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The Prayer of the Lord

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The disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray. R. C. suggests this is because the disciples noted the link between Jesus' extraordinary prayer life and His power. Before Jesus gave His followers a model prayer He told them how not to pray (Matt. 6:5-7). The first prohibition is hypocritical praying, especially in public. He also prohibited pagan practices in prayer such as meaningless repetitions.

As R. C. delves into an exposition of the model prayer we are reminded that we do not pray to change God's mind. We are changed by prayer. R. C. suggests that The Lord's Prayer should not be used in a rote manner but as a framework that defines our prayers.

Calling God "Father" reminds the Christian of adoption. Only those adopted may call God Father. The first petition is that God's name would be regarded as holy and sacred by us and by our culture. (This must be the Christian's attitude before subsequent petitions can be fulfilled.) We petition for Christ's rule as king to be manifest by our living as citizens of His kingdom. With deep commitment to the sovereignty of God, R. C. explains that "your will be done on earth" is our desiring that God be glorified on earth as He is in heaven. (This section on God's will is worth the price of the book.)

Recognizing God's providence we ask Him to give us what we need (not forgetting our own labor and productivity). We understand we have an impossible debt to God and need His forgiveness. But there is a condition attached. R. C. calls this "one of the most frightening lines in the Lord's Prayer." He suggests we are to see this as an aspiration rather than a condition as no one can forgive as the Father does.

In the next petition we ask the Father to spare us from the temptation that can lead us into new sin, that the test of our faith should not be so severe but that we would be delivered from Satan (whom God often uses to bring the testing).

R. C. notes that the end of the prayer returns our focus to God. We end prayer by affirming that supreme power, ultimate glory, and the kingdom of heaven all belong to God alone.

Don't skip the appendix. There R. C. speaks to the question of why we are to pray even though God is sovereign. He also reminds us to balance the promises of God with all of the qualifications God gives regarding prayer.

Sproul's book is an important contribution to the study of prayer from a Calvinistic viewpoint. Sproul is a scholar yet his work is very readable. I highly recommend it for anyone wanting to understand how to pray.

"Familiarity breeds contempt." Most Christians are familiar with The Lord's Prayer. While this familiarity may not breed contempt, it probably breeds complacency. R.C. Sproul's book, The Prayer of the Lord, presents this familiar prayer a model for the Christian to communicate with God. The reader will be left with neither contempt nor complacency. Instead the reader will be spurred to pray and pray more intelligently and effectively.

Sproul is a noted theologian who has the ability to make deep theological truths accessible to every Christian. When I began reading this book, I did not put it down until I was finished. I was challenged to think deeply yet practically about my own prayer life.

Of all of the possibilities the disciples could have chosen, they asked Jesus to teach them to pray. Jesus honors their request by providing a model for them to pray.

As Sproul unpacks this prayer, he begins by discussing what we are to avoid in prayer. The first chapter warns against hypocrisy and pagan practices in our prayers.

In chapter 2 the focus is upon the one to whom we are praying. Sproul tackles the issues surrounding the fatherhood of God in a clear and helpful manner.

In chapters 3 through 5, Sproul unravels the three aspects of our prayers related to God. We should pray regarding God's name, God's kingdom and God's will. Again, the author demonstrates an ability to wrestle with tough issues in a way that encourages to prayer more intelligently.

In chapters 6 through 8, we are taught to pray for our needs. We need God's daily provision, his forgiveness and his protection.

Chapter 9 brings the prayer back to the beginning with our focus on God.

Sproul adds a final chapter to answer potential questions that the reader might have about prayer. He even includes an appendix to answer the question, "If God is sovereign, why pray?"

All that Sproul teaches can be summarized in how he answers the question of what rules are there in prayer.

"There are really only two rules that you should have to keep in mind when you're in prayer, two things that should drive and govern and control your prayer life with the Almighty. You should remember who is being addressed and who is doing the speaking. That is, the first thing you are to remember in prayer is who it is you're talking to, because nothing will condition your prayer life more deeply than remembering that you're in conversation with God, the sovereign Creator and Ruler of the universe. Second, you are to remember who you are. You are not God. You are a creature. So prayer is not a conversation between peers; it is not a fireside chat among equals. This is the creature speaking to the sovereign Creator."

