Jul. 23, 2023

"Holy is Your Name"

Luke 11:5-13

Today we’re considering the first petition of the Lord’s Prayer: "Hallowed be Thy Name." In John’s Gospel we see an instance where Jesus prays publicly, "Father, glorify Your Name." Then a voice thunders from heaven: "I have glorified it and will glorify it again."  The word "hallowed" means "holy." God is separate from us in that He is unstained by sin. This petition could be translated: "May Your Name be held Holy." In other words, may Your character and reputation be honored and kept untarnished. Our deepest passion should be that God would cause His Name to be revered. We don’t add to God’s holiness in prayer-we treat Him as holy. Although we have free access to God, when we take advantage of His open-door policy, we speak to Him with reverence. "Hallowed be Thy Name" balances out "Our Father". In these two phrases we see both our close, intimate relationship to God, and the reverent honor we owe Him. We need to set God apart from everything that is common and profane and give Him the place He deserves in our lives. Martin Luther poses this question in the catechism: "How is God’s Name hallowed among us?" The answer: "When both our doctrine and our life are godly and Christian." When Moses appeared before the burning bush, he heard the voice of God and removed his sandals, to signify that he was of the earth. This was an act of humility before a holy God. When Isaiah beheld a vision of the majesty of God, he cried out in fear, realizing that he was unworthy to appear before the Lord. By revering God’s Name, we are Who He is and all He has done. 

Questions:

1.    What does the word “hallowed” mean?

2.    What does this petition say about who God is?

3.    What does Luther’s question tell us about who God is?