Matthew 6: The Sermon on the Mount: Inner Life (2)

Pray Psalm 63.1, 2.
O God, You are my God;
Early will I seek You;
My soul thirsts for You;
My flesh longs for You
In a dry and thirsty land
Where there is no water.
So I have looked for You in the sanctuary,
To see Your power and Your glory.

Sing Psalm 63.1, 2.
(Nun Danken: Now Thank We All Our God)
O God, You are my God, and earnestly I seek You!
My soul thirsts and my flesh in weariness now greets You!
Thus I would see Your face, with glory and pow’r arrayed,
in this Your holy place – Your beauty here displayed.

Read Matthew 6.1-8; meditate on verses 5-8

Prepare.
1. What does Jesus warn against concerning prayer?

2. What does He commend?

Meditate.
Jesus is preparing to give His first and most important lesson on the life of prayer (vv. 9-14), but He wants to make sure we have the right idea about prayer before He explains the elements our prayers should include.

So first, a preliminary lesson in how not to pray: When hypocrites show-off in prayer (v. 5), they are using God to make themselves look good. Their purpose is not really to pray, but to impress others with how tight they are with God, and how eloquently they can pray.  The only satisfaction people can have, who use God for their own advantage, is that some of the people they hope to impress, will be duly impressed. Jesus says we must resist every temptation to want to impress others by our public prayers (v. 6).

Some people ramble on and on in their prayers, quoting Scripture, using trite phrases and titles for God, and saying the same thing over and over again, greatly impassioned (v. 7). Such people should not think their many words will necessarily avail them in prayer. God is not looking for many words, but sincere and appropriate ones.

Prayer is not a resource for getting God on our side, or for making us look good to others. For many people, the idea that only God should hear their prayers doesn’t make much sense. What’s the use of prayer if not to let others see how spiritual I am?

Prayer is, first of all, a secret matter (v. 6), a conversation between God and the one who prays. Its content is matters personal and profound, everyday and eternal, simple and yet sublime. When we pray, we must try to isolate ourselves with God alone, so that we focus on Him, and not on ourselves or whoever may be around us. The proper focus of prayer is God our Father, Who already knows what we need before we ask (v. 8). Whenever we pray, we should be in a secret place with Him, even if we’re at our work, in school, or talking with friends. By practicing daily retiring to a secret place with God, we’ll be better able to do so whenever we turn to prayer. And in that setting, where we’re concentrating on God alone, and caught up in the beauty of His holiness and the enormity of His love, we won’t worry about impressing others. The words we use in prayer – whether spoken or silent – will be those appropriate to God and sincerely from our heart.

Reflect.
1. How do some people use God in prayer? How does God feel about this?

2. What does it mean to have a “secret” place to meet with God in prayer? Why is this important?

3. Is Jesus saying we should never pray publicly? Explain.

“For your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” But if he already knows what we need, why do we pray? Not to inform God or instruct him but to beseech him closely, to be made intimate with him, by continuance in supplication; to be humbled; to be reminded of our sins. John Chrysostom (344-407), The Gospel of Matthew, Homily 19.4

Lord, as I come before You in prayer today, I…

Pray 63.3-11.
Give praise to God for His many blessings, and seek His help for each specific task or opportunity before you today.

Sing Psalm 63.3-11.
Psalm 63.3-11 (Nun Danken: Now Thank We All Our God)
Your steadfast love, O Lord, than life is better to me.
So I will praise Your Name, and bless You, Lord, most truly.
My soul is richly blest; to You my hands I raise,
and open now my mouth to offer joyful praise.

By night, Lord, fill my mind with pleasant meditation;
for You have been my help as ‘neath Your wings I station.
My soul clings, Lord, to You; I rest in Your Right Hand.
May all who seek my life in Your displeasure stand.

Unto the sword’s strong pow’r let our foes be delivered!
Pursue them to devour their mortal lives forever!
In God will we rejoice and glory in His grace;
but all who live by lies shall perish from His face.

T. M. Moore

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All psalms for singing adapted from The Ailbe Psalter. All quotations from Church Fathers from Ancient Christian Commentary Series, General Editor Thomas C. Oden (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006). All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter (available by clicking here).