When Jesus taught the disciples to pray he gave them a simple outline to follow. In Luke’s version, the prayer consists of only five petitions. What strikes me as extremely powerful is the gist of the first two petitions.
First, we are to pray for God’s name to be sanctified. In the Old Testament, the sanctification of God’s name is connected to the holiness of the community of Israel. By being a contrast-society, Israel would sanctify—make holy (hallow)—the name of God (Leviticus 22.32-33; Ezekiel 36.23). Jesus invites us to pray in the same vein. We are to pray that God’s name would be sanctified through us. Next, we are to pray that God’s kingdom would come. When Jesus walked on this earth he announced the coming kingdom. He was saying, in essence, that God has not forgotten his dream of reclaiming this entire creation with and for his glory. With that big picture in mind, he teaches us to pray for the kingdom of God to come. He wants us to pray that God’s dream would come true through us.
These two petitions teach us something—it’s not about us; it’s about God: His-story. Together, we are being enlisted, by God, to live and witness in such a way that God’s name would be sanctified, and that through us, the world will receive a glimpse of God’s coming kingdom.
I recognize this prayer offers a challenge. Many of you might not be interested. You might be thinking, this is not what I signed up for--I want a little pick-me-up message; I want to serve Jesus alone; I prefer my own kingdom; I don’t want to take holiness, community, or the Kingdom of God too seriously. Your sentiment is probably shared by many. Personally, I can relate. My desires are not always godly. That’s why we need to pray this prayer with persistence. Notice after Jesus teaches us to pray this prayer, he give us two lessons on praying with persistence. And then notice what happens--we receive the Spirit of God who will transform our desires and empower to accomplish what he wants to accomplish in our lives.
I challenge you to keep praying this prayer, regularly, with persistence and let’s see what God will do in our midst as he continues to form us into a community that is relevant to what he wants to accomplish. Peace!
2 comments:
Thanks for your keen insight Pastor David! I had never noticed before that Jesus teaches us to pray with persistence right after teaching us how to pray. In your last paragraph you make reference to the fact that God is at work calling us into community so that we can accomplish what He wants to accomplish. Do you think that maybe He just wants to accomplish community in Christ?
Indeed, I do. Too often in our individualist thinking and in our market-driven evangelism (i.e., "each one, reach one"; "the church exists to save souls") we make the church redundant, unnecessary. Somehow we have to uncover a deeper view of things--that together we are called to witness to the triune God, and the only way to accomplish that is through a community shaped by his sending love. Peace.
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