5/26/24 - The Habit of Prayer - Matthew 6:7-8

Hope everyone is having a blessed Memorial Day Weekend

We have the freedom to worship this morning

built on the sacrifices of those who paid with their lives

There is no Biblical mandate to remember

and I'm not about to push a noxious form of religious nationalism

but Memorial Day is a time to reflect on those sacrifices given

by those that died for our country

and to briefly remember the biblical values of those that did.

I've already mentioned sacrifice

we can look at the example of sacrifice by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ

who died on the cross

to pay the penalty for our sins

Honor

honor means to show respect

the Bible teaches us top honor our parents,

our church, people in authority

and of course God

Memorial Day is a time to honor those that deserve it

Liberty

Christ frees us from our sin

our country gives us the liberty

Part of remembering is sharing with the next generation

We have a World War 2 veteran that is about to

celebrate his 100th brithday.

I would encourage you to come and listen to the stories

and the stories of those around the tables this weekend

of those who have fought

Our soldiers need to know that our families

and our churches are behind them

The next generation needs to know religious liberty

is worth our lives

I want to take a moment to honor those who have paid with their lives

by observing a moment of silence before we begin the message this morning.

the freedom comes with a cost

“And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men.

Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.

But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.

“Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of

before you ask Him.

RECAP

kelal verse - Matthew 6:1

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

this is the summary of the whole unit that is to come

It's kind of like stating the whole section of the sermon

up front and in one concise sentence

to summarize the purpose and the meaning

Jesus is using spiritual disciplines to help make the point

that when you do these disciplines

although they will help deepen your faith

and help you grow closer to God

and be more dependant on Him

The minute we begin to use these to feed our flesh

which basically means to self promote yourself

and make yourself feel good

The eternal rewards you should have gotten

become temporary rewards that happen and are over in an instant

We spoke last time about praying like the hypocrites in public

and how they like to pray and receive praise

and the praise they receive is their reward

rather than the eternal reward

Quick note

eternal rewards don't just happen in eternity

Eternal rewards come as we grow closer and deeper in love with our Savior

For example when you pray properly

and go into your secret place as Jesus said or

pray when there's nobody around

or can have the proper attitude of prayer

where it's not about you

It says that

6b your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

That's not waiting for eternity to happen

that's happening now

The reward you may receive is a deeper relations hip

a closer relationship

a dependency of God the Father

and God honors that and pours out His blessings

whatever those blessings He chooses to pour out

Let me also say this

when I say the word eternity

some people move immediately to what happens after we die

and can I tell you that eternity begins now

We will all eternal beings

and will after this body gives out

will spend eternity in one of two places afterwards

There was a time in my life when

I felt unsettled, and insecure, and searching for something

I would have paid any amount of money

and done about anything

and had done some things I'm not proud of

to feel safe and secure about myself

to try to build my own self esteem

to have a peace in my life

to feel grounded

It was then that I understood that Jesus had the power to change my life

I had someone to explain to me that all those feelings were normal to life

and that's exactly where the world wanted me to be

but that Jesus had a different plan for my life

that all those unsettling, insecure thoughts

were because I was broken

in the relationship that God wanted with me

and that no amount of trying to fix it on my part

was going to make it any better

But God wanted me back

and He wanted me so much

that He was willing to send His Son Jesus to die for me

and I realized my brokenness

and I realized my separation from God

and in faith, I believed that Jesus died for me

and I placed Him as Master over my life

can I tell you that my life is vastly different now

I have peace that I can't explain at times

I am secure in who I am

regardless what the world wants to tell about me

and I have direction and foundation

It's not always easy

I still struggle with my identity

and I still struggle with my self esteem

I have to constantly fight the brokenness in side me called sin

but I don't have to fight it alone

I have my Lord and Savior Jesus who

walks with me and talks with me

and tells me I am His own

If Memorial day is about remembering the freedoms we have

because of the sacrifices of those who paid their life for us to have those

There is a greater sacrifice of one

who died specifically for my life

so that I can have freedom from sin

and the brokenness of the world

and He died for you as well

If you've never placed your faith and trust in Jesus Christ

at the end of the service

I am going to give what's called an invitation

and you can make that decision

you can make that decision anytime during the message

I'll stop and it'll be ok

but at the end, if you want to know more

when the music starts

come forward and either Luke or myself

will be glad to talk to you

So back to prayer

What Not To Do

7a And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do.

Jesus is continuing on with the what to do and what not to do portion

This time instead of focusing on the hypocrite

the play actor that puts on a mask and acts a part

then takes that mask off when no one is looking

Jesus is focusing on the heathen or the Gentiles

Who are the Gentiles?

