Foundations In Prayer

Today, we will be starting a series on prayer. The series will take place over the next 4-weeks assuming we have no major changes or events occur. I want us to take some time to think about prayer, because some times we get so comfortable in what we know or think we know, we never take the time to refresh ourselves on the technical aspects of a skill or process.

An example of this is driving. Many of us here have been driving for so long that we feel we have perfected it and have nothing to learn about driving as a skill. And yet, despite most drivers thinking this way the State of North Carolina updates the drivers manual each year to maintain an accurate database of information for its drivers and citizens. And I can probably trip up a great many of you if I were to simply ask you, how many accidents occur in the United States each year.... This is a simple piece of information available in the driver’s license manual and is even a portion of the driver’s test but because you are not well-versed on the nuances of the manual you have no clue how to answer a relatively simple question.

And what is sad, is we treat our prayer life exactly how we treat our driver’s license because we never go through the process of updating our knowledge or refreshing our memory. We learned how to pray once and feel that is enough to get us through the rest of our lives and then we wonder why it some times feels as though the Church has no power. And I want to deal with the frequency of prayer, the purpose of prayer, the needfulness of prayer, and a host of other prayer related topics but I cannot do ANY OF THAT until you have the basis of prayer. We cannot build a house on an unsure foundation. Amen.

So I want to combat this mentality over the next few weeks and it is my prayer that we will grow together as a Church and a people to be more powerful prayer warriors. I would love for intercessors and faith workers to arise from among us as we strive to be all that God has called us to be.

Prayer

Give Subject: Foundations In Prayer

Read: Matthew 6:5-8

Matthew 6:5–8 KJV 1900

5 And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. 7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. 8 Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.

Background

IKEA... is a Swedish furniture company that has garnered an insatiable following among people from all manners and walks of life.

They are most known for having reasonable pricing on their furniture and for having relatively simple styles of furniture that can be used almost universally by people.

However, they also have a reputation for their furniture being uniquely difficult to setup (as everything requires assembly) for a variety of reasons that compound one another.

In some cases the instructions (which are often translated from Swedish) are difficult to understand due to poor grammar or wording.

In other cases, all the pieces necessary are not included in the packaging which requires waiting a few weeks for the necessary parts or pieces to be mailed.

And in still more instances, their are manufacturing defects or flaws that require the entire piece of furniture be replaced by the company or money be refunded.

And yet, in each of these cases no matter what may go wrong in the assembly, packaging, or distribution of the furniture it is how you start the assembly that often dictates the success you will experience.

You have to approach the assembly correctly because even in the best circumstances; with easy to understand instructions, all the pieces, and a perfectly manufactured product if you do not approach your responsibility in assembly properly all of it is meaningless.

If you have all the right pieces but the first one in the wrong place you may reach the end and only then realize the futility of your actions....

The instructions may be easy to understand but if you do not take the time to read them then you may be setting yourself up for failure when you inevitably assemble the furniture wrong because you are too prideful to follow instructions....

And all the pieces appear to be in good order but if you do not check them out properly, you may reach the end only to find out you were missing that last piece...

Bearing these facts in mind, it is important for us to remember that APPROACH IS EVERYTHING.

How many times have you needed someone to do something for you but because you had the wrong approach you got nowhere and its only after you mature or face rejection that you realize the error of your actions.

What have we said to our wives, husbands, children, friends, and coworkers with the wrong tone and found ourselves ignored, rejected, or disrespected because of how our APPROACH made the other person feel?

And its not always about an attitude but sometimes it can be the times at which we approach them, the words we use, our body language when we ask, or who we made the choice to ask.

I learned as a child when my mother worked 3rd shift, not to ask her for something to drink while she was sleeping....

Her anger is not an expression she wants me to thirst to death but was merely an outburst because I made my approach at the wrong time.

An ill timed request, no matter how noble, selfless, righteous, or personable will often fall flat because you did not possess the foresight to better plan for your request.

If you work in retail do not ask to go on vacation on Black Friday....

