WHEN YOU PRAY - MATTHEW 6: 5-8

Christian Standard Bible (Chapter 6) HOW TO PRAY

5 “Whenever you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by people. Truly I tell you, they have their reward. 6 But when you pray, go into your private room, shut your door, and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you., 7 When you pray, don’t babble like the Gentiles, since they imagine they’ll be heard for their many words. 8 Don’t be like them, because your Father knows the things you need before you ask him.

BIG IDEA: DON’T PRAY TO BE SEEN. PRAY TO BE HEARD (BY GOD).

JESUS IS TEACHING HIS DISCIPLES AND US ABOUT THE PRACTICE OF PRAYER.

IN SEVERAL GOSPEL ACCOUNTS, JESUS TEACHERS THE MODEL PRAYER, BEGINNING AT VERSE 9.

BUT IN MATTHEW, BEFORE HE GETS TO THE PRAYER, JESUS DEALS WITH THE HEART! BEFORE JESUS DEALS WITH THE CONTENT OF PRAYER, HE DEALS WITH THE INTENT OF PRAYER...

WE PRAY TO EXPERIENCE MORE OF GOD…TO SHARE IN HIS PRESENCE. TO GIVE HIM GLORY...

PRAYER ISN’T SIMPLY ABOUT GETTING STUFF FROM GOD, BUT IT’S ABOUT GETTING MORE OF GOD!

Tony Evans Book of Illustrations: Stories, Quotes, and Anecdotes from More Than 30 Years of Preaching and Public Speaking (Prayer)

THE CONCEPT of prayer is closely related to a sheepdog. The sheepdog, who helps the shepherd or farmer to round up the sheep, is always trained to come to his master’s feet. Sheepdogs are some of the most trained dogs in the world. They learn to round up sheep and keep them in the fold, box them in, and run and corner them too. Then the dogs come right back to the master’s feet. A sheepdog would always pray; that is, he would always find himself at the master’s feet ready for the next instruction. That’s prayer. Prayer is that abiding relationship where believers stay at the master’s feet.

BELOVED, PRAYER ISN’T ABOUT GETTING PRESENTS, BUT ABOUT GOD’S ABIDING PRESENCE!!!

SO, JESUS OPENS THIS SECTION: 5) WHENEVER YOU PRAY, YOU MUST NOT BE LIKE THE HYPOCRITES, BECAUSE THEY LOVE TO PRAY STANDING IN THE SYNAGOGUES AND ON THE STREET CORNERS TO BE SEEN BY PEOPLE...

PLEASE NOTE, JESUS ISN’T OPPOSED TO PUBLIC PRAYER! HE’S OPPOSED TO PERFORMING PRAYERS...

IF YOU PRAY TO BE SEEN (BY PEOPLE), AND NOT TO BE HEARD (BY GOD), THEN YOUR PRAYER STOPS WITH PEOPLE! THAT’S YOUR REWARD. THAT’S YOUR ANSWER...

AWWW, BUT THIS ATTITUDE ISN’T LIMITED TO PRAYER - IN THE PRECEDING VERSES, JESUS TEACHES ABOUT HOW WE SHARE OUR SUBSTANCE. IN ESSENCE, HE TEACHES: DON’T BRAG ON YOURSELF! IF YOU TELL EVERYONE WHAT A BLESSING YOU ARE TO OTHERS, THEN DON’T EXPECT ANY LATER REWARDS FROM THE FATHER!

LATER ON IN OUR PASSAGE, JESUS TEACHES ABOUT FASTING, AND HOW WE ARE TO FAST WITH DISCRETION…UH HA: NOT TO BE SEEN!

WE OUGHT NOT PRACTICE OUR FAITH AS IF MAN IS THE AUDIENCE!!!

WE OUGHT TO PRACTICE OUR FAITH FOR THE GLORY OF GOD - ALONE!

PAUL TEACHES THE BELIEVERS AT COLOSSE THAT WHATEVER THEY DO, DO IT FROM THE HEART AND FOR THE LORD - NOT FOR PEOPLE! KNOWING YOU WILL RECEIVE A REWARD OF AN INHERITANCE FROM THE LORD!!!

IT BOILS DOWN TO, WHO DO YOU WANT TO PLEASE? GOD OR MAN?

THIS IS CLEARLY A REAL TEMPTATION, OR ELSE JESUS WOULDN’T HAVE ADDRESSED IT...

((ILLUS: FOR THOSE WHO PARTICIPATED IN OUR PRAYER & FASTING: DID YOU NOTICE HOW YOU KEPT BRINGING IT UP THIS WEEK? FOLKS TALKING ABOUT FOOTBALL, AND YOU BRING UP YOUR FAST)).

