Art Toombs Ministries 

Online Bible Commentary

Matthew 6:9 This, then, is how you should pray: “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

11 Give us today our daily bread.

12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

13 And lead us not into temptation,  but deliver us from the evil one. (NIV)

Did you know that God has given us a pattern for prayer? What is called “The Lord’s Prayer” is a pattern that we can use in our prayers to keep us organized.

Verse nine represents praise or adoration given to God because of who He is. Verse ten represents thanksgiving to God for what He has done and what He will do, by aligning with His will. Verse eleven represents supplication, asking God to supply our needs and the needs of others.

Verses twelve and thirteen represent confession of our sins, which also includes repentance and asking for forgiveness.  An acronym we can use to remember these components is ACTS; adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication. 

We should never pray for show or use language that is out of the ordinary for us. We should pray to God the Father or the Lord Jesus. We could pray to the Holy Spirit because he also is God, but only if there is good reason.

We should always pray in the will of Jesus and therefore pray “in Jesus name”. In John 14:14 Jesus says “You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” This means He will grant anything that is according to His will.

These are only the basics. There are many good resources available to Christians on prayer.