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“And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners, so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, They have their reward in full. But you, when you pray, enter into your private room, and shut your door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will repay you. And in praying do not babble empty words as the Gentiles do; for they suppose that in their multiplicity of words they will be heard. Therefore do not be like them, for your Father knows the things that you have need of before you ask Him. You then pray in this way: Our Father who is in the heavens, Your name be sanctified; Your kingdom come; Your will be done, as in heaven, so also on earth. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. For if you forgive men their offenses, your heavenly Father will forgive you also; but if you do not forgive men their offenses, neither will your Father forgive your offenses” (Matt. 6:5-15).
Ordinarily, when we speak of prayer, we are concerned about answers to prayer. The Lord Jesus’ emphasis in these verses is not on answers to prayer but on the reward of prayer. Based on what do we say this? It is based on the word “reward” in verse 5, which is the same word as the “reward” of almsgiving in verse 2 and the “reward” of fasting in verse 16. If the reward of prayer refers to answers to prayer, what do the rewards of almsgiving and fasting refer to? According to its context, “reward” refers to the reward one receives in the kingdom. This shows us that having our prayers answered is secondary; the main thing is receiving reward for our prayer. If our prayers are according to God’s will, they will not only be answered, but they will also be remembered and rewarded in the future before the judgment seat. Hence, the prayer mentioned in these verses brings not only an answer today but righteousness as well. In other words, our prayer is our righteousness.
However, the righteousness of prayer does not come from careless prayers, half-hearted prayers, routine prayers, or prayers that issue from impure motives. On the one hand, the Lord teaches us not to pray the way that two kinds of people pray. On the other hand, He shows us a pattern for prayer. First, let us consider the two kinds of prayers which we should not follow.
“And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners, so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, They have their reward in full.” Prayer is for the purpose of fellowshipping with God and expressing His glory. But hypocrites utilize prayers that are for the glorification of God to glorify themselves. Consequently, they like to pray in the synagogues and on the street corners. They do this in order to be seen by others, because synagogues and street corners are public places, places that men pass by all the time. They do not pray in order to be heard by God but to be heard by men. They want to show themselves off. This kind of prayer is very superficial; it cannot be considered as a prayer to God, and it cannot be considered as fellowship with God. These men cannot expect to receive anything from God, because the motive behind this kind of prayer is to receive glory from men, and because there is no supply reserved before God. They have already received their reward; they have received men’s praise. Therefore, in the future kingdom, there will be nothing to remember.
What then should we do when we pray? The Lord said, “But you, when you pray, enter into your private room, and shut your door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will repay you.” The private room here is a symbol. The synagogues and street corners both refer to open places, while the private room refers to a hidden place. Brothers and sisters, you can find the private room in the synagogues and on the street corners. You can find the private room on the sidewalk and in a car. The private room is the place where you fellowship with God in secret; it is the place where you pray without trying consciously to exhibit your prayer. “Enter into your private room, and shut your door.” This means to shut out the world and shut yourself in. In other words, it is to ignore all the outside voices and to pray to God quietly and alone.
When you “pray to your Father who is in secret…your Father who sees in secret will repay you.” What a great comfort this is! In order to pray to the Father who is in secret, you need to have faith. Although you do not feel anything outwardly, you have to believe that you are praying to the Father who is in secret! He is in secret, in a place that human eyes cannot see. Yet He is truly there. He does not despise your prayer; He sees you. This shows how much He cares for your prayers. He does not see you and then leave; He will repay you. Brothers and sisters, can you believe this word? If the Lord said that He will repay you, it means that He will repay you. The Lord guarantees that your prayer in secret will not be in vain. If you pray in a proper way, the Father will repay you. Even if there does not appear to be any repayment today, there will be repayment one day. Brothers and sisters, does your prayer in secret pass the test of the Father’s seeing in secret? Do you believe that the Father sees you in secret and will repay you?
