verb “come” in the original suggests that the kingdom was not to come in a gradual coming but the cataclysmic arrival of the kingdom in one specific point of time, with the personal death and resurrection of the King, Himself. Yet, there is one way the kingdom’s coming is gradual – in the hearts and lives of men, for which also we need to pray. Every individual life captured for the King prepares the way for the sudden second coming of the Lord. What joy it is to plant His flag in another life, and another, and to watch His kingdom grow from heart to heart, until the day which shall usher in the new heaven and the new earth – the second coming of our Lord. This is certainly one of the absorbing interests of the family of God: hence its place here in the forefront of our prayers.
A concern for His will
Then, too, Christians have a concern for His will – “Thy will be done.” Too often, prayer is conceived as a means of getting our will done; but in reality it is the greatest means of getting His will done. That will is always the best thing that could happen, either for the world, for nations, or for the individual. Some hymns lead us astray by supposing that it is a dreary and painful business – it is for our good and we cannot escape it, and so we must bear it. But, perhaps we have now happily come to recognize that the Will of God is not something to be endured, but embraced. So, Christians should pray for its widespread growth. Some modern day scholars hold that the phrase, “in earth, as it is in heaven,” belongs, not exclusively to this portion, but to all three of them.
However, we know of nothing in the grammar of the passage that makes that sure. On the other hand, there is a certain appropriateness about it that commends it to some people. That the Name, Kingdom, and Will should have the pre-eminent place among us they have in heaven is an ideal worthy of our earnest prayers and utmost endeavor. As far as His Will is concerned, there is at least one more place where we may again answer our own prayer – and that is, our own lives. “Our wills are ours, to make them Thine.” How completely comprehensive is this prayer. Negatively, it is the condition of all other prayers – “if it be Thy will”; positively, it includes every prayer that we can offer – “Thy will, that’s all I want, in everything.” Romans 12:1-2 indicates how infinitely desirable that will it. And now – having correctly begun by putting the Father’s glory first, let us next see that
The needs of the family are mentioned
Of course, the Father has no needs; but the children are a bundle of needs – morning, noon, and night. Physical needs – “Give us this day our daily bread.” Does that seem out of place in this context? Well, to whom are we talking? “Our Father”: then surely it is not out of place. However mundane or material, nothing is out of place if it touches any aspect of the children’s welfare. We love that rendering of 1 Peter 5:7 that reads, “Casting all your care upon Him, for it matters to Him about you.” Does it matter to the parent whether a child has daily bread? Of course it does; and equally it matters to Him about us. The inclusion of this petition in family prayers encourages and instructs us to bring everything to the Father, things little and large, things secular and sacred, things material and moral.
Mental needs
Among the great necessities of life are our mental needs – “Forgive us our debts.” The contemplation of criminal indebtedness because of sin is greatly disturbing to our mental equanimity. When one puts his trust in and obeys the commands of Jesus Christ, and is born again, he does not live in a state of “maybe I am saved today and maybe not.” Instead, through prayer, daily repentance and loving others, our sins continue to be washed away by the precious blood of Jesus Christ. We become a Christian when we are born again – a member of the family of God. As long as we continue to love God and our fellow man we are in a saved condition and it is good to always remember that even though a Christian is to repent of sins, forgive others and love people, still our salvation is not based on the merits of what we might do; but on the grace of God and the merits of Jesus Christ. As long as a Christian remains faithful to Christ he is acquitted at the Bar of God’s Justice. In response to our repentance and baptism (Acts 2:38), salvation becomes ours and as long as we remain faithful and choose to stay in the family of God it is a present and eternal possession. “To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Wherefore thou are no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ” (Gal. 4:5-7).
Even a faithful and obedient Christian will sin
And when he does it becomes a family matter, not a court matter. In other words, a faithful Christian is outside the jurisdiction of the court. But how sad and soul-beclouding it is when a Christian sins, thus denying himself fellowship with the family of God; and until he has sought the Father's forgiveness he will not know real peace of mind. “Forgive us,” is a prayer that all of us need to constantly offer. But we must always remember that it is conditioned on forgiving others, “but if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (v. 15). Make no mistake about it, to harbor an unforgiving spirit toward another renders us ineligible for His forgiveness and we forfeit our fellowship with the Father, along with the peace, joy, power, blessing and experience bound up in that happy relationship. Far too many of us are spiritually bereft and barren because we simply will not “make up” with some brother or sister in Christ with whom we have quarreled. We should not deceive ourselves – singing hymns, praying prayers, performing duties, making vows, will be of no avail until that thing has been put right. Until then, we will continue to walk this earth unforgiven of the Father. Only when in humility and honesty we can pray, “Forgive us . . . as we forgive” can we expect to once again have peace of mind.
