The Lord's Prayer - Ep 14

2026.07.30 Lord's Prayer Thursday

Today and every Thursday during the summer, we will be doing a modified Lectio Divina exercise. Lectio Divina, which means sacred reading, is an ancient spiritual practice that trains us to hear God's voice through scripture. This summer we soak in the Lord's Prayer and today we set our thoughts on forgiving our debtors.

We will read through the Lord's Prayer twice and will provide an insight into the meaning of the text before each reading. We will give space after each reading for you to consider what God might be saying to you through his word. We invite you to take a moment to quiet yourself before you begin.

In his prayer, Jesus describes forgiveness as a matter of releasing a debt. Firstly, we repent and ask the Father to release us from our debts of sin, then we ourselves release those indebted to us. In the verses that immediately follow the Lord's Prayer, Jesus returns to the topic of forgiveness, which emphasizes how much forgiveness matters to Jesus.

This time, instead of a release from debt, Jesus speaks of the forgiveness of trespasses or transgressions, the Greek word paraptoma. Matthew only uses this term in this passage, yet he would have likely recognized this term from the Greek translation of the Book of Ezekiel, which uses this word frequently to designate deliberate acts of wrongdoing toward another person, acts that not only malign others, but that also offend God. In other words, paraptoma is a serious offense.

Yet Jesus emphasizes that even when someone has severely wronged us, he calls us to forgive as he does. The Father forgave us of our paraptoma, our serious offenses, so we should forgive those who have sinned against us. Our own peace is at stake if we don't forgive.

But for us faulty humans, at times, that can seem impossible. But with God, all things are possible. We can ask Jesus that his forgiveness would flow through us when we have no strength to forgive for ourselves.

Let's read the Lord's Prayer, including Jesus' instructions on forgiveness, and then meditate on how this scripture might be speaking to you right now. 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 evil.

For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. The Lord's Prayer occurs in the center of Matthew 6. But if we turn back the page to the last 11 verses of Matthew 5, we find Jesus teaching his audience the virtue of non-retaliation when someone wrongs you and of loving your enemies.

But as is his way, Jesus enhances the virtue he and his followers are known by. He does not simply teach non-retaliation, that is, giving no response to evil. Rather, Jesus teaches us to return evil with good.

For example, Jesus says, Here Jesus is likely alluding to the way Roman soldiers would force non-Roman citizens to carry the soldiers' heavy gear for a mile as they traveled the hot, dirty roads by foot. The lowly Jews listening to Jesus' sermon would have been stunned to hear a Jewish preacher like Jesus endorse goodwill toward their Roman oppressors. But Jesus was ushering in a different kind of kingdom.

Goodwill and love toward enemies is God's kingdom ethic, and Jesus longs for earth to be like heaven in this regard. In the Lord's Prayer, Jesus alludes to his earlier teaching on returning evil with good and loving one's enemies. When Jesus says that we should forgive those who've wronged us, he's teaching us to live out the kingdom of heaven on earth.

Let's read the Lord's Prayer one more time, and then contemplate how the Spirit is leading you to live out the kingdom of heaven in your life through the practice of forgiveness. 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 have also forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Our Father in the heavens, you are merciful, compassionate, and gracious.

Thank you for your faithful forgiveness toward us. Even when we fail you, you never fail us. Would you help us be more like you? When we've been hurt and wronged by someone, help us to release what happened into your hands, trusting that you will handle it according to your wisdom and timing.

Help us to release our anger and any urge to retaliate. And when our strength to forgive fails, would you have your forgiveness flow through us to them? Help us to forgive so that your kingdom may be manifest on earth, so that we may be at peace with you. In the name of Jesus we pray, amen.

Amen.