This isn't so much as being a Jew or not

this is really focused on being a religious outsider

someone that doesn't know God as their heavenly Father

Here's the issue with that

as soon as Jesus says these words

I can imagine that there are people on the hillside

and maybe even people hearing this today

that would immediately say

I know who God is

I am a church member

I go to Sunday School

I'm good to go

I am not a heathen or a Gentile

my parents went to this church long before you ever got here

Let's examine this a little further

7a do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do.

Jesus' qualification here for what a heathen or Gentile is

that they use vain repetitions in their prayers.

The original word for vain repetitions is a fun word in Greek - battalegeo

It comes from the word to stammer

or in today's verbiage to babble

It's the repetition of meaningless syllables

I want to make a correction for something i said a few weeks ago

I may have mentioned that I don't like babies

and I realize the timing of that statement on Mother's day

probably didn't sit well with some people

let me clarify my statement

I'm not comfortable with babies

I don't mind holding them if given to me

but when it comes to being in the nursery

or having to babysit, I'm not the right guy

For those that would think me to be a horrible person

let me ask you how many of you

would be comfortable in a room full of teenagers?

Because I am quite comfortable with the awkwardness of the middle schoolers

and love the community of the teenagers

so before you begin to pick up your rock to throw it

He would not serve teenagers throw the first stone

One thing I do love about babies is when they talk

it's fun to watch them babble on

and it's even more fun to watch adults try to imitate them when they do

But remember that babies are just that

immature humans that don't know how to speak yet

so when Jesus begins to call out the heathen and the gentiles

for stammering in their prayers

this is what I imagine people are saying

they are simply showing their maturity

It's that repetitive speech that defines the heathen

so let me ask you

not that anyone googoos and gagas through their prayers

but what repetition do you have in your speech

when you pray to God?

I was taught to pray at the dinner table the prayer

God is great, god is good

now we thank Him for our food

by His hand we all are fed

Give us Lord our daily bread

Or when you went to sleep at night

Now I lay me down to sleep

I give my Lord my soul to keep

If I should die before I wake

I pray my soul the Lord should take

kinda morbid don't you think?

And although these are cute prayers and not wrong

how many of us still pray in that fashion?

with the repetitive styles

How many of us are able to pray without using the word "just" in our prayers?

Lord we just want to thank you for today

and just want to ask you for Aunt Mable's big toe

that You would just take care of it

My favorite are the people that use Father God

father God we love You father God

and Father God we just want to praise Your name Father God

for all the things You do Father God

for most people that's a nervous tick when you have to pray publically

because not many people like to pray out loud

or stand in front of people and speak or pray

I get it

But imagine if we spoke that way to each other all the time

Sister Hanna, I just want to thank you being here this morning Sister Hanna

and I am so glad you just came in today Sister Hanna

and that you just praised God Sister Hanna

In the name of Jesus Sister Hanna

I want to know if you would just

want to go have lunch a little later Sister Hanna

Prayer is not just conversation with God

but communion with God

I have to catch myself because I do both of those things all the time

but in reality, when we pray

it's nothing more than sitting across the table with God

and talking to Him

But Jesus isn't just referring to babbling

7b For they think that they will be heard for their many words.

this means that they keep going and going and going

Do you know someone that likes to hear themselves speak?

These are the people that have to get a word in

every opportunity they get

with nothing but nonsense

Everyone knows who they are

and everyone rolls their eyes when they begin to speak

You can hear the collective sucking of oxygen

from other people in the room when they start to talk

So imagine they are babbling and going on forever O Lord our God, Father God in Heaven

for You father God are just incredible

and we just ask Father God that we could

see you more clearly Father God

and love you more dearly, Father God

and that we could just

follow You more nearly Father God

Day by Day

and why are they babbling and taking up so much time?

7b For they think that they will be heard for their many words.

Jesus is sharing that people that babble in their prayers

and go on forever and ever

have a certain belief that

by their babbling and their droning on forever

that apparently God can't hear them

That we need to get God's attention somehow

Luke gave a great example of this last week

when he spoke about what took place in 1 Kings 18

So they took the bull which was given them, and they prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even till noon, saying, “O Baal, hear us!” But there was no voice; no one answered. Then they leaped about the altar which they had made.

And so it was, at noon, that Elijah mocked them and said, “Cry aloud, for he is a god; either he is meditating, or he is busy, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is sleeping and must be awakened.”

So they cried aloud, and cut themselves, as was their custom, with knives and lances, until the blood gushed out on them.

And when midday was past, they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice. But there was no voice; no one answered, no one paid attention.

