As Jews, Christ’s disciples already knew how to pray. So why did Jesus have to teach his disciples to pray?
The identity of God and his plan of salvation, revealed in bits and pieces in the law, was now being fully revealed in the Son. It was time for the new Israel to pray in a new way.
The Lord’s Prayer is an inspiration, not a script. It’s an invitation, a doorway to prayer.
The two version of the Lord’s Prayer in the New Testament contain the Gospel message. Matthew situates the prayer as part of Jesus’ teaching in the Sermon on the Mount. In Luke, Jesus lays out the meaning of discipleship.