If you work in the school system do not take Holiday in August....

Because some things you just do not do.

To put it a different thing… Even the right thing requires the right season.

Knowing therefore, that approach is everything, how then do we approach our prayer lives on a daily basis, on a weekly basis, and as an expression of our Faith? Do we approach God callously and haphazardly, making demands of him… Do we go to him in prayer without first reading his Word which serves as our instruction manual… Do we take the time to approach God in prayer with the same level of care and respect that we use in our personal and work relationships? How much time do we spend wasting in prayer because we simply do not have the patience, the time, or the will to do it the best way possible? Because do not be fooled.... something may work in a number of ways but their is a best way/ or proper way to do anything… Including prayer.

This is what we are going to talk about over the next few weeks and we are starting here today in the book of Matthew 6:5-8.

Matthew 6:5-8

Here in the text, we find ourselves more or less dropping into the conversation in the midst of one of Christ’s greatest messages.

He is teaching his Sermon on the Mount wherein he teaches on a variety of princples now associated with the Christian faith.

In his sermon, Jesus addresses a number of topics and in this portion we see he begins having a conversation about prayer.

If you go up one or two verses, he was having a similar conversation about giving alms… which is the act of giving of one’s self

He talks about the giving of alms where he encourages people to be discreet in their giving, not necessarily secretive, but to be conscious of one’s actions to actively minimize drawing attention to themselves lest they become boastfull in their giving.

Christ then moves the conversation on from Alms, and in much the same attitude, admonishes his awaiting congregation concerning prayer.

Matthew 6:5 KJV 1900

And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

Is it not amazing that we can read these words, basically as they were written thousands of years ago and it still be applicable.

Here Jesus is talking about people who sit in prayer but are doing so only to be seen… As a result these individuals are hypocrites because their prayers are undermined by the life they live, rather than allow their lives to REFLECT into their prayers.

The English word hypocrite can be translated in the Greek to hypokrites (ὑποκριτής) and is a term that was used to refer to actors of the stage at the time.

It referred to someone who put on a convincing show designed to draw in the viewer.

How many of us exercise in our prayer lives as hypocrites… One who seeks to put on a show?

How many of us know people who are like that?

They cannot feed the hungry if a camera is not there

They won’t pray in the hospital room but first in line to be on the program

They won’t sweep the floor but love to preside over services and programs

These are people who want the glory associated with the work but refuse to do any of the work necessary to reach the very point to which they are working.

And so, with their prayer life, these folks stand up in prayer with no power only doing that which they have heard and seen from other people with no inspiration from the spirit.

Of course, they do not see the value in genuine prayer and only see the reward associated with praise for their actions...

Matthew 6:6 KJV 1900

But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

Having talked to us about what we should avoid… he then instructs us.

When in prayer enter into your secret closet and only when you have shut the door can you pray to the father in secret.

In this moment you are shutting yourself into the Holy of Holies with Jesus Christ who is the high priest.

This is much like the experience of the High Priest on the Day of Atonement because when you shut yourself in you are dwelling in and with the spirit in your enclosed space.

The High Priest then begins to minister to the God within you and begins to pull the answers you need out of you based on the promises to which you fall heir.

Much like the High Priest who sought God’s answers for the people of God on the Day of Atonement.

You see when the High Priest went into the Holy of Holies, he went to worship and prayer in a secret place with God.

What happens in the Holy of Holies is unlawful for man to utter because it involves the indivisable, undebatable, and undeniable power of God and so it has to (for the sake of all involved) remain secret....

But, when God accepts the atonement of the High Priest, he counsels him in the ways and knowledge of God for the next year, the blessings from that visitation on the Day of Atonement are made evident throughout that entire year.

When you meet God in your Holy place, you are giving him the ultimate chance to counsel you for your future you are then taking up the role granted to you as a member of the Royal Priesthood.

This is not God saying that you cannot pray in public but is instead his way of saying that you should avoid at all costs praying for the sake of appearances.

Matthew 6:7 KJV 1900

But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.

