Teach Us to Pray

Teach Us to Pray

Scripture Lessons

Genesis 18:17-33

Psalm 138:1-8

Colossians 2:6-19

Luke 11:1-13

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Our gospel lesson today is a perfect continuation from last week. That’s no coincidence. As we continue through Luke, Jesus teaching the disciples to pray follows Jesus teaching, through the account of Mary and Martha, that listening to Jesus is better than serving Jesus. He has come not be served, but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many.

So, last week we heard about Mary and Martha. Jesus enjoined you to listen to Him and to pray through Him. Now, in our lesson today, “one of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.’” It was at this time that Jesus taught the Church what we refer to as “The Lord’s Prayer.” Some may refer to this prayer as the “Our Father.” Jesus provided a specific prayer which we rightfully and faithfully recite as He taught it. He also provided a pattern for prayer. But moreover, He teaches you to approach God in a particular way, trusting in His goodness.

I want to start with our Old Testament lesson. When I read the lesson from Genesis 18, were you struck by the persistence of Abraham? He said to God, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?” Who is Abraham to question God? Then he asked and persisted, ‘What if there are fifty righteous people?...what about 45?...what about 20?...what about 10?’ How bold was Abraham to petition God for mercy. Why would Abraham do that? If you answered, because he trusted in God’s righteousness and His mercy, move to the head of the class. “For what does the Scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.’” Romans 4:3. Abraham possessed a right conception of God. He knew that God was just, holy, righteous, merciful, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love. How do you approach someone like that? The answer is, you approach them based on who they are, that is to say, you approach them expecting to find those qualities (mercy, love, forgiveness, provision, and so forth).

The history of the Church gives plenty of examples so that we would learn to trust. Think of the Israelites and the manna given in the wilderness. They grumbled because they were hungry and God provided manna. But, they could only gather what they would need for the day. If they gathered extra, it became rotten. Except, on Friday they gathered twice as much so that on the Sabbath (Saturday), they would not need to gather. God was teaching them (and us) to hear His word with faith and to trust in Him. Did God provide their daily bread? Yes, and what’s more, He pointed them to eternal life. The manna in heaven was a foretaste of the ultimate goodness of God. The Israelites still struggled in the wilderness. They had sickness, heartache, death. God’s promise to bring them into the promised land was spoken to Israel as a whole, not to each specific individual. Nevertheless, the promise of everlasting life was given to all who trusted in Him.

Now let’s look more closely at the gospel lesson. Considering the gracious nature of our heavenly Father and considering the redemption and forgiveness that we have in Christ Jesus, He teaches you to pray, “Father.” Yes, we address God, the eternal God, creator of the universe, with the intimacy of, “Father.” He teaches you to ask for daily bread. In the large catechism, Luther said:

“It is a brief and simple word, but it has a very wide scope. For when you mention and pray for daily bread, you pray for everything that is necessary in order to have and enjoy daily bread. On the other hand, you also pray against everything that interferes with it. Therefore, you must open wide and extend your thoughts not only to the oven or the flour bin, but also to the distant field and the entire land, which bears and brings to us daily bread and every sort of nourishment….To sum things up, this petition includes everything that belongs to our entire life in the world.”[1]

Asking for daily bread means asking for everything related to our temporal earthly existence. That means good government, peaceful neighbors, good weather, health, well-behaved children, and so forth. At the same time, you must see that daily bread connects us to the goodness of God in providing for our daily needs and points us to the eternal goodness of God in providing eternal life for all who believe on the Lord Jesus. Just as the manna served both a temporal need for feeding the people as well as an eternal need for teaching them to trust God, the fact that you stand here today breathing air, having been fed, clothed, and sheltered, teaches you that God is graciously disposed toward you. You, who have all confessed to sin, confessed that you fall short of God’s righteousness, nevertheless enjoy the mercy of God as He continues to sustain you in this life. Therefore, as long as you have breath, consider all that God does and return thanks and moreover see God for who He is, gracious and merciful. He’s not looking for a reason to smite you! He knows your sin and yet desires to forgive you.

“What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead give him a serpent; or if he ask for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

There is a false “father” that would give a serpent instead of a fish. He’s called Satan. He deceives. A loaf of bread could look like a stone and a serpent could be mistaken for a fish and, believe it or not, a scorpion can look just like an egg. That’s the point, these are deceptions. But your Father in heaven doesn’t punish you with a false version of what you asked for. He gives you what you need.

Jesus teaches you in prayer to ask boldly and persistently and to trust that God will not give you a stone instead of bread, or a snake instead of a fish, or a scorpion instead of an egg. It’s not because of who you are, but because of who He is. Let His gracious disposition toward you encourage you to ask of Him and continually trust in His goodness.

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

[1] Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions, Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, 2006, LC Part III Lord’s Prayer, Fourth Petition.