It is such a joy to be with you this morning, to worship together with our children, our pastors, and all of you, my dear brothers and sisters. What unites us today is our shared love for the Word of God and for Jesus Christ. As I stand before you, it is with a quiet heart and a deep prayer that a broken vessel like me might be useful in the hands of the Lord to deliver His message to you.
I must confess at the very outset that I feel completely unworthy to give this message. But I trust in the Lord because the message is far greater than the messenger. The messenger is not important here—the message is. I ask that you focus your attention on His Word, because these insights are taken directly from the teachings of Jesus Christ regarding the most vital discipline in our spiritual walk: prayer.
The Request: "Lord, Teach Us to Pray"
In Luke 11, we get a glimpse of the setting where Jesus taught His disciples to pray. Jesus was praying in a certain place, and His disciples watched Him. They saw something in His prayer life that was fundamentally different from anything they had ever experienced. After He finished, they walked up to Him and said, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John also taught his disciples."
In response, Jesus gave them—and us—a pattern for prayer. As recorded in Matthew 6:9–13:
"Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen."
We do not have the time to unpack this entire prayer today, but I want us to get right into the very heart of it. We will focus on just one single, profound phrase: "Hallowed be Your name."
Understanding the Name of the Lord
What does Scripture mean when it speaks of "Your name"? God's name is not just a label or a title; it encapsulates the very essence and reality of who He is. Consider these seven truths about the name of the Lord that we find throughout the Bible:
1. Identity
Psalm 96:5 says, "For all the gods of the peoples are idols, But the LORD made the heavens." Many people create a god in their own imagination—a God reduced to fit their culture, upbringing, likes, or personal preferences. JB Phillips famously wrote a book titled Your God Is Too Small. When we reduce God to fit our comfort level, we are constructing an idol of the mind. But the name of God represents the sovereign, uncreated Creator who revealed Himself to Moses in Exodus 3:14 as "I AM WHO I AM."
2. Character
In Exodus 33 and 34, when Moses asked to see God's glory, the Lord passed before him and proclaimed His name:
"The LORD, the LORD God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin..." (Exodus 34:6–7)
Human beings can have names that do not match their personal character, but God’s name and His character are completely inseparable. He is always faithful and true to His name. He does not change.
3. Reputation
Psalm 8:1 declares, "O LORD, our Lord, How majestic is Your name in all the earth!" His name spreads His fragrance and glorious reputation across all creation, like poured-out oil radiating beauty and grace.
4. Authority
When David confronted Goliath, he declared, "You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts." Consider a traffic officer standing in the middle of a busy intersection. He may be physically frail compared to a massive 16-wheeler truck, yet when he holds up his hand, that huge truck comes to a complete stop. Why? Because the officer stands in the authority of the government. Similarly, the name of the Lord carries all divine authority. God has bestowed on Christ the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow.
5. Revelation
In John 17:6, Jesus prayed, "I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world." The name of God represents the full revelation of God brought to us through the Word made flesh and delivered into our hearts.
6. Relationship
Jesus introduced God as "My Father and your Father." God reveals Himself historically through relationships across generations. He introduced Himself to Moses as "the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." Many of us, especially second-generation Christians, are here today because our parents, church fathers, or pastors knew God personally and faithfully passed that relationship down to us. Do you know the God of your fathers?
7. Representation
God dwells in heaven, yet His name on our lips brings His active presence right into our immediate lives. Scripture tells us, "Whoever will call on the name of the LORD will be saved." The moment you call upon the name of Jesus in faith, His power and presence act in your life. He is as close to you as His name on your tongue.
What Does "Hallowed" Mean?
"Hallowed" does not simply mean reciting vocal praise or adding poetic words to our prayers. The word literally means sanctified, set apart as holy, acknowledged, and deeply revered. The tragedy of humanity described in Romans 1 is that "even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God." To hallow His name is the exact opposite of treating Him as common, defaming Him, or reducing Him to our own level.
In Ezekiel 36:22–23, God confronted Israel because they had profaned His holy name among the nations wherever they went. God declared through the prophet:
"It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for My holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you went. I will vindicate the holiness of My great name which has been profaned among the nations..."
God promised that to vindicate His name, He would give them a new heart, put a new spirit within them, remove their heart of stone, and cause them to walk in His statutes. Therefore, when Jesus taught us to pray "Hallowed be Your name," He was praying for the spiritual restoration of God's people—that our lives would align with our high calling.
A Solemn Call to Introspection
We must never forget that drawing near to God requires profound reverence. In the Old Testament, when Aaron's sons, Nadab and Abihu, offered unauthorized fire before the Lord according to their own fancies rather than God's command, God's judgment broke out against them. God reminded Moses, "By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy".
As believers and as a church community, we must ask ourselves some serious, searching questions:
Are we truly glorifying the holy name of God in our daily conduct, or are we defaming it by how we live?
Are we worshipping the true God of Scripture, or have we created a convenient god that fits our personal tastes and cultural habits?
Are we ready for God to come down and show His holiness in our midst, even if it requires deep cleansing?
When we pray "Hallowed be Your name," we are not uttering a soft, casual phrase. We are praying a serious, dangerous, and transformative prayer. We are asking God to sanctify His name in us, in our families, in our church assemblies, and across our land.
Turning Back to God
If we truly desire to see our lives transformed, our churches revived, and our communities restored, we must take the solemn promise of 2 Chronicles 7:14 to heart:
"And My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
Let us examine our hearts honestly before the Lord today. Let us humble ourselves, repent of where we have fallen short, and pray this prayer once again with profound devotion and sincerity:
Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name—hallowed in our personal lives, hallowed in our relationships, hallowed in our church, and hallowed throughout the entire world that belongs to You. Amen.