Narrative Lectionary Y3, 2020 Summer NL Series

Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread

Narrative Lectionary Summer Series – Lord’s Prayer Series, Week Three

Luke 11:2-4

Free Additional Resources for Study & Sermon Preparation

Furthering the Power of God’s Story – Narrative Lectionary Commentary

by Rev. Dr. Clint Schnekloth

Give us our bread for today. Or… give us the bread we need for today. Or… give us this bread always. Or…

A lot of ink has been spilled discussing the tense of this phrase. Is it that we are to receive bread every day? Or is it just our bread for today, with no worry for tomorrow?

It’s possible this matters, and in fact many devotional reflections offer convincing meditations illustrating how it matters, but for my money the important space this line occupies in the prayer is somewhat different in emphasis.

I’m caught by surprise, every time, by the transition from the loftiness of the opening of the prayer, to the serious mundanity of bread.

God is in heaven, God’s name is hallowed, God’s kin-dom is hopefully coming. God’s holy and gracious will should be done on earth and in heaven.

Okay, let’s eat!

However, if we are familiar with the ancient Scripture of Israel, we know such transitions are typical. Moses can come down from the holy mountain, face shining bright after conversing with the Lord, and hand rules over to the Israelites telling them not to cook a lamb in its mother’s milk, and to always make sure to show hospitality for refugees and immigrants.

It’s as if this transcendent, holy God, the creator of all, the Father/Mother/Parent of Jesus (and all of us), is concerned for, more than anything else, whether a baby gets its bottle, a family gets their free school lunches, a hiker gets their bread and peanut butter, whether the hungry eat.

This tells us so much of what we need to know about God. It also tells us so much about the center of our share spiritual life. Yes, love God and praise God.

But then let’s eat. Let’s make sure everyone has their bread for the day.

Because hallowing God’s name and sharing the bread for the day are the very same thing.

 

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Contemporary Resources

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Great Quotes

“In the sweat of thy brow shalt thou earn thy daily bread: it was not a curse upon mankind, but the balm which reconciled it to existence.”
― W. Somerset Maugham, Of Human Bondage
 
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A Good Read

Lord’s Prayer: The Prayer of Integral Liberation

by Leonardo Boff

(Amazon Link here.)

 

Video Resources

The Lord’s Prayer Sung In Aramaic


Daily Devotional Feed

Free Dramatic Reading For This Text (NRSV)

Readers: Narrator, Jesus

Narrator: He said to them,

Jesus: “When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us. And do not bring us to the time of trial.”