Intro: The privilege of prayer may be the greatest of all the privileges enjoyed by God's saints. It is an honor beyond description to be able to enter the Lord's presence directly, Heb. 4:16. Jer, to be able to converse with the God who created and rules the universe and to be aware that He has promised to listen to us and respond. 33:3; Isa. 65:24, which is easy to understand, is a blessing. At the point when you consider the way that genuine petitioning God isn't simply our sending words out like a phantom, however that genuine imploring is utilized by God to achieve His motivations on the earth, it has neither rhyme nor reason! What a blessing we have received! We have the privilege of speaking with God; knowing that He will hear and respond; knowing that He has invited us to participate in His work with Him!
However, as with everything else in life, even something as profound and beautiful as prayer can be mishandled by humans. Men have invoked the Lord's name ever since Seth's time in Gen. 4:26. Many people have prayed correctly and seen God respond to their prayers with great power. Others have supplicated out of off-base thought processes and have gotten nothing in reply to their solicitations.
Jesus is pointing out some of the issues that plagued prayer during His time in these verses. He censures the pompous imploring of the "wolves in sheep's clothing", or the strict tip top of that day. We are informed by Jesus that their prayers will be of no use! The way men should approach God is then explained to us. Today, I want to preach on this topic from these verses: Imploring Without Misrepresentation. Pretense is defined as "insincere or feigned behavior: Pretense is another term for hypocrisy, which is defined as "something done or a way of behaving that is not genuine but is meant to deceive other people"[1]. Pompous, fraudulent imploring won't be heard or replied by the Ruler. As a result, you and I must learn how to pray without making any pretenses. We should take a gander at the thing Jesus said about this.
I. v. 5: A Few Warnings About Public Prayer (Illinois): The Jewish people were blessed and privileged. They have been chosen by God, they have been given the Law, he has promised to send the Messiah through them, and they have access to Him. They should have been able to communicate with God, of all people. However, numerous errors had crept into Jewish prayer and worship over time. These are the issues Jesus alludes to here. At this point, a brief summary of those errors is required.
1. The Jew prayed, but his prayers were scripted and predetermined, turning prayer into nothing more than a ritual. He either cited them from memory or read them. As a result, a Jew could pray without even considering what he was saying. Ill. This is what you'll see whenever you see footage of Jews praying at Jerusalem's Wailing Wall.)
The Shema was recited by faithful Jews each morning and evening. This request was shaped from chosen phrases from Deut. 6:4-9; 11:13-21 and Num. 15:37-41. The Shema was frequently used in its shorter form. Deut alone would be in this. 6:4.
The Shemoneh'esray, which translates to "The Eighteen," was another prayer they prayed every morning, noon, and night. The eighteen prayers in this set dealt with various aspects of life. The dependable Jew would petition each of the eighteen of these requests multiple times consistently.
The Jew would stop whatever he was doing and say the necessary prayers at the third, sixth, or ninth hour, regardless of where he was. Obviously, some people could have prayed these prayers with sincerity, but the majority were just following the rules.
2. Every aspect of life was addressed by predetermined prayers—every conceivable occurrence had a prayer designed to address it. This additionally prompted petition being something that could be presented from the head and not lifted up from the soul. (Ill. A current trend is in this direction. Sick. The accessibility of books of prewritten supplications.)
3. They all prayed at predetermined times rather than when they felt led to or when a need arose. Prayer was restricted to predetermined times and occasions. (In the present day, Jews, Muslims, and other groups do this.) It is important to keep in mind that while there is nothing inherently wrong with praying at a predetermined time, 1 Timothy commands us to pray constantly. 5:17.
4. The Jews believed that the longer and more elaborate the prayer, the more likely it was that God would hear it. Long prayers were held in high regard. Matt, Jesus forbade this practice. 12:30. There is nothing wrong with lengthy prayer as long as the Spirit is moving, but when someone prays for an extended period of time to impress others, as the Jews did, they have crossed the line into pretense.
5. The Jews were well-known for repeating phrases and adding adjectives to the name of God in the hope that they would be heard by Him, and many prayers consisted of meaningless repetition. Sadly, this was a pagan custom that is still practiced in some Christian communities today.
6. The worst crime of all is the desire to be heard and seen by others. The goal of prayer was no longer to commune with God but rather to impress other people. In these verses, Jesus addresses this mentality.
