Mat 6:13 | KingComments | STEP | In His teaching on prayer, the Lord now indicates how they can pray. By this he does not mean to give a ‘standard prayer’ that needs to be prayed over and over again. Then the effect could be precisely that which He has just said it should not be. In this prayer he indicates to whom they may address themselves and what the content of their prayer should be. In the address “our Father who is in heaven”, lies distance. The disciple on earth speaks to the Father in heaven. This shows that it is not primarily intended for Christians. The Christian has free access to God his Father in heaven. There is no distance. There is such a distance between the earthly people of God and God in heaven. This makes this prayer a prayer that is prayed with a view to the coming of the kingdom of peace, while the circumstances are still opposed to it. Although this prayer is mainly meant for the remnant of Israel, we can learn a lot from it. The announcement of the kingdom of peace by John the baptist and the Lord Himself leads disciples to long for the establishment of His kingdom. For this they have to overcome the difficulties of a hostile world. They must be preserved for the snares of the enemy, while it is necessary to do the will of the Father. The prayer contains six petitions. First come three petitions that have to do with God. It relates to His Name , His kingdom , and His will . Then come three petitions that have to do with us. It is about our bread , our debts , and our salvation from temptation and deliverance from evil. The heavenly Father and His claims are first and foremost. Our needs come second. The true disciple will long for the Name of his Father, who is still so often blasphemed and dishonored, to be hallowed everywhere on earth. When the Lord Jesus will reign, the holiness of the Father’s Name will be recognized and spoken with respect by everyone. Disciples find their greatest joy in the fact that their Father, Who is still doing everything in secret, will be openly praised and magnified. If the Father’s Name is sanctified everywhere, the will of the Father will also be done everywhere. This will be the situation when “Your kingdom”, the kingdom of peace, has come. Then there will also be complete obedience and “Your will” will be done on earth as it has always been done in heaven. But it's not that time yet. The disciple is still dependent on the care of his Father, while he is surrounded by enemies. Especially in the great tribulation, which immediately precedes the establishment of the kingdom of peace, there will be a great lack of most of daily needs. The Lord says here that every day they may call upon their Father to give them what they need. They will also be aware that the need they are in is the result of their sins. They ask forgiveness and do so in the spirit of forgiveness that they have shown to their persecutors. At the same time, they acknowledge their weakness to withstand temptation. The Lord says that they may pray if their Father would prevent them from coming into temptation, where they might deny Him. They may at the same time ask their Father to deliver them from the evil one. In the final words of His teaching about prayer, the Lord returns to forgiveness. The word “for” in indicates a clear connection to the foregoing. It is necessary to have the mind of forgiveness to have the consciousness of forgiveness. If a disciple is not willing to forgive others the wrong they have done to him, the Father cannot show that willingness either. By the lack of willingness to forgive, access to the Father in prayer is blocked.

‏ Matthew 6:13

The ‘Our Father’

In His teaching on prayer, the Lord now indicates how they can pray. By this he does not mean to give a ‘standard prayer’ that needs to be prayed over and over again. Then the effect could be precisely that which He has just said it should not be. In this prayer he indicates to whom they may address themselves and what the content of their prayer should be.

In the address “our Father who is in heaven”, lies distance. The disciple on earth speaks to the Father in heaven. This shows that it is not primarily intended for Christians. The Christian has free access to God his Father in heaven. There is no distance. There is such a distance between the earthly people of God and God in heaven. This makes this prayer a prayer that is prayed with a view to the coming of the kingdom of peace, while the circumstances are still opposed to it. Although this prayer is mainly meant for the remnant of Israel, we can learn a lot from it.

The announcement of the kingdom of peace by John the baptist and the Lord Himself leads disciples to long for the establishment of His kingdom. For this they have to overcome the difficulties of a hostile world. They must be preserved for the snares of the enemy, while it is necessary to do the will of the Father.

The prayer contains six petitions. First come three petitions that have to do with God. It relates to His Name, His kingdom, and His will. Then come three petitions that have to do with us. It is about our bread, our debts, and our salvation from temptation and deliverance from evil. The heavenly Father and His claims are first and foremost. Our needs come second.

The true disciple will long for the Name of his Father, who is still so often blasphemed and dishonored, to be hallowed everywhere on earth. When the Lord Jesus will reign, the holiness of the Father’s Name will be recognized and spoken with respect by everyone. Disciples find their greatest joy in the fact that their Father, Who is still doing everything in secret, will be openly praised and magnified.

If the Father’s Name is sanctified everywhere, the will of the Father will also be done everywhere. This will be the situation when “Your kingdom”, the kingdom of peace, has come. Then there will also be complete obedience and “Your will” will be done on earth as it has always been done in heaven.

But it's not that time yet. The disciple is still dependent on the care of his Father, while he is surrounded by enemies. Especially in the great tribulation, which immediately precedes the establishment of the kingdom of peace, there will be a great lack of most of daily needs. The Lord says here that every day they may call upon their Father to give them what they need.

They will also be aware that the need they are in is the result of their sins. They ask forgiveness and do so in the spirit of forgiveness that they have shown to their persecutors. At the same time, they acknowledge their weakness to withstand temptation. The Lord says that they may pray if their Father would prevent them from coming into temptation, where they might deny Him. They may at the same time ask their Father to deliver them from the evil one.

In the final words of His teaching about prayer, the Lord returns to forgiveness. The word “for” in Mt 6:14 indicates a clear connection to the foregoing. It is necessary to have the mind of forgiveness to have the consciousness of forgiveness. If a disciple is not willing to forgive others the wrong they have done to him, the Father cannot show that willingness either. By the lack of willingness to forgive, access to the Father in prayer is blocked.