The Lord taught us not only to shut ourselves up in secret when we pray; He also taught us not to “babble empty words as the Gentiles do; for they suppose that in their multiplicity of words they will be heard.” The expression “multiplicity of words” in Greek is used to describe the monotonous and repetitious sound that a stammering person makes. Some people repeat the same words monotonously in their prayers. This kind of prayer has sound only; it has no meaning whatsoever. When you stand beside such a person and listen to his prayer, it is as if you are standing by a stream listening to the repetitious and monotonous sound of water tumbling against the rocks. It is like standing on a pebbled street and listening to the repetitious and monotonous sound of wheels rolling across pebbles. They repeat the same words over and over again. They suppose that their prayers will be heard through much repetition. But this kind of prayer is useless; it is not at all effective, and we should not pray in that kind of way.
Brothers and sisters, your prayers should not be sound only, which do not have meaning. The prayers of many people in the prayer meeting are meaningless. If you do not say Amen when they pray, they condemn you for not being one with them. But if you say Amen to their prayer, they will repeat the same words over and over again. They do not pray to fulfill some goals but to generate some commotion. Their prayers are not for the purpose of releasing the burden but for finishing up their speech. Many prayers are offered as a result of man’s influence, and many words are uttered which are beyond one’s desires. These prayers are like the sound of a stream tumbling against the rocks; they are also like the sound of wheels rolling over pebbles. This kind of prayer has sound only, and it is meaningless. We should not be like those who pray this way.
“Therefore do not be like them, for your Father knows the things that you have need of before you ask Him.” This shows us that whether or not our prayers will be answered depends on our attitude before God; it also depends on our need. Whether or not prayers are answered depends not on the multiplicity of our words. If we pray for what we do not need, we will not be heard even if we have more words. If our asking is not out of necessity, it is greed and vain asking. God is happy to give us what we need. But He does not want to satisfy the desires that our self craves. Some have said that since God knows what we need, we do not have to ask anymore. This is a foolish word. The purpose of our prayer is not to inform God of something but to show Him our trust, our faith, our dependence, and our wish. Therefore, it is right that we pray. But when we pray, our desire should exceed our words, and our faith should exceed our words.
Now let us consider the prayer that the Lord taught. This prayer is commonly called the Lord’s Prayer, but this is wrong. This prayer is not the Lord’s own prayer; it is a prayer that the Lord was teaching us. Luke 11 points this out clearly (vv. 1-4). We should learn carefully from this prayer.
The Lord said, “You then pray in this way.” He did not say to pray with these words. If He had, all we would have to do is repeat these words every time we prayed. No, this is not what the Lord meant. The Lord meant that we should pray in this way. In other words, the Lord was teaching us how to pray; He was not teaching us to imitate His words, but to pray in His way.
Since the beginning of the world, God has been listening to man’s prayers. Generation after generation and age after age, men have been praying to God. But it is hard to find some whose prayers are to the point. Many people pay attention to their needs; they do not pay attention to God’s needs. This is why the Lord opened His mouth and told us to “pray in this way.” To “pray in this way” is something very significant, great, and profound. Brothers and sisters, if we want to learn to pray at all, we have to learn to “pray in this way.” This was the first time since God came down to earth to become a man that He told us how to pray and how to pray in a concise way.
The Lord told us that we have to pray to “our Father who is in the heavens.” “Father” is a title, a new name by which man addresses God. Prior to this, man called God “the Almighty,” “the Most High,” “the living God,” or “Jehovah.” No one dared to call God the “Father.” This was the first time the word “Father” was used. This shows us clearly that this prayer is for saved ones, those who have eternal life already. When a man is saved, he can call God the Father. Only those who are begotten of God are the children of God, and only they can call God the Father. This prayer is directed toward “our Father who is in the heavens.” How sweet this is and what a great comfort it is. Originally, only our Lord Jesus could call God the Father. But in these verses, He instructed us to call God our Father. This is a great revelation. If God had not loved us and given us His only begotten Son, how could we call God our Father? Thank God that His Son has died and risen for us so that we can become God’s children and receive a new position. From now on we can pray to our Father who is in the heavens. How intimate, free, and uplifting this is. May the Spirit of the Lord teach us more and more to know that God is our Father and to believe that the Father is loving and patient. Not only does He want to hear our prayer; He also wants us to share the joy of prayer.