A. Beware of Improper Motives: God instructs us that praying is not about being heard or seen by others. However, prayer is a time of intimate fellowship with God. Many have perused these stanzas and inferred that any sort of open petitioning heaven is untouchable. That isn't accurate! Jesus was not prohibiting public supplications, but rather He was advising men to be careful with who their crowd was. Men had completely missed the point of prayer if they were praying in public for others to see and hear. In prayer, a man seeks communion with God by entering His presence.
B. Beware of Improper Methods: The people Jesus referred to as hypocrites were guilty of praying loudly and for an extended period of time in public places like synagogues and busy street corners. They wanted to make an impression on other people by their devotion to God. Jesus strongly condemns this type of prayer because it focuses on man rather than God. It commends the tissue and not the Dad!
Again, praying in public is perfectly acceptable. Praying while standing in public is perfectly acceptable. The way the body is held up does not concern God; He is concerned about the heart's attitude! It smacks of hypocrisy and pretense if a person's public praying differs from their private praying and is intended to appeal to others rather than lead men to God.
(Ill. Hearing some people pray is a blessing. You can tell that they pray in such a way that it doesn't matter if you are present or not. They are conversing with God, not with you. I caught wind of Bill Moyers, who was on President Lyndon Johnson's staff. At some point, he was approached to say the gift on a feast in the White House. President Johnson interrupted him as he prayed quietly to the Lord and said, "Speak up Bill, I can't hear what you are saying." Charge Moyers answered, "I wasn't addressing you Mr. President." That is the quintessence of petition! There's actually no need to focus on intriguing men; it is tied in with communing with the Ruler!)
II. v. 6: A COUNCIL ON PRIVATE PRAYER (Ill.) After instructing His men on how the hypocrites prayed, Jesus then instructs them on how they ought to pray. Why the admonition and rules for petition? Indeed, even in an action like petition there is as yet the peril that the tissue will reach out, or that we will be misled by Satan.
Two of Satan's most potent attacks on Jesus occurred when He was in close contact with His Father, Matt. 4:1-11; Luke 22:39-46. In the event that Jesus was gone after by Satan, you and I can anticipate a similar treatment. Satan will do anything to prevent you from praying. If he can, he will try to involve your flesh. He will transform the time you spend praying into one of self-promotion and self-centeredness. Jesus explains our private prayer time as follows.)
A. Genuine Prayer Is Priority – Jesus does not say, "If you pray," but rather, "When you pray." The people of God are expected to pray. We are directed to ask, Luke 18:1; 1 Tim. 2:1-8. We must prioritize prayer because we are instructed to do so. In the event that implore isn't focused on in your life, you won't ever ask! It is sad but true that some people only pray in public, at church, or at a prayer meeting. That ought not to be! Every day should be devoted to making contact with God. Beyond the depths of your prayer life, you will never advance in the Lord!
B. Genuine Petitioning God Is Own - rather than the fakers, who jumped at the chance to implore out in the open spots to be seen of others, Jesus advises His kin to go into a confidential spot to supplicate. There are certain things that must be said in prayer that are not heard by others. At the point when we ask in private, we can have freedom to pronounce our hearts to the Master. We can pray about things that would make us look bad if others heard about them. During our private prayer time, we are able to call out the names of people who burden us. We can be straightforward with the Ruler. We can bow down to Him in humility. We can be who we truly are, for in confidential petition there is nobody to dazzle. It is our experience with God! Do you regularly set aside time to pray alone with the Lord?
(Ill.) Once more, praying together as a group is fine. Take note of verse 9 We are instructed to say "Our Father" by Jesus. This infers corporate supplication. Nevertheless, nothing is more priceless than spending time in private prayer with God.
Coincidentally, you don't for a moment even need to ask without holding back! Chrysostom, a Christian from the fourth century, said that many people in his time prayed so loudly in their prayer closets that everyone could hear them. That is similar disposition as the deceivers! Friends, I don't want to tell you some things! There are a few things I don't believe that Satan should hear!)
C. Real Prayer Is Priceless – When Jesus says, "Pray to thy Father which is in secret," he is referring to God's very home. For the Jews, this was a surprising disclosure. The Holy of Holies was only accessible to the High Priest for centuries. He could only enter on the Day of Atonement once per year, and he had to bring blood to atone for his own sins as well as the sins of the people. Jesus lets us know that when we go into veritable petition before the Master, that we can enter the "secret spot" with Him. In a real sense, we are permitted admittance into the "Sacred of Holies" in Paradise.
We are granted entry into the throne room of grace when we pray sincerely. 4:16. We don't must have a human minister to sub for us, yet through Jesus Christ, we approach the actual lofty position of our Dad in paradise. During times of private prayer, we have the privilege of temporarily leaving this world to enter His presence and commune with Him. Private prayer is therefore so priceless and potent. According to James 4:8, it literally brings God's presence near to you and puts you in his presence.
