Hallowed Be Your Name

OUR FATHER IN HEAVEN, HALLOWED BE YOUR NAME. MATTHEW 6.9.

Our prayers would have been so self-centred and mere mundane requests had it not been for the Lord teaching us to pray! How privileged are we because the Lord Jesus opened the windows of prayer and showed us how sublime and extended it could be, that it would reach all heaven and the earth.

Prayer is defined in the ‘dictionary’ as simply ‘asking or making a request’ - to God. But in the model prayer, the Lord taught that before we approach our Father with our pleas we should seek first, God and His glory! What a revelation! He emphasised this to the disciples further by telling them that before they seek their own earthly needs, they should “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these (worldly) things will be given to you as well” (Mt 6.33) It is ‘the Kingdom principle’ by which you are called to live as the disciples of Jesus.

So, the Lord taught us to begin our prayers ‘by hallowing’ the Father’s Name! It is to glorify the Father’s Name. Many Christians are unfamiliar with this aspect of our faith and spiritual life. The Christian creed and catechism clearly state that the first and foremost purpose of our existence is to glorify God our maker. That should be the chief aim of your life.

Some of the important prayers of the Bible either begin or end (or sometimes both) by hallowing or glorifying or exalting God . The apostle Paul’s prayers excel in praise and glory to God the Father. “To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen” (Phil 4.20), is a frequent expression in his prayers. The prayer of the apostle Jude is a classic example for us to follow, “To him (God) who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy-- to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen. (Jude 1.24,25).

So it was in the best tradition of the saints and based on the fundamental principle of our faith and according to the passion of His own life that the Lord taught us to begin our prayers ‘glorifying our Father in heaven’. It will do well for you therefore to spend a little while praising God and glorifying His Name before you venture into your own requests. After all, when you think of it, the things that we need and what we are going to ask for are ‘nothing impossible’ to our Father, who is the Sovereign Lord God Almighty, who is the maker of heaven and earth and the sea and all that are in it!

So, dear believer, take time to sit still in the presence of your Father in heaven and let your mind concentrate and your thoughts centre on Him and His greatness and glory, and thus hallow His name. It is not through the mere mouthing of the words , “Hallowed be your name”, as a magic phrase that God is glorified but in the devotion of your heart, mind and body. Let Him be pleased with you to answer your prayers.

Pray and practise with me: Dear Lord, be pleased as I sit still in Your presence and centre my thoughts on You and offer You glory, praise and honour. Please answer my humble prayers. Amen.