By:Pastor Kyle Smith
What would we do without our daily bread? This is kind of a trick question because some of us may not eat bread every day, but when we speak of “bread” as in our “daily bread” as we pray for in the Lord’s prayer, we are not talking specifically about bread and bread only, but so much more than that. When we pray that God would provide for us our “daily bread,” we are asking for everything that has to do with our bodily needs, including food, drink, clothing, shelter, money, a good government, good weather, and so on.
“But wait a minute, doesn’t God provide for my daily needs even when I don’t pray the Lord’s Prayer? Then why would I bother praying the Lord’s Prayer at all?” you might ask. The answer, of course, is “yes,” God does continue to provide daily bread to those who pray for it and those who don’t. We see in Matthew 5:45, “He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” When we, as God’s children, pray for our daily bread, we are not asking out of fear of not receiving, we are asking because we are confident that all good gifts come from above (James 1:17) and to help remind us to receive His good gifts with thanksgiving. Not only are we thankful for the gifts God gives to us, but we are reminded in this petition by the word “daily” that we depend upon God’s provision every moment and every day of our lives.
It is all too easy to give ourselves credit and glory for the things we do, and it’s no different when it comes to our daily bread. When it comes to one of our most basic needs, food, it is God, not us, who causes the ground to produce crops for us to consume. Psalm 104:14 says, “You cause the grass to grow for the livestock and plants for man to cultivate, that he may bring forth good from the earth.” Not only do we see that it is God who gives the growth, but it is also God who blesses us with the ability to work, and even expects us to work!
There is another reason God gets the glory instead of us when it comes to our daily bread that we often forget about - God blesses us with earthly authorities and structures, giving us the freedom to work and receive our daily bread.
As we pray for our daily bread, we are also praying for God’s protection in all things that allow us to receive our daily needs, not only for good weather for crops to grow, but also for a stable government, so that crops can get to market, goods can be transported, and businesses can be in business, so that we have a place to purchase our daily needs.
Sometimes it can be hard to think about praying for all those in our government, especially when the government is on the other side of the aisle than we are. And yet, this is not only what we pray for in the Lord’s Prayer, but also in I Timothy 2:1-2, “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.” No matter who is president or governor, who represents us, we are to pray first and foremost for their salvation, but also for wisdom for them to do their job to the best of their ability.
Then comes the big question, “What about those who don’t have their daily bread? Is God only concerned with certain people He chooses to only provide for them?” No, of course not! God cares for all people. But then why do some people lack their daily bread? It is not out of a lack of love or compassion on God’s part. When people have a lack of daily bread, it is not a result of God, but a result of us turning away from God, a result of creation’s fall into sin. Sometimes there are droughts, famine, or other natural disasters. Other times there is war, governmental instability, or poor economic systems that result in a lack of daily bread.
For those of us who do have our daily bread, God desires us to share with those who are in need. We see in I John 3:17-18, “If anyone has the world’s good and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk, but in deed and in truth.” Just as God uses farmers to grow and truckers to get food and other goods to market, so God desires to use us to provide for the daily bread of those in need.
With all of this information, we have to ask, “What does this mean?” or rather, “What are we praying for when we ask for our daily bread?” We are praying for three things: 1) We pray that we would, in our humility, look to God for our daily needs. 2) We pray that we would receive our daily bread (again, not just food) with thankful hearts, and 3) We pray that we would be content with what we have received and help those who have less.