This prayer can be divided into three sections. The first section has to do with the things of God. It is a prayer with three desires concerning God (Matt. 6:9-10). This is the foundation. The second section has to do with us; it is our request for God’s protection (vv. 11-13a). The third section is our declaration; it is our praise to God (v. 13b). Let us consider the prayer section by section.
The first section covers three desires concerning God.
“Your name be sanctified!” God has an expectation that we all pray for His name to be sanctified by men. His name is exalted among the angels. But on earth, His name is being used in vain; even the idols use His name. When a man takes the name of God in vain, God does not show His wrath by striking him with thunder. He hides Himself, as if He did not exist. When a man takes His name in vain, He does not do anything to deal with him. Yet He wants His children to pray, “Your name be sanctified.” Brothers and sisters, if you love God and know Him, you will want His name to be sanctified. If anyone takes God’s name in vain, you will feel hurt, your desire will be even stronger, and you will pray even more earnestly: “Your name be sanctified.” One day man will sanctify this name and no longer take this name in vain.
“Your name be sanctified!” God’s name is not only a title we address with our mouth; it is a great revelation we receive from the Lord. God’s name is used in the Bible to designate His revelation to man concerning Himself; it denotes everything we know about Him. God’s name speaks of God’s nature, and it reveals His fullness. This is not something that man can understand with his soul but something that the Lord reveals to us (John 17:6). The Lord said, “And I have made Your name known to them and will yet make it known, that the love with which You have loved Me may be in them, and I in them” (17:26). This shows us that in order to know God’s name, we need the Lord to make it known to us again and again.
“Your name be sanctified!” This is not only our desire but also our worship to the Father. We should give glory to God. We should begin our prayer with praises. Before we can hope to receive mercy and grace from Him, we should give glory to Him. We should allow Him to gain the fullest praise concerning Himself, and then we should receive grace from Him. Brothers and sisters, we have to remember that the main thing and the ultimate goal in our prayer is for God to gain glory.
“Your name be sanctified!” God’s name is linked to God’s glory. Ezekiel 36 says, “But I had pity for mine holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen, whither they went” (v. 21). This means that the house of Israel had not sanctified God’s name, so God’s name was profaned wherever they went among the heathens. Yet God had pity for His holy name. Our Lord wants us to have this desire. In other words, He wants to glorify His own name through us. God’s name must first be sanctified in our hearts before our desire can be turned to something more profound. There must be a deep work of the cross before we can glorify God’s name. Otherwise, our desire is not even a desire but only an empty idea. Brothers and sisters, this being the case, how much we need to be dealt with and trimmed.
What kind of kingdom is this kingdom? If we read the context in Matthew, we will see that this kingdom refers to the kingdom of the heavens. The Lord teaches us to pray, “Your kingdom come.” This means that the kingdom of God is in heaven, but the kingdom of God is not on earth. Consequently, we have to pray for God to expand the heavenly sphere to the earth. In the Bible God’s kingdom is historical as well as geographical. History has to do with time, while geography has to do with place. According to the Bible, the kingdom of God is more a geographical matter than a historical matter. The Lord said, “If I, by the Spirit of God, cast out the demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Matt. 12:28). Is this related to history? No, it is something related to geography. The kingdom of God is wherever the Son of God casts out demons. Hence, within this period of time, the kingdom of God is more a matter of geography than a matter of history. Brothers and sisters, if you are filled with a historical concept of the kingdom, you have seen only one side of the truth and not all sides. In the Old Testament, one only finds prophecy concerning the kingdom of the heavens. When the Lord Jesus came, we had the declaration of John the Baptist, who proclaimed that the kingdom of the heavens had drawn near (Matt. 3:1-2). Then the Lord Jesus Himself said that the kingdom of the heavens had drawn near (4:17). They said this because by then there were people who were already of the kingdom of the heavens. By Matthew 13, we have the appearance of the kingdom of the heavens on earth. Today the kingdom of God is wherever God’s children cast the demons and their works out by the Spirit of God. In asking us to pray for His kingdom to come, the Lord is looking forward to the time when God’s kingdom will fill the whole earth.
