A man could not quit smoking on his own, so he made a vow to God to recited the Lord’s 

Prayer every time he wanted a cigarette.  He started out say that prayer 40 times per day, but 

never smoked again.  He still says this prayer every morning in thanksgiving. 

 

Praying and Living – in sync with spiritual formation. 

 

Reciprocal relationship between the way we pray 

and the way we live. 

 

The Spiritual Formation of Our Lord 

 

1 – Nothing mentioned in the Bible about Jesus’ childhood years –  

 - how many times Mary told Him of His miraculous birth story 

 - age 12 – wanted to be in “His Father’s House” – the temple (Lk. 2:49) 

 - the Abba experience at His baptism – deeply imprinted in His mind and ministry 

- Prayer at Lazarus’ tomb (Jn. 11:41-42) – quality relationship 

- Confidence that He and the Father are one (Jn. 17:11) 

- Father affected His spiritual development 

 

2 – He knew Scripture and developed a biblical mindset that affected His spiritual life. 

 

3 – He participated in the patterns and processes of His religious tradition: 

- Shema (Duet. 6:4) daily practice 

- Attended festivals 

- Attended synagogue 

- Participation encouraged His desire to do God’s will 

- Participation anchored Him 

What is the role of the practices of your tradition in your personal spiritual formation? 

 

4 – His relationship with His spiritual friend Isaiah: 

- Jesus quoted Isaiah’s writings at strategic moments in His life. 

- He was well acquainted with Isaiah’s writings 

- He read from Is. 61 – at His inaugural in Nazareth (Lk. 4:17-21) 

- He quoted from Is. 6 – in opposition 

- Understood Himself as the suffering servant of Is. 53 

 

5 – Involvement with the 12 disciples: 

- built strong relationships with these men – especially the inner circle 

- reflected at Transfiguration and Gethsemane 

 

Write an entry in your journal about what each of these elements means to you. 

 

 

6 – Unqualified obedience to the Father: 

- Heb. 5:8 – “He learned obedience…” 

- Obedience commitment first – then learn the requirements 

- Phil. 2:5-11 – ultimate obedience 

- Struggle in the Garden was real – But, a life-long practice of obedience prevailed 

– He said, “Yet, not My will but Yours be done” (Lk. 22:42) 

 

7 – His redemptive involvement in other’s lives: 

- He offered love to all who came to Him 

(from the smallest child to the hardest sinner) 

 

8 – Consistency of His prayer life – significant formative influence: 

- extending Himself to those in need 

- renewing His heart and life in the Father’s presence 

- regular rhythms of His life 

- The Lord’s Prayer – expresses the importance of His prayer life 

 

Can you add any other factors?  He carefully nurtured His spiritual life, and He gives us the 

same directive! 

 

Principle 3: “Spiritual Formation is Enriched and Enabled through the Cleansing 

Power of the Holy Spirit.” 

 

Definitions of Spiritual Formation: 

 “A deeper experience of Christ-likeness” 

Spiritual formation is nurturing a relationship with God (principle 1). 

 

 1 – living the Lord’s Prayer in everyday righteousness 

 2 – through the power of the Cross and the guidance of the Holy Spirit 

 3 – the whole person in relationship with God 

 4 – within the community of believers 

 5 – growing in Christ-likeness 

 6 – reflected in a Spirit-directed, disciplined lifestyle 

 7 – demonstrated in redemptive action in our world 

 

1 –  living the Lord’s Prayer in everyday righteousness 

-     praying and living are interrelated 

- live out everyday righteousness – pray like Jesus prayed 

- be identified as one of His followers 

- Phil.3:8-11; Gal. 2:21; Rom. 3:21-23; 2 Cor. 5:21; Eph. 6:4  

 

2 –  through the power of the Cross and the guidance of the Holy Spirit  

- our lives are products of the Holy Spirit’s enabling and guiding 

- optimism of spirituality possible only because of the Holy Spirit’s energizing and 

presence in the believer’s life 

- living by GRACE – freed to live a life pleasing to God 

o open to minister and serve those around us 

o live in harmony with ourselves and our world 

 

3 – the whole person in relationship with God 

- carefully cultivated relationship with God 

- the Bible – reveals God’s  call to relationship 

- The Lord’s Prayer – points to fundamental elements of spiritual identity 

- bring every aspect of our lives to God in prayer 

- well-balanced spiritual formation from fundamental perspective 

 

 

Principle 4: “Spiritual Formation is Growing Christlikeness” 

 

4 – within the community of believers 

- The Lord’s Prayer opens with “Our” – uniting all us together 

- Community – “give us” – “forgive us” – “lead us” – “deliver us” 

- O.T. call to community – unmistakable – N.T. continues this concept 

- No lone rangers in God’s kingdom 

- Jesus called the disciples to: watch, pray, learn, live, imitate, and practice these 

disciplines 

 

5 – growing in Christ-likeness 

- Pentateuch establishes the call to follow God: 

- Lev. 11:44 – “I am the Lord your God; sanctify yourselves therefore, and be holy, 

for I am holy.” 

- N.T. – call to imitate God – focuses on the life of Jesus … John 8:19 – “If you 

knew me, you would know my Father also …” 

- GRACE now makes Christ-likeness a reality 

o A call to holiness of life is available to everyone 

o Pray in concert with Jesus and realize Christ-like spiritual formation 

 

6 – reflected in a Spirit-directed, disciplined lifestyle 

- Spirit directed, disciplined life is unique to the individual! 

