Understanding the Purpose and Power of PrayerSýnishorn

Jesus’ Model Prayer

One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” (Luke 11:1)

The disciples said, “Lord, teach us to pray.” This implies that prayer was not something they thought they could do without Jesus’ instruction. As Jewish young men, the disciples had been brought up in the synagogue and the temple, where they had been taught to pray. A part of their daily ritual was to pray in the synagogue, so they were always reading off prayers and repeating prayers. However, Jesus’ prayers were different from what they were used to. They saw that there was something distinct about them. They prayed, but He prayed. They were busy, but He obtained results.

We read in Luke 11:2 that Jesus began to teach them to pray. He confirmed that prayer is not automatic, but rather a function that must be taught. If you have difficulty praying, don’t feel bad, because many people don’t really understand prayer. Prayer is not just “talking to God.” I used to say that. I used to teach that. I also used to do that, and nothing happened! I had to learn what Jesus taught His disciples before I could become effective in prayer. 

A Pattern for Prayer

Regardless of the name it has been given, what Jesus explained to His disciples is not really the “Lord’s Prayer.” It is a model for prayer. In other words, you don’t need to repeat the words of this prayer exactly, but should instead use them as a pattern.

As we’ve learned, prayer is approaching God in order to ask Him to accomplish His will in the earth. Christ taught His disciples how to fulfill this purpose. In doing so, He gave them this pattern to follow:

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us day by day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. (Luke 11:2–4 NKJV)

Our Father

“Our Father.” When we approach God, we are to bring other people’s concerns with us. Most of us go to prayer with our own shopping lists: our financial lists, our career lists, and many other things. We say, “Oh, Lord, please do these things for me.” There is selfishness in such a prayer if we don’t also pray for others. 

Second, we address God as “Father.” We identify who He is. One definition of the word father is “source.” We are to go to God with the awareness and confession that He is the Source who can provide for the needs of everyone. 

In Heaven

When you pray, “Our Father in heaven,” you’re saying to God, “I recognize that I need help from outside my realm.” It is actually a confession of submission. In addition, if the Father is not on earth, we need an intermediary. We have to depend on Jesus and the Holy Spirit to be our intermediaries with God. 

Hallowed Be Your Name

The word hallowed means reverenced, set apart, or sanctified. This means we are to worship the Father as the Holy One. Later on, we can make our requests, but we begin with worship.

When you pray, you are to make God’s name holy by honoring all the attributes of His holiness, such as His love, faithfulness, integrity, and grace. You worship. You adore. You exalt. You magnify. You deify. You glorify. After you pray, you continue to honor Him in your life and in all your interactions with others.

Your Kingdom Come, Your Will Be Done

“Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” This simply means that a true person of prayer is not interested in his own kingdom. His interest is in God’s kingdom and what He wants accomplished. We should always ask for the fulfillment of God’s prayer list before our own. What a reverse of how we usually do things!

Give Us Our Daily Bread

“Give us day by day our daily bread.” With this statement, Jesus is saying, “While you are in God’s presence and you are asking Him to be faithful to fulfill His will on earth, include this request.” We are to pray, “Give us day by day our daily bread.” The plural tense used in this statement is tied to the “Our” in “Our Father.” If you tell God that you are coming to Him with the concerns of other people, then when you ask for bread, you have to ask for bread for everybody. We normally say, “Lord, provide for me.” We’re not thinking of anyone else. Yet God tells us once more, “Ask for others as well as yourself. Pray for others.”

Forgive Us Our Sins, for We Also Forgive

“And forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.” Jesus is now dealing with relationships. When you come before God, check to see if anyone has anything against you or if you are holding anything against anyone. Don’t come into God’s presence and expect to have your prayers answered if you are asking God to forgive you, but you are refusing to forgive others.

The gospel of Matthew includes this sobering statement after Jesus’ teaching on prayer: “For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matthew 6:14–15). And if God doesn’t forgive us, He’s not going to answer our prayers. However, when we forgive others, God will also forgive us—and the way will be opened for Him to hear and answer our prayers. We often overlook the importance of our relationships—and how those relationships affect our prayers. 

Do Not Lead Us into Temptation

Last, Jesus says, “And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” This does not mean that God might steer us toward temptation against our wills. It means that we are to ask God for wisdom so we won’t put ourselves into situations that will cause us to compromise our relationship with Him. In other words, we are to ask God for strength and wisdom to stop making bad decisions and to stop going into situations that will tempt us to sin. 

We need to be alert to the temptations and weaknesses that could harm our relationship with God and our testimony for Him, things that Satan will exploit to cause us to stumble. Then we need to pray that God will protect us from succumbing to them. The Bible says, “Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes” (Ephesians 6:11).

Yours Is the Kingdom, Power, and Glory Forever

Some of the biblical manuscripts include this benediction at the end of Jesus’ teaching on prayer in Matthew’s gospel: “For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen” (Matthew 6:13 NKJV). After you have prayed, then worship the Father again. When you do so, you’re saying to God, “I know You’re going to answer this prayer; therefore, I’m going to thank You ahead of time. I’m going to give You all the glory that comes from what happens. When the answer is manifested, I’m going to tell everybody that it is because of You.” All the power and all the glory belong to God forever.