“Your kingdom come!” This is not only a desire of the church, but also a responsibility of the church. The church should bring in God’s kingdom. In order to bring in God’s kingdom, the church has to pay the price to be restricted by heaven and come under heaven’s rule. It has to be the outlet for heaven, and it has to allow heaven’s authority to be expressed on earth. In order to bring in God’s kingdom, the church has to know all the schemes of Satan (2 Cor. 2:11). It has to put on the whole armor of God and stand against the stratagems of the devil (Eph. 6:11), for wherever the kingdom of God is, the devil is cast out. When the kingdom of God rules on earth fully, Satan will be cast into the abyss (Rev. 20:1-3). Since the church has such a tremendous responsibility, Satan will do all he can to attack the church. May the church pray like the saints of old, “O Jehovah, bow Your heavens down and descend” (Psa. 144:5). “Oh that You would rend the heavens, that You would come down” (Isa. 64:1). At the same time, we should say to Satan, “Depart from the earth immediately, and go to the eternal fire which God has prepared for you” (cf. Matt. 25:41).
The prayer here is “Your will be done, as in heaven, so also on earth.” This shows that God’s will is done in heaven, but that it is not fully done on earth. God is God; who can stop His will from being done? Can man stop God? Can the devil stop God? No one can stop God. Why then do we have to pray? To answer this question, we have to mention something about the principle of prayer.
In the whole Bible, there are a few basic principles concerning the truth. The principle of prayer is one of these principles. Brothers and sisters, we have to realize that it is wonderful that such a thing as prayer can exist in the Bible. God truly knows our need already. Why then do we need to pray? In man’s view, since God is omniscient, there is no need for man to pray. Yet according to the Bible, God needs man’s prayer. Prayer means that God wants to do something, yet He will not do it Himself; He will wait for man on earth to pray about it before He does it. God has His will and thoughts. Yet He is waiting for man to pray. God knows our needs, yet He has to wait for man to pray before He will do anything. He will not move by Himself; He will move only after man has prayed. The reason that we need to pray is because God will not do anything by Himself; He has to wait for man to pray before He works. The Lord Jesus was to be born. But there needed to be a Simeon and an Anna to pray for this (Luke 2:25, 36-38). The Holy Spirit was to descend, but it could not descend until the hundred and twenty people prayed for ten days (Acts 1:15; 2:1-2). This is the principle of prayer. Can we through prayer ask God not to do what He wants? No, we cannot. Yet God has to wait for us to pray before He can do what He wants to do. At the time of Ahab, the word of Jehovah came to Elijah clearly, “I will send rain upon the earth.” But Elijah had to pray before God would send the rain (1 Kings 18:1, 41-45). God will not carry out His will alone. He has to wait for us to pray before He will carry out His will. What is prayer? It is first for God to have a will, second for us to touch this will and pray for it, and third for God to answer our prayer when we pray.
Many people have the wrong concept that the reason man prays to God is to initiate something and ask God to do something. But the Bible shows us that God first has a will and wants to do something, next He shows us His will, and then we speak out with our mouth the will that we have come to understand. This is prayer. The Lord taught us to pray. God Himself wants His name to be sanctified. God Himself wants His kingdom to come, and God Himself wants His will to be done on earth. Yet God will not do these things alone. He is waiting for the church to pray. If you pray, I pray, and all of God’s children pray and if the prayers are numerous enough, His name will be sanctified, His kingdom will come, and His will will be done on earth as it is in heaven. God’s children must learn to pray this kind of prayer. We have to always remember what God desires and what He wants to do. Although God has determined to do something, He will not do it; He has to wait for His children to be motivated and willing to express His will through their prayer before He will answer their prayer. Although the ultimate fulfillment of His name being sanctified, His kingdom coming, and His will being done on earth will be in the millennium, the timing of it, whether it will come early or late, depends on the prayer of His children. The basic principle is that God will not do anything according to His purpose alone; He will wait for His children to pray on earth before He does anything.
