January 15, 2026

The Two Requests

Luke 11

Do you ever wonder about prayer?

I mean, really? You may bow your head, close your eyes, fold your hands as you were told as a child, as if that was the formula. Is that working?


We are all familiar with “The Lord’s Prayer,” or the model prayer. So much so that most of us can still quote it from VBS 30 or 40 years ago. But sometimes, being so familiar with a scripture, we read right past the truth for today.


Jesus’ closest 12 had the same question. “Teach us to pray.” Now it is likely those 12 boys (and they were just older than boys, young men) had grown up in devout Hebrew homes where there was the habit, the expectation, the routine of prayer.

But just as with anything that is done out of routine, rather than out of passion, their prayers lacked vitality, reality, and response. 

They were not that different from us. They looked across the street to see the cars parked in John the Baptist’s disciples’ driveways and decided they wanted that kind of connection. 

“Lord, as John has taught his disciples, teach us.”


Jesus was full of surprises, including this model prayer that today many call the Lord’s Prayer.


Of all the things that Jesus might have modeled in his pivotal teaching to those closest to him, those who would become the core teachers and leaders going forward, what did he model?

Remember your prayers as a kid?

Remember your prayers from yesterday?

Likely a shotgun blast of your heartfelt concerns, beginning with your own life and needs, radiating through progressively widening circles of relationships until you end up praying for the WORLD.

I’m no expert, and the truth is, that’s kinda what I do.

But from the heart of an expert on prayer, Jesus, we have this model, outline, plan, guidance for prayer.

In Luke 11:3-4, Jesus transitions from God-focused petitions (His name and His kingdom) to human-focused petitions. This shift highlights a beautiful balance: God is concerned with both the temporal (the bread that keeps us alive today) and the eternal (the forgiveness that keeps us alive forever).

By placing these two requests side-by-side, the prayer suggests that we cannot fully live in the "now" without bread, but we cannot truly live for "eternity" without grace.

THE FIRST REQUEST

1. The Temporal Request: "Give us each day our daily bread."

The Greek word for "daily" used here is epiousios, a rare term that scholars have debated for centuries. Its placement here serves several functions:

 * Radical Dependence: By asking for bread "each day," we acknowledge we are not self-sufficient. Just as the Israelites received manna in the wilderness one day at a time, we are reminded that our survival is a gift from the Father. Just as the manna did not last, neither does yesterday’s connection. God desires an ongoing relationship, actually more of an ongoing conversation. Many have a good approach to begin their day with prayer and end it with prayer. But the reality is, prayer, like a conversation, is ongoing without beginning or end. How would your friend or spouse view your relationship if you had a conversation only when you wanted or needed something? Well, it might not be the strongest connection. Just because our connection with God is spiritual through prayer, is no reason to make it just once or twice a day with my top ten need list. But just as Jesus points out later in the chapter, God does want to know our needs and concerns. Beginning in verse 5, Jesus offers ridiculous comparisons of earthly requests with a non-response for the midnight bread (see the theme here?), which is granted with persistent requests. In this example, we are told that just being a friend was not enough to grant the request, but based on the persistence of the request (v. 8), the friend did get up and “give him as much as he needs.” 

Jesus follows with the admonition to ‘keep asking, keep searching, and keep knocking in verse 9. In verse 10, look at one word, EVERYONE.”

Jesus concludes this section on prayer with the preposterous comparison of “what father among you” (another reflection of the prayer “Our Father”) would give a snake rather than a fish or a scorpion rather than an egg.

BUT DON’T MISS THIS!

Jesus cuts to the bone as he says in verse 13, “If you then, who are evil…” The Hebrew mind was that they were the good guys, and Gentiles were evil. I kinda’ think the disciples thought that they were the cream of the good crop, because look who they were hanging with… But Jesus sliced it to the quick of their heart - YOU, YOU GUYS WHO JUST ASKED ME HOW TO PRAY ARE EVIL. 

Jesus follows with the answer! In our Bible, the answer to the original question about prayer is separated by paragraphs of explanation, but in just a second, we will look at it.

BUT FIRST, A WORD FROM OUR SPONSOR

There are times when we think just like the 12. We think we are the good guys. Look who we hang with. But Jesus had a word for us too. EVIL. No, we are not terrorists. We are not rebels. We work hard and care for our families and our communities, and we go to church. None of that changes that just as the 12 were called out by the Son of God, those words call me out 2,000 years later. EVIL!  Let that sink in. The disciples really knew in their hearts that Jesus was right. And you and I know that Jesus is right when points that finger of truth at our hearts.

NOW, THE GOOD STUFF

Jesus concluded this teaching on prayer with His disciples (and with you and me) with this game-changing, earth-shattering, KINGDOM COME proclamation. 

“How much more will the heavenly FATHER give the HOLY SPIRIT to those who ask Him?

Can I get an AMEN?

Each of us has a link to the Kingdom. Our Heavenly Father still bestows the gift of the Holy Spirit (that is different than the GIFTS of the Holy Spirit)

Now, I am about to tell you more than I really understand. But in God’s sovereignty, He made it possible for me to exchange my EVIL for Jesus’s pure, unstained, perfect righteousness. So in God’s eyes, after I repent, proclaim that Jesus is my Lord (boss, master) and acknowledge that God did the impossible by raising Jesus from the cold, gray dead. I am seen by God as perfect. I do not understand. But by FAITH I accept this as truth. Then God gifts us with His Spirit, the Holy Spirit, to be our internal guide in the faith, our connection with the Father, in Jesus name. 

We are blessed who have asked and received!


NOW, BACK TO THE MODEL PRAYER

 * The Scope of "Bread": While it literally means food, it symbolically represents all physical necessities—health, shelter, and the means to work. It validates our physical existence; God does not view our material needs as "unspiritual."

 * The "Bread of Tomorrow": Some scholars translate epiousios as "bread for the coming day." This gives the request an eschatological flavor—we are asking for a small taste today of the great banquet that awaits us in God's kingdom.

THE SECOND REQUEST

2. The Eternal Request: "Forgive us our sins..."

Immediately after asking for physical sustenance, Jesus moves to the soul’s most desperate need. In the Lucan version, the word "sins" (hamartias) is used, but it is linked to "indebtedness." Some of our versions speak of “forgive our debts…”

 * The Debt of Sin: Sin is framed as a moral debt. Just as bread satisfies physical hunger, forgiveness satisfies the "spiritual hunger" for reconciliation with God. Without this, the physical bread only sustains a life that is spiritually bankrupt.

 * The Vertical-Horizontal Link: Luke adds a crucial clause: "for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us." This creates a bridge between the eternal and the temporal. Our experience of God's eternal grace is meant to overflow into our daily, temporal relationships.

 * Ongoing Maintenance: Unlike the "once-for-all" justification mentioned in later epistles, this is a prayer for daily fellowship. Just as the body needs food every day to stay healthy, the soul needs the regular practice of confession and forgiveness to remain in communion with God.

IN OTHER WORDS

Just because you confessed your sin and asked for forgiveness when you were saved, your life might need a little touch-up. Some sin has separated you again from a right relationship with God. We must DAILY clear that relationship. 

This does two important things, maybe three:

Blessings in your prayers through the day!