More Than Just a Prayer

Bottom line

You need to say the Lord’s Prayer everyday

Opening Line

Have you ever found yourself doing something that was so routine, you didn’t even have to think about it?

Introduction

I remember hearing a story about someone that had driven for an hour and half, and they remember leaving and they remember arriving, but they couldn’t tell you about anything in between. They said they felt like they woke up when they arrived.

The church I grew up in was extremely routine. It was a liturgical church, which means that they said the same prayers every Sunday at the same spot. The only parts of the service that changed were the hymns, first second and fourth, and the sermon. Even the readings were on a three year rotation.

The reason I mention it is that the prayers and flow of the service were so ingrained in my subconscious that I would recite the service on the bus when I was bored. I remember one specific incident on the bus. It is the morning ride, and we were in the final stretch before school. I kind of woke up, looked out the window at this field, and realized I was half way through the service when I reengaged my brain.

I say that about the liturgical church, but the same can happen in a church like ours. You show up 3 minutes before 10:30, grab your coffee from the coffee bar, and proceed the sit in the same spot you have always sat in for the last 10 years. The song portion of the service begins, and you let your brain wander a bit because worship isn’t really your thing. Then we move into prayer, and you sit quietly because you really don’t want to share anything this particular morning. You tune out for the announcements, followed by waiting to see how funny Pastor Matt decides to be this morning. Then the discussion time comes, and you’d rather talk about the gov’t or sports then the questions that appear on the screen because they are just a little too piercing. After chatting for a bit, run out the door before you get sucked into putting chairs away, and then come back next week and do it all over again. That is of course unless something better comes up and you can’t make it to church.

This is why we are starting with the sermon this morning. It isn’t a bad thing to switch it up every once in a while, just to get your out of routine and make sure you are paying attention.

Main Point

My point is that as human beings, you are a creature of habit. When you find yourself doing the same thing over and over again, your brain can go into autopilot and you don’t even think about it anymore. For some of you, that is the job you do. It is so routine, you don’t even have to think about what you’re doing, you just do it.

The same can be said about the Lord’s Prayer. This morning, I want to suggest that you should be saying the Lord’s Prayer daily, if not multiple times a day. This morning I am going to lay out why this is the perfect prayer. The challenge is for you to remain intentional as you do it.

Why it matters

What if the Lord’s Prayer had the power to change your thinking, your emotional health, and your connection with God? What if you relationships improved because you committed to saying it? The trick becomes not simply just going through the motion of saying it, but meaning every word of it. I honestly believe that if you regularly say this prayer, with the intentionality it deserves, it will make a major difference. You just have to resist the temptation to go into autopilot when you say it.

Scripture

So as we have done all series long, we will recite the Lord’s Prayer as it appears on the screen. Hopefully it has started to sink in.

Matthew 6:9–13 NLT

Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us today the food we need, and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one.

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So what makes this the perfect prayer?

1. Because Jesus taught it to us

That’s the whole sermon everyone. Thanks for coming out!

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No it’s not! I still have 18 more points, calm down. But this point holds the most weight. The first line, from Jesus Himself is, “Pray like this...” And our response should be and always will be, yes Lord. The only begotten Son of God, the second person of the Trinity, Word become flesh, says this is the way you are to pray, then you pray that way! In fact, at no other point in the New Testament, to my knowledge, do the Scriptures say something this direct. The apostles often teach that you are pray for the saints or pray for the church leaders, but they never give specific instruction on how to pray. Why? Because Jesus already gave the perfect prayer. They didn’t need to expand on the how, they just needed to help the church know where to direct their prayers.

2. Because it lines up with Jesus’ other teaching on prayer

Matthew 6:7–8 NLT

“When you pray, don’t babble on and on as the Gentiles do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again. Don’t be like them, for your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!

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Now look at what follows. The Lord’s Prayer is around 60 words long, and at no point does it repeat itself. It is concise, and it gets right to the point. Because it would be rather ironic if Jesus told His followers to not babble on or repeat themselves again and again, and then proceeded to give you a prayer that did just that. Instead of teaching you to be concise in your prayer life and expecting you to figure it out on your own, Jesus shows us what a concise prayer looks like.

3. It lines up with His other teachings

Now I don’t know if anyone has noticed, and I acknowledge I have not been perfect in it, but I have tried to only use Jesus’ teaching as I explained each line of the Lord’s Prayer. Why? Because I believe that the Lord’s Prayer is so much more then just a prayer; it is a summary of everything Jesus ever taught. It is not just a prayer, but it is a bite size summary of the entirety of His teachings. Look at this.

