Pray With Wisdom Matthew 6:5-8

-God should be our audience when we pray

“This is not a praying age; it is an age of great activity, of great movements, but one in which the tendency is very strong to stress the seen and the material and to neglect and discount the unseen and the spiritual.”

-EM Bounds, Purpose in Prayer 1914

I. Pray Like No One is Watching v. 5

In our passage this morning, Jesus is teaching in the Sermon on the Mount, touching on the subject of prayer

He begins with a warning: We must not pray like hypocrites

This is a strong word that we must pay attention to

What is this hypocritical prayer?

Hypocritical prayer is directed towards a human audience rather than a heavenly one

Hypocritical prayer is intended to gain the favor of people who will be impressed by the quality of the prayer

The goal is to seem more holy, more wise, or more righteous in the sight of people and it is uninterested in seeking the favor of God, or only views that as secondary

There is a wrong way to interpret this passage:

It is not a prohibition against any form of public prayer; we see plenty of public prayer in Scripture and it is frequently instructive or inspirational for others

However, the heart of the matter is personal: Who are you talking to when you pray? Which audience are you really addressing?

Jesus warns us that there is a cost to this kind of hypocritical prayer:

It is not fruitful; it only gains the attention of its intended audience

You can gain the approval of people through prayer directed to them, but you cannot gain the approval of God through prayer directed at people

The story goes that one time when Bill Moyers was a special assistant to President Lyndon B. Johnson, he was asked to say grace before a meal in the family quarters of the White House. As Moyers began praying softly, the President interrupted him with “Speak up, Bill! Speak up!” The former Baptist minister from east Texas stopped in mid-sentence and without looking up replied steadily, “I wasn’t addressing you, Mr. President.”

II. Pray Like God is Watching v. 6

The first part of this warning is probably fairly easy for most of us, the “Don’t Do” of prayer, but I want us to pay closer attention to the second instruction, the “Do This”

We must pray!

Jesus begins with an assumption that you will pray; it is a non-negotiable for us

This prayer, in contrast to hypocritical prayer, happens in a secret place where no one else can see it

It is done strictly for a heavenly audience and there is no other potential benefit than what God can offer

From an earthly perspective, this seems quite foolish

At worst, you are sitting alone and talking to yourself and wasting time

At best, this is only a form of therapeutic self-talk

From the perspective of faith, this kind of prayer is everything!

Jesus promises us that God is listening when we pray to Him in secret

Not only does He see us in secret, but He rewards those who pray to Him

Less than I want you to live in fear of hypocritical public prayer, I want you to understand the incredible value of private prayer

“What a man is on his knees before God, that he is and nothing more” Robert Murray McCheyne

You are invited to share your needs, requests, hurts, fears, and desires with the God of the universe and He is listening

2 Chronicles 7:14

[14] if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. (ESV)

III. Pray Like God is a Wise Father vv. 7-8

Finally, we find out that our prayer is founded on the character of God

Jesus uses a negative example:

This is not hypocritical prayer, but Gentile prayer

This kind of prayer is all words and no heart

It presumes that God is looking for us to pray a set of “magic words” or be impressive to be heard

This kind of prayer is foolish; it does not understand who God is

Jesus tells us that we are praying to a wise Father

He is wise, because He knows what we need before we even ask

Then why should we ask? Because He likes to be asked!

It has a practical value, teaching us dependence upon Him

He is a Father, who is ready to answer our prayers and wants to give good gifts to us!

Prayer has a relational value, tying us closely to Him

It shows us that we have a Father who loves us and we can trust in Him!

There are two fatal lies that will kill our prayer life:

God does not understand my need

God does not care about my need

So, what must we do? We must pray as people who know God!

Pray without hypocrisy

Pray with faith

Pray to a Father who loves you

Pray without ceasing!

John Knox was the founder of the Church of Scotland and a great figure in the Protestant Reformation. He was known as a man of prayer and his most famous prayer was simple: “Give me Scotland, or I die!” When he fell ill, near to death, he called to his wife and said, "Read me that Scripture where I first cast my anchor." After he listened to the beautiful prayer of Jesus recorded in John 17, he seemed to forget his weakness. He began to pray, interceding earnestly for his fellowmen. He prayed for the ungodly who had thus far rejected the gospel. He pleaded in behalf of people who had been recently converted. And he requested protection for the Lord's servants, many of whom were facing persecution. As Knox prayed, his spirit went Home to be with the Lord. The man of whom Queen Mary had said, "I fear his prayers more than I do the armies of my enemies," ministered through prayer until the moment of his death.