Matthew 6:9-13 (NKJV) - “In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. 1For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”
As we dissect this model, we can see nine points that Jesus gives up. We will look at these points over the next few days and seek to absorb the impact of what opens up to us. The nine points are:
1. Faith (6:9b)
2. Worship (6:9c)
3. Expectation (6:10a)
4. Submission (6:10b)
5. Petition (6:11)
6. Confession (6:12a)
7. Compassion (6:12b)
8. Dependence (6:13a)
9. Acknowledgment (6:13b)
So, we will start with verse 9. We have already stated yesterday what the opening phrase “In this manner…” means. So let’s look at the first phrase of the model says.
Jesus is here stating that the basis of our prayer should be settled in Faith – (6:9b) “Our Father in Heaven.” We need to understand that when we come into the presence of Almighty God, we must come believing in whom we are speaking. Faith is only as good as the object of our faith. Too many of us place our faith in faith itself, and not the proper object – God. We say we have faith. Faith in what? Where is our faith grounded? In our words? In our belief system? We know that the scripture tells us “For you are saved by grace through faith…” – faith in what? Faith must be grounded in God, and Him alone. Pause a moment and think, where is my faith placed? What I grounding my faith in?
Tomorrow, we will finish verse nine with the second point Jesus gives us. Today, work on focusing your faith in the right direction, and the right person.
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1 Many of the older manuscripts omit this last phrase of the prayer. I am including it because of the popularity of the way we say the prayer.
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