The Lord’s Prayer is interesting because of what it doesn’t include:
- It’s not about an afterlife.
- There is no petition asking God to take us to heaven when we die.
- It’s not about material success. There is no petition asking God to see that we “prosper” - an important point because of the prevalence of the prosperity gospel in some Christian churches today.
- It’s not about belief. It does not ask God to “help us to believe.”
- It’s not about Jesus. Though the gist of it may go back to Jesus and thus tell us about his central concerns, there is nothing in it about believing in Jesus as the Son of God or that he died for our sins.
Kindle Edition, Speaking Christian: Why Christian Words Have Lost Their Meaning and Power--And How They Can Be Restored, by Marcus J. Borg