“Give us this day our daily bread,” Matthew 6:11.
A brief glance at the Lord’s Prayer reveals God’s word in the prayer’s first half categorized in the second half. The word to note in the first half is ‘your’—your name, your kingdom, and your will. The word to note in the second half of the Lord’s Prayer is ‘us’—give us, forgive us, and lead us.
By arranging these words in the first and second half of the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus is teaching us that we are to begin our prayer with God’s concerns. We are to pray to God about His will and what He is most concerned about. When we have done that, we are to pray for our own concerns, which is our “daily bread.” God knows us because He is all knowing, and He knows our petition. The moment that we experience temptations, God is there to help us—not some of the way, but all of the way. We start in a heavenly place, and then come down to an earthly place. This is the pattern of all divine revelation.
In the second half of the Lord’s Prayer, God is directing us daily into His everlasting presence where we are to live our lives in Him. If the first half of the Lord’s Prayer is to ask God for His name, kingdom, and will, then the second half is to unveil daily living enabling us to face life with the aid and assistance of the Holy Spirit.
When we ask God for daily bread, it provides provision that takes care of you in the present. It pardons your past, and protects your future. Not only of these three things, but it also takes care of every part of you personally. Provision takes care of your body. Pardon takes care of your soul. Protection takes care of your spirit.
Everything that we need has already been provided for us when we pray. That’s why it is such a tragic mistake for us to overlook the Lord’s Prayer or to think that it is just a Sunday morning ritual. It is more than just a pattern or model for prayer. If you understand it in its depth, everything that you can legitimately pray about is contained in either the first half or the second half of this great prayer.
When we think of the living bread in scripture, it is more than just literal bread—it’s also a symbol for all the material and spiritual needs of our lives. Bread in the Lords Prayer stands not just for the kind of bread you slice and eat. It stands for the physical, material, and spiritual needs of the Christian life. During this season of ‘giving thanks,’ everything that will nourish our bodies and meet their needs should be given back to God in the form of honor, discipline, goods, faithfulness, praise and worship.
Do not forget that your daily bread is the substance that God wants you to live by. He nourishes us physically so that we can live for Him spiritually. Consider daily the importance of your living bread, and live each moment fulfilling its purpose and promise for your life.
