Pray Like This: Reflections on the Lord’s Prayerናሙና

Hallowed Be Your Name

I get upset when believers take God’s name in vain. Some believers use phrases such as “Oh, my God,” “Jesus,” and “God bless you” flippantly. There are some who call themselves Christians but dishonor God’s name by living disobedient and hypocritical lives. God’s name is dishonored by some believers and Christian leaders when they are caught in sin. In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus teaches us to pray that we will revere God’s name.

Matthew 6:9b could be literally translated as “May Your name be held in reverence.” In other words, “May Your name be treated far above all other names.” We must pray that God’s name would be treated with the utmost honor and set apart as holy. God’s glory must be our primary concern.

As we pray, we can get so concerned with our needs that we forget to give due honor to God. The Lord’s Prayer teaches us that we must not be in a hurry to present our needs before God. Prayer must start with God. We must be greatly concerned about treating God with reverence. How can we revere God through our lives? We must not do anything that dishonors God’s holy name. Though many Christians say the Lord’s prayer week after week, they dishonor God’s name by the way they live. We must not despise God’s name (Malachi 1:6) through our lives. Even our lack of gratitude dishonors God (Romans 1:20ff). Also, we must not take God’s name in vain (cf. Exodus 20:7).

We must acknowledge God’s holy character by honoring Him. We can revere God’s name by living holy lives. Just as it is natural for the sun to give warmth and light, God’s name is already hallowed or holy (Leviticus 11:44; 1 Peter 1:15). He is altogether lovely. There’s none like Him in the entire universe. Still, we must pray and earnestly desire that His name is treated as holy in our lives, our families, our churches, and the world. We must pray that God’s holiness will be displayed to the world and that they too will revere His name.

As the psalmist writes, “Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to Your name give glory, for the sake of Your steadfast love and Your faithfulness!” (Psalm 115:1). We must seek God’s glory in all things. Let’s honor God through our lives!