Pastor Scott Andrews | July 6, 2025
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Luke 11:1-4
“It happened that while Jesus was praying.” What a common occurrence that has been in our study of the gospel of Luke. It seems every time we turn around, Jesus is praying. In fact, it is recorded Jesus prayed 70 times in the gospel narratives. So much so that on this particular occasion, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray.”
A recent Barna surveys reveals about 60% of Christians say they pray at least once a week. That’s not bad, I guess, until you consider, the survey did not ask if Christians pray daily or what that weekly prayer was – a quick word of thanks before lunch or perhaps a liturgical prayer recited on the Lord’s Day. It also means 40% of Christians don’t pray weekly. One pastor I heard on this text suggested a startling reality – if we pray once a week, that compares to the number of times we take the trash to the curb each week.
Consider, the latest number from just last month shows the average person spends two hours and 21 minutes on social media every day. So, the average American spends more time talking or listening to the world than he or she does to the God who created the world. By the way, the average teen spends over four hours per day scrolling through social media. The numbers are startling. That 60% weekly prayer number is a significant decrease from ten years before when the number was 84% of Christians praying weekly.
It’s interesting to note this disciple asked Jesus, teach us to pray, and Jesus answered with content. He didn’t talk about the frequency of prayer, the place of prayer, the posture of prayer, the length of prayer. Content.
Again, we have some 70 prayers of Jesus recorded in the New Testament – and if there’s one thing we learn, there wasn’t really a pattern – at least, what can be discerned. He prayed early, He prayed late. He prayed long prayers, sometimes all night – He prayed short prayers, sometimes just a sentence or two. He prayed standing, He prayed kneeling, He prayed prostrate. He prayed alone, He prayed so others could hear. He prayed when it was easy – He prayed when it was hard – once it was so hard He sweat great drops of blood. He even prayed from a cross. No – there was nothing particularly normal about Jesus’ prayer life. Other than, He almost always addressed God as Father. We’ll see that was highly unusual.
So, noticing that Jesus, the Lord, prayed, the disciple asked Jesus, teach us to pray. Let’s read the text – Luke 11:1-4.
Now, most of you know the so-called Lord’s prayer from Matthew and have recited it all your lives. This one, you notice right away, is different. Yes, it contains much of the same material, but much shorter. Which begs a couple questions – who got it right, Matthew or Luke? Or, are they the same prayer or different? Well, most agree Jesus likely taught on prayer more than once – these are clearly two different times. Once, unbidden, in the midst of the Sermon on the Mount up in Galilee, Jesus gave them the longer Lord’s prayer, the one you know. Here, it’s much later in His ministry, and most agree while no location is mentioned, He’s not in Galilee – probably somewhere in Samaria or Judea. The point is, most agree this is a different time and a different prayer, but with much the same content. Which is interesting. It’s not likely Jesus was giving us words to recite – after all, in Matthew He had just condemned Gentiles for their meaningless repetition. More likely, He’s giving them a pattern of prayer.
Further, while through the centuries this has been called the Lord’s Prayer – so named because it came from the Lord – it’s probably better called the disciples’ prayer. You see, the Lord didn’t pray this prayer – at least not all of it. How do I know? Well, there was never a need for the perfect Son of Man to pray, forgive us our sin. Oh, by the way, did you notice the word, us? When asked to teach His disciples to pray, He expected that at least some prayer be in community. Sure, He prayed alone and even encouraged it in Matthew – don’t pray publicly to be seen, go into your closet – but there is a sense in which prayer can be a corporate experience.
Again, this prayer has been recited countless times by countless people across many denominations. It’s a masterpiece so brief and simple a child can understand it, yet so deep, so complex, theologians have devoted their lives to understanding it. It is a masterpiece. You can structure it in different ways:
The first three elements have to do with God: He is Father, His name to be hallowed, and His kingdom is to come. Don’t miss, prayer is first and foremost to and about God – His honor and glory. While it is true prayer is helpful to us and is the most important thing we do – it is first about God. You see, prayer, above all else, puts God on display. It puts His grace on display, His majesty is magnified. It’s an opportunity for God to manifest His glory and His power – after all, it’s His kingdom. And so prayer, as we commune with the Father, is an expression of our worship and our utter dependence on Him.
As we affirm that, we then move to the next three requests, which have to do with our need – our need of daily bread, our need of forgiveness, and our need of protection from temptation. It’s the Disciple’s Prayer. Again, different ways to break it up. One is to see it in terms of relationship:
Father shows the father/child relationship.
Hallowed be Your name shows the deity/worshipper relationship.
Your kingdom come shows the sovereign/subject relationship.
Give us each day our daily bread, the benefactor/beneficiary relationship.
Forgive us our sin the Savior/sinner relationship.
