Our Father

And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.

And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.

Give us day by day our daily bread.

And forgive us our sins: for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.

Luke 11: 1-4

Here Jesus was praying as His disciples watched and listened. One of His disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray as he did. This was not an unusual request. However, Jesus answers in a somewhat unusual way. When Jesus started this “model” prayer, His first thought was not common to those that followed God. You see, this is the first time that Jesus had introduced the idea of God, as a Father, to the “believer.” This “model” of a prayer would usher in a whole new dispensation of thought to those that followed Jesus. God as their Father …

Tradition and Legalism

Let’s put this into perspective. Up until that time, the thought of God was in a very fearful context. Remember, the Jewish people did not walk around with Bibles. Their image of God came from oral traditions and that which was taught to them by the Rabbi who read from the “sacred scrolls.” They would have thought about the beginning and God’s mighty hand in creating the heavens and the Earth. They may have thought about Adam, the first created human. However, they would have also thought of how God expelled Adam (and Eve) from the garden because of their sin. They may have thought of Noah; a friend of God. However, they would have also thought about how God in his wrath destroyed the earth through the flood because of the continual wickedness in the land. They may have thought about Moses. However, they would have also thought about the signs and wonders in Egypt; the receiving of the commandments at Mt. Sinai; God bringing judgement on his people because of the golden calf and possibly the children of Israel’s wilderness journey. All of these instances would have painted God in a somewhat fearful light. The old testament traditions portrayed God as one that the common man could not even look upon or else he wold die (Even Moses had to be shielded in the cleft of the rock and only see God’s “hinder parts” as He passed by (Exodus 33: 22)).

In the old testament, the individual was portrayed as not being able to reach God on their own. Moses (a type or example of Christ) was oftentimes called upon to intercede upon the behalf of the children of Israel. Although, he was not the only leader that had such a responsibility, his life and story, leading the children of Israel, was indicative of the relationship of God and his people at that time. Whether it was a leader like Moses or a prophet like Elijah, the idea was that it took a “man of God” to speak to God and then relay God’s word to the person or people. In fact the Hebrew word for God, in the old testament, denoted authority. God was their father. However, the people viewed God from a very authoritative, patriarchal viewpoint.

A New and Living Way

In Jesus’ day, the Jews continued to be steeped in tradition and legalism and the thought of God as a loving Father was very foreign to them. If He was to be their Father, He was to be reverenced and feared.

Read John 8:31-47

In this passage of scripture Jesus begins to make the distinction of whose “Father” the people in that day served. Again, the Jews were steeped in tradition and they relied on lineage to justify their “spiritual” existence. They were thrilled when they could trace their lineage completely back to Abraham. However, Jesus was trying to introduce a new concept that went beyond physical lineage and justification. He wanted them to understand that freedom though the truth of God’s word was more important than physical lineage. Freedom from sin was the true hallmark of being a child of God. As you read the “back-and-forth” of this passage, it clearly shows the difference between legalism and grace. Legalism leads to sin and the devil is the father of sin. Their legalism actually set their hearts on wanting to murder Jesus. He explains that the devil was a murderer from the very beginning (which meant that he was never in God’s heaven) … and he was really their father. On the contrary those that chose God as their Father heard the voice of God through Jesus and were made free from sin.

Freedom from sin was the true hallmark of being a child of God.

The thought of God being a Father to the individual Jew was not a welcome thought to the Jewish leadership. In their minds, if individuals could get to God themselves and have a true relationship with Him then what would be the use of having worldly leaders? The truth of the matter is that if the religious leaders at that time had truly surrendered their thoughts and minds to Jesus and his teaching, they would have become true servant-leaders and would also have become examples for the individuals to follow.

God, as Father

In the Old Testament, David understood this type of father-child relationship with God. The 23rd Psalm is a great example of this relationship. David starts by speaking of God as his shepherd and he (David) was not in need. God supplied his need. God made David to rest in abundant places. He lead David beside waters of quietness. He restored David’s soul when he may have gotten out of the way. He lead his steps in righteousness and even though David may have walked in dangerous places, he had no fear because God not only protected him but he brought forth comfort. In the midst of his enemies, God showed forth his provision to David by suppling his physical needs. God exalted David and he never went without … in fact he possessed an abundance. David knew that he had a bright future, in God’s presence, for which David promised to dwell forever. David certainly reverenced and respected God. His relationship, with God as his Father, went beyond fear, terror and authoritarianism.