D. Real Prayer Is Powerful: "Thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly" is what we are told. When we pray to the Lord from a sincere desire to have communion with Him, He will respond in a way that demonstrates that we have been with Him and will honor our faith and our humility. On the off chance that we will won't flaunt in supplication; then, at that point, He will show out in His responses to supplication!
Jesus is letting us know that when petitioning God quits being about us and our being seen by others, and it turns into about Him, then, at that point, we can anticipate that He should move because of our requests. Verse 5: You see that those who pray for others' applause get exactly what they want. However, those who view prayer as a time of private communion with the Lord and do not care about their own glory see God move with great power, and He receives all the praise!
III. After telling us what to do and what not to do, Jesus gives us a few more conditions regarding our personal prayer lives in verses 7 to 8. Don't miss these because they are crucial!)
A. v. 7: Do Not Repetition – Many Jews and Pagans believed that praying the same prayers or using the same words over and over would make their prayers heard by the Lord. An illustration of this is found in the Baal prophets in 1 Rulers 18:26-29; also, with individuals of Ephesus in Acts 19:24-34. Jesus doesn't believe that His kin should take part in unimportant redundancy! Today, the same thing takes place. “Many Buddhists spin wheels that contain written prayers, believing that the prayer is sent to their god with each turn. Roman Catholics light petitioning God candles in the conviction that their solicitations will keep on rising tediously to God as long as the candle is lit. The rosary itself was introduced to Catholicism from Buddhism by way of the Spanish Muslims in the Middle Ages. It is used to count off repeated prayers such as "Hail Mary" and "Our Father." Today, certain charismatic groups repeat the same words or phrases over and over until their speech becomes so muddled that it is hard to understand. However, if we are not careful, that is precisely when we will act! We will supplicate a similar petition over each dinner. When we pray, we repeat the same words every day. When we pray, we frequently utter the words "God," "Father," or "Lord." We are to forgo dull asking! We will have a go at anything to assist with supplicating longer, or to make us sound more strict when we ask.
We should recollect that not the length of our requests matter, nor is it the expressiveness of our words and it isn't even the substance of our requests that is at issue. The condition, attitude, and motivation of the person praying are the most important factors!
Permit me to add that it is permissible to make the same requests to the Lord repeatedly. It is inappropriate to go into a careless state where petitioning God becomes something we do, however to not contemplate. To ramble on in monotonous asking is an affront to the Master!
B. Verse 8: "Rest in Your Relationship"—Jesus calls God our "Father." As a result, He anticipates our requirements and cares about meeting them, Matt. 6:24-34; Luke 12:32.
Some people might think, "If God already knows what we need, why pray?" God has the opportunity to hear His children express their love, dependence, and faith in Him through prayer. Implore bears the cost of God the chance to show His adoration, power, magnificence, provision, sway and arrangement for His kids. Additionally, petitions not implored will be supplications not replied, James 4:2.
C. v. 8: Rely on His Resources: Since He is both our Father and God, we can go to Him with confidence and faith, trusting that He will respond to our calls. Prayer-based faith in God is necessary for prayers to be answered, Heb. 11:6; Matt. 21:22; James 1:5-8.
Society, I simply accept that our God can do anything, Eph. 3:20; Job 42:2; Luke 1:37; Gen. 18:4. Since that is valid, we really want to participated in supplication, resting in His assets, trusting an option for Him and celebrating in His solutions to petition!
Conc: People, I would rather not be a fraud in my time spend in meditation! I don't want to impress you with my prayers this evening because God is my witness. I want to grow my private, intimate prayer life until it is everything that God wants it to be. I need to stay away from misrepresentation in my asking. What about you?
Is your prayer life as effective as it should be, or has the Lord used His Word to heal a few wounds? Assuming that He has, or on the other hand to develop further in your time spend in meditation, the spot to start is in this special raised area. In the event that the Ruler is calling you to an all the more remarkable, more powerful existence of supplication, why quip simply mind Him and precede Him tonight?
We will be greatly blessed if we reach the point in our prayer lives where we honor the Lord. It was said that D.L. Moody prayed, "God, stop!" because he was so overwhelmed by the Lord's blessings on him. Your needs are being met by God. He wants to use and bless you beyond your wildest dreams. In any case, everything in our stroll with Him starts and finishes with the nature of our times spend in meditation.