--page 15

I am confident that each reader that comes to this book with an eagerness to learn will have their prayer life enriched. You will also be challenged to think more clearly about some of the key theological truths. Deep but practical. Practical teaching is provided on the will of God, on forgiveness and on several other aspects of Christian living. This is one of the best books that I have read in some time.

"We're not all that adept at prayer; it is a practice very few of us have mastered," says Dr. R.C. Sproul. Who can disagree? Our prayers are often unbiblical, casual, self-centered, and thoughtless--when we pray at all. But Jesus has left us with a model of how we should pray, and it deserves our attention.

"Jesus did not give the Lord's Prayer with the intention that it would be repeated mindlessly. When we pray the Lord's Prayer, we need to pray it thoughtfully, giving attention in our minds to its content. It is not a mantra to be repeated without the engagement of the mind or heart. It is an example of godly prayer."

Dr. R.C. Sproul's The Prayer of the Lord is a practical study of Matthew 6:5-13. After the first chapter, "How Not to Pray," each chapter covers a single phrase within the Lord's Prayer. What is the significance of beginning with "our Father?" What are we asking for when we say "hallowed be your name?" Why should we pray for God's will to be done, and which "will" are we referring to? Dr. Sproul answers these questions and many more. And if the question is not answered in the first nine chapters, there's a good chance that it will be answered in chapter ten--"Questions and Answers." The book concludes with a wonderful appendix: "If God is Sovereign, Why Pray?"

A major theme of The Prayer of the Lord is the sovereignty and majesty of God. This is not a book on how to increase in God's favor through prayer. Dr. Sproul does not encourage Christians to storm into God's presence and make demands, nor does he encourage approaching God as a friend or an equal. Instead, he reminds readers that "we are peasants in the presence of the King. Not just a king, but the King, the King of kings, the Lord of lords, the One who is absolutely sovereign." He has "condescended to give us an audience." We should keep this in mind and pray to Him accordingly.

The ability to teach the Bible as clearly and accurately as Dr. Sproul is rare. He is a master, and this little book is no exception. The chapters are short and to the point, and yet the matter is fully explained. And the book is not cluttered with quotes from other writers. Instead, Dr. Sproul uses original stories and Scriptures to illustrate his points.

For the follower of Christ, prayer is not just important; it's essential. "Our spiritual lives are means to the end of godliness, and prayer is one of the key aspects of our spirituality." Yet many of us struggle in this area more than any other. The Prayer of the Lord will help. Readers will be instructed, encouraged, and edified. I highly recommend it.

Prayer is one of those topics that Christians simply cannot ignore. We need to pray. We need to know how to pray in such a way that God will be honored. We need a model for prayer that will help us to cover important categories well. Jesus knows this, which is why he gave his disciples a model prayer to pray. R. C. Sproul also sees the importance of the model prayer, and chose to write a nice little book on the topic.

Positives

The Prayer of the Lord is short, helpful, and readable. Unlike some works out there, this book is not so scholarly as to be indecipherable. Nor does Sproul dive off into the mystical. He does not flood the reader with tons of "I prayed this and God did that" stories. There is no hyped-up emotionalism in this book. Sproul has given us a simple and solid look at Jesus' model for our prayer lives, and readers should be grateful.

Sproul's work looks at the model prayer, rightfully, as a model. He demonstrates for the reader that repeated use of this model will make thorough prayer second-nature for the believer. Sproul writes, "That's the benefit of praying a prayer like the Lord's Prayer over and over again. It becomes part of the fabric of our thinking. It begins to become a part of our souls, so that we fall back on it when we're at a loss as to how we ought to pray. We can always pray the Lord's Prayer" (12).

In Sproul's addressing of the petition, "Hallowed be your name," he points out the absolute necessity that God's name be seen as holy. For many, the concept that this phrase of the prayer is a petition instead of a praise will be fascinating enough. However, Sproul's grasping of the centrality of this request is what is so beautiful. Sproul tells us, "I'm convinced that although we pray for the manifestation and the victory of the kingdom of God, it is futile to hope for the victory of God's kingdom on this planet until or unless the name of God is regarded as sacred, because God's kingdom does not come to people who have no respect for Him" (33). He adds, "A lack of regard for His name reveals more clearly than anything else a lack of regard for Him" (36).