We see here that Jesus is talking about what some of the Jews were conditioned to believe by the behaviors they observed of pagan practitioners (non-believers).

To understand this verse we must look at the word Heathen which is a word used to refer to the Gentiles (residents of Jerusalem who do not believe).

Many of the gentile leaders labored under the belief that the response to their prayer would be proportional to the length of their prayer.

They thought the bigger their sacrifice the greater their honor, without regard for the meaning or value of the sacrifice.

They thought the longer their prayer the more he would answer, despite the words carrying no meaning or weight for them.

The Gentiles felt that the longer they prayed, the more I get.

Christ is essentially telling them, do not use empty words to get more from God because if the words are empty they hold no power.

He was preparing them for the time that would come where their own words held power.

Because at the time of his speaking, the Words of the people had no binding power due to the spirit not dwelling in them.

Some of them had been called as Prophets, in which case the spirit performed around them but Jesus knew the time was coming where the Words of the righteous would have the same shaping power and authority as even his own.

Now see, when your words have no power it does not matter what you say or have to say or would like to say because the powerless nature and state of your words will produce no results.

But in this same sense you must be careful because when your words have power it can lead to situations where you say the wrong thing and create problems.

For example, if an employee walked around telling people on the job they were fired, it carries no power because of the particular role they occupy as an employee.

However, if that same employee were made a manager and walked around telling people they were fired they would clear out the building because their words would then carry power.

This is why we must be careful to train ourselves because if you take up the power of God, you must wield it carefully otherwise you can find yourself creating havoc all in the name of God because you are misusing the power he gave.

Hence why he tells them do not use vain repetitions.... their is no power in your empty words

I will make this simple, the power of life and death is in the tongue… and just like it can kill somebody your tongue can kill your prayer if you let it.

Matthew 6:8 KJV 1900

Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.

In this final verse which I love…

God already knows.

I love this verse because it reminds us that sometimes simple is the best way to go.

Often times we spend hours and even days praying to God, figuring out how to pray to God, finding out what to say to God, and all we really have to do is go to him in an attitude of prayer and let him work out the rest.

It is time out for us making a spectacle of prayer

It is time out for preachers trying to use prayer to impress the Church

It is time out for people using prayer as a time to rest their eyes in the house of God

It is time that we stop using prayer as a filler to break up the service… but we must be INTENTIONAL about prayer.

Instead we must launch out into the deep things of God and allow him to lead and guide us as we seek out a life of prayer and supplication before him.

God already knows what bothers us and what needs to be fixed and you spend so much time figuring out what to say to him and how to say it that you often lose your greatest source of strength.

God already knows what bothers you so instead of stressing it or him… make up in your mind that you will come to know him, that you might know yourself.

Conclusion

As we draw to the close of this word and our service, I want you each to know that we must get our Foundations in Prayer.

We must understand the needfulness of proper approach… You cannot come to God any old way.

We must understand the importance of maintaining a private prayer life as well as a public one… You have to do some warfare in your prayer closet.

We have a divine responsibility to pray to God with mindfulness of the power in our words and be careful not to choose empty words.

And finally, we must acknowledge and accept that God already knows what it is that afflicts and bothers you… it is therefore important to know him so you can know yourself.

Failure to establish yourself in the Foundations in Prayer can render you powerless and unable to meet your own needs… more or less the needs of someone else.

Everytime you go to God in prayer without the right attitude and the right mindset you are simply wasting your time.

Everytime you pray to God with empty words you are wasting your breath

Everytime you try making a spectacle out of Prayer with God you are ensuring he ignores you

Pray with the right heart and frame of mind and watch God work a marvelous thing in and through you.

Prayer is not your time to show us your vocabulary… Prayer is not your time to show us how high you can take the service… Prayer is not the area where you can ever learn all there is to prayer...

But prayer is the time to show God yourself… Prayer is the time where God can show you himself… Prayer is the place where God can show you the deeper things concerning him…

And I want you to have a sure foundation in prayer… otherwise you are wasting your time.