Hallowed be your name
When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, he taught, “Our Father in heaven …” (Luke 11:2). If it were up to us, we would begin our prayers, “My Father in heaven … Give me my daily bread.” We would be focused on ourselves and our needs. We would isolate ourselves – even in our prayers.
Our culture encourages us to think of ourselves as independent entities. It is inherent in our American experience that we are autonomous. We believe that we are alone and are quite accomplished at taking care of ourselves. But with all our advances in technology, we lead increasingly lonely lives.
When we pray the words of the Lord’s Prayer, we are reminding ourselves that we are never alone, separated or isolated.
Even when we are praying by ourselves, we are part of a Christian family in our home, part of a Christian family in our church, and part of the Christian family of saints who are now in heaven. We have prayed and continue to pray the Lord’s Prayer together.
Think about the words you use in your personal prayers. Do you find yourself using lots of “I” language? “Lord, I’m feeling …”, “Lord, I need …”, Lord, I want …” Because we are sinful people, we are inherently self-obsessed. We think and pray about ourselves.
In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus teaches us quickly to move beyond “I” language to “You” language. We learn to build our prayers on God’s sure promises in his Word instead of on our emotions or changing desires. To move us from the “I” language to this “You” language, Jesus gives us the words of the first petition. “Hallowed be your name.”
What is a petition?
A petition is a formal request that we bring before God’s throne of grace. We do not pray so we can get things, rather, we pray so we can learn that everything comes from the hands of our Father in heaven.
Martin Luther’s explanation of the First Petition in his Small Catechism:
Hallowed be your name.
What does this mean? God’s name is certainly holy by itself, but we pray in this petition that we too may keep it holy.
How is God’s name kept holy? God’s name is kept holy when his Word is taught in its truth and purity and we as children of God lead holy lives according to it. But whoever teaches and lives contrary to God’s Word dishonors God’s name among us. God’s name is everything Scripture teaches us about who he is and what he has done to save us.
This seal features an open Bible and rays of light radiating outward. God’s name is his reputation as revealed to us through his Word. We keep his name holy as we maintain his reputation by faithfully sharing, teaching, and living out his Word.
Pastor Aaron Goetzinger
To God’s Glory
As part of this family of baptized believers, together we pray, “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.” With those words, we are asking that the Word be seen in our lives. That people know we are God’s children by our words and our actions. We keep God’s name holy, even when our culture and nature teach us to live contrary to God’s Word. “To hallow means the same as to praise, magnify, and honor both in word and deed” (Large Catechism, Part III, The Lord’s Prayer, par. 46).
Holiness is what happens when you keep Christ and his Word at the center of your life. In Christ, we are never alone, separated or isolated.
Michael Zarling
For the first 8 years of my ministry, I served at Faith Lutheran Church, an exploratory congregation in Radcliff, KY. I presently serve at Epiphany Lutheran Church and Wisconsin Lutheran School (WLS) in Racine, WI. I am also very involved with our youth as the WLS head soccer coach and the head counselor for WELS Training Camp, a youth camp for 3rd – 9th graders. I have been married to Shelley for 20 years. Together we have 4 beautiful daughters – Abigail, Miriam, Lydia and Gabrielle. We also have 2 dogs – Messi and Mia – named after Lionel Messi and Mia Hamm (the Zarling family really likes soccer!)
