“Pray, then, in this way:
‘Our Father, who is in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name’” (Matthew 6:9; all Scripture quotations are from the New American Standard Bible unless otherwise indicated).

We can divide the Lord’s Prayer into two main sections. In the first half, we express adoration to God and submission to His will. In the second half, we ask Him to meet our personal needs. Both are important, but we should begin with the praise and adoration of God. Prayer is primarily a means of fostering our relationship with Him. It is more than reciting a shopping list of needs and wants that we expect God to fulfill.

We begin by saying, “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed by thy name” (traditional wording). None of the words in Jesus’ prayer are superfluous. He was showing the disciples how to pray concisely. Every word mattered. So, we have to ask the question, “Why do we begin here?”

This preface to the Lord’s Prayer reminds us that we are children of God, He is holy, and these factors determine how we pray to Him.

We pray to God not as a boss or despotic ruler, but as our Father. We pray with the assurance that He loves us and has assumed responsibility for our needs. We might be tempted to think, “My needs are not important to God; my problem is too small to bring to Him,” or “My problem is too big for God. He is not going to work that hard on it.” However, later in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus reminded the disciples that they can expect God to do even better than a good earthly father:

“Or what person is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf of bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? So if you, despite being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” (Matthew 7:9-11).

Unfortunately, many Christians underestimate God’s love when we pray. We pray for peace, patience, and comfort to endure an illness, but we do not ask God to heal us. We do not expect financial blessings, wisdom to make the right decisions about our problems, etc. We might merely pray for comfort, not expecting God to actually do something for us. God is not on vacation. He is active in His children’s lives, and we should pray expecting Him to do something.

Also, we pray to God as our Father, not my Father. Our prayers should keep us connected with the rest of God’s family, the body of Christ. Do I pray for my brothers and sisters in Christ? Do I find opportunities to pray with them? While we lift our own personal needs to the Lord, we do not stop there. We should also pray for our fellow Christians, our local church, and the worldwide body of Christ (including persecuted Christians in other countries), as well as our local communities, country, and the entire world. It all matters to God.

Most importantly, we must recognize that He is holy. We treat His name with the respect and honor that He deserves. We should not use His name flippantly. As we pray, we remember that He is our Father and Lord. We do not try to coerce Him or demand that He do what we want without regard to His holiness or will.

Throughout our prayers, we remember that He is holy. We honor His name and His word. As a result, we should come out of our prayer closets ready to live holy lives, because we have been in the presence of a holy God who loves us.

“Hallowed be Thy name.” Heavenly Father, we come before You as Your children, knowing that You love us and want to give us good things according to Your riches and glory in Christ Jesus. Teach us to honor You with our prayers, lips, and lives. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

How can you express God’s holiness and show reverence for His name? Share your thoughts in the comments area below.

Copyright © 2024 Michael E. Lynch. All rights reserved.