Today, because of Jesus Christ, we have direct access to the Father as individuals.

Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.

For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.

Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in the time of need.

Hebrews 4: 14-16

For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.

For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father,

The Spirit itself beareth witness, with our spirit, that we are the children of God:

And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.

Romans 8: 13-17

God wants to have a loving Father-child relationship with his people. He does not need for us to go through men to obtain that type of relationship. Those that preach and teach and those that pastor are not a substitute for our relationship with the Father. Their purpose is to direct us towards Him and then help us to maintain our relationship with Him. Jesus died once and for all in order to permit us to have direct access to God’s throne. Yes, we are to respect God. Yes, we are to reverence God. But, if we meet God’s conditions, terror is taken away (2 Timothy 1: 7). Our relationship with God is based upon love. … and we love him because He first loves us!

What hinders us?

The concept of God as a Father was new to Jesus’s disciples. However, it should not be a new and foreign concept to us. It should actually be a very simple idea that does not allow for ambiguity or complexity. God is, simply, love. And He, simply, wants to share that love with us, individually and collectively. Why is that so hard to grasp at times. There may be several factors:

a) Fear plays a role in clouding that love relationship. Just like in the days of Jesus, we sometimes allow tradition and legalism to cloud our view of a loving God who can relate to us through Jesus Christ. Religion (tradition and legalism) promotes fear. However, Christ wants relationship over religion!

b) There are some that view God still as an authoritarian; a God who is a punisher not a God of grace. Those that share this viewpoint often feel as if when they make a mistake or even sin that they need to receive punishment from God in order to be redeemed from that fault or sin. Sometimes this comes as a result of how they view their own worldly fathers. Authoritarian fathers demanded respect even to the point of fear. When a child does wrong the only way to make that right is through punishment; which somehow in-turn made the child feel accepted and “loved.” The problem with this way of thinking is that if the punishment for our sins made us worthy of God’s love then there would be no need for Jesus Christ and his sacrifice on the cross. Salvation is a free gift. Jesus “took” the punishment for our sins on the cross. There is no need for another sacrifice … As long as we remain in that free state. Don’t get me wrong God hates sin. He does not give a free pass, once we accept his salvation. However, He is also not sitting on his throne ready to punish us every time we may have a bad thought or we stumble or even fail him. He does chastise. However, He does it just as a loving Father does for his child.

God is, simply, love.

c) There are some that just have a hard time trusting God. Again this may stem back to having a natural father who either was not a good role model or was not ever there in a person’s life. Those that have experienced abusive relationships with their natural fathers would tend to struggle in trusting anyone; let alone a Father who they cannot see. Yet, our Father tells us to trust anyway. In fact, He tells us to trust in Him with ALL of our heart and lean not unto our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5,6). This type of trusting goes beyond what we see or feel. It is not, again, rooted in fear (as what we may have experienced in the natural). But it is rooted in love … the love of the Father.

Our Father which art in heaven

Jesus has indeed ushered in a new dispensation. To really understand how to pray, you not only need to know who you are praying to but you, most importantly, need to understand the right relationship. To pray in an effectual and fervent way, we need to understand that our heavenly Father desires us to come within his presence … if we meet his conditions. Once we understand that he desires us and loves us then true prayer can begin. He is to be reverenced. Hallowed is not a term that we use in today’s lexicon. However, it infers holiness, consecration, respect and reverence. So we must “fear” God but not in a terrifying way.

If we come to Him, knowing that we can. And we come to him with the right heart and attitude then the rest of the prayer will fall in-line. Our prayer will not be selfish. Our prayer will seek the will of our Father for our lives. We will have a heart of forgiveness because we know that our Father has forgiven us. We will not seek to enter back into sin. However, we will continually ask for our Father’s hand of protection and guidance. This prayer is not one to be recited word-for-word as much as it is a model of prayer and a model of our relationship with our Father through Jesus Christ. To understand this truth begins to truly make us free indeed!