Read: Matthew 6:5-15
Pray to your Father who is in secret. (v. 6)
It had to be a stunning moment when the disciples received Jesus’s teaching to begin their prayer with “Our Father” (v. 9). While the Old Testament speaks of God in a fatherly way (see Deut. 32:6; Ps. 103:13), he is not addressed as “Father” until Jesus. Nearly every prayer Jesus prays begins with “Father.” We are not children of God in the exact way Jesus is, but by Jesus’s death and resurrection we are now also children of God! “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are” (1 John 3:1).
What a privilege! The father-child relationship in prayer is unique among world religions. Hindus have thousands of gods each with its own name, none of which are Father. Muslims address God only as “Allah” and never as Father. To speak with God as Father weaves together a relationship of authority, intimacy, warmth. We do not need formal words, or many words when we speak with our Father. He knows what we need before we ask (Matt. 6:8).
And there is something also about the word room (v. 6). The Greek word, tameion, indicates a hidden room where treasures might be kept. To speak with our Father in prayer is to go to a place of precious treasure. He’s already there, waiting for us to join him, waiting to share with us his glory, his majesty, his strength, and everything we need for every part of our journey. What are we waiting for? Let’s go to our Father now.
As you pray, speak to God as “Father.”
About the Author
Rev. Jon Opgenorth serves as president of Words of Hope. Previously, he served for 18 years as senior pastor at Trinity Reformed Church in Orange City, Iowa. In preparation for ministry, he received a BA in Religion from Northwestern College, and an MDiv from Fuller Theological Seminary.
