Our Father - Prayers of Adoration

Recap - The primary purpose of prayer is relationship - Dwelling w/ God

The Lord’s Prayer

How did the Lord’s Prayer come about?

As we spoke about last week, it came out of a habitual rhythm of Jesus’ prayer life.

Most like quite regularly Jesus had the habit of spend time with the Father to restore, refocus, and reengage. Often times we think of wanting to avoid ritual or habits in our relationship with the Lord, for fear of being robotically insincere. But this doesn’t square in nearly every other area of life. If you want to grow in relationship with a spouse you’ll need to habitually and intentionally prioritize communication with the other member of the marriage. If you find yourself in turbulent situation on a plane you most assuredly hope that you’ve got a pilot that is well practiced in plane flying. Not someone who flys the the plane based off emotion and feeling. Habits are merely priorities in our lives that we seek to intentionally focus on them because we see the value in them.

2. Jesus’ followers saw first hand the significant difference of Jesus’ way of praying.

The disciples didn’t ask Jesus to instruct on them on something that they knew nothing about. Their who culture was immersed in the practice of prayer. They would tie prayers to their forheads and write them on their doorposts. They knew prayer. But the kind of prayer that Jesus was practicing was effective on another level. So they ask “Jesus teach us to pray that way.”

The Prayer

Matthew 6:9–13 (ESV)

9 Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. 10 Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread, 12 and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.”

Jesus doesn’t begin with request number one or even to make sure you request forgiveness for your most recent sins. But rather He begins with intimately & reverently referring to God as Father and then praying that God’s name would be honored.

Jesus begins His prayers with Worship & Adoration

Often times when we pray we take the microscope approach.

Microscope - Obsessing over ourselves and our concerns

We tend to just focus on the most pressing needs of the moment. Sadly enough, often times we don’t even practice this regularly but merely when the situation is at it’s most desperate. And in those moments it’s simply us loading up our shopping cart full of desperate pleas and ramming them full steam into the gates of heaven.

Prayer meetings after 9/11

Jesus however has a different approach. The telescope approach.

Telescope - Focused on the immensely infinite beauty of God.

KC Students looking at the stars

Jesus instructs us to, when we pray, to begin with Adoration. This is the launching pad heart of prayer.

EG when I come home. No requirements or requests. Just love. Now vs. Future

Starting prayer with adoration and reverence is a putting in place the first things first. To give honor where honor is due. And then from that place our hearts are ready to deal with all other matters.

“Adoration is the lifting up of the heart and the mind to God, asking nothing but to enjoy God’s presence.”

-Book of Common Prayer

“ In commanding us to glorify God, God is inviting us to enjoy Him.”

- C.S. Lewis

“We are most satisfied when God is most glorified.”

- John Piper

The Virgin & Child w/ Saints Jerome and Dominic - Filipino Lippi

When we have the right perspective we see and experience everything in it’s proper place.

Father | Hallowed

Let’s dive a bit deeper into the 2 sections of this prayer.

Father

What thoughts come to mind when you think of God as Father?

Many people believe that Jesus did a revolutionary thing by “introducing” God as Father. But this is an inaccurate way of viewing the opening line of the Lord’s prayer.

It wasn’t a foreign idea for God to be referred to as Father in Jewish culture and in the OT. The first time we see God referred as Father is in the Exodus story in Exodus 4

Exodus 4:22–23 (ESV)

22 Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord, Israel is my firstborn son, 23 and I say to you, “Let my son go that he may serve me.” If you refuse to let him go, behold, I will kill your firstborn son.’ ”

And then again in a more intimate way by the prophet Isaiah

Isaiah 64:8 (ESV)

8 But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.

So when Jesus says that they are to start their prayers by addressing God as Father, those ancient jewish ears would’ve perked up and remembered not just a Hallmark movie warm and cozy father, but also a liberator and deliverer.

A Father who relentlessly mocks and destroys their oppressor, before leading them to a new home to dwell in.

