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Alone With God
I. Glorifying God in Prayer. This principle comes from the phrase "hallowed by thy name." MacArthur wrote, "to hallow God's name is to revere, honor, glorify, and obey Him as the one and only completely perfect God" (p. 58). Some suggestions MacArthur gave on how to hallow God's name are to acknowledge that God exists, know the truth about God, be aware of His presence, and live in obedience. Believing that God exists seems too simplistic but it is very important in prayer to truly believe that God exists and that He actually can be known personally. Doubt in this area is deadly to true power and passion in prayer. Knowing the truth about God is also very important because our thoughts about God determine how we live and pray. We must know God as He has revealed Himself in the Scriptures and be well-acquainted with His nature, attributes, purposes, and ways if we are to have an effective prayer life. To glorify God in prayer we must also be continually aware of His presence. "God consciousness," as MacArthur called it, will allow us to "draw Him into every daily thought, word, and activity" (p. 63). Finally, we glorify God in prayer when we live in obedience to His will. We cannot glorify God in prayer if we are disobedient in our lives. II. Praying for God's Will. MacArthur warns against having bitter resentment or passive resignation regarding God's will based on His sovereignty. Rather he encouraged the reader to "pray in faith, believing that our prayers do make a difference to God" (p. 78). According to MacArthur, "Thy will be done" is a prayer for three things: "The consummation of the world and the use of sin's consequences for God's eternal plan, the salvation of people who don't know God, and the obedience of every believer to God's commands" (p. 84). MacArthur stated that this prayer is closely related to the prayer "Thy kingdom come." The rule of God is the manifestation of His will. III. Praying for Our Needs. Praying for our needs does not set aside God's glory. Rather, He glorifies Himself by meeting our needs. "Give us this day our daily bread" is the example Jesus gave for praying for our needs. The phrase "daily bread" symbolizes the necessities of physical life. We must focus on God as the One who supplies all of our physical needs and daily live in the confidence that He will meet those needs. By asking God to provide for our physical needs, we acknowledge God's providence and goodness to us. It creates gratitude towards God as He provides for us and shows our dependence on Him. It put things in proper perspective, that God is the sovereign Source of life and we are subject to Him. IV. Praying for Forgiveness. MacArthur wrote, "Deliverance from guilt by real forgiveness is man's deepest spiritual need. Apart from it, he can't enter into a relationship with God that produces peace and hope" (p. 98). When we pray "forgive us our debts," we are acknowledging that we have a sin problem. Sin separates us from God, destroys our lives and, if left uncovered by Christ's blood, ends in eternal destruction in Hell. MacArthur discussed the various words for sin in the Bible showing its various aspects and the various results of sin. He then discussed the solution for sin which is forgiveness. The two types of forgiveness are judicial and parental. Judicial forgiveness is the comprehensive forgiveness believers receive at the moment of salvation. It changes our spiritual position from one of condemnation to one of justification before God. Parental forgiveness is for those occasional lapses into sin by believers. These sins do not change our position before God but they do disrupt our intimacy and fellowship with God. They too must be confessed and God will forgive and restore us to intimate fellowship with Himself. A part of this forgiveness is the requirement to forgive others as a condition for God's forgiveness. V. Praying for Protection from Sin. The petition, "Do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil" is an "appeal to God to place a watch over our eyes, our ears, our mouths, our feet, and our hands – that in whatever we see, hear, or say and in any place we go and in anything we do, He will protect us from sin" (p. 114). Though trials (or temptations) which are overcome make us more mature in the faith, they nevertheless also provide the possibility of failing and succumbing to temptation and thus sinning. The discerning believer knows that "the testing of [our] faith produces endurance" (James 1:2-3), but has enough healthy skepticism in his or her own ability to resist trials and temptations. This part of the prayer is a plea to God to protect us from temptations which we cannot endure. God has already promised to do so (1 Cor. 10:13). However, when we do encounter temptations, we can pray this prayer which shows our submission to God and His Word wherein we find strength to overcome victoriously.
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