The long and short of the Lord’s Prayer
The Lord’s Prayer in Luke is situated differently as compared to Matthew. In Matthew, Jesus teaches the ‘Our Father’ to the crowds at the Sermon of the Mount (chapters 5-7). In Luke, the ‘Our Father’ does not even appear in the Sermon on the Plain, which some commentaries view as Luke’s counterpart to the Sermon on the Mount. Rather, Jesus teaches the ‘Our Father’ to His disciples after they asked, “Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.” (Luke 11:1) The reason for this placement becomes apparent since the Lord’s Prayer in Luke is the first of 3 teachings concerned with prayer (Luke 11:1–13).
Jesus said to His disciples, “When you pray, say…” Thus, in the first teaching concerning prayer, our Lord gives His disciples the text or the words of what they are to say (v2-4). In the following verses, the Parable of the Importunate Friend contains the second teaching which is the importance of persistence in prayer (v5–8), and the third part containing the familiar words, “Ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you” teaches the effectiveness of prayer (v9–13).
The ‘Our Father’ stresses the fatherhood of God and acknowledges Him as the Source of daily sustenance (Mt 6:11, Lk 11:3), forgiveness (Mt 6:12, Lk 11:4a), and deliverance from the final test (Mt 6:13, Lk 11:4b). Teaching His disciples to call God ‘Our Father’ implies that Jesus regards His disciples as His brothers and sisters (cf. Matthew 12:50).
To say that the Father’s name is hallowed acknowledges the reverence that is due to Him. What follows next is an affirmation of one’s obedience to the Father’s will. The shorter version of the ‘Our Father’ in Luke simply says ‘Your kingdom come’ (Lk 11:2). However, the longer version of the ‘Our Father’ in Matthew puts it more explicitly as ‘your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as in heaven’ (Mt 6:11).
The petition ‘give us today our daily bread’ is more than just a plea for bodily or spiritual sustenance; it also recognizes an ongoing dependence on God for one’s very existence. The next petition ‘forgive us our sins’ confesses one’s sinfulness before God. St. Paul explains that all men have sinned and are justified by His grace through the redemption in Christ Jesus (cf. Romans 3:23-24).
The final petition ‘do not subject us to the final test’ has been translated by some as ‘do not lead us unto temptation,’ thereby asking God to spare us from the devil’s temptation, but the meaning of ‘the final test’ can be derived from the Jewish apocalyptic writings at the time of Christ, that there will be a period of severe trial before the end of the age. Some have referred to this period of trial and persecution as the ‘messianic woes.’ This final petition is a plea that the disciples be spared from that final test.
The long and short of the Lord’s prayer is that we must not only say the words that Jesus taught us, but equally important are the meaning of the words and the disposition of our hearts when we say it. Some say that their prayers are not effective. That may be the case because they measure the efficacy of prayer based on the outcomes they want. But for the disciples of Christ who revere God’s holy name and are obedient to His will, those who acknowledge their dependence on God for their very existence and salvation, they attest that God answers each and every prayer in the most perfect way.
GRACE Scholars, Inc. has funds available for the upcoming school year to provide scholarships to students who wish to enroll in our Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Atlanta. These funds are intended only for families in financial need in order to give their children an opportunity to have a Catholic school education. For more information, go to gracescholars.org. If you need assistance, please contact Fr. Bill.
We will hold a dinner at Oriental Pearl seafood restaurant in Chamblee on Sunday, July 31 at 6:00pm as a thank-you to Fr. Chi Hung Ly, Fr. Joseph Lu, Deacon Francis Lau and the participants and organizers of the Chinese Cursillo from out of state. The cost will be shared among those attending the dinner from our church. If you are interested in joining us, please sign-up with Daisy so that we know how many seats to reserve.
We will still have Sunday Mass on July 31 at 10:30am here in our church. The English Mass at 12:00pm on Friday, July 29 has been cancelled.
Prayer List: Jiang Mama, Carolyn Johnson, Alice Stanley, Pan Bohao, Wang Dacheng, Long Guorui, Zhang Qiang, Xu Taicheng and Qiu Laihao.