“Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”Matthew 6:11-13 (NKJV)

We now come to the point where we ask. We have paused, we have looked up, and we have reminded ourselves who He is. We are now ready to ask.

The order here is important. Jesus told us to first look up, then ask. Remind yourself, then request. Doing this will dramatically affect what we ask for. I have so many times gone to God in prayer intending to ask Him for something or to do something specific only to have that radically change after I have paused to remind myself of who I am talking to. This is what prayer really is. Prayer is not trying to get God to do what we want Him to do. It is not begging Him to give in, as a child relentlessly begs for ice cream until the weary parent finally gives in to the incessant requests. No! Prayer is not trying to change God’s mind or convince God to do something He does not want to do. It is not a cosmic religious arm-twisting! Prayer is all about alignment. It is the alignment of our hearts to His. It is like a radio. A radio must be tuned to the station so that music will come through. The radio does not make the music. It just picks up the music that is being broadcast. If it is tuned to the station properly, then it “reflects” what that station is playing. In the same way, true prayer is when my heart is tuned to the “station” of His heart and I begin to ask for what He is asking for. This is prayer. So we look up, “tune in” to the station if you will, and then we ask.

1. How can we know what God wants us to pray?

The first word of this section is the word “give.” “Give” comes from the Greek verb “didomi” and means “to give of one’s own accord or desire, to bestow.”

This is a request for God to “give” what only He can give. The word describes a gift that is given, simply because the giver wants to give it. Here again, our Lord is telling us who He is. He tells us to ask because He wants to give. Notice, the prayer here is for our daily needs, “Give us [because you want to!] this day our daily bread.” This is not limited to bread, but rather refers to any regular and specific needs we might have. It is as easy as a request to give us the water we need to drink today, the money we need to pay those bills, or the strength to make that phone call.

2. Did you believe God wants to bless you?

The words “day” and “daily” are important too. They are Jesus’ way of saying, “Come to Me daily, continually.” This is not a one-time “blanket” prayer, “God give me the work I need for the rest of my life. Amen!” This is, “Today Lord; sustain us today.” It reminds me of what it was like to gather the bread from Heaven called “manna” in the book of Exodus (Exodus 16). What God did there is astonishing! The Lord fed His people, nearly two million of them, in the desert for forty years with bread that He caused to rain down from Heaven. Wherever they were, this bread was waiting for them each morning when they woke up. The instructions were specific but simple. They were to get up and gather it each morning before the heat of the day burns it away and not to try to store any for the next day. They were to gather and eat what they gathered that day. It is a picture of prayer. Just as the children of Israel had to get up and gather what they needed each day for that day, in the same way, you and I must go to the Lord each day to receive what we need for our day. This is why Jesus uses the words, “Give us this day our daily bread.”

3. Why is starting the day in prayer important?

This reveals the second aspect of what prayer really is. Prayer is a relationship. Think about it. God, who is limitless in His power, ability, and resources, also has the desire to do certain things. The Bible says that nothing is too hard for the Lord (Genesis 18:14; Jeremiah 32:17, 27). In terms of power and ability, nothing can stop Him from doing what He wants to do. He has the ability to do whatever He desires. However, as we have mentioned before, He has chosen to limit Himself to our asking. In simple terms, there are things God wants to do, and has the ability to do, but does not do because we have not asked Him to do them. Again, James 4:2 (NKJV) says, “Yet you do not have because you do not ask.” So we might ask, “Why? Why does God not just do those things? Why does He wait for me to ask?” The answer is that He wants a relationship. He wants us to join Him in what He is doing. It is like when my young daughter “helps” me build something. I do not need her help. I want it. If I am being honest, it is usually not all that helpful, always takes longer, and mistakes are made, but I do not care. It is because what I really want is time together. It is the giving of time, focus, and instruction of a dad to his daughter. It is a relationship. The same is true in prayer. God can do all He wants to do on His own. However, there are times He limits what He does to our asking. He wants us to be like children, seeing our needs, asking our Dad for His help, and joining with Him in what He does. All of that to say, this is why He tells us to come to Him today for our daily needs.

4. What is involved in a healthy relationship?

In verse 12, we move from the outward to the inward. It goes from our physical needs to our spiritual needs. It is from the needs of the body to the needs of the heart. The focus of verse 12 is sin and its effects on us as people. Here it is called “debts.” “Debts” comes from the Greek word “opheilema” and means “what is owed, what is due.”

It refers to the way that sin piles up. Each offense is recorded and accounted for. Nothing is excused or overlooked and payment is required for each violation. This is just one of the staggering results of Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins. He paid in full the price for every sin we have ever committed! Praise His blessed name.

Now, sin can be simply defined as anything God would not want us to do. Its effects are tragic on both the one sinning as well as those around them. Sin ravages lives. It takes and takes and takes and gives nothing in return. It has been said, “Sin will take you further than you want to go, cost you more than you want to pay, and keep you longer than you want to stay.” It is true. Perhaps the most devious and destructive aspect of sin is its ability to separate us from what is good and right. Sin causes separation from all that is good. Especially damaging is its ability to cause relational separation. It separates husbands and wives, parents and kids, and people and God. As Christian people, we do not become unsaved by sin. Sin cannot take our salvation from us, but it does cause relational separation! Sin affects us deeply, it corrupts us and changes us. It makes us stupid! It causes us to distrust God, to turn from Him, and to distance ourselves from Him. Under sin’s delusions and influence, we do not want God. We become self-sufficient and imagine that we “have need of nothing” (Revelation 3:17, NKJV). Nothing could be further from the truth.