Some matters can be considered only miscellaneous matters in God’s will. But God has a very great will, and the miscellaneous matters of His will are included in this great will. When we pay attention to God’s great will, all the miscellaneous matters will be accomplished. God has His will in heaven, and His Spirit conveys this will to us. Therefore, we can echo with the cry, “God, we ask that You accomplish this.” When this happens, God accomplishes His will. This is the principle of prayer as revealed in the Bible. God’s move today is affected by our prayer on earth. We have to ask God to open our eyes so that we can see that the move in heaven is affected by our prayer on earth. Our Lord has revealed this mystery to us which was hidden from the ages. Brothers and sisters, if we are willing to make a sacrifice and set aside the time to pray, we will see that this kind of prayer will not only receive God’s answer but will also receive a reward.
God’s will is like a river, and our prayer is like the channel. If our prayer is big, the accomplishment of our prayer will also be big. If our prayer is limited, the accomplishment of our prayer will also be limited. The revival in Wales during 1903-1904 was the greatest revival in the history of the church. God brought in a great revival through a coal miner, Evan Roberts. He did not have much education. But his prayers were profound. Later he did not engage in any public work for seven or eight years. When a brother met him, the brother asked, “What have you been doing all these years?” He answered with one short sentence, “I have been praying the prayer of the kingdom.” Brothers and sisters, if there is no prayer, the kingdom will not come. If the channels are blocked, the water cannot flow through. In teaching us to pray, the Lord revealed God’s mind and God’s demand on us. Whenever God’s children place their will in harmony with God’s will, God’s name will be sanctified, His kingdom will surely come, and His will will indeed be done on earth as in heaven.
The second section is on three things that one prays for oneself.
When some read this, they do not understand why the Lord turns suddenly from God’s name, His kingdom, and His will to our daily bread. Is it not a big step backward to turn from such a high prayer to such low matters? Brothers and sisters, there is a reason for this. When a true man of God prays continuously for His name, kingdom, and will, the Lord takes care of the man himself. If the prayer is important, the praying one will surely stir up the attack of Satan. Hence, our bread is one thing that we have to pray for. Bread is man’s immediate need. It is also a great temptation. When a man falls into a situation where daily bread becomes a problem, he is in a great trial. On the one hand, we pray that His name be sanctified, His kingdom come, and His will be done on earth. On the other hand, as human beings, we still live on earth; we still need our daily bread. Satan knows this. Consequently, there is a need for protective prayers. This is the prayer of a Christian concerning his own need; he has to ask for the Lord’s protection. Otherwise, he may have a lofty prayer on the one hand while coming under attack on the other hand. Satan can attack. When we are short of bread, we are attacked, and our prayer will be affected. We have to see the need of this prayer. We are still human beings on earth, and our body has the need of bread. Therefore, we have to ask God to give us our bread.
This prayer also shows us that we have to look to God and pray to Him every day. The Lord teaches us to pray: “Give us today our daily bread.” We do not pray weekly, but daily. On earth we have no support, and we have no savings. To some extent we cannot pray for weekly bread or monthly bread; we have to pray for bread today. How much trust in God is required here! The Lord is not ignorant of our daily needs; He does not tell us to forget about praying for these needs. Rather, He tells us to pray daily. Actually, the Father already knows the things that we need. The Lord wants us to ask God for our bread day by day because He wants us to learn to look to the Father day by day; He wants us to exercise our faith day by day. We often extend our worries too much into the future, and we stretch our prayer too much into the future. Brothers and sisters, if we have a strong desire to be for His name, His kingdom, and His will, we will suffer great hardships. But if God will give us our daily bread, we will not have to pray for tomorrow’s bread until tomorrow comes. Brothers and sisters, do not worry about tomorrow; sufficient for the day is its own evil (Matt. 6:31-34).