Lead us not into temptation the Leader/follower relationship.
Another way to look at it is the attitude with which we should come to God in prayer:
Father speaks of a family spirit.
Hallowed be your name, a reverent spirit.
Your kingdom come, a loyal spirit.
Give us each day our daily bread, a dependent spirit.
Forgive us our sins, a repentant spirit.
Lead us not into temptation a follower spirit.
But, let me begin by asking you a question. Do you think it would make a difference – both the way you prayed and its frequency – if you knew to whom you were talking? If we knew, remembered, we were talking to our Father – not to the crowds around us, making speeches so people hear. If we remembered there is a God as Father who hears, and answers prayers, I believe it would change the way we prayed.
So this morning, I want to introduce you to the object of your prayers – to whom we pray. (Outline) The Father, whose name should be hallowed, and whose kingdom we want to come. That’s as far as we’re going to get today. First, Father. Jesus tells us to begin our prayers that way. In fact, in those 70 NT prayers of Jesus, in every time we hear the words of His prayer, He starts with the word, Father. Every time except one – when He was on the cross and cried, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” as He bore the sins of the world in His body. But then at the end of the cross, He prays, Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.
Now, why did Jesus call God His Father every time He prayed? Why does He tell us to call God, Father, when we pray? You see, it’s interesting to note in the OT the word Father for God appears only 14 times – and that as the Father of the nation of Israel. Never this personal, relational name. To address God as Father was entirely new. It would have been shocking to the disciples. Yes, they saw God as Father, but only in the sense that He was Creator. He was the Father of everything because He was the Creator of everything. But that was it. There was no intimacy, no closeness, no safety, no love, even though the Shema said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind.” But they were scared to death of Him. They certainly didn’t see God as someone they could approach.
In fact, the Tabernacle, later the Temple visibly communicated a degree of unapproachableness. Only the High Priest came near, and that once a year. Through the years, they had even developed the habit of not saying His name. He was too holy to even take His name on their lips. And if they wrote it, they didn’t spell it out completely. With the name Yahweh, they left out the vowels. His name was only pronounced once a year on the Day of Atonement, and that by the High Priest. Yes, He was Father, but they shook in their boots in His presence – they wouldn’t even say His name. All that created distance.
And along comes Jesus and when He prayed, He said, Father. By the way, the Greek word is pater. But most agree, Jesus likely didn’t use that word – you see, He spoke Aramaic. And the Aramaic word Jesus used for Father was Abba. You know that word – it’s the familiar word for Father, like a child would affectionately address his or her daddy. And it didn’t speak of distance and remoteness and transcendence. It spoke of intimacy and relationship, safety and approachability, love and nurture. It would have shocked the Jews – how dare you call God your Father that way. But not only did Jesus call God, Abba, He told us we could. Paul will elaborate on that – we have received the spirit of adoption whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
Father. What images, what emotions, come to mind for you? I realize for some of you, that’s not inviting. You were raised in a family where thoughts of your father did not promote feelings of intimacy, safety, love, nurture and approachability. In fact, thoughts of your father brought feelings of hostility, fear, anger, resentment, bitterness, abuse, abandonment, detachment. And the thought of calling God, Father, great – doesn’t do much for me. Some of you have spent your life trying to get your father to like you – if you do enough, if you do it right, maybe he’ll like you. And so, you’re trying to do the same thing with your heavenly Father.
Others have spent your lives trying to stay out of his way – trying to walk on eggshells so you wouldn’t make him mad. A good day was when your father didn’t yell at you. And today, your relationship with your heavenly Father is much the same. If you can just be good enough, obedient enough, stay out of His way, maybe God will like you, at least not be mad at you.
This morning, I want to introduce you to your Father. You see, for some, it’s time to cut the umbilical cord with your earthly father, with all its baggage, and time to embrace your heavenly Father. This is not a way to dishonor earthly fathers, but it may be time to cut the cord and recognize you have a Father you can call Abba, who loves you, despite your imperfections. So, in what way is God our Father? Let me give you three quick thoughts:
First, He is our Father in that He begat us. What do I mean? Every one of you have been begotten of your earthly father – he planted a seed, you were born. But, if you know Jesus Christ as your Savior this morning, you have been born again – not of a physical seed, but of a spiritual seed, and you belong to your heavenly Father. He begat you. Why is that important?
When you were born of your physical father, whether you like it or not, you inherited certain characteristics. You got his genes. Some have the same hair color, the same cleft in your chin, the same ears, the same build, the same health issues. You are of your father. So also, when you were born of God, you received certain characteristics. He put His seed in you – only it was an imperishable seed. And there is a brand new you, with a new Father. The life of God is in you. And whereas the seed you received from your earthly father included the sin nature, the seed you received from your heavenly Father is righteous. He has made you righteous before Him. And you will live forever in His presence as His child.