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What are the two great commandments? Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul and all your mind, and love your neighbor as yourself. Has anyone noticed that the first half of the Lord’s prayer is all about God, and the second half is all about your neighbor? First half of the prayer: Our Father, your name, your kingdom, your will, you provide. Second half of the prayer: our daily food, our sins, forgive those who sin against us, don’t let us yield, deliver us. The first half reminds you to connect with your Father in heaven and love Him by coming into alignment with His will and His Kingdom. The second half is a reminder that life is not all about me but we. I said it earlier in the series, at no point in the Lord’s Prayer are personal pronouns used. Why? Because you are taught to love your neighbor. So you pray for the church as a whole, you pray for your brothers and sisters in the faith, and you pray for your enemies. Father, meet all of our needs, especially the needs of so and so because I know they are struggling right now. Father forgive us, especially my brother that hurt me the other day. Father, don’t let us yield to temptation, especially my sister that I know is struggling with gossiping right now. Jesus taught you to pray for the whole, but pray with the awareness that when the Holy Spirit lays someone on your heart, you would pray for them, regardless if they are friend or foe.

Want more proof? Jesus referred to God as Father 165 times between Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

Matthew 5:48 NLT

But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.

Lines up really well with the second line, may your name be kept holy.

Matthew 4:17 NLT

From then on Jesus began to preach, “Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.”

Mark 1:15 NLT

“The time promised by God has come at last!” he announced. “The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!”

Lines up well with the third line, May your Kingdom come soon.

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I could keep going, but I think you get the point.

This shouldn’t surprise us. The most important teachings in scripture come in the easiest to remember packages. I find it interesting how much resistance I get when it comes to memorizing scripture. It is as if scripture memorization is good for the kids when they are in Sunday School, but once you become an adult it is something you need to stop because your brain just doesn’t work that way anymore.

Yet what are the two most important commandments? I just said them. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your mind, and all your soul, and love you neighbor as yourself. You don’t need to remember anything else because Jesus said the entirety of scripture is summed up these two lines. You don’t have to remember the ten commandments, remember the two. You don’t have to memorize the whole Old Testament, remember these two things. The rest of scripture, and entirety of life is discovering what it means to love God fully, and love your neighbor faithfully. What if my neighbor is in a position of authority. Romans 13. What if I don’t agree with someone? Matthew 5:43 is all about loving your enemy.

So it should come as no surprise when Jesus teaches us this perfect prayer, and beneath the service, when you do a little digging, you realize that this is not only a prayer, but it is a perfect summary reminder of everything Jesus taught during His earthly ministry.

Now am I saying this is the only way to pray? No, I’m not. Next week I am going to peel back another layer of prayer, but I think this is a good place to start our prayers. Then connect with your heavenly Father, talk to Him. No two prayers need to be a like. But what I am saying that you shouldn’t lose the significance of this prayer in the midst of trying to be unique. Even Jesus repeated Himself in prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane.

Transition to Application

60ish words, takes you all of 20 seconds to say if you recite it from memory. What would happen if you said the Lord’s Prayer when you first got up in the morning. You open your eyes, turned off the alarm clock, and said the Lord’s prayer. What if you said it before you walked through the doors of work tomorrow morning? What if you took 30 seconds to intentionally say before you had that hard conversation with the person? What if you said the Lord’s Prayer just before you closed your eyes to end the day? What if you said it with your kids everyday? What if you said it with your spouse?

Main To Do

I want you to start saying the Lord’s Prayer more regularly. Not for the sake of saying it, but in light of everything we have talked about over the last 7 weeks. Pray it intentionally, allowing each word to help you focus on your heavenly Father, His kingdom, and His will being accomplished. Focus on each line, and allow the Holy Spirit to put people on your heart as you pray about forgiveness and not yielding to temptation.

Why it matters

The more you say the prayer, the more the truths of it start to become the filter of life. Oh right, I’ve been forgiven so much, so I’m supposed to be forgiving. I’m praying against yielding to temptation, and I recognize that I’m being tempted right now. Father give me strength. Oh I realize I have been addressing God a lot as Lord or God and not so much as Father. What am I allowing to get between us? Slowly but surely, you begin to filter your thoughts and actions through this prayer. You begin to become more aware of the struggles of others, and pray that God would strengthen them. Not only will you draw nearer to God, but your relationship with others will grow because you are holding onto less things that cause separation and become more earnest in caring and praying for those in your life.

Closing Line

I’m telling you, this will change everything if you are willing to give it a chance. The trick will be saying it thoughtfully, intentionally, meditatively. The challenge is to not simply go through the actions, but mean every word.

Discussion Questions

What stood out from the message?

How can saying the Lord's Prayer daily change your relationship with God?

What part of the Lord's Prayer resonates most with you, and why?

In what ways do you think the Lord's Prayer addresses your personal struggles?

What specific times during your day will you commit to reciting the Lord's Prayer?

How can you incorporate intentional prayer into your daily routine?