Is the Lord's Prayer to be (or can it be) prayed during Public Worship? Does this fall in line with the RPW?

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Rev. Andrew J. Barnes
Husband of Dena
Father of Oliver
Master of Bruce
Pastor of Tchula Presbyterian Church

What can I say, I like blogs!

The Westminster Directory of Public Worship States:

And because the prayer which Christ taught his disciples is not only a pattern of prayer, but itself a most comprehensive prayer, we recommend it also to be used in the prayers of the church.

My own understanding (and preference) would be that it should be used on occasion and not every week as it would become too repetitive. I voted "other" for that reason.

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Rev. Adam King
Minister in the RPCNA
Pastor,Trinity Reformed Church
Wichita, KS

Yes, we may. It certainly falls in line with the RPW.

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Josh Hicks, Chloë's Dad
Christ Covenant Reformed Presbyterian Church, RPCGA
Facebook - The Calvinist Vent
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It is God that multiplies our sorrows.... God, as a righteous Judge, does it, which ought to silence us under all our sorrows; as many as they are, we have deserved them all, and more: nay, God, as a tender Father, does it for our necessary correction, that we may be humbled for sin, and weaned from the world by all our sorrows; and the good we get by them, with the comfort we have under them, will abundantly balance our sorrows, how greatly soever they are multiplied. - Matthew Henry

Matthew 6 is the exegetical basis for the Lord's prayer being a pattern for prayer, whereas Luke 11:2 gives us the exegetical basis for praying it as a prayer...

So He said to them, "When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven...

DTK

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Sola Scriptura est norma normans non normata
D. T. King, pastor
Christ Presbyterian Church (OPC)
Elkton, Maryland
Augustine (354-430): Therefore what He [i.e., Christ] has deigned to speak to us, we ought to believe that He meant us to understand. But if we do not understand He, being asked, gives understanding, who gave His Word unasked. NPNF1: Vol. VII, Tractates on John, Tractate XXII, §1.

I agree with Josh. We certainly can pray the Lord's Prayer in worship. But we shouldn't make that mandatory. What I do in Sunday morning worship is conclude the pastoral prayer with a unison Lord's Prayer.

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Rev. Lane Keister
Teaching Elder, PCA, North Dakota (working out of bounds in a CRC and an RCA church)
http://greenbaggins.wordpress.com
http://brahmsgreenglove.blogspot.com
http://accenttranslation.blogspot.com
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This is what we do as well at CCRPC.

What do you mean "shouldn't make it mandatory"? If it's in the liturgy shouldn't each worshiper participate? Why put it in the liturgy if not?

Maybe I'm misunderstanding you.

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Tony Felich
Pastor, Redeemer Presbyterian Church (PCA)
Overland Park, Kansas
www.redeemer-pca.org
blog: http://reepicheep-ajf.blogspot.com

I believe that he means that it shouldn't be mandatory that it be in the liturgy.

We do in our church worship. I'm a little confused tho. If something is apart of the RPW, why isn't it mandatory? If it isn't apart of the RPW, then it shouldn't be done. It was my understanding that we are not to put anything in worship that isn't specifically commanded to be there nor are we to leave out anything specifically commanded to be put in there....I thought that was the RPW.

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sarah
WI
OPC
My Pastor's Sermons: Mark Jenkins...he's awesome!!!

God has commanded that we pray in worship. He has not commanded that we use the Lord's Prayer every Sunday. Everyone should participate in prayer, even if only the pastor is praying out loud. Josh understood me correctly. All I am saying is that Jesus said that we should pray like this (the Lord's Prayer). He didn't say that we are limited only to these particular words in prayer.

Ok, I think my mind operates too constrictively on subjects like this.

This is also what I do as well.

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Chris
Teaching Elder (PCUSA)
West Virginia
"Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation." (Habakkuk 3:17-18)

The Westminster Larger Catechism says that it may be prayed as a prayer as long as understanding, faith, and other graces are necessary when praying it.

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Pastor Nathan Eshelman, Los Angeles, CA
Reformed Presbyterian Church
PRESBYTERIAN THOUGHTS
Los Angeles Reformed Presbyterian Church
RPCLA Sermons Online
Puritan Reformed Seminary

I'm interested in the reasons those who've said "No" answered in that way.

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Rae W. | Elder @ Grace Central Presbyterian Church | Columbus, OH
Online presence: blog | twitter | facebook

The Lord's Prayer is a direct quote from the Bible. WHY wouldn't you pray it every Sunday??

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Charlie

We also follow this pattern.

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Curt Lovelace
Pastor, Covenant Baptist Church (CBA)
Acton, Maine
Director, Lifework Forum
Sermons at SermonAudio.com/CBCActon
Blogging at Coffee with Curt

Reciting the Lord's Prayer at the close of our pastoral prayer is a way to approach my Father along side my brothers and sisters

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Sandra, Lady of the Lake
CBA, Acton ME
http://www.viewsfromthedeck.blogspot.com

Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Hebrews 4:16