The Lord’s prayer is found in Matthew 6:9-13. Although it is commonly known as the Lord’s prayer, it was actually a prayer that the Lord Jesus was teaching His disciples to pray. In Matthew 6 the Lord was given instructions to His disciples about prayer and verses 9-13 are a model prayer that was part of His instruction. These verses state, “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.”

Matthew 6:11 states, “Give us this day our daily bread.” The Greek word for bread is “artos” which means bread or loaf. It is talking about the physical bread that we eat. It can mean the food that is made of flour mixed with water and baked or can refer to any kind of food. Whether we realize it or not, each of us depends on the Lord for our food. As we read in Psalm 145:15-16, “The eyes of all wait upon thee; and thou givest them their meat in due season. Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.” Since He has provided every bite that we eat, it is very appropriate to thank the Lord for our food before each meal.

Although Matthew 6:11 is talking about physical bread, there is nothing wrong with making an application to spiritual bread. We read in John 6:35, “And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.” The Lord Jesus also said in John 6:51, “I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” When we believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as the Savior for our sins, He gives us eternal life. Physical bread enables us to continue living physically for a limited time. However, Christ the living bread gives us eternal life! Dear reader, have you repented of your sins and trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior? Please do so today!

After we are saved, then we should continue to feed on Christ through His Word, the Bible, so that we can grow spiritually. Job expressed the importance of this when he said, “I have esteemed the words of His mouth more than my necessary food” (Job 23:12).  Jeremiah revealed the effect of the Word on us when he said, “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O Lord God of hosts.” Dear struggling believer, are you weighed down with worry and running low on joy in your life? Read the Word, feast on the One who is the Bread of Life, and watch how He increases your joy!  (364.4)  (DJ)