THE LORD’S PRAYER

In Luke 11:2-4 Jesus taught us about prayer. Let’s briefly examine some of the basics that He taught.

“Our Father”—We must understand that we are now in relationship with God the Father through Jesus Christ. This grants us the right to stand before His throne and make our petitions known.

“Which are in heaven”—His ways are higher than our ways; His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. He lives in a place of absolute and total victory. There is no possibility of defeat in God.

“Hallowed be thy name”—God’s name and reputation can be trusted. He is just and will never speak anything to us that is contrary to truth.

“Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth”—The way things exist in His heart and His mind are how they should be on earth. As you and I walk with God, we will have a growing inner desire to see His kingdom come in glory and in power; to see His will done on earth as it is in heaven. There is a shift that ought to take place in our prayer. It should no longer be all about us but should now be focused on others. This is where the true power of prayer is found!

“Give us day by day our daily bread”—God will give us our daily provision as we ask Him for it and acknowledge that He is our provider.

“And forgive us our sins: for we also forgive everyone that is indebted to us”—You and I are ambassadors of the kingdom of forgiveness. It is therefore imperative that we forgive others, lest we be unable to represent the forgiveness of God on the earth.

“And lead us not into temptation: but deliver us from evil”—We must trust God to lead and deliver us, recognizing that we are not smart enough to get through this life on our own. We are deceptive to the core of our beings, and we can create what we think is the leading of God, even though it is actually the leading of our own heart. We simply must not assume that the pathway we are on is right, even if it may appear so in our sight. According to the Scriptures, “There is a way that looks right unto man, but its end is the way of death” (see Proverbs 16:25).

Carter Conlon joined the pastoral staff of Times Square Church in 1994 at the invitation of the founding pastor, David Wilkerson, and was appointed Senior Pastor in 2001. A strong, compassionate leader, he is a frequent speaker at the Expect Church Leadership Conferences conducted by World Challenge throughout the world.