Now, I want to make a very important clarification. When Jesus says we can call God, Father, He doesn’t mean everyone. There is a common thought today in the universal Fatherhood of God and the universal brotherhood of human. God is everyone’s Father, and we’re all brothers. As gently as I can, I want to say, that is not biblical. God is the Father of all only in that He is the Creator of all and gives life to all. But the intimate Fatherhood that Jesus is talking about here is not universal to everyone. In fact, later, Jesus tells some unbelieving Jews they were of their father, the devil.
The truth is, you can only call God your Father in this sense if you know Jesus as Savior and come to God through faith in Jesus Christ. In other words, if you are not born again this morning, God is not your Father. The early church vigorously protected this prayer, and wouldn’t let unbelievers say it – because God is not the Father of unbelievers. But listen, John 1:12 says, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name,” You can become the very child of God – you can enjoy this kind of intimacy simply by believing in Jesus Christ – that is, He died on the cross, for you – so that you can find the forgiveness of sin. God will beget you, if you believe.
Second, in addition to begetting us, God is Father in that He also adopted us. Now, at first, this seems confusing. How can He both beget and adopt us – it would seem to be one or the other?
I don’t think the authors of Scripture were confused. When we see He adopted us, it means He made a choice for us. You see, when you adopt a child – you choose. You choose to adopt. You go to the orphanage or the foster care agency, and you choose. That’s a little different than having a baby. When you have a baby, you’re stuck with whatever comes out. And unfortunately, some of you have felt just that way – you were an accident, you were less than what your father wanted, you were in fact, unwanted.
But hear me, God chose you. He wanted you. He chose you to be His child. Regardless of your theology and what prompted the choice – I don’t want us to get bogged down in that – the truth is, God chose you. Ephesians 1 says before the foundation of the world – before this world was created – He chose you to be His child. Why? Paul tells us it was because He loved you. In love He predestined you to adoption. Behold, what manner of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called the children of God, and that is what we are. He is your Father because He loves you and chose you to be His.
I want you to understand a third thing about your Father. He’s always there. He’s never too busy. He never has more important things to do. He never gets tired of you, nor is He too tired. He will never make you feel unwelcome or unwanted. He has promised never to leave or forsake you. And you have access. Do you understand that? You have access to God. We can approach Him without fear – He is our Abba – Father. And He wants you there. Do you think that might change the way you approach God in prayer? He wants you there.
Meaning, like Jesus, you can go to Him early in the morning, or late at night, or all night. You can go to Him in private, you can go to Him in public. You can pray long, you can pray short. You can pray in the inner room, or you can pray with your family, with your life group, or with the whole church. You can pray standing, kneeling, lying down, or driving. The fact is, God is always there – He will always hear your prayers – you can always call Him, Father. This is why we are encouraged to pray without ceasing.
But He is more than that, as we move to the next couple of thoughts. You see, it is true He is intimate Father. It is true we enjoy a Father/child relationship with Him. But it is also true He is our holy King. And we should treat Him as such. In other words, don’t become so familiar with Abba that you forget to whom you’re talking. Notice first, hallowed be Your name. Now, we have to understand what Jesus means by the word name. You see, when we use a name, really all it does is differentiate one person from another. I’m Scott, you’re Ralph, or John, or Jack. So if you said, Jack ran up the hill, you know Scott didn’t, because he doesn’t run anymore.
But with God, His name, in fact, His names, mean something. He is Elohim, the Creator-God. He is El-Elyon, the possessor of heaven and earth. He is Yahweh-Jireh, the Lord our Provider. He is Yahweh-Shalom, the God of Peace. He is Yahweh-Rapha, the Lord our Healer. He is Yahweh-Tsidkenu, the Lord our Righteousness. These are His names because He is those things – they describe who He is and what He does. He does create, He does provide, He does bring peace, He does heal, He is righteous, etc. His name is Yahweh, I Am. He is the eternally self-existent, present God.
And that God, His name, needs to be hallowed. Yes, He is Father in that He is immanent, but He is also holy, separate, other, in that He is transcendent. Now, when Jesus says hallowed be Your name, He’s not talking about just being careful to not use God’s name in vain, although it would include that. He’s not talking about just holding God’s name in high regard, although it includes that. The word hallowed carries with it the idea of making holy, setting apart, to put on display. It’s not that we do something to make God holy – He is infinitely holy and there is nothing we can do to make Him more holy. Rather, as He is already completely and totally set apart, we are to make His name known as holy. We are to put Him on display as set apart. We are to make His name, which expresses His character and attributes, known by others.