Spiritual needs
We now briefly consider our spiritual needs – “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” This is a difficult verse, because temptation must always be a universal and continual experience while we remain in the flesh, and also because it is one of the God- appointed ways of toughening our moral fiber – therefore, if rightly handled must be a good thing. Perhaps it should be said that we are wrong if we pray this out of a desire for an easy Christian life; but if we do so out of a sense of weakness, then we pray legitimately. Certainly we will never comprehend the matter if we treat this verse as two prayers: only as one prayer do we begin to see its full meaning, correlating the “not” and the “but.” We believe the purport of it to be “Lead us not into” – leaving us there to be overwhelmed; but “deliver us out of” the evil to which it seeks to lead us. No doubt, the best commentary on the verse is the statement of 1 Corinthians 13, “God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” By the way, the R.V. here says “the evil one.” So, in giving us directions as to the “manner” in which we are to pray, the Master tells us to include every side of personal need, taking, for illustration, a specimen of physical, mental, and spiritual need. In that full-orbed intercession is found the secret of release from an anxious life – “Be careful [anxious] for nothing; but in everything by prayer” (Phil. 4:6; emphasis added). But, while thinking thus of ourselves, let us next observe that
The rest of the family are remembered
Throughout the whole prayer, not once is the word “I” mentioned – it is always “us, our; we, our; us, us.” The blessings we crave are not sought for ourselves alone, but for all the others in the family as well. There is the individual prayer – “when thou prayest” (v. 6). It is deeply moving to realize that each such particular suppliant has God’s complete attention. A little child was once explaining to a grown-up friend what happened up in heaven when she prayed: “When I say my prayers God stops all the music and says, ‘Quiet, please; there’s a little girl down there who wants to talk to Me.’” Perhaps there is no need to stop the heavenly music; but we believe that without a doubt He gives us personal attention – not because we are good or great, but simply because we are His children. How quickly amid all the clamor of a noisy company in the living room, a mother will hear the crying of her little one upstairs. Just so, above all the noise of the world and all the delight of heaven, does the Father hear the cry of the least of His children. Remember that exquisite thought in Genesis 21:17, “God heard the voice of the lad”? Dying of thirst behind that sheltering bush, we are not told that he said anything, but only of his “voice,” perhaps weakly whimpering. But God heard, as He will always hear our need “uttered or unexpressed,” however individual it might be. This is the social prayer – “pray ye” (v. 9) – plural. Even when praying alone, in the quiet of our own heart, we will have all the others in mind, as we way, not “me and mine,” but “us and our.” What a pity it is that sometimes we forget that we are members of a family – the family of God. One of the most impelling and attractive things that Christians can do for the lost of the world, is to recapture and relay a sense of fellowship and love for one another. One of the great secrets of those first converts was the enjoyment of “fellowship” (Acts 2:42). We pray that our “manner” of praying might lead us back to that powerful magnet. Modern men and women are strangely drawn by fellowship; and how better should they find it than in (what should be) sweet fellowship of the family of God. In our lives, then, as in our prayers, let us remember and practice fellowship and love one for the other. Consider the following
Three questions
Three questions arise concerning this doxology. How are we to account for it? It seems probable that our Lord did not speak the words. It is not in that other prayer in Luke 9; not in R.V.; and not in the oldest manuscripts. Possibly, when the prayer came to be used in public worship, this doxological ending was attached to make a finish, somewhat in the same way as, in the singing of the Psalms; a custom grew up of adding, “Gloria.” A note to that effect might have been written in the margin of some early manuscript, and then later inadvertently incorporated in the text of some of the copies. It should be said that in spite of what has been adduced the matter is not entirely settled.
There is argument on the other side. Though the R.V. does not include the words in the Text, it does say in the margin, “Many authorities, some ancient, but with variations, add, ‘For thine is the Kingdom, etc., Amen.’” So, perhaps after all, they are the Master’s own words. In any case, they seem a fitting climax – the family’s rallying cry, motto, and goal.
How are we to understand it?
So, how are we to understand it? There is a grammatical form in the Greek language called Hendiadys, consisting of two or three substantives linked by “and,” the latter of which nouns have an adjective office strengthening the first. For example, in John 14:6, “I am the way [and, Gk.], the truth, and the life” (emphasis added). What have truth and life to do with the matter of our context? He is talking of the Way; and it seems likely that the real meaning of His utterance is, “I am the Way – the true Way, the living Way.”
Likewise in our present passage, “Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory,” we are perhaps to understand, “Thine is the kingdom, the powerful kingdom, the glorious kingdom” – assuredly it is, “for ever.”
Summary
How are we to regard it? This goal of the family – will we be ashamed of it, will we apologize for it? No; but rather let us have a proper pride – not in our own abilities or achievement, but in the fact that by the grace of God we have been made children of the King, members of a royal family, committed to the supreme task, and peerless honor of being a loyal servant of the kingdom of our Lord. Amen. So be it; so may it be; so shall it be.
