The Power of the Lord’s Prayer

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This Sunday I would like to talk about the Power of the Lord’s Prayer. Too often in Church and in prayer meetings there are Church Pastors and Christians wailing in prayer for hours, telling us it is needed for spiritual warfare to “break-through” the heavenlies and touch God. They use the analogy of Daniel who has been fasting and praying for 21 days, or Jacob who wrestled with “God” (angel of God actually) and won. Others will quote Ephesians 6 where the Apostle Paul tells us to put the full armour of God on and stand against the forces of evil, as if we should be in “warfare” 24 hours a day. You know, I’ve been down that road before, and I’ve learnt a few things since then…

These forces of evil Paul wrote about are the negative influences in your own mind, for both good and evil – it is a battlefield every single day to let go of our own ego, and allow Holy Spirit to renew our mind. This is what the Apostle Paul was talking about, not praying in tongues 24 hours a day, causing sleep deprivation, driving you and your family mad in the process, ruining everything around you. If you don’t have peace in your life, then you need to let go of your ego, and let God rule your life for once. That’s how you break through!

Now, let’s turn to what Jesus said to His disciples in the upper room about prayer. In Matthew 6:5-15, it states:

And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. Truly I tell you, they already have their full reward. But when you pray, go into your inner room, shut your door, and pray to your Father, who is unseen. And your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

And when you pray, do not babble on like pagans, for they think that by their many words they will be heard. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.

So then, this is how you should pray:

‘Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be Your name,

Your kingdom come,

Your will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from the evil one.’

For if you forgive men their trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive yours.[1]

Jesus calls modern day Pastors and Christians “hypocrites” who stand up in gathered meetings to pray, and those who babble on from the pulpit “pagans”. Yes, you heard it correctly, He called them pagans. Why? Two Reasons. Firstly, the hypocrites do it for personal gratification of being seen to pray before the people. Instead, Jesus commands us to pray “go into your inner room, shut your door, and pray to your Father”. Those who choose the showy method will have their full reward, and those who pray in secret, will be rewarded in secret. This is referring to God’s promise of protection behind closed doors until YHVH’s wrath has passed in Isaiah 26:20. Therefore, if you wondered why your prayers have not been answered, this may explain the reason why. Go into your prayer room, close the door, then begin to prayer to the Father. Before you do, allow me to explain the “power” of prayer.

Jesus told his disciples how to pray. Why? They had been with him like bible college graduates for three years, day-in-day-out. Shouldn’t they know how to pray by now? Because there is a code of letters and numbers within this text that is Divine that gives power to prayer. Jesus begins with “Our Father” which comes from the original Greek text Πάτερ ἡμῶν (Pater hēmōn) meaning “Father” or “Creator of us”. In the earliest Hebrew translations of the New Testament, “Our Father” is expressed as YHVH (Yahweh). It is a Divine name for God, often referred to as the Tetragrammaton יהוה   (YHVH), although later translations were often changed to השם (Hashem) or אֲדֹנָי (Adonai) instead,[2] after the inquisition into the use of amulets.

The Tetragrammaton is the Divine name of God that hold the entire blueprints of life and reality within these four letters:יהוה  (Yud, Hei, Vav, Hei), pronounced in the brackets from right to left, but used by Jewish Kabbalists in intonations or Psalms from left to right. With this name, God made Eve from Adam’s rib in Genesis 2:22. Joshua came and calmed the sun, commanded it to stand in place, and it stood still using this name. Jesus commanded the life force of the fig tree to cease in Mark 11:14 and it withered from its roots. “All things are possible to him who believe” Jesus tells us (Matthew 6:9, Mark 9:23). We must first understand the “power” of “The Name” of YHVH. When we pray, we speak the creative force of God into being, for Proverbs 18:21 tells us “The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences”. 2 Timothy 2:16 tells us that babbling will lead to “more ungodliness”. James 3 tells us true wisdom is above all pure, peaceful, gentle, sincere, and those who plant a seed of peace shall reap righteousness.

This is why Jesus said, “hallowed be Your Name” calling down the Divine creative power of God upon their lives. You can live in that creative power right now today! Creation was not an event; it is ongoing each and every day being sustained by the angels of God who YHVH dispatches as soon as we begin to pray. Yes, sometimes it takes them time to arrive, battling the dark forces, but these dark forces are doubt in God, self-doubt, rejection, pride, in us that get in the way of the miracles taking place in our lives every single day. It is our own ego, positive or negative, that gets in the way of God’s miracle. We must battle these demons but not the way Churches have taught for centuries. This is bound up in religion, pomposity, pride and  greed. We must lay upon the altar so to speak, surrendering our ego, and not react to things that go wrong, or the opposite by patting ourselves on the back before men when we have done good. Do it in secret before God, for your reward will be far greater than ever before.

By surrendering to His will, we are committing to the Kingdom, and “Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”. Sometimes things happen in our lives to change the course of our lives, even tragic events. We need to face those times with faith and don’t ask God, why me with pity? This is not what He wants to hear. Jacob wrestled with Esau’s guardian angel all night and it left him with a disability (a limp), but his life was changed from always living in fear to a powerful man of God that begat the blessed lineage of the Covenant of God. God can turn a tragedy into triumph, so don’t write off every incident that happens as the enemy, because it might well be the blessing of God in disguise. Can you rise to occasion?

