Review of R. T. Kendall's The Lord's Prayer

R. T. Kendall, The Lord's Prayer: Insight and Inspiration to Draw You Closer to Him (Grand Rapids: Chosen, 2010).

Sometimes the most difficult passages in the Bible to address are familiar passages. It can be hard to say anything new and anything new runs into preconceptions that people already have about the passage. That being said, R. T. Kendall’s book on the Lord’s prayer (or as I prefer the model prayer) is an interesting amalgamation of exposition on the Lord’s prayer, an examination of prayer in general (e.g., the purpose of prayer, the pattern of prayer, unanswered prayer), and an elucidation of various theological concepts (e.g., the Fatherhood of God, evil, the Kingdom of God). There is not much new here, but the book doesn’t read like a cliché either.

The heart of the book consists of five major sections divided into twelve chapters. Each chapter deals with a phrase from the prayer from either the version contained in Matthew or Luke. The discussion is clear and not overtly technical (although some technical issues are addressed). Sprinkled throughout are personal anecdotes and a pastoral spirit. All told the book is a good read for personal devotions or perhaps a book that can be used in a small group study.