On the one hand, there is the demand for our material needs. On the other hand, there is the demand of a good conscience. Day by day, we commit offenses against God. In many things, we may not have sinned, but we have incurred debts. Failing to do what we should do is to incur a debt. Failing to say what we should say is to incur a debt. It is not easy for us to maintain a good conscience before God. Every night when we go to bed, we realize that we have committed many offenses against God. They may not be sins, but they are all debts. We have to ask God to forgive us and forgive our debts before we can have a good conscience. This is very important. To be forgiven of our debts is like being forgiven of our sins; we must have it before we can have a good conscience and before we can live before God with boldness. Many brothers and sisters have the experience that as soon as their conscience has a leakage their faith is gone. We must not have any leakage in our conscience. Concerning faith and a good conscience, Paul said that “some, thrusting these away, have become shipwrecked regarding the faith” (1 Tim. 1:19). The conscience is like a ship; it cannot afford to have any holes. Once the conscience has a hole, faith leaks out. The conscience cannot have any debts; it cannot accumulate any offenses. Once it has any offense, it will have a hole, and the first thing that will leak away is our faith. If the conscience has a hole, one cannot believe even if he tries to. Once condemnation arises in the conscience, faith will leak away. Therefore, brothers and sisters, in order to maintain a good conscience, we have to ask God to forgive our debts. This is a crucial matter. This forgiving of our debt has nothing to do with our receiving of eternal life. But it has to do with our fellowship and with God’s discipline.
We have to ask God to forgive our debts as we have forgiven our debtors. If a person is mean toward other brothers and sisters and does not forget their offenses against him, he cannot ask God to forgive his debts. A narrow-minded person, who always pays attention to how others have offended, hurt, or ill-treated him, cannot pray such a prayer before God. A man must have a forgiving heart before he can boldly ask the Father: “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” One cannot hold his debtor responsible while asking God to forgive his own debts. If we have not forgiven our debtors, how can we open our mouth to ask God to forgive our debts? Brothers and sisters, if we have not received something from someone, and we harbor a discontent in our heart, calculating the offenses that others have done against us, how can we have this kind of prayer to the Father? Brothers and sisters, just as our offenses before God must be forgiven, so we also must forgive the offenses of others against us. We must first forgive the debts of others before we can pray boldly to the Father: “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.”
Here we have to pay attention to one thing: The Bible tells us not only about our relationship with the Father but also about our relationship with one another as brothers and sisters. If a brother only remembers his relationship with God and forgets his relationship with other brothers and sisters and presumes that there is nothing wrong between him and God, he is deceiving himself. Brothers and sisters, never overlook your relationship with the brothers and sisters. If there is a barrier between you and another brother or sister, you will immediately lose God’s blessing. If there is something which you should do to a brother or a sister or if there is something you should say to them and you have not done it, you may not have sinned, but you have incurred a debt. Do not think that everything is all right just because you have not sinned. You must be without debt also. At the same time, if a brother or sister owes you anything and you do not forget it, you are not forgiving their debts. This will also hinder you from being forgiven by God. God will deal with you in the same way that you deal with the brothers and sisters. If you do not forget their debt and if you keep on counting and complaining, you are being grossly deceived if you think that God has forgiven your debts. The Lord clearly teaches us to pray: “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” We have to pay attention to the words “as we also have forgiven.” If there were no words “have forgiven,” it would be impossible to use the word “as.” If we have not forgiven our debtors, our debts will be remembered before God. If we have removed from our heart their debt and there is nothing there anymore, we can come boldly before God and say, “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” God will have to forgive us. Brothers and sisters, we must thoroughly forgive our debtors. Otherwise, it will affect our being forgiven before God.
The first part speaks of our material needs. The second part speaks of our relationship with the brothers and sisters. This part speaks of our relationship with Satan. “Do not bring us into temptation.” This is the negative request. “But deliver us from the evil one.” This is the positive request. On the one hand, when we live for God on earth and have a strong desire to be for His name, His kingdom, and His will, we have material needs; we need to ask for our daily bread. On the other hand, our conscience needs to be clean and void of offense before God; we need God to forgive our debts. But there is another thing. We also need peace; we need to ask God to deliver us from the hands of Satan. Brothers and sisters, the more we take the way of the kingdom of the heavens, the greater the temptations will be. What then should we do? We can pray and ask God not to “bring us into temptation.” Brothers and sisters, we cannot be so confident in ourselves that we can scorn any temptation. Since the Lord has asked us to pray, we should pray that God would not bring us into temptation. We do not know when temptation will come. But we can pray ahead of time that we not be brought into temptation. This prayer is for our protection. We are not waiting every day for temptation to come. Rather, we are praying every day for temptation not to come. We should ask that we only encounter what the Lord allows to come upon us and not encounter anything that the Lord does not allow to come upon us. If we do not pray this way, we will not be able to withstand temptation for a moment; we will not be able to accomplish anything. We must ask the Lord to not bring us into any temptation, not allowing us to encounter anyone that we should not encounter nor to come across anything that we should not come across. This is a protective prayer. Brothers and sisters, we have to pray for God to protect us so that our daily bread is provided, our conscience is clean, and we do not face temptation. In everything, we have to ask the Lord not to bring us into temptation. We should pray that we do not encounter anything that the Lord has not permitted. Daily, we have to ask God to keep us from temptation.
