4 Interesting Facts About The Lord’s Prayer

Here are four interesting facts about the Lord’s Supper.

Pray in Secret

If we are praying to be seen by others, then we’ve already received all the reward we’ll ever have from God, as Jesus said, “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward” (Matthew 6:5). Instead, Jesus said, “When you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you” (Matthew 6:6).

Substance and Not Form

God is interested in our hearts when we pray, not the form or words we use. Some prayers I’ve heard have been full of flowery imagery and poetic language, but God doesn’t care about that. He cares about what’s in our hearts. Jesus said, “When you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him” (Matthew 6:7-8). Some of the most powerful prayers I’ve ever heard are short, simple, and to the point. We’re not praying to impress others but to touch the heart of God.

Revering God’s Name

Jesus begins with a model for us to pray that begins with the reverence or holiness of God’s name. Therefore, he begins by telling the disciples to “pray like this,” which should always begin with, “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name” (Matthew 6:9). The Greek structure of the sentence puts it this way: “Let your name be treated with reverence” or “Let your name be kept holy.” So honoring or hallowing God’s name should be the first thing we utter in prayer.

God’s Will be Done

We should always pray for our will to be aligned with God’s will, just as Jesus says, “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). If we really understood God’s sovereignty, we’d be praying for His will in our lives and not what we want because God knows better than we do what we need, even before we ask. Pray not only for God’s will to be done but for God’s kingdom to come.

Conclusion

The Lord’s Prayer is not a “repeat after me” prayer, although there’s nothing wrong with saying it. Jesus was telling us to “pray like this” and not “pray this.” So we should use this prayer as a model for our own prayer life and to pray for God’s name to be treated with holiness, to see His will and His kingdom be done, and to be kept from temptation and deliverance from the evil one.