At risk of belaboring too many of Sproul's specific points, his expression of gratitude for God's forgiveness from the "forgive us our debts" petition is lovely to read. The author tells his readers that forgiveness is something for which we should all be overwhelmingly grateful. He writes, "There is no greater state than to get up from your knees knowing that in God's sight you are clean, that He has forgiven every sin you've ever committed. Without that grace, without that forgiveness, I don't think I could live in this world for another sixty seconds. This is something we all desperately need, and we have but to ask for it" (85).


Perhaps praying this petition will help us to see exactly how wonderful is the grace of our God.

Negatives

While Sproul's work is very helpful, a few negatives may catch one's attention. In his discussion of the petition "deliver us from the evil one," the author uses Job as an example. In this example, Sproul speaks of Job as having "aced" his test. Yet, in this description of Job, Sproul does not point out the grumbling of Job or Job's need for repentance. Later in the Q and A chapter, Sproul does say, referring to Job, "He was severely rebuked for the attitude that he expressed to God" (108). This does not sound like a man who aced his test. While this point is not major, and certainly is not germane to the topic of prayer in general, it comes off a little sloppy.

It also might have been more helpful for Sproul to do a little more thorough handling of the final line of the prayer from a text-critical standpoint. Sproul criticized commentators for basically ignoring this line. He even pointed out that there is a text-critical problem. However, Sproul did not make a very thorough argument as to why he believes this text to be original to the prayer. Obviously, this book is short and not intended to address such deep issues, but the slight treatment that this line gets is unsatisfactory. Perhaps putting the text-critical work in a second appendix would have been helpful.

Conclusion and Recommendation

My problems with this work are tiny, and the helpful points of this book are many. Christians need to know how to use the model prayer in their daily lives. Too many evangelicals have ignored the Lord's prayer as a source of great guidance for daily prayer. Sproul's book is a very helpful call for Christians to use this model for their own growth. I happily recommend it.

The brevity and ease of reading that one finds in this book would make it very useful for a small group or one-on-one discipleship study. People will be able to read this work. The short chapters will appeal to those who do not want to spend too much time reading. The learning of the model will help any believer to further his or her prayer life.

The Prayer of the Lord is perhaps the best books I have ever read on the Model Prayer (sometimes called the Lord's Prayer)! I was deeply impressed with how Bible scholar and pastor Dr. R.C. Sproul opened the Scripture and set everything on the bottom shelf. Dr. Sproul has an engaging and witty style of writing that is both faithful to the text of Scripture and engaging to the reader. I continue to be amazed at how well he writes.

The Prayer of the Lord is a simple exposition of the Model Prayer. Dr. Sproul breaks it down taking the reader through the teaching of Jesus on prayer. Each chapter examines a phrase of the prayer in great detail. I've been a serious student of Scripture for years and I was deeply impressed with how well Sproul wrote about this passage while maintaining a focus to present the truth and application within easy grasp of the reader. This is a book I would have no problem handing off to a new believer looking to develop his prayer life or a mature believer looking to examine the model prayer. I really appreciated the appendix that answered several questions for me.

If you are looking for a great book that teaches about the nature of prayer with the scriptures as its source, this book is for you. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in developing their prayer life.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Reformation Trust Publishers as part of their Blog for a Free Book Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

I have just started reading this book. It is excellent for understanding the Lord's Prayer and not making own interpretations. I bought it for a class and then decided not to take the class...want to enjoy the book first. May register for class next time.
A book worth every penny....and this is what I call the price!!!

Sproul never disappoints. This book is a wonderful, thorough walk through Christ's model of prayer he gave his disciples - including us! Some things were illuminated such as "Hallowed be Thy name" - it doesn't mean "Your name IS Holy" (although it is), rather it is the first petition of the prayer - that we would treat His holy name with the reverence it is due. Do you think you KNOW the Lord's prayer? I thought I did, too. This opened my eyes to look beyond the words to the HEART of this prayer. Wonderful.

R.C. Sproul is one of my favorite authors. His book The Holiness of God shaped my Christian life more than any other book that I have read besides the Bible. I own around 15 of his books, and the one downside to his books is that there is a lot of repetition from book to book. The Prayer of Lord breaks this mold and is one of his most original works, not to mention one of the best books on prayer that I have read.

