Luke 11:2b Father, let your name be treated as holy. Let your kingdom come.
The first statement Jesus made in his model prayer was the recognition of God’s sovereignty and relationship. The invocation of the prayer is the way Jesus addressed God. Father would have been Abba in Aramaic, Jesus’ mother tongue. God is not called “Father” often in the Old Testament because it has sexual overtones in pagan fertility religions, and the Jews wanted to avoid any association with these religions. For Jesus, this description had great significance because of how he was born and his self-understanding as the Savior of the world. The clue for the Aramaic form of this word is found in Mark 14:36; Romans 8:15–16; and Galatians 4:6.
The idea of God as Father has many possible meanings. A father is the source of new life in the birth of a child, the one who provides for his family, a protector, guide, teacher of wisdom and righteous living, and many other elements. Jesus’ relationship to God as Son is unique. There is only one Father/Son relationship like this. But through Jesus, disciples can become part of God’s family. The Bible does not say that the general population of the world can call God “Father.” It is a privilege to do so, and it can only be done through the grace of God shown and available through Jesus. It is through him that we can even begin this prayer.
The petitions in this prayer are in the form of third-person imperatives. This grammatical construction at the beginning of the prayer is curious and has several implications. The two verbs are spoken in the form of entreaty and exhortation. Although the prayer is obviously addressed to God, the form of these verbs implies that the one who is praying is called to acknowledge God’s sovereignty right at the start. We cannot demand anything from God but only come in humble submission, asking for his blessing.
Two verbs are in this form. The first is a call to recognize the holiness of God’s name. A person’s name in the Bible represents that person’s character. God’s name Yahweh and every other name and metaphor for God in Scripture represent God’s character, power, authority, righteousness, love, and justice. No words in human language can adequately describe God. The verb (hagiasthētō) shares the same root as “holy.” One of God’s primary characteristics is holiness. No other entity is like God, who is wholly other, unique, and transcendent beyond creation. Although people do not acknowledge God’s holiness now, someday, every knee shall bow before the holy throne of God. It is better to honor and obey God now in the freedom of grace than later in judgment. As third-person verb, the first verb serves as a form of self-exhortation, commanding the person praying to acknowledge these attributes about God.
The second verb looks to the coming of God’s kingdom. Jesus came proclaiming the kingdom. The kingdom came with Jesus but will come in completeness and glory when he returns. This prayer acknowledges God’s overall position as King. It is his kingdom, the Kingdom of God. The theme of God’s kingdom is a central theme to a lot of Jesus’ teaching. Many parables describe life in this kingdom and how disciples ought to live. The third-person imperative in this phrase comes in the form of an invitation to God’s kingdom. God’s kingdom comes to those who are open to it through faith in Jesus. God’s kingdom is parallel to the kingdoms of the world as an overlap that is experienced as spiritual warfare and struggle against the forces of sin and evil. But there is victory for those who believe and commit themselves to God’s sovereign leadership and prerogative. This model prayer shows us that before we can ask God for anything, we must first acknowledge his supremacy and be committed to his place of highest priority in our lives.
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