This is a Heavenly Father that’s greatest desire is to dwell with them so He gives them specific instructions to make a dwelling place for Him to reside in. Much like in Jesus’ story of the prodigal son

Luke 15:20 (ESV)

20 And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.

This is a immensely powerful God that uses that power to pursue slaves in order to make them sons. And goes to extraordinary lengths to dwell with them because of His great love for them. This is our Father.

The term Father doesn’t just inform us about who God is but it also informs us about who we are. His children.

We are sons and daughters of the the Most High God. Therefore we have all the rights and benefits as children.

1 John 3:1 (ESV)

1 See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.

Romans 8:14–17 (ESV)

14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

Matthew 7:11 (ESV)

11 If you then, who are 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!

Through Jesus we see and infinitely powerful and intensely personal Father God that WANTS to bless His children.

You, His child, He longs to bless you. More, in-fact, than you want Him to bless you.

And, if you can believe it, gets even better than all that.

Hallowed

What does Jesus mean when He says that we should pray for the name (reputation) of God to be hallowed (honored)?

Does God’s name need extra help from us to be brought back to it’s rightful place. Is God anxiously waiting in heaven for us to restore His name by worshipping Him because He can’t restore it Himself? No chance.

Rather we pray this prayer “hallowed” because there are still so many places here in our world where God’s name isn’t yet honored.

Do you feel this? In your work, your home, your family, government, entertainment, schools, and everywhere in between. Then name of God is not given honor that He rightly deserves and Jesus is calling us join Him in the greater mission of God to make God’s name honored.

So we pray let your name be honored in my

Home

Work

Family

Government

When Jesus refers to God as Father and thus directly implies all that we have discussed ( Father & Liberator, Deliverer, Victor, and Dwelling Builder). Jesus was also, obviously full aware that He (Jesus) was the continuation of God the Fathers plan and purpose in the earth.

God's Son bridged the gap, enabling (through HIs ministry & work on the cross) all to dwell with Him as His children and honor His Name.

2 Samuel 7:14 (ESV)

14 I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son.

Isaiah 55:1–3 (ESV)

1 “Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. 3 Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.

Matthew 11:28 (ESV)

28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Luke 4:18–21 (ESV)

18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” 20 And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

Matthew 27:51 (ESV)

51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.

When Jesus used this term Father, they would’ve recognized that this wasn’t just something to get warm and fuzzy feelings. But instead that what Jesus is calling us into is a NEW EXODUS. That He (Jesus) was the fulfillment of the plan and the purpose of the Father our Deliverer. To make a way for all peoples to be able to dwell with God and for God’s name to be honored.

What would it take to bring honor to the Name of God in our communities?

Jesus, through His ministry (healing the sick, raising the dead, feeding the poor, loving the outcast), is embodying what He instructs us to do in our prayer. To bring honor to God the Father’s name.

So then when Jesus is asking us to pray that God’s name would be honored, it of course means that, first in our hearts, that God’s name would be honored above all and It’s rightful place. But then also as we align our hearts, it would also come to pass in our communities (families, friendships, workplaces, government, education, entertainment) would also honor the name of God as Holy. And that we as followers of Jesus would follow in His example and be ministers and priests that go out in to the streets and be the answer to our own prayers in that way.

Are we tracking? (Elaborate)

That is why Jesus designs the Prayer to progress in this way:

Hallowed be Your Name

Kingdom Come

Your will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven

God’s will for His kingdom to come into this world begins with us going into all the world and bringing honor to His name by doing the works that He calls us to .

“Prayer begins with knowing who God is, which then informs everything that follows. Because that informs who I am, that informs who you are to me. If God is who He’s been revealed to be in Jesus, that redefines not only the words I’m about to pray, but hopefully the prayer I go on living after I say amen.

-Tyler Staton

So here’s a practical question we can ask ourselves before we pray:

What constitutes a good day?

Answer: Hallowed be Your Name

Achievement, efficiency, pleasure?

Hallowed by Thy Name?

The answer to that question shapes your prayers.

Prayer Practice

Daily Prayer Rhythm

Morning - Pray for a good day.

Midday - Pray for the lost.

Evening - Gratitude

Prayer Frame

Pause

Rejoice

Ask

Yield