About 30 years ago, Becky used to provide daycare for a young child named Emma. Becky cared for Emma from the time Emma was a newborn until Emma went to school. As Emma got a little older and began talking, she would often ask Becky the same question. “Why, Becky, why?” Becky would tell Emma something to do or not do, and the words would come quickly back, “Why, Becky, why?” Why indeed?
There are many 'why' questions in life. Anyone who has ever grieved the loss of a loved one asks, “Why?” Why did my loved one die now? Why did they die in this way? We most often ask “why” when things are not going our way. We do not ask “Why” nearly as often when things are turning out well for us. Why am I so blessed to have such great neighbors? Why am I blessed to have good children? Why am I so blessed that God would offer me salvation? A few of the “why” questions I would like us to start with today are, “Why did Jesus teach his disciples how to pray? Why does it matter to me today?”
Last week, we spoke about the Lord’s Prayer and the essence of the attitude of prayer, and then the content of our prayers. We explored the Lord’s Prayer recorded for us in the Gospel of Matthew, given as part of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. We spoke about the prayer as being offered in humility, encompassing four elements: Adoration of the Father, Confession of sin, Thanksgiving for God’s provision, and Supplication for strength against evil.
This week, I would like us to look at the formulation of that prayer recorded for us in the Gospel of Luke. Luke wrote, “1 One day, Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples’” (Luke 11:1). What did we learn here? First, Jesus was praying. Of the four Gospels, none speaks more about Jesus praying than does Luke. Jesus prayed often, in all sorts of places and at all times of day and night.
- But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. (Luke 5:16)
- One of those days, Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray and spent the night praying to God. (Luke 6:12)
- Once when Jesus was praying in private, and his disciples were with him, he asked them, “Who do the crowds say I am?” (Luke 9:18)
- About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John, and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. (Luke 9:28)
I think we get the picture. Prayer was a key part of Jesus’ life, and his disciples recognized it. Therefore, Luke kept the location of Jesus' prayer vague because the focus was not on where He prayed, but on the fact that He was once again in prayer.
Second, we learn that Jesus’ disciples wanted Jesus to teach them how to pray as John the Baptist had done for his disciples. Now, the key here is not that Jesus’ disciples did not know about prayer. Jews at that time commonly prayed three times a day, linked to the patriarchal traditions: Abraham in the morning (around 9:00 AM), Isaac in the afternoon (around 3:00 PM), and Jacob in the evening (after sunset). The prayers were prescribed and repetitive. There was something different in the way Jesus prayed and in the content of his prayers that caught the disciples' attention, and they wanted Jesus to teach them to pray as he did. And so, at one level, we have an answer to the question, “Why did Jesus teach his disciples how to pray?” Jesus taught them because they asked him to. Jesus' disciples wanted their prayers to matter. What then did Jesus teach them?
“2 Jesus said to them, ‘When you pray, say: ‘Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. 3 Give us each day our daily bread. 4 Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation’” (Luke 11:2-4).
We see Jesus taught three things about prayer. First, we are encouraged to approach God, an infinite being, in a childlike manner, calling him “Father.” Jesus modeled prayer to his father in a poignant manner in the Garden of Gethsemane. Some scholars view Jesus prayer in the garden as another version of the Lord’s Prayer. Luke wrote, “39 Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. 40 On reaching the place, he said to them, ‘Pray that you will not fall into temptation.’ 41 He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, 42 ‘Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.’ 43 An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. 44 And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. 45 When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow. 46 ‘Why are you sleeping?’ he asked them. ‘Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation’” (Luke 22:39-46). The elements of the Lord’s Prayer are enmeshed in the fabric of Jesus’ prayer in the garden. The example of Jesus calling God his Father, acknowledging God's ultimate praise, is to accept his will over our own, and the counsel to pray for strength against temptation. But it all starts from the posture that God is your father.
Jesus referred to God as "Father" (Greek: patēr, often translating Aramaic abba) extensively in the Gospels, far more than in the Old Testament (where God is called Father only about 15 times, usually metaphorically for Israel). Reliable scholarly sources indicate Jesus used "Father" for God over 165 times across the four Gospels, with the vast majority in John. Breakdown by Gospel (approximate, based on common counts):
- Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke combined): About 65 times.
- Gospel of John: Over 100 times (some sources specify around 120–130 references, often as "my Father").
This frequent use was revolutionary, emphasizing an intimate, personal relationship with God—unique in its consistency and depth compared to Jewish literature of the time. So we ask, “Why Father?” There were two primary reasons. First, Jesus wanted his disciples to approach God in a childlike manner, as a means of understanding how they should trust God, as a child trusts their father. Second, Jesus wanted his disciples to realize that they were dependent on God, as a child is dependent upon their father. Shifting people’s view of God from a distant, indifferent deity to a father deeply concerned for his family's welfare was a significant shift in the thinking of Jesus’ disciples.
Jesus emphasized this shift in thinking with a couple of humorous examples. Jesus said, “11 “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:11-13). Jesus was expressing humor here, not through his words but through his ideas. Which father would give a snake for a fish or a scorpion for an egg? None would do so. Fine then, if you who are evil know what is good, then think of the gifting your Father in heaven, who is good, will give you. The humor of Christ, even in teaching on prayer, was for the purpose of clarifying and increasing understanding. Jesus wanted his disciples to trust God, who is good, even more than a child trusts their father, who is a sinner.