The Prayer of the Lord focuses on how to pray in the same way that Jesus prays the Lord's prayer. The first chapter focuses on how we should not pray, which is very helpful. Following that, each chapter zooms in on a part of the Lord's Prayer and explains how we should apply the lessons to our own prayer life. For such a short prayer, it is a refreshingly rich book, and you will be blessed by reading it.

One chapter that I thought was particularly good was the "Give us this day our daily bread" chapter. Praying for daily provision is something that is easy to forget in our society. We tend to pray for security over the next 30 years, or pray only when we hit a rough patch. Praying daily for provision is humbling and it helps enable you to see how God is working in your life.

The book is excellent by itself, but it also includes an appendix on why we pray to a God that is in complete control. Many make the mistake of praying as if they are informing God of something that he did not already know in hopes of changing his mind. Many others mistakenly discount prayer as largely unnecessary - we can't change God's mind after all. Sproul expertly dismantles both of these views and presents a profound, Biblical view on prayer.

It would be a mistake to assume that this small book belongs in the gift book section or that it is "Theology Lite." It is an excellent treatise on prayer and a great read as well.

Throughout Christendom prayer is considered an important element of the Christian life. Yet, there are varying conceptions of what prayer is, what prayer is for, and what prayer accomplishes. The Bible is filled with prayers. Throughout the Old Testament, especially the Psalms, we see examples of prayer offered to God. In the New Testament as well we are provided with numerous examples of prayer offered to God. One might think with all these examples we would have a better understanding of what prayer is and what prayer does yet ignorance today is great.

If we were to start from the ground up in trying to determine how to pray and what prayer should look like where might we look in the Scriptures? It seems that the Lord's Prayer is the best place to start. Here we have our Lord giving instruction on how one is to pray. In Luke's version the disciples come to Jesus to ask him to teach them to pray (Luke 11:1-4). This model prayer that Jesus provides for the disciples has much importance for how we pray today.

R.C. Sproul has written a helpful exposition of this passage of Scripture in an effort to help Christians pray in a more biblical and God-honoring fashion. The Prayer of the Lord is a powerful exposition of the Lord's Prayer. Sproul begins the book by showing us how not to pray. Sproul begins where Jesus begins and in this case, before giving us the Lord's Prayer, Jesus tells us the ways in which we are not to pray (Matt. 6:1-8). Then Sproul goes through each of the petitions of the prayer helping the reader to better understand the meaning of the prayer and how it should impact our own prayers today.

Sproul concludes the book with answers to common questions such as how prayer influences God and if prayer can change God's mind. There is also a helpful appendix on prayer and the sovereignty of God. After all, why pray if God has predetermined all things? Sproul shows how this reasoning is in error. This same sort of thinking has plagued Arminianism and Hyper-Calvinism which fails to take into account both sovereignty and responsibility; both God's decree and the means to God's decree. Sproul's appendix is a helpful corrective which sets prayer in its proper relation to God's will.

I highly recommend you get a copy of this wonderful little book! It is short, readable, and edifying. Thank you to Reformation Trust for providing me with a review copy.

Prayer is a topic that everyone has different ideas about what it does and what it accomplishes. Most combine it with meditation or a way to organize your thoughts. Perhaps even a wish list presented to a celestial being.
R.C. Sproul's book on the Prayer of the Lord is so essential for our post modern world because he cuts through the pagan definition of prayer with the truths of scripture.
The importance of this book is that it seeks to provide instruction in the how and why to pray not with Christian cultural practice, or with rehashing how the historical church presented their intercessions to the Father, but the how and why through the words of Christ.
Current practice do not matter, nor does past traditions what really matters is what Christ has told his disciples to do.
Another excellent portion of the Lord's prayer is the section on how Christians must be very careful to not fall into pagan practices with their prayer life.
Learning how to pray from Christ, avoiding pagan practices in prayer life, and knowing the God of whom we pray are all elements in the Lord's prayer.
This is an excellent book by Sproul. Very devotional and humorous.
I found this to be more compelling and more Biblical than Yancey's book, but found the information to be relatively the same as Sproul's book on prayer in the Critical Questions series.
I would give Sproul's book the Lord's Prayer to a Christian who already feasts upon the meat of the word of the Lord but would give his CQ series book on prayer to a new believer or an unsaved person.