THE TEXT IS MOVING: 6) BUT WHEN YOU PRAY, GO INTO YOUR PRIVATE ROOM, SHUT YOUR DOOR, AND PRAY TO YOUR FATHER WHO IS IN SECRET. AND YOUR FATHER WHO SEES IN SECRET WILL REWARD YOU.

FOCUS UPON GOD! NOTICE THE LANGUAGE OF THE TEXT: PRIVATE ROOM - SHUT DOOR - SECRET!

JESUS WANTS US TO BE FOCUSSED...

THIS IS WHAT HE MODELED (MARK 1:35).

PRAYER IS AN INTIMATE ENCOUNTER WITH THE FATHER…IT’S BETWEEN YOU AND HIM!

SET THE ATMOSPHERE: THE PLACE IS IMPORTANT. FREE FROM DISTRACTION AND FROM OTHER FOLK’S ATTENTION!

WHAT JESUS IS TEACHING THEM AND US IS INTENTIONALITY!

IF WE DON’T PLAN TO PRAY, THEN WE WON’T LIKELY PRAY.

IF WE DON’T PLAN TO PRAY, THEN WE’LL RARELY PRAY.

IF WE DON’T PLAN TO PRAY, THEN PRAYER WILL BE OUR LAST/FINAL RESORT...

Tony Evans Book of Illustrations: Stories, Quotes, and Anecdotes from More Than 30 Years of Preaching and Public Speaking (Prayer)

FOR MANY of us, prayer is like a AAA card. It’s there if you need it, but you really don’t plan to use it very much—unless you’re in an emergency.

OH WHAT PEACE WE OFTEN FORFEIT...

OH WHAT NEEDLESS PAIN WE BEAR...

ALL BECAUSE WE DO NOT CARRY...

EVERYTHING TO GOD IN PRAYER...

BE INTENTIONAL.

FOCUS UPON GOD!

THE TEXT IS MOVING: 7) WHEN YOU PRAY, DON’T BABBLE LIKE THE GENTILES, SINCE THEY IMAGINE THEY’LL BE HEARD FOR THEIR MANY WORDS.

BE FAITHFUL TO GOD! PRAYER IS ABOUT SINCERITY NOT STYLE. IT’S ABOUT INTIMACY NOT ELOQUENCE!

IN VERSE 6, JESUS DEALS WITH THE LOCATION OF PRAYER. IN VERSE 7, JESUS DEALS WITH THE CONTENT OF PRAYER...

PRAYER IS NOTHING TO PLAY WITH, BELOVED.

WE MUST TAKE OUR PRAYER LIVES SERIOUSLY.

AND SO JESUS WARNS AGAINST BABBLE TALK!

BABBLE IS FOOLISH TALK! REPETITIVE STUFF. USING BIG WORDS THAT YOU REALLY DON’T UNDERSTAND...

((JR. DEACON: I TRIED AND THEN I CRIED! HUMILIATED. THEN MY MOM BEGAN WAKING ME UP EARLY. PRAYING WITH ME. MODELING PRAY BEFORE ME. I SOON REALIZED THAT THE LORD WASN’T CONCERNED WITH MY WORDS, HE WAS CONCERNED WITH OUR TIME TOGETHER))!

YOU DON’T HAVE TO TRY AND IMPRESS GOD, BECAUSE YOU CAN’T!

JUST BE FAITHFUL...

Tony Evans Book of Illustrations: Stories, Quotes, and Anecdotes from More Than 30 Years of Preaching and Public Speaking (Prayer)

A MAN was praying one day in a church in England. His English was terrible and broken. He was doing a horrible job destroying the king’s English. A lady who was hearing his prayers was just beside herself as this man spoke in this manner. After he said “amen” she said, “Young man, that was the worst grammar and articulation I have ever heard in my life. I am disgusted that you would talk like that.”He turned, looked at the woman, and said, “But lady, I wasn’t talking to you.” Prayer is communication with God.

FOCUS UPON GOD

BE FAITHFUL TO GOD!

FINALLY, FELLOWSHIP WITH GOD!

JESUS SAYS: 8) DON’T BE LIKE THEM, BECAUSE YOUR FATHER KNOWS THE THINGS YOU NEED BEFORE YOU ASK HIM.

FELLOWSHIP - INTIMACY - TIME.

THESE ARE THE VALUES THE MATTER...

BE PRESENT!

BUT NOTICE THIS PHRASE JESUS USES: YOUR FATHER KNOWS...

SINCE GOD ALREADY KNOWS WHAT YOU NEED, PRAYER IS LESS ABOUT A LIST OF NEEDS, AND MORE ABUT INTIMACY WITH THE FATHER…FELLOWSHIP!

NOW JESUS AIN’T SAYING, “STOP ASKING!” HE’S JUST SAYING, “ASK KNOWING HE ALREADY KNOWS!”

Jesus knows all about our struggles;   He will guide ’til the day is done: There’s not a Friend like the lowly Jesus:     No, not one! no, not one!