07-08-07 #Disciple Bible Study Titled: "Prayer"

[Disciple]

Tonight, we want to talk about praying. Jesus says, let’s not just talk about what you do to show your devotion to God. Let’s talk about why you do it. Let’s talk about your motives for praying.

Ostentatious Prayer

[Matthew 6:5] And 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 men.

In Jesus’ day there were people whose prayer was nothing more than performance. There were certain customary times for prayer, and these people made it a point to make sure that when it came time to pray, they were in a public place where everyone would be sure to see them praying and hear them praying. They got a lot of attention and they loved it. So they stood out on the street corners or got up in their house of worship and they prayed a prayer that people would remember. They were champion prayers—prayer warriors. And Jesus said, don’t try to be like them. That’s not what prayer is all about.
These people may be claiming to talk to God, but in reality, they’re talking to the people around them. Their motive is not to worship God, but to impress people. So God says, they’ll get just what they’re looking for:
I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.
Those who pray to impress people get the reward of impressed people. And that’s all. The prayer doesn’t mean anything to God. It wasn’t really a prayer to him or for him and so he doesn’t really have anything to do with it.
That is ostentatious prayer, a religious act of worship designed to impress people instead of serving God. Notice the key elements in this type of prayer:
Ostentatious Prayer
• Action: It is a public speech, a presentation to men.
• Motive: It is done for man’s praise, so people will ouu and ahh.
• Result: The reward is paid in full. You receive human praise.
How many of your prayers are ostentatious prayers? How many of your prayers are said not for God’s benefit, but for the benefit of the people who are listening?
I think it’s easy to slip into this kind of prayer. I learned how to do this when I was just a little guy. We’d have people over for dinner and Dad would have one of us pray for the meal. I’d try to pray like I’d heard my Dad pray. And after the prayer, someone might say, “Great job! Well done!” as if I’d just finished a performance—and maybe in a way I had.
Prayer can be a kind of performance, saying the right words in the right way, smoothly, loudly and clearly, pausing at just the right moments for effect. For some, talking to God requires a special language to show proper respect. Everyone knows that God speaks Old Shakespearean English from the 1600’s. Otherwise he wouldn’t have written the Bible with all those thee’s, thou’s and shalt not’s. Prayers must begin a certain way and end a certain way. Apparently it’s very important to get the form just right. And that’s one of the reasons that they make written prayers, especially those in rhyme—so we can know what to say when we pray:
Now I lay me down to sleep.
Pray the Lord my soul to keep.
You know I’m not saying that there’s anything wrong with written prayers or with King James English. What I am saying is that when we pray, we’re often too concerned with “getting it right”, and that the reason we’re so concerned about that is because other people are listening, and we want our prayers to sound good to them.
But Jesus says, that’s not the kind of prayer I want you to learn. And by contrast, he tells us in verse 6 how we should pray:
Secret Prayer
[6] But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen.
When you pray, make it a prayer between just you and God. Go someplace where you can’t be seen—a hidden place—and God, who also can’t be seen, will meet you in that hidden place.
I’ve got a confession to make. You know what’s really hard for me about prayer? It’s hard for me to pray to God because I can’t see him. I’m a big people person. I love to talk to people. But I can see people. And I can’t see God. So it’s really hard for me to pray to the unseen God. When I’m praying all by myself, I get easily distracted. My mind wanders. Suddenly I realize that somewhere about 5 minutes ago I must have stopped praying. You know what helps me with that? Praying with other people. We’re there for a common purpose and that helps me focus on prayer. My visible brothers and sisters help me sense the presence of the invisible God. So for me, it is big help to pray together in a group and to pray out loud.
But here’s another way you can keep your focus on God during prayer: pray out loud, even if you’re alone and no one else but God is listening. That also helps me. Your hidden place doesn’t need to be in a closet. It doesn’t even need to be indoors! Go for a walk and talk to God. You might look a little strange to the neighbors, but so what? Talking out loud helps me have a conversation with a God that I cannot see.
Always “in secret”?
I don’t think this verse means that all prayer MUST be done in private.
Jesus himself sometimes prayed out loud with his disciples present. In the book of Acts, there are several examples of public prayer in the early church.
What he is trying to say is that prayer is something you say to God. Even if it’s out loud and other people can hear it, remember that you’re not talking to all those other people. Prayer is talking to God. You’re just letting them listen in on your conversation. So Jesus is saying, even if you’re with other people, keep your communication between you and God.
Remember the “dome of silence” from the old TV show, “Get Smart”? Whenever Max wanted a private conversation with the Chief, he’s insist on using the “dome of silence” and this big plastic dome would drop out of the ceiling and cover just the two of them. It’s kind of a corny illustration, but that’s what prayer should be like between you and the Chief. When you pray, no matter how crowded the room, no matter who’s listening, enter into that secret place where you can have a one-on-one conversation with God and with him alone.
If this is a problem for you, and you need to pray in your closet so you won’t be tempted to impress people with your prayers, then go pray in your closet. That way your motive couldn’t possibly be to gain human approval.
I think it’s really important to be precise here in our understanding. Jesus is not saying that you’ve done something wrong if people hear your prayer. He’s not even saying that it’s wrong if people are impressed by your prayer. What he’s saying is that it is wrong to pray for the purpose of impressing people. It’s not an issue of who knows about it or what they think about it. It’s all about your motive. Why did you do it? For people? Or for God?
A lot of times people are afraid to pray out loud in front of someone else. Probably some of you feel that way. It’s OK to pray to God in private when no one else can hear. But you feel uncomfortable praying in front of other people. If you feel like that, I know it’s hard, but I’d like to suggest something. Ignore all those people. It doesn’t matter what they think. Just express to God your real thoughts in your own words and in your own way. Be yourself. God already knows you and he knows your thoughts and he loves you, so just talk to him and don’t worry about anyone who might be listening. It’s none of their business.
And by the way, if you’re one of those people who think that it is your business, cut it out! God didn’t appoint you to be the prayer sheriff.
I’ve had occasions to say a lot of prayers in front of other people, and I’ve had people evaluate them and find them wanting. I’ve had people say, “He shouldn’t pray like that. He should have added this or left out that.” And I just want to say to them, “Uh, excuse me, but I wasn’t talking to you.” Because when we pray we aren’t talking to each other. We’re talking to God in front of each other.
You know, I admit that it’s hard sometimes for me to keep my focus on God when I’m praying. When I pray in the worship service, I want people to have a meaningful worship experience. When I pray with people in a crisis, I want them to feel God’s comfort. But every time I pray, I try to remind myself that I’m not talking to people. I’m talking to God.
And I find that I have to remind myself every time I pray. Otherwise I end up talking to people. Does that happen to you, too? Bring down the dome of silence. Every time. And then you’ll be praying for God instead of praying for men.
The reason it’s so important to guard our motives in prayer is because the reason WHY we pray will determine the outcome. Jesus urges us to pray in secret, so that our motives will be completely pure.
Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Those who pray from pure motives will be rewarded by God.
God wants you to pray—not because he needs to know what you want or what you think. It’s because praying to God is an act of worship. And that’s why it’s so important that you pray with the right motive. You can say the longest, most eloquent prayer for the wrong reasons—so that people will praise you—but then that’s all you get—people’s praise. On the other hand, the shortest, most simplistic prayer, offered sincerely and offered only because you want to honor and obey God—that prayer will bring God’s reward. The question is not just, “Are you praying? The important question is, “Why are you praying?”