5. How does sin separate believers from the Lord?

As sinful people, our great need is cleansing. We need the sin to be removed, washed away, forgiven, and forgotten. This forgiveness is needed not just from those we have sinned against, but ultimately from God. The reason for this is that all sin is first and foremost against God. We have broken His commands. Even if those we have sinned against forgive us, we have still sinned against God. So, true forgiveness can only come from God. Mark 2:7 (NKJV) says, “Who can forgive sins but God alone?” It is this that Jesus tells us to ask for.

6. Is there some sin you need to confess to God right now?

Here we are told that we can simply ask God to “forgive” us. Consider that for a moment. In a world where people try continually and cannot absolve themselves, cleanse themselves, or fix their guilty consciences, we are told to simply come and ask. Our Lord could have said, “Work hard to have your good outweigh your bad and for every one thing you have done wrong you must atone in these three ways.” He did not. He said to come and ask for forgiveness to be given and it will be. This is amazing grace! The word “forgive” here is one of my favorite words in the Greek language.

“Forgive” comes from the Greek verb “aphiemi” and means “to send away, to let go, dismiss.” It is a reference to the way that sin was dealt with in the Old Testament sacrificial system of the Temple. Prior to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, sin was dealt with by animal sacrifice. The guilty man or woman would select an animal (a lamb) to be sacrificed on the altar as payment for their sin. The animal would be treated as the guilty one and die for the sins of the guilty man or woman. The innocent animal took the place of the guilty. It was a substitute. As the animal is offered and slaughtered, sin has been dealt with and the (formerly) guilty man or woman is now free to go. This freedom is our word “forgive” here. It means that nothing more is required. Sin has been dealt with and paid for. The sentence has been served. The guilty party is now dismissed.

7. How inconvenient would animal sacrifices be? How should that challenge us today?

Notice the order of verse 12. It is first “forgive us” and then “we forgive.” The order is critical as it is only once we have been forgiven that we will have the ability to forgive. The Bible regularly teaches us to forgive those who have sinned against us. However, it tells us to do so because we have been forgiven. Ephesians 4:32 (NKJV) says, “And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” Forgiven people know what it is to be released from “debt.” Therefore, they are able to release others. Here, our Lord tells us to ask Him to help us “forgive” others. Forgiveness is always a choice. It is always something we must choose to do. Many people put their offenders through a series of tests before they decide to extend forgiveness of any kind. Once the person has passed enough tests, forgiveness is given. This is not good! We are told by our Lord to make the decision to forgive right away because we have been forgiven. The prayer here is “I have decided to forgive because I have been forgiven. Lord, help me to actually do so.”

8. Have you felt God’s forgiveness? If so, when? If not, why?

9. Is there someone you need to forgive?

As we come into verse 13, we are still dealing with sin, but this time the prayer is for protection. The words “do not lead us into temptation” are really a prayer to be led away from temptation. “Lead” comes from the Greek verb “eisphero” and means “to bring along.”

It describes someone who is following someone else. The prayer here is asking the Lord to point out the pitfalls, the holes, and the dangers along the way. It is a prayer for God to lead us away from what could cause us harm. This is not to say that if we do not pray for this, the Lord will lead us into sin. It is not, “Lord, if I do not ask you, you will lead me into temptation.” No! Never. The Lord does not tempt us to sin. He cannot! James 1:13 (NKJV) makes this clear, “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am tempted by God;’ for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.” The prayer is one of dependency upon God to lead us away from what would entangle us. Hebrews 12:1 (NKJV) says that sin “easily ensnares [traps]” us. This is a prayer of protection. It is a prayer of humility that says, “I do not see and I do not know, but You do.”

Not only is this part of the prayer a cry for protection from sin and temptation, but the words “deliver us from the evil one” is asking for protection from an unseen enemy. “Deliver” comes from the Greek verb “rhoumai” which means to “rescue by snatching away, pulling to oneself.”

This is what a parent would do with a child in the street when grabbing them quickly and pulling them to themselves out of danger. There is desperation in this request. This prayer comes from people who have taken seriously the words of the Lord Jesus who said about Satan, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy” (John 10:10, NKJV). Peter adds that the devil “walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8, NKJV). He is described as “the evil one.” “Evil” comes from the Greek word “poneros” which means “worthless, wicked, vicious, malignant (infecting others).”

This word accurately describes our unseen enemy. How do you protect yourself from an invisible enemy that continually hunts you? He is an enemy that moves in the dark and changes shapes to deceive. It is an enemy who only wants to take every good thing from you, destroy your life, and ultimately kill you and your family. How do you stop an enemy like that? The answer is a prayer to the One who sees all, who knows all, and who has all authority and power to protect us from the one who prowls in the dark. We run to Him who is greater to protect us from him who is less.

Lest we get swallowed up in the fear of sin or our unseen enemy, we are reminded of Who is really in charge. The end of verse 13 makes it clear that Jesus Christ is the King of kings and Lord of lords. He is infinitely stronger than the devil, any other angel, or ruler of men. We are to remind ourselves of this as we pray, “For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.” He is God. He is King. He is in charge. He is in control. This is a good thing to pause now and remind ourselves. There is only one real “Kingdom” and He is the King upon that throne. There is only one potentate and it is our Lord, Savior, King, and God. Satan will be judged and removed. Every wicked ruler of men will be judged and removed. He alone will rule and reign forever and ever. I cannot wait.

Our prayer should be, “We ask You for all that we need because you want to supply. We ask you to forgive us and to help us forgive others. We ask you, who is the One True King for your protection from our own sinful desires and our unseen enemy.”