- Bible characters would have differing opinions and instructions 

- God comes to us within the variety of our personalities 

- He expects us to come to Him the same way 

- Lord, teach us to pray and live 

  

 7 – demonstrated in redemptive action in our world 

- Our spirituality should lead to active ministry to others.  

- We draw back to the center to find strength and resources 

 

 

“In what ways are you involved in Christian redemptive action in your world?” 

 

 

THE “SIMPLIFICATION” PROCESS 

 

The complexity of the elements of the Lord’s Prayer can overwhelm us. 

 

Tolstoy’s Three Monks – on an island in the ocean. 

 They only knew how to pray one simple prayer: 

 “O God, You are three, we are three. Have mercy on us! Amen!” 

- The Bishop comes  by boat to give them a seminar on prayer to help them. 

- While sailing back, a ball of fire approached the Bishop’s boat. 

- The 3 monks step off the fire ball – They came to thank the Bishop for his 

lessons, but had already forgotten his instruction. 

- The Bishop, noting their mode of transportation, told them to just return to the 

island and continue the simple prayer they knew before he had come. 

 

“If we could uncomplicated our lives enough to live and pray only the way our Lord taught 

us to live an pray, what kind of spiritual formation would result?”  (p. 26) 

 

STRUCTURAL DIAGRAMS OF THE LORD’S PRAYER TO AID UNDERSTANDING 

 

Literary Structure – “V shape” 

 

Our Father       For Thine … 

Hallowed Be…                      Deliver us … 

     The   Kingdom   Temptation 

The Will Forgiveness 

Daily Bread 

 

The left side of the “V” focuses on God, His Name, His Kingdom, His Will.  The petitions on 

the right side are all related to our needs.  The prayer open with an invocation and closes with 

a doxology.  The pivot point is a petition for our daily bread, and centers the whole prayer on 

God’s Grace.  

 

“The overall structure of the prayer is that of a ladder.” (p. 27)  Invocation 

          The Name 

“Our Lord instructed us to pray by ascending the ladder of   The Kingdom 

prayer to gaze over the banister of heaven until our eyes and  The Will 

mind and heart are filled with God and His grand design.  Then  Daily Bread 

we descend trusting in His sustenance to find the daily bread we  Forgiveness 

need and begin functioning as redemptive agents in our world.”  Temptation 

          Deliverance 

          Doxology 

 

 

Next we turn to the individual petitions of the prayer. 

 

 

”May God Himself guide us as we follow our Lord in praying, thinking, and living. May we 

become instantly identifiable as His followers!  In the name of the Father and of the Son and 

of the Holy Spirit. Amen!”  (p. 27) 

 

 

Principle 5:  “Spiritual Formation is Living the Lord’s Prayer in Everyday  

Righteousness." 

 

Scripture Passages are from the Holy Bible – NIV – Zondervan Publishing House 

 

 

Luke 2:49-50 

"Why were you searching for me?" he asked. "Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's 

house?" But they did not understand what he was saying to them. 

 

John 11:41-42 

So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, I thank you that you 

have heard me.  I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people 

standing here, that they may believe that you sent me." 

 

John 17:11 

I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. 

Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name-the name you gave me-so that they 

may be one as we are one. 

 

Deut 6:4 

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. 

 

Isa 61:1-3 

The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach 

good news to the poor.  He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom 

for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the 

LORD's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide 

for those who grieve in Zion--to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil 

of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.  They 

will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor. 

 

Luke 4:17-21 

The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it 

is written:  "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news 

to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for 

the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."  Then he rolled 

up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the 

synagogue were fastened on him, and he began by saying to them, "Today this scripture is 

fulfilled in your hearing." 

 

Isa 6:9-10 

He said, "Go and tell this people: 

 

"'Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.' Make the 

heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes.  Otherwise they 

might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be 

healed." 

 

Isa 53 

Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? He 

grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty 

or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.  He was 

despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.  Like one from 

whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 

 

Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by 

God, smitten by him, and afflicted.  But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was 

crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his 

wounds we are healed.  We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own 

way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 

 

He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the 

slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.  By 

oppression and judgment he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he 

was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken. 

He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done 

no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. 

 

Yet it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD 

makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of 

the LORD will prosper in his hand.  After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light [of 

life] and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will 

bear their iniquities.  Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide 

the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with 

the transgressors.  For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. 

 

Heb 5:8 

Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered 

 

Phil 2:5-11 

Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:  Who, being in very nature God, 

did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,  but made himself nothing, 

taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.  And being found in 

appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death - even death on a 

cross!  Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above 

every name,  that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and 

under the earth,  and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the 

Father. 

 

Phil 3:8-11 

What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing 

Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I 

may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from 

the law, but that which is through faith in Christ-the righteousness that comes from God and 

is by faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of 

sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the 

resurrection from the dead. 

 

Gal 2:21 

I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, 

Christ died for nothing!"  

 

Rom 3:21-24 

But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law 

and the Prophets testify. 22 This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ 

to all who believe. There is no difference, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of 

God, 24 and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ 

Jesus. 

  

2 Cor 5:21 

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the 

righteousness of God 

  

Eph 6:4 

Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and 

instruction of the Lord.