If you want to hear a great sermon on this passage

go to YouTube and go to last week's message

The point being that the priests were praying to this pagan god

and they thought that Baal had to be woken up somehow

He had to be cajoled, intimidated, badgered into listening

Paul when he was in Ephesus ran into this

when God was saving people through Paul in Ephesus

the silversmiths got upset

because Paul was cutting into their money

they were making statues of Diana and Artemis

and suddenly people didn't need an idol to worship God

So they said this

Acts 19:28

Now when they heard this, they were full of wrath and cried out, saying, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians!”

So the whole city was filled with confusion, and rushed into the theater with one

accord, having seized Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians, Paul’s travel companions.

And when Paul wanted to go in to the people, the disciples would not allow him.

Then some of the officials of Asia, who were his friends, sent to him pleading that he would not venture into the theater.

Some therefore cried one thing and some another, for the assembly was confused, and most of them did not know why they had come together.

And they drew Alexander out of the multitude, the Jews putting him forward. And Alexander motioned with his hand, and wanted to make his defense to the people.

But when they found out that he was a Jew, all with one voice cried out for about two hours, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians!”

They kept repeating that phrase "Great is Diana of the Ephesians"

and they did that for two hours!

What about in modern times?

Buddhist's spin a wheel containing prayers

believing that each turn of the wheel sends that prayer to their god

Roman Catholics light candle to the saints

in the belief that their requests will continue to go to God

as long as the candle stays lit

they pray to the rosaries repetitive prayers

Hail Mary full of grace

or the Our father

which we'll get to next week

But the rosary came from Buddhism prayer beads

by way of the Spanish Muslims during the Middle Ages

All of these come back to Matthew 6:8

7b For they think that they will be heard for their many words.

Whether you are praying repetitious prayers from rote

praying a rosary, spinning a wheel

lighting a candle, or whatever

if you are praying without thinking and with indifference

it is offensive to God

Let me also say that Jesus does not forbid repetitious prayer

Luke 18:1-5

Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart,

2 saying: “There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man.

3 Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, ‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’

4 And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor regard man,

5 yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’ ”

Paul spoke to the Lord 3 times about his thorn in the flesh

2 Corinthians 12:7-8

7 And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure.

8 Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me.

Even Jesus Himself repeated prayers to God in the Garden of Gethsemane

Matthew 26:39-43 He prays the same prayer to His Father

if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done.

Jesus also doesn't forbid long prayers

Jesus would step aside from the crowds

and pray all night long

Jesus praised the widow for her persistence with the unrighteous judge

It's not about length

it's about motive and attitude

thoughtfulness and having your heart in the right place

Jesus is setting up the attitude and practice of prayer

In the model prayer, the disciples prayer

Jesus is going to show us how to pray

and correct a misunderstanding of how

God expects to be approached by His people

It is quality and not quantity

it is value and not volume

and it is worship and not repetition

Our outlines for this part of this series have always had

what to do

8 “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.

A simple do not be like them

Why, because God already knows what you need

before you even ask Him

In other words

it's not about what you have to say to God

or getting the words right

it's just the fact that you are spending time with Him at all

I've shared before that when I worked with the Billy Graham Crusade

as a counselor for the first time

I went forward to lead people to Christ

I was so nervous about it

that the first time a person came forward

and I had the opportunity toe lead them to Christ

I couldn't remember any of my training

I was so overwhelmed by the emotions of the situation

that after I asked why they came forward

I went to present the gospel

and I presented it so out of order

but the gentlemen still wanted to get saved

When I led him in prayer to receive Christ

I can imagine God shaking His head and laughing at me

be cause the prayer, although written on the card in front of me

was all out of whack

Can I tell you that irregardless of whatever it was I said

that man still got saved!

It's not about the words that were said

it was about the attitude and motives of the man praying

This gets to the heart of prayer

what is it all about really?

If God already knows what my needs are

then why do we need to pray at all?

Prayer is not about communicating information to God

and it is not about a technique or magical incantation for getting things from God

it is the expression of the relationship of trust

which follows from knowing God as "Father"

The way you pray shows what you believe about God

probably more than anything else you do

Though God already knows

He wants us to ask

It shows our dependance on Him

Prayer is more about changing us

and our character

and our will

and our values

I mentioned this before but Pastor Jimmy Suggs used to always tell me

If you don't pray, you essentially tell God you don't need Him

true prayer is about praying with confidence that God hears our prayers

and answers every request made to Him in faith

realizing that if our request is sincere

but not within His will

He will answer in a way better than we want or expect

No doubt prayer is hard

A pastor once told me that prayer is so difficult

because it doesn't feed the flesh

This is why Jesus had to share these points of how not to pray

because these are ways to feed the flesh

to make ourselves feel like we have more power than we do

to pray in public and make a specticle is to feed the flesh

to go on with insensate babbling is more about the self

than it is about God

So now Jesus has us right where He wants us

and the big question is

So You've shown us how not to pray

but how do we pray?

That's for two weeks from now