If it is done in the upper world (heavens), it is done in the lower world (earth). Therefore, once you pray, and believe it is done, stand in faith for that miracle to take place. Don’t falter. Remind God of His promises in Scripture. Thank Him and praise Him for the miracle that you are about to receive – but always pray according to His will. I have done this so many times over the years, and seen some incredible miracles of God. I remember going to Bible College many years ago. I had given up my building company to my business partner so that I could study full time. I trusted in God during those very difficult years with a mortgage and children to feed. It was coming toward dinner time one night. I went to my prayer closet, which happened to be my small ensuite at the time in our little house adjacent the highway. I prayed for God to help if He wanted me to continue with my studies. I felt in my spirit to get my sons ready for dinner, even though there wasn’t any. I told my wife not to worry, God has a plan. We sat at the dinner table and thanked God for the food we were about to receive, then a car pulled into the driveway!

It was my friend Chris, a business owner in another suburb who I hadn’t spoken to in a long time. He came to the door with a huge basket of groceries, a heap of meat (beef) from a steer he just had cut up, and a wad of cash. He said to me, I was sitting there praying the Lord’s Prayer, thinking I’ve got so much food here, “who can I bless this week Lord?” The Lord had told him to drive out to me with everything he had ready, although he couldn’t understand it because he knew me as another business owner. I told him I had been at Bible College for nearly three years since I had seen him last, and I had just come from my prayer closet asking God for help. Chris was a man who always did what God called him to do, and he was blessed beyond his wildest dreams. He did everything in secret, never anything in the public eye.

Another time my wife arrived home from picking up my boys from school, but she was unable to go shopping on the way home because we didn’t have any money left to get groceries. As she drove into the driveway wondering what she was going to get the boys for afternoon tea, there was a huge box of groceries outside our front door with no note. We all had dinner for two weeks from that wonderful gift box. To this day, almost 25 years later, I don’t know who the Good Samaritan was, and I don’t want to know. Their reward was far greater because I don’t know who they were. You see, God does bring miracles when we do as He commands.

However, in order to receive our miracles, we must forgive those who have wronged us. Now I know that might be hard for some of us, including me. It is not for their salvation, but it is for our own salvation. If we do not forgive, we live a life disconnected from the power and presence of God. It is not to say that Holy Spirit, the indwelling presence of Shekhinah, will depart from us. We simply disconnect from Shekhinah – the radiating power of God in our lives. Do we want that? No. Nobody wants that. We must first forgive others. If that seems too hard, the first step is by a decision of your will. You decide you want to – this is the first step by turning towards God! Turning toward the light of God, so that the radiance of Shekhinah can shine upon you once again, renew your mind, and bring blessing into your life.

Now I spoke before about the influence that drives us to doubt on one hand, or pride on the other. Let me take this one step further. Jesus says we should pray, “lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one” (Matthew 6:13). Most people have probably heard of the evil fallen angel Satan. He is only one of thousands of angels in Creation of both good and fallen who influence us on a daily basis. The “evil” or “impure” spiritual forces that would lead us into temptation that Jesus is talking about, basically place a veil or barrier between us and God that prevent us from receiving our true blessings is known as הַשָּׂטָ֔ן Satan. Satan is more than just a demon; he influences the dark side of our human nature – our fears, phobias, anxiety, anger, depression, and the opposite vices (pride) – this is what we call our human ego. When we react, we give into Satan, hence we must “turn the other cheek” (Matthew 5:39) and stop the reaction, and maintain control of our own destiny.

Thus, by leading us out of temptation, and not reacting, turning the other cheek, we are allowing the power and blessing of God to flow like never before. Therefore, we must go into our prayer closet, confess our sin before God, repent, turn from those things that would hold us back from the blessings of God. Allow His grace and mercy to flow over us, like a river of water, so that we can hardly stand in the presence of God. We must remember to keep our words short, concise, and use “The Name” of YHVH, Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name. Commit our ways to the Lord, and His will be done. Jesus said in John 16:24, “Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.” The “Name” of Jesus is the Power and the Name of the Tetragrammaton, for in John 17:1-4 Jesus looked up to Heaven and said:

Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son so he can give glory back to you. For you have given him authority over everyone. He gives eternal life to each one you have given him. And this is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth. I brought glory to you here on earth by completing the work you gave me to do. Now, Father, bring me into the glory we shared before the world began. (John 17:1-4)[3]

Do you see? The preincarnate son of God, Jesus Christ, was there at Creation, He is with us now, and will be forevermore. In John 17:20 Jesus prayed for all believers: “I have given them the glory You gave Me, so that they may be one as We are one— I in them and You in Me—that they may be perfectly united, so that the world may know that You sent Me and have loved them just as You have loved Me” (John 17:22-23). God sent His son to save the human race, and was resurrected to eternal life. This reverberates the phrase, they will know that אֱלֹהֵיהֶֽם׃ יְהוָ֖ה אֲנִ֥י “I Am the LORD their God” in Exodus 29:46, Leviticus 26:44, Ezekiel 28:25-26 and Zechariah 10:6. Two words from this passage is the phrase “I Am” with the phrase YHVH combined with Elohim as One. All three are One – The Trinity! It is where Jesus said on the cross: Τετέλεσται “It is Finished” (John 19:30), and also in Revelation 21:6, when John had a vision of the New Jerusalem. God sent an angel to tell John, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End” (Revelation 22:12-13). Jesus also said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12).

He is our guiding light. If we stand on these promises, we will never walk in darkness again. Stand on them, remind Him of them, believe them in your heart. Wait expecting your miracle!

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© 1995-2019 inclusive Dr Peter D Matthews. All rights reserved. This paper may be freely used for academic purposes, subject to citing Dr Peter D Matthews as the author. More information is also available on my website at www.petermatthews.com.au, or you can like my Facebook page to keep abreast of any updated material I find. My academia profile is also available here.

[1] Matthew 6:5-15 Berean Study Bible.

[2] International Standard Bible Encyclopedia: Adonai. https://biblehub.com/topical/a/adonai.htm

[3] John 17:1-4 NLT.