The Commands of Christ, Part Twelve

I think when we hear terms like “longwinded” we all have someone who immediately comes to mind. Some of us are the person who comes to mind for other people. If you have a lot on your heart and it just happens to take a while for all of that to come out so you can give it up to God, that’s completely fine. But as we discussed in command eleven, we’re not supposed to do anything for our own glory or our own attention. Let’s dive into the first part of the scripture for this command found in Matthew 6:7-8

And when you are praying, do not use thoughtless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard because of their many words. So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.

I can remember growing up in Baptist churches there always seemed to be a guy who would pray just a little longer than everyone else. If one person prayed for three minutes, he’d make sure to pray for four. It was a competition. None of us should be playing, “Who Can Pray the Longest?” with the rest of our church. Like most things with God, he wants our prayer to come from the heart.

Notice that Jesus isn’t telling us that our prayers can’t be long, he is telling us not to engage in thoughtless repetition. You may have had something different growing up, but I grew up with: “God is great. God is Good. Let us thank Him for our food. By His hands, we are fed. Thank you Lord for our daily bread.” It was a simple blessing to learn and it was helpful for developing a good habit of blessing my food. While it wasn’t longwinded in anyway, it also wasn’t heartfelt (I was like 6 at the time, so I don’t know that anything heartfelt would’ve happened in prayer unless I wanted Ninja Turtles or Ghost Busters toys). My kids use a similar prayer they were taught by their grandparents that is equally repetitious, but it matches where their walk with Christ is. I have exactly one child who is excited to pray over the family meals and she doesn’t use that prayer. For the others, at the time of this writing, prayer is more of a chore than it is a privilege. I’m working on that with them and I hope by the time you read this that it being a chore for them is no longer true.

God doesn’t want our empty words. He wants us to empty out our burdens onto Him because He can, and will, handle everything that we can’t handle on our own. He’s going to do it in His way and according to His timeline, which can be terrifying to wait for, but He will. So, if memorized family prayers isn’t what God is after, what is? Luckily for us, Jesus gives us a template to go by that we all know as the Lord’s prayer.

Before we dive into those verses, I want to point out that this is a template. Jesus says just before this not to engage in thoughtless repetition, so these aren’t the words you have to use. They are the template and heart condition you’re supposed to pray with. The Lord’s Prayer is found in Matthew 6:9-13, I’ll be quoting from NASB20.

Pray then, in this way: Our Father, who is in heaven, Hallowed be your name.“

We start our prayer by acknowledging God. We acknowledge who He is (our Father in heaven), and what he is (Hallowed, meaning Holy). This puts our hearts in a place of reverence, which is where they should be when speaking with God. He has done and does so much for us, that reverence will always be the right place to start.

Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.

We acknowledge that God has authority on earth just as He does in heaven. We state that we accept His will. And this is a part where my prayers in private are different than my prayers in public. In private, this is the part of the prayer structure where I list out all the things God has provided for me according to His will that I can recall and I give thanks for those things. The list always includes my family because I am so grateful for the blended, chaotic mess God has asked me to steward because my life would be less without them. The list nearly always includes my close friends, men of God that He has placed in my life to help guide me. My walk wouldn’t be what it is without them. Then, there are any tangible provisions I can think. This part fluctuates a little.

When I’m praying in public, I don’t include a long, specific list of what I’m grateful for. This isn’t because I’m less grateful in public, but because I’m not trying to draw attention to myself. I may thank God for the many blessings He’s provided, but the specific list is for when I’m either in my small group or alone with God. By acknowledging what He’s already done, it helps me to condition my heart to receive His will and to want to be a part of it.

Give us this day our daily bread.

This harkens back to when God provided daily mana for the Israelites as they roamed the desert. It’s asking God for His provision. Jesus tells us before He gives us this example that God knows our needs before we ask. So, why ask? Prayer is communication with God. Just because I know my wife had a rough day at work doesn’t eliminate my desire to hear her talk about it. Throughout her day, she may send me a text here or there that explains she’s frustrated, but she can’t go into details while she’s at the office. So, when she gets home, we can dive into it. I already know she’s had a rough day, but I still want to hear about it. It’s similar with God.

God knows your needs. God knows your wants. God knows which ones of your wants conflict with your needs because you want something that isn’t good for you. But God craves a relationship with you. Part of every relationship is communication. Sometimes, your daily bread is coffee with a good friend that God has put in your life for counsel. Sometimes, your daily bread is extra time with family to recharge your battery. Sometimes, your daily bread is time alone with God because He has a special message for your heart that day.

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

Some translations here are going to say “trespasses.” The Greek word here is opheilema. Biblically, it is commonly used to referenced that something is owed (a debt) or an offense (sin). I think both meanings are valid.

What we owe God for our sin is more than we could ever repay. That is why Jesus was sent in the first place. He was sent to provide us a way back into a relationship with God. The debt of sin is something we owe that through Christ we are forgiven for, but at the time of the Lord’s prayer, that sacrifice hadn’t been made yet. But as we are taught in 1 John 1:9, when we confess our sins, He forgives our sins. Our debt is forgiven.

This is another place where my small group and private prayer is different from large, public prayer. I’m comfortable with my small group knowing my sins. As my accountability partners, I share with them what I struggle with so that their experiences and counsel can help me do better and make better decisions. I’m not as comfortable giving those details in a large group.

That covers the “forgive us our debts/trespasses” part, but we also need to address “as we also have forgiven our debtors.” That second half is sometimes translated as, “as we forgive those who have trespassed against us.”

Just past the Lord’s Prayer, in verses 14 and 15, Jesus explains:

For if you forgive other people for their offenses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. but if you do not forgive other people, then your Father will not forgive your offenses.

Let the weight of that sink in. Jesus is directly tying what we will be forgiven for to what we are willing to forgive. This is reinforced when we make it to Matthew 7 and Jesus teaches about judgment. Forgiveness is a big deal and since we are asking God for a forgiveness that is only available because of Christ, we have to honor Christ by forgiving others.

And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

Asking God to deliver us from evil feels pretty cut and dry. Asking God not to allow us to be tempted feels that way too. It’s important to understand, however, that while there will be times that God allows temptation to enter our lives so we can learn better reliance on Him for deliverance, God does not tempt us. Asking for him to deliver us from evil acknowledges that we can’t resist the temptations of our flesh or the enemy on our own. We need His help to do it.

As a closing note, I want to draw attention to something that I came across. Growing up, most of the churches I attended read from either the KJV or the NKJV. In these translations there is an extra bit added that says, “For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever, Amen.” But this is not in the NASB20. It’s not in the CSB or the ESV either. In my research of why, I found that the KJV translates from a Greek manuscripts called the Textus Receptus and Majority Text while ESV, NIV, NASB, and others translate from earlier manuscripts such as Codex Sinaiticus and Codex Vaticanus. These older documents don’t have that closing phrase.

This is where you, as a Christian, have to ask yourself a question. Does the addition of the phrase change the meaning of the scripture before it? I will openly state that my opinion is that it does not. While my research indicates this was added for the sake of tradition, the phrasing reinforces what is present across all translations. Similarly, it’s removal doesn’t weaken the verses above it. They are strong enough to stand without it. When we talk about adding or removing things from the Bible, we always have to take into account what adding or removing a phrase changes about the message. If it changes nothing, like in this case, it’s safe to stick with whichever version you prefer. If there is a change in meaning, even a subtle one, research with wise counsel to help you understand what the real message God is trying to send you might be.