A Closer Look at the Lord's Prayer According to Matthew

Perhaps like me, you memorized the Lord's Prayer way back in Sunday School and have said it hundreds and hundreds of times.

The words come so easily. “Our Father, who art in heaven…” and I’m in prayer reciting mode.

But what am I praying?

What changed for me when I took some time and started reading it the way Jesus meant for it to be used.

This post is my walk through Matthew’s version, line by line. I also cover the Luke version of the Lord's Prayer in a separate post, you can find that one here.

First off, it’s in the Bible!

Jesus places this prayer right in the middle of a bigger teaching in Matthew 6:1-18, where He's addressing the religious habits of His day.

He's basically calling out those who pray to be seen by others, to get credit for coming across as holy. Jesus pushes back on all of that and instead gives His followers something authentic.

You may recall from the ACTS prayer method, that this is a great way to start any prayer. A=Adoration. And this is where Jesus tells us to start. Before I bring my list, or ask for anything, I need to start with who God is.

“Our Father” tells me the posture I'm praying from. I'm coming to the Father. He knows me, He cares about me, and He wants to hear from me.

“In heaven” reminds me that He's above everything I'm dealing with. And “hallowed be your name” is a way of reinforcing that His name is sacred. It’s worthy of true reverence.

This opening line of the Lord’s Prayer is saying, God, I recognize who You are and how holy You are.

Some versions of the Lord’s prayer have “thy” instead of “your.” I recall from a sermon that I heard many years ago, the pastor said, “Remember everyone, the line is ‘THY will be done, not MY will be done’”. Ah, it’s so true.

Before I get to my own needs, Jesus has us pause to acknowledge God's bigger purposes, not our own.

When I was younger, I would imagine that I was praying for a time way off in the far future. Like I was asking for heaven someday.

But the more I’ve prayed it, I see it more as a prayer for right now. I'm praying for God's heavenly kingdom to be revealed in my life today. In my thoughts, in my home, my relationships, and even in my challenges.

Again, when I was younger, I thought I was literally praying for bread. As in food, daily sustenance. Nope!

Jesus is pulling from a picture most of His listeners would've known well. When God's people wandered in the wilderness, God provided exactly what they needed each day.

There was no stockpiling allowed. This emphasizes our trust in God. That He will provide us what we need, each and every day.

Matthew 6:34 says “each day has enough trouble of its own.” So I should pray for today.

And tomorrow, I can say the prayer again. Amazing how God works!

Now we get to the part of the prayer where I have work to do….

I'm asking God to forgive me, and at the same time, I'm acknowledging that I've forgiven the people who've wronged me.

That phrase “also have forgiven” is past tense. So that means I’ve already done my part when I bring this to God! Or at least I SHOULD have already done it.

I know that I'm coming to God undeserving and asking for His grace. And the condition in my ask is that I extend that same grace to others.

From Ephesians 4:32, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”

And Jesus follows this prayer with a direct statement in Matthew 6:14 “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.”

It’s been so easy for me to gloss over these words because they’re ingrained in my memory. But really I have more work to do here.

And now we’re praying for protection. We’re also admitting that we need it.

Many read this as a prayer asking God to guard us. So that temptation, spiritual opposition, and my own weak spots don't pull me off course.

I'm praying to overcome, with God’s guidance.

1 Corinthians 10:13 “And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.” And that’s what I’m praying for here.

Many versions of the Lord's Prayer end with “For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”

This closing line doesn't appear in Matthew 6. It was added early in church history for use in worship gatherings, so that makes it a later addition.

1 Chronicles 29:11 echoes the “Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor.”

That said, what a fitting way to close out this prayer, bringing everything full circle back to God!

The Lord’s Prayer maps well with the ACTS Prayer framework of Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication.

We open with adoration (hallowed be your name). There’s surrender (your will be done). We ask for provision with thankfulness and trust (daily bread). We move into confession and forgiveness (forgive us our debts). And we close with supplication, asking for guidance and protection (deliver us from the evil one).

Jesus packed all of that into one simple prayer. One so simple that a child can memorize.

The next time you pray the Lord's Prayer, I encourage you to go through it slowly, like it's a real conversation with God, our Father. Because that's exactly what Jesus intended it to be.

If you found this post helpful, feel free to pass it along to someone in your life who's been trying to figure out their own prayer life.