Secondly, it should not surprise us that Jesus wanted his disciples to understand that sin and forgiveness are essential to prayer. “4 Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us” (Luke 11:4). What was Jesus talking about here? Jesus was talking about removing two barriers that his disciples had built between themselves and God.
The first barrier Jesus’ disciples built, we all make, through the act called sin. Sin is failing to do as God, our father, has asked. Sin is disobedience, and if we are attentive to God, sin causes us inner distress. Adam and Eve disobeyed God, and, in distress, hid from God. Cain disobeyed God in worship and, in distress, Cain became downcast and angry. Sin distresses us because it creates a barrier between God and us, and the only way to remove that barrier is to confess the sin to God and be forgiven by Him. Jesus encouraged his followers to confess their sins to God immediately. While Christ grants his followers salvation and is the source of cleansing of sin, we do not become immune to sinning again just because we follow Christ. We will still sin. Sin introduces unrighteousness and inhibits, makes a barrier to, our relationship with God. Sin blocks our ability to hear God clearly. Confessing the sin and being cleansed of all unrighteousness restores us and opens us up again to fully receive what God has for us. In the absence of confession to God and His forgiveness, we will live a distressed life because something separates us from Him.
Now, the same is true if we are unforgiving toward others for their sins against us. Unforgiveness on our part creates the same hindrance, a barrier, to all that God offers us, as our own sin blocks our ability to hear God. Our sin or our unforgiving nature opposes our relationship with God. Forgiveness of others' sins, like confession of our own, restores us and opens us up again to fully receiving what God has for us. Forgiveness may not be easy, but it is essential to our lives.
Now, just a word of caution about forgiveness. Forgiveness is not condoning what someone has done. Forgiveness is not letting someone off the hook of accountability. They may still face consequences for their sinful behavior. Forgiveness does not mean they will not still pursue harm toward us. Remember, Jesus said to his father while being crucified, “34 ‘Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing’” (Luke 23:34). Jesus asked that his crucifiers be forgiven, which we believe they were, but Jesus’ prayer did not change the hearts of those ignorant crucifiers; they still crucified him. Forgiveness is not the same as reconciliation. We can forgive someone but still not fellowship with them because they remain unrepentant. Forgiving someone else is not so much about giving a gift to someone who hurt us as it is giving ourselves a restored relationship with God.
This is an essential second point Jesus taught his disciples about prayer. Use the prayer to remove the barriers between you and God. Ask God to remove the barrier of sin you created as He gives you strength to remove the barrier of unforgiveness you created.
We said there were three things that Jesus taught about prayer in what we call the Lord’s Prayer. First, Jesus encouraged us to approach God, an infinite being, in a childlike manner, calling him “Father.” Second, Jesus said, " Get the barriers of sin and unforgiveness removed from your life. This brings us to our third thing. Praying for protection from Satan, “And lead us not into temptation” (Luke 11:3).
Temptation comes in many forms. Temptations come in the form of physical desires such as food, sex, and substances. Temptations come to us in the form of material desires, such as wealth and possessions. Temptations come in the form of shortcuts such as procrastination, dishonesty, laziness, and envy. There seems to be no end to the ways Satan can tempt us to accuse us and separate us from God. And so, Jesus told his disciples to pray that they would hold fast to God.
Now, here is the thing about all temptations. First, we are only tempted to do something we are not doing in that moment. We are only tempted into future behavior. Second, all temptations come to an end. No matter how powerful the temptation is to do something or not do something, it is only temporary and will end. Of course, we know temptation ends when we succumb to it and move from being tempted to sinning. If we are doing what we were tempted to do, we are no longer tempted to do something because we are doing it. If, however, we submit ourselves to the Lord’s Prayer, “lead me not into temptation,” or said in a more contemporary language, “lead me away from temptation,” and we follow God’s lead, then the temptation ends because we prayed holiness into the matter. The Apostle Paul once wrote these encouraging words, “13 No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it” (1 Corinthians 10:13). God will lead us out of temptation if we ask him to do so and we follow his way out.
We started today with the question, “Why?” Why did Jesus teach his disciples how to pray? Why does it matter to me today? Jesus taught his disciples to pray because they asked him to do so and because Jesus needed to teach them to pray. Prayer is the healing balm for our spiritual life. Prayer helps us return to a fully healed relationship with God. If our relationship with God is right, then we can make our relationships with others right. If our relationship with God is right, we can know and fulfill our life's purpose.
If you are a disciple of Jesus Christ, then this prayer, the Lord’s Prayer, is for you. It is for you to use directly and as a model for how you should pray. See God as your father and go to him with childlike trust. Ask God to restore your relationship with Him through the forgiveness of your sins and with the strength to forgive others. This should be a daily event. Pray for protection against Satan. Once you have the proper standing before God, you will know better what other situations in your life need to be given to God in prayer. Praying to God in this way is one of the clearest ways to show you love God. Amen and Amen.