Not only do we have to ask God not to bring us into temptation, but we also have to ask Him to “deliver us from the evil one.” This is a positive prayer. No matter where Satan puts his hand, we have to ask the Lord to deliver us from the evil one. In our daily bread, in the matter of condemnation in our conscience, and in any temptation, we have to ask the Lord to deliver us from the evil one. In other words, we pray that we not fall into the hand of the evil one in anything. In reading Matthew 8 and 9, we find that Satan’s hands are beyond what we expect and know. They are hidden behind the fever which comes suddenly upon a person’s body (8:14) and the storm which rises suddenly from the sea (8:24). They cause the demons to attach themselves to men and drown the pigs (8:28-32). They work within man’s heart and cause him to reject and oppose the Lord for no reason at all (9:3, 11). In short, Satan is out to harm man and inflict suffering on man. Therefore, we have to pray that we will be delivered from the evil one.
The three desires concerning God are basic prayers, and the three requests for ourselves are protective prayers. We ask the Lord for our daily bread not only because we want to eat. We ask that our conscience be without offense not only for the sake of having a good conscience. We ask the Lord to deliver us from the evil one not only because we want to be delivered from the harm of the evil one. We pray for all of these things in order to live longer on earth to perform the work of prayer so that the Father’s name will be sanctified, His kingdom will come, and His will will be done on earth as in heaven.
Lastly, the Lord taught us to give praise for three things: “For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.” This praise tells us that the kingdom belongs to the Father, the power belongs to the Father, and the glory belongs to the Father. The three things that we give praise for have to do with deliverance from the evil one. They also have to do with the whole prayer that the Lord taught. We pray that the Lord would deliver us from the evil one because the kingdom is the Father’s and not Satan’s, because the power is the Father’s and not Satan’s, and because the glory is the Father’s and not Satan’s. This is the main point: since the kingdom belongs to the Father, we should not fall into the hand of Satan; since the power belongs to the Father, we should not fall into the hand of Satan; and since the glory belongs to the Father, we should not fall into the hand of Satan. This is the strong reason behind not falling into Satan’s hand. If we fall into Satan’s hand, how can we glorify the Father any longer? If the Father is to have power over us, Satan cannot have power over us. Since the kingdom of the heavens belongs to the Father, we cannot and should not fall into Satan’s hand.
Concerning authority, we should remember the Lord’s word. He said, “Behold, I have given you the authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you” (Luke 10:19). This verse says that the authority He gives enables us to overcome all the power of the enemy. With authority there is power. The Lord wants us to know that with the kingdom, there is authority, and behind the authority, the power to rule. The kingdom is God’s and not Satan’s. Authority belongs to God, not to Satan. Consequently, power belongs to God, not to Satan. Of course, glory also belongs to God, not to Satan. Since the kingdom, the power, and the glory all belong to God, those who belong to God should overcome all temptation and be delivered from the hand of Satan.
