Sermon, Proper 12C, Luke 11:1-13

There's a nice flow to the gospel lessons over these past three weeks. First we had the story of the Good Samaritan and Jesus admonishing us to go and do likewise. Then we had the story of Mary & Martha and the request to sit and listen. And today we have the disciples asking to be taught how to pray.

Taken as a whole this is one of those times when the disciples don't seem so dense. In fact, they might be at their most astute here. They see Jesus spar with a lawyer and tell a story that defines love in action. They are with him at Mary & Martha's house when he says that there is a time to sit and listen. And they are with him when he prays.

Putting all of this together, they seem to get it. Rather than asking for thunder and lightning to destroy a town, or to sit at his right hand, or to wonder what he means by hm returning to the Father, one of them asks, "Teach us to pray." Because it it through prayer that we draw closer and build our relationship with God. And in response, Jesus gives them what has become known as the Lord's Prayer.

Tricky thing, this prayer. As we heard in the skit during our joint service with the Methodists, you never know what will happen when you pray. So let's take a look at this prayer we all know so well.

Our Father . . . what does it mean when we pray, "Our Father?" Is this merely a title given to the God who created us? No, not merely a title but an acknowledgment of who we are.

Jesus referred to God as his father. By teaching us to pray, and by giving us these first words, Jesus is placing us in the same relationship with God that he has. We are now privileged to be part of t his holy family. We can now see God as our loving father and Christ as our brother. And I realize that isn't ideal for everybody, but maybe we can imagine some holy and sacred space where we are at the center; some place or relationship that draws us in and keeps us safe. That's where these words put us.

Along with that privilege, though, comes a responsibility. We have a responsibility to see ourselves as holy. We have a responsibility to see fellow Christians as family members and to treat them as holy. And we have a responsibility to see others, ALL others, as God sees them -- deserving of love and care and respect.

By calling him Father, we are now heirs of his eternal kingdom.

Hallowed be your name. Hallowed. Holy. When we pray this, we state our belief of who God is -- God of all. King of kings. Lord of lords. Holy of Holies. If we pray, "Hallowed be your name," then we acknowledge God's place in our lives, which should be supreme. And if we recognize God as holy, then we should also work to lead upright and blameless lives, becoming holy ourselves and drawing ever closer to God.

Your kingdom come. Really? Do we honestly know what we are asking for here? Do we really want God to listen to us?

He will come, eventually, to judge the living and the dead. He will come to judge ourselves, souls and bodies. He will come to shed light on our darkest deeds and deepest secrets. For the day of the Lord is a great and terrible day. Are we really ready to pray, "Your kingdom come?"

Give us each day our daily bread. We all live day to day. Nobody knows the number of days we have in this life; so by concentrating too much on tomorrow, we neglect today.

Things we collect and save and store up eventually rot and rust away. The Israelites learned this when they tried to collect manna for more than today, and it turned to maggots. And all these things shall pass away; because he who dies with the most toys still dies.

When we pray for our daily bread, maybe what we are praying for is not wealth but poverty. For who else prays for daily sustenance but those who live day to day, or those who can't afford to think about tomorrow? As we pray for that daily bread, we pray not only for our physical sustenance but for our spiritual sustenance as well. If we don't feed our spiritual souls on a daily basis, it too will weaken and die. Pray not for great wealth, but only for that which is sufficient to our well-being today.

Forgive us our sins as we forgive. We ask for forgiveness all the time. We do it every Sunday and we ask friends and family to forgive us for a variety of things. But how are we at forgiving others? How long do we hold a grudge or how long do we stay angry over words spoken or actions taken against us? When asked, do we readily forgive? Do we forgive at all?

If we look at our own behavior, do we truly want God to forgive us as we forgive others? The next time someone truly begs your forgiveness, remind yourself of how you want God to forgive you.

So as we pray this prayer, pray it slowly. Pray it intentionally. And let us remember that we are privileged members of a holy family, with responsibilities to allow God to reign supreme in our lives, never striving for more than we need, and forgiving as we desire to be forgiven.