So simple question, how do people perceive God by the way we treat Him as holy? He is God, and there is no other. We are to put Him on display in such a way that others will see and know He is separate, He is other, and He is to be treated as holy. God, help me to hallow your name in such a way they see you for who you are. May I not be flippant in my approach to you. May I not treat you as common so others have no regard for you. May people know that I hold you in such high esteem, with such high regard and reverence and awe, that they know You are my life – You are my all – You are the one and only God of my life. That is hallowing the name of God.
Next and quickly, Jesus says, we are to pray, Your kingdom come. God, more than anything in the world – more than anything this world has to offer, more than inheriting an earthly kingdom, I want your kingdom to come. When we speak of God’s kingdom, we speak of His rule, His reign. We speak of God’s sovereignty and dominion. Now, when we think of a kingdom, we normally think of a place – a territory. We drive by a castle and think, there’s a kingdom. But God’s kingdom is not necessarily a place, a territory. That’s why Jesus told Pilate, “My kingdom is not of this world.” So, what do we mean by kingdom?
Some suggest Jesus is talking about a future kingdom – namely, when Jesus returns and rules. There is a sense in which it will be then, and only then, the kingdom will be realized in all its fullness. When every knee will bow, and every tongue confess, Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God, the Father. So, when we pray, Your kingdom come, we are praying for the inauguration of this future kingdom in all its fullness. Yes, we are asking for Jesus to come back.
But, there is also sense in which the kingdom is here, right now. We are praying not just for a future fulfillment, but a present reality. It is not geographical. You see, when Jesus came to earth, He came to establish the kingdom of God in the hearts of His people. Every one of you, if you know Jesus as Lord, are part of the kingdom of God, right now. And, there are many implications to that truth.
First, when I say we are part of the kingdom of God, that means God is our King, and we are His subjects. Yes, we enjoy a Father/child relationship, but we also enjoy a Sovereign/servant relationship. And the fact is, we need to wake up every morning and surrender ourselves once again to our King. I’m not saying we have to be saved every day – but let’s be honest – there are a lot of days where we climb back on the throne of our hearts. We take the reins of control back – we think ourselves in charge. And so, every day, we need to say – God, you are my Sovereign. I surrender all, to You. I pledge my allegiance to You, today. Fill me with Your Spirit so the fruit of the Spirit, and not the acts of the sinful nature, are evident in my life. Take control so that I will hallow Your name today; so Your kingdom will be evident in my life today. God, you are my King.
And there is another implication to God’s present kingdom. And that is, the King wants His kingdom to expand. When we are praying, God – your kingdom come to Boone, we’re praying He will use us to expand His kingdom, right here, right now – to bring others out of the dominion of darkness and into His marvelous light. We are praying God will use us as His ambassadors, as evangelists.
And so, remember Jesus told us to pray this prayer – because He wants the Father’s kingdom to grow. And He will answer the prayer. If we are faithful subjects, through us, He will call others into the kingdom. That hard and distant family member; that cold and calculating coworker; that indifferent and insensitive neighbor. Don’t stop praying for them. God wants His kingdom to advance. He wants to redeem them, and wants to use you to do it. That doesn’t mean everyone will come. But some will. It is our job to pray in the kingdom.
A final implication to the present kingdom is this: every time you pray, Your kingdom come, it is a declaration of war. There is another kingdom. It is the kingdom of this world, ruled by Satan and his demonic forces. We are at war with that kingdom of darkness. Every one of you – before you came to faith in Jesus, were subjects of that kingdom. Now, by declaring your allegiance to Jesus, you have rebelled against your former ruler, and he doesn’t like it. And he doesn’t like it when we try to expand God’s kingdom – when we try to wrestle people into the kingdom of light. Satan will oppose us actively and viciously. His attacks will be frontal, and at times subtle, but they will come.
But I have good news for you, my fellow subjects. Our King has already won. The end is predetermined, and we are on the victor’s side. He has given us the very armor of God, found in Ephesians 6, with which we fight the battle. And what’s more, Jesus said – I will build my church – I will build my kingdom, and the gates of hell will not overcome it. Our King will lead us into battle, and the victory is ours – they cannot stand against us. If we really believed that when we prayed, Your kingdom come – do you think it would make a difference in the way we approached evangelism? Do you think it would make a difference in a church where Jesus was the head of the church – and that church prayed – God make Your kingdom come.
We need to pray. Some of you may need to pray this prayer for real for the first time. You need to surrender to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in your lives. Others of you have climbed back on the throne of your heart – and you need to abdicate it once again to its rightful owner – it is not yours anymore. And some of you need to start praying like you believe God wants to answer this prayer; like you believe God wants to be glorified in your lives. And that He will expand His kingdom. Some of you need to pray more faithfully, more often, and more rightly.