“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.
“Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Matthew 6:1-4
Prayer is one of those topics that seems to be the most romanticized among professing Christians and depending on your answer on how it should be done, you might find yourself being branded as a heathen at worst. I’ve personally been through a very weird journey myself in trying to understand it all and I can say for certain, it is not an easy discussion to have.
So what we plan to do with this series will be something hopefully anyone and everyone can test for themselves. I have seen many books on prayer that have all sorts of methods of delivery, many of the steps being rooted in the methodology of the writer, and given that they almost always happen to be a famous preacher, their words are often taken as Gospel truth. I personally do not always recommend this to anyone; if you cannot be able to see a similar pattern in the lives of the believers in the Bible, you should always take such advice with a bucket of salt. And we ask the same for you today. Do not accept anything this series holds to be true without confirming it yourself. We live in a world that thrives on deception for the sake of gain, one that deeply destroys the name of the Church and the head of it Christ Jesus, and we would not want to intentionally make the same error.
With that disclaimer out of the way, let us get into the topic of today. One last thing before we start. We will be taking our primary scripture from Matthew 6 but we will be using different texts to supplement wherever necessary.
At the beginning of Matthew 6, Christ paints a picture of secrecy around three tenets; giving to the needy, prayer, and fasting. I don’t think this was meant to be a small thing either. These tenets are still some of the biggest issues in our timeline and if we are being honest, I believe in many ways, some may have a bigger problem of secrecy than even the Pharisees did at their time and I think that’s due to a fatal flaw; a misunderstanding of the work of the Holy Spirit. While the series is dealing with prayer, the same attitude is lost in the other two in many professing churches. In place of secrecy, we have heralded instead a brass, unapologetic ‘holy’ noise attitude that we believe to be more in line with our freedom to worship in Spirit and Truth.
So, before we get into the actual contents of the Lord’s prayer, I believe we need to understand why secrecy was, is, and will remain to be an important aspect of prayer.
How It Works
“And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward
Matthew 6:5
Growing up as a member of the church, more so when I was a part of the high school leadership, we used to hold prayer and fasting days wherein the noontime, we would have the prayer room and stuff. I still had the burden of Matthew 6 even then so what I often did was unnecessarily lie during the days we would fast. I would be asked about the fast and I would remember how you would act like you had eaten and combed your hair and I would just tell them that I did not actually fast. This was such a weird thing to do that I eventually stopped fasting for a while. I could not tell but at the time, I subconsciously was feeling the weight of the scripture on prayer and fasting. I felt like I was not really being faithful with the concept because people could often tell when I was in a fast.
I share this experience because I am aware that I am not alone in this. How do you exercise the secrecy that Matthew 6 commands effectively? Let’s have a look at the answer Christ offers in regards to prayer.
But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Matthew 6:6
Sounds practical at first. Have a room where you do it and a time set where you are able to be with God alone. Problem solved…at least halfway. What happens when you aren’t able to access the room and time? The answer to that makes it even more practical. The room that you shut in becomes your heart and the time set becomes the time you can make a meaningful connection with God.
How does communal prayer work then? Do we all agree to find some corner in the room? If so, are we still keeping the discipline? What about when a pastor is praying for the Church? How does that work then? It seems that secrecy becomes more and more of a problem the more you think about it. How do we reconcile this then? We obviously have to believe this scripture has some form of symbolism to it in order to reconcile. And that leads us to the reality that even more than having privacy, Christ has something greater that He speaks about; an attitude of humility that comes as a result of privacy.
Combating Hypocrisy and Idolatry
When a pastor arrives at the pulpit to pray for the saints, his prayer reflects the same level of humility that he would have in secrecy. The reverence of God that shuns pride in all forms is not divorced from him either in the presence of believers or in his private room.
The first flaw that Christ points out as an issue with hypocrites is that their attitude towards prayer to a multitude is one where they are the focus of the narrative. This is an issue many believers have whether in the private room or in the presence of others. Their prayer reflects a heart that wants to be noticed as pious rather than the holiness of God. This is an issue that does trickle down to the other issues but for now, let’s take a look at a brilliant example that Christ has for us of this.
He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’
Luke 18:9-12
When the attitude of prayer is one that wants to be noticed, even in secrecy where God alone hears, they are still the main event. They want God to remember how holy they are, the many deeds that they have done to God and how they are not like other men. It is a pride that cannot be solved in the privacy of their chambers. This is why we have so many books on prayer that encourage people to remind God of how faithful they have been that God may be compelled to do something in a certain situation.
A prayer where God is not the main and only audience is no prayer at all.