In the New Testament, the Lord’s name denotes authority, while the Holy Spirit denotes power. All authority is in the Lord’s name, while all power is in the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the power of God. The kingdom denotes the rule of heaven and the authority of God, while the power tells us that all power is in the Holy Spirit. When God moves, the Holy Spirit becomes His power. Since the kingdom belongs to God, Satan has nowhere to exercise his reign. Since the power belongs to the Holy Spirit, Satan can in no way touch the Holy Spirit. Matthew 12:28 tells us that whenever the demons touched the Holy Spirit, they were cast out. Finally, glory also belongs to God. Hence, we can declare and loudly give praise: “For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”
The Lord taught us to pray in this way. This does not mean that we should recite it as a ritualistic ceremony, but pray according to this pattern. All prayers should be according to this pattern. Concerning God, we desire that His name be sanctified, His kingdom come, and His will be done on earth as in heaven. Concerning ourselves, we ask that God would protect us. Concerning our praise, it is based on the fact that the kingdom, the power, and the glory are His. Since the kingdom, the power, and the glory are His, His name should be sanctified, His kingdom should come, and His will should be done on earth as in heaven. Since the kingdom, the power, and the glory are His, we pray to Him concerning our daily bread, our debt, our temptation, and the evil one. Every prayer should take this prayer as its pattern. Some have said that this prayer is not for Christians because it does not end with the words “in the name of the Lord.” This is foolish. The prayer that the Lord teaches is not an incantation that we pray. What prayer in the New Testament ends with the words “in the name of the Lord”? When the disciples were on the boat, and they cried, “Lord, save us; we are perishing” (Matt. 8:25), did they end with the words “in the name of the Lord”? The Lord did not teach us to say these words. He taught us to pray according to this principle. He taught us the way to pray. He did not tell us to pray with these words.
After the Lord finished His teaching on prayer, He went on to say, “For if you forgive men their offenses, your heavenly Father will forgive you also; but if you do not forgive men their offenses, neither will your Father forgive your offenses.” This is the Lord’s interpretation of verse 12, which says, “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” It is easy for Christians to fail in the matter of forgiving others. If any unforgivingness exists among God’s children, all lessons, faith, and power will leak away. This is why the Lord is so strong and clear. This is a simple word. Yet God’s children need this simple word. “For if you forgive men their offenses, your heavenly Father will forgive you also.” It is so simple for us to receive the Father’s forgiveness. However, “if you do not forgive men their offenses, neither will your Father forgive your offenses.” There is no such thing as careless forgiveness. This word is simple, but the fact is not that simple. If we forgive others with our mouth but do not forgive in our heart, it is not considered as forgiveness in the Father’s eyes. Forgiveness which is in the mouth only is vain and deceitful and does not count before the Father. We must forgive others’ offenses from the heart. Just as the disciples needed this word of the Lord, we also need the same word. If Christians are irreconcilable and if they do not forgive others from their heart, the church will run into problems. If we have no intention of behaving like the church and if we want to each take our own way as soon as we disagree with a single word, we do not need to forgive one another. But the Lord knows how crucial this matter is to us. Therefore, He reemphasized it at the end of the prayer. The Lord knows that the more we communicate and fellowship with one another, the more we need to forgive one another. He knows how crucial this matter is. Therefore, He had to turn our attention to it. If we do not forgive one another, it will be easy for us to give place to the devil. If we cannot forgive one another, we are not people of the kingdom, and we cannot do the work of the kingdom. No one who is unforgiving can be in the work of the kingdom, and no one who is unforgiving can be a person in the kingdom. Whenever we develop a problem with the brothers and sisters, we develop a problem with the Lord. We cannot pray to the Lord on the one hand and remain unforgiving on the other hand. Brothers and sisters, this is not an insignificant thing. We must pay attention to what the Lord pays attention to. We must forgive others their offenses.
Finally, we should note how much the Lord cares for the matter of prayer. There are only four verses that speak about almsgiving. In speaking about fasting, there are only three verses. But concerning prayer, He speaks in an emphatic way because prayer has to do with God. Prayer is the most important work of a Christian. The Lord shows us that there is reward for prayer because prayer is too great an issue; it is too great a matter. Those who are faithful to this work of prayer will receive a reward. Those who continue with this work in secret and who pay attention to this work will not be without reward. May God raise up those who would pray for God’s work.
Moreover, the prayer that the Lord taught always mentions “we” and “us.” This is the form of address used by the church. This is a prayer that is filled with a sense of the Body. It is a tremendous prayer. I do not know how many saints there are on earth who can pray this prayer. Brothers and sisters, may we consecrate ourselves afresh for this great prayer. Countless saints throughout the ages have become a part of this great prayer. May the Lord be merciful to us that we also may have a share in this great prayer.
