Bible Class: Lord Teach us... To Pray 1.2

Lord, Teach Us… To Pray…Hypocrisy – 1.2 One of my favorite television or movie stars (living or dead) is_______________. From Last Week “The Lord’s Prayer” can be found in two gospels - Matthew 6 . “The Sermon On the Mount” and a shorter account in Luke 11. These teaching events occur early in Jesus’ work but they are representative of his teaching throughout his entire earthly ministry. In Luke 11:1, one of Jesus disciples made this request… One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” Jesus’ disciples knew how to pray. They were Jews with hundreds of years of training and experience in prayer. They prayed every day. They were not asking Jesus to teach them how to pray. They were asking Jesus to teach then to pray the way he prayed. This desire – to do things the way Jesus did them – is at the core of what it means to be Christian. Any comments or questions?__________________________________________ Before Jesus teaches how to pray, he has warnings about how not to pray. There are at least four prayer principles here. What are they? Matthew 6:5 “When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” Prayer Principles 1________________________________________________________________ 2________________________________________________________________ 3________________________________________________________________ 4________________________________________________________________ What do you hear new or different in the same passage from The Message? 5 “When you come before God, don’t turn it into a theatrical production. All these people making a regular show out of their prayers, hoping for stardom! Do you think God sits in a box seat? 6 “Here’s what I want you to do: Find a quiet, secluded place so you won’t be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace.” New or different?___________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ Why do you think Jesus thought it was important to say “Don’t” before he said “Do?”____________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ What is a hypocrite? Do any synonyms come to mind?_____________________ _________________________________________________________________ More from Jesus On Hypocrites Matthew 23:13 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to. 15 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are. 16 “Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but anyone who swears by the gold of the temple is bound by that oath.’ 17 You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold sacred? 18 You also say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but anyone who swears by the gift on the altar is bound by that oath.’ 19 You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred? 20 Therefore, anyone who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. 21 And anyone who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it. 22 And anyone who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and by the one who sits on it. 23 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24 You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel. 25 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean. 27 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. 28 In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness. 29 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous. 30 And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Go ahead, then, and complete what your ancestors started! Getting Ready for Next Week I think it’s safe to say that, when it comes to hypocrites, Jesus is_____________ _________________________________________________________________ Why?____________________________________________________________