A faithful servant sees God’s holiness in prayer and nothing else matters at that moment to them, even if they were uttering the prayer out loud. Prayer is ultimately a combat, fighting pride and hypocrisy. The reason there are so many shouting contests in churches in the name of prayer can be attributed to this. Whether those who do it know it or not, they believe that their loud voices, which definitely call attention to them, are the most effective way to be heard by God. The only reason one raises their voice in communal prayer is so that the saints know exactly what the preacher or leader is praying for. It is for the benefit of the saints otherwise the same prayer can be made in silence. You can tell this is the same problem some believers face at home because even in their private rooms, people can still hear them pray. I’ve heard the argument that one should not stifle the Holy Spirit but I believe the real issue is this; you might be the most important aspect of your prayer and that is idolatry.
That is, it is not simply that you shout in your prayer, but that you feel you should be heard. Perhaps it is because many of us are unfamiliar with how subjects address a king in real life but the manner of speech is one of complete reverence and controlled speech, not out of outward piety but because of the knowledge of the power that resides in the one you speak to. The Majesty of the King to whom we direct our speech should not be lost. Those who have seen a glimpse of the Lord always seemed to have an experience beyond words.
And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!”
Isaiah 6:5
Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest. The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.
When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead.
Revelation 1:12-17
Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.” The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one. 8 Saul rose from the ground, and although his eyes were opened, he saw nothing. So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank.
Acts 9:3-9
When Abram was ninety-nine years old the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless, that I may make my covenant between me and you, and may multiply you greatly.” Then Abram fell on his face
Genesis 17:1-3
When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
Exodus 3:4-6
As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple. And the priests could not enter the house of the LORD, because the glory of the LORD filled the LORD’S house. When all the people of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the LORD on the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the ground on the pavement and worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD, saying, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.”
2 Chronicles 7:1-3
It is not clear to me where we get the idea that our experience of God and talking to Him should be different. Prayer is a privilege and our words ought to reflect that. Speaking of words…
Direct Communication
“And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
Matthew 6:7-8
The other thing that we have lost in the tradition of prayer is the return of empty or vain phrases as a replacement to direct communication to God. The thing that Christ points out here is interesting because he makes it clear the real issue people have with the phrases; it is not merely that they say the phrases but that they believe the words are more effective in getting their thoughts heard by God. In other words, it is a system of chants or specific word placement that stands the best chance of getting through.
Do we not see that in the church lately? An overt reliance on a system of wording that gets God to hear. That some prayers will get no effectiveness should they not be uttered. This is probably why a lot of prayer books sell to the masses. They always encourage readers to understand that while your way of prayer did not quite do the job, there are some keywords that will definitely get beyond the answering machine and straight to God Himself. Sometimes some verses work where others don’t. Sometimes some vocabulary works where other words don’t. We are being trained to essentially hack God into doing what we want in the most effective and time-saving format.
There’s a good reason I will not specifically give examples. It is because the problem is not in the verses themselves but in the attitude presented by such a prayer. It is meant to be self-fulfilling, a prayer where you are glad to have gotten immediate results instead of expressing trust in your Saviour. Once again, like the issue we discussed before, the issue is that you are still the most important aspect of your prayer. Look at the tax collector’s prayer.
But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Luke 18:13-14
Did the man have needs? He probably did. Was He a Gentile, one who was likely to use vain repetition as Christ said? Probably. But this prayer does not hold anything but complete reverence and adept understanding of his position before God. God had justified this man and heard his prayer, not because there were some keywords he said, not because there were demons stopping his prayer that suddenly were exorcised, but because the man was direct, honest yet completely surrendering his will in the fewest words he had the strength to utter and God was pleased. There is no short or long prayer that has a better chance of getting to God because prayer is not a lottery ticket, it is undeserved mercy.
In our hearts, prayer seems to be a way of tricking God to do things. If we butter him up enough, we think, he will comply. This is the attitude when we go around telling people that some keywords are all there is. No. Let us do the hard work of denying ourselves in the presence of the Lord that our hearts may not deceive us and that we may be genuine before a God that already knows what we seek. Those who seek shall indeed find, says Christ. Do the hard work of trusting God for results even if you do not immediately see it. God is not a platinum card, He is the God of Hosts and our lives are only meaningful in Him. Cry to God and be direct in your desires in the humblest way your heart can afford. Let us avoid confusing our pride for the Holy Spirit and submit to discipline for if the Lord shows His wrath on our disobedience, we could not stand. And when you leave the prayer room that is your heart, let your heart be merry for God knows what you need before you ask.
The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water, but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish.”
When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.
Jonah 3:6-10
Shalom.