LEARN WITH HIM / 02
Words you can borrow
The prayer Jesus taught
Matthew 6:5–15You do not have to arrive with eloquence. In Matthew, Jesus speaks about prayer done for an audience, then offers a prayer that can be learned by heart. Its words move from God’s name and kingdom to bread, forgiveness, and deliverance. They are large enough to hold the world and close enough to hold today.
FIRST, THE SETTING
This teaching belongs within Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount. Prayer appears beside giving and fasting: practices that can be distorted when their purpose becomes being admired. Jesus directs attention toward the Father who sees in secret.
Luke 11:1–4 gives a shorter form in response to a disciple’s request to be taught to pray. Christian communities use different translations and liturgical forms. Here the biblical text is the World English Bible, with the surrounding reflection kept separate.
Read Matthew 6:5–15+
5“When you pray, you shall not be as the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Most certainly, I tell you, they have received their reward.
6But you, when you pray, enter into your inner room, and having shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.
7In praying, don’t use vain repetitions as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard for their much speaking.
8Therefore don’t be like them, for your Father knows what things you need before you ask him.
9Pray like this: “‘Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy.
10Let your Kingdom come. Let your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
11Give us today our daily bread.
12Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors.
13Bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For yours is the Kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Amen.’
14“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
15But if you don’t forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
World English Bible · Public domain
Read the whole chapter ↗Begin without performing
The instruction to enter an inner room gives prayer a place outside the demand to appear impressive. Jesus also warns against treating a multitude of words as the way to secure a hearing. The issue is not whether a prayer is long or short, but the posture from which it is offered.
If prayer is unfamiliar, try one honest sentence. If familiar language has become difficult, name that difficulty. Silence can be part of your attention. You do not have to manufacture a feeling before you begin.
Our Father
The prayer begins in relationship and uses a shared word: our. Even prayed alone, its language places the speaker among others. Bread is for us; forgiveness concerns us; deliverance is sought together.
For someone with painful experiences of a father, this address may bring complicated feelings. You can take time with it rather than forcing an immediate emotional response. Within Jesus’ teaching, the address directs prayer toward a God who knows need before the prayer becomes polished.
Bread for an actual day
Daily bread brings ordinary dependence into the center of prayer. Food, provision, and the needs of a body are allowed here. Prayer does not have to rise above practical life to become worthy of attention.
The shared request also asks what happens to the bread already in our hands. If we pray for our bread, another person’s hunger belongs within the horizon of the prayer. A request to God can become an invitation to share.
Forgiveness and protection
The prayer joins receiving forgiveness to forgiving others. That connection asks for a life changed by mercy. It does not supply a deadline for the recovery of someone who has been harmed, nor does it require unsafe contact with a person who continues to cause harm.
The request for deliverance gives us language for vulnerability. We can ask for help, seek wise companionship, and take practical steps to protect life. Prayer can travel alongside those actions.
ONE SMALL WAY TO BEGIN
Let it meet
your day.
You can choose one of these practices. This is an invitation, not a measure of your worth.
- Read the prayer one phrase at a time, pausing after each request.
- Add one plain sentence about what you need today.
- Let one request become an action: share food, seek a repair, or ask someone trustworthy for help.
QUESTIONS TO STAY WITH
Which phrase is easiest to pray, and which is difficult?
Who is included when you say “our”?
AN ORIGINAL PRAYER
Teach me to begin
God, receive the prayer I can manage today. Help me speak honestly, listen patiently, and remember the needs of others. Give us daily bread, and make me willing to share.
Enough for this day
Continue learning ↗Source: Matthew 6:5–15, World English Bible. Commentary and prayers are original reflections. Images are artistic reconstructions; parable scenes illustrate a story Jesus tells. Read the whole passage alongside the reflection.