5And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 6But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. 7But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. 8Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.
-Matthew 6:5-8 (KJV)
Yesterday, we discovered 5 elements to proper prayer. They were Praise, God's Will, Daily Needs, Forgiveness and God's Leading. Today, I want to look at how Jesus taught us not to pray.
Verse 5 says, "And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward." I find it interesting that Jesus uses the word "hypocrites" here. That is exactly the words that many people use as an excuse for not attending church. They feel the church is full of hypocrites. A hypocrite is defined as someone who pretends to be what he is not.* Anyone can be a hypocrite, it is not solely exclusive to Christians. Anyway, Jesus tells us not to be like a hypocrite when it comes to prayer. Why should we not be like the hypocrite when we pray? According to verse 5 they pray so "that they may be seen of men." They are not seeking God, or any of the 5 elements of proper prayer. They are simply seeking to look good in front of others. Maybe they are looking for the praise of man for saying such an elegant or eloquent prayer. The fact is, they are not praying for any other reason but to be seen by others. The hypocrite loves to "pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets." They pray where they will be seen, so that they will be seen. Jesus goes on to say, in verse 7, "But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking." Remember yesterday, I had said that I don't believe Jesus intends for us to say this exact prayer each and every day. This is why, He tells us not to use vain repetitions. Not to repeat the same things over and over again. OK, this will go off topic for a minute. This exact thing, the vain repetitions, is exactly why I dislike the modern contemporary praise and worship thing that so many churches are falling in to. I know that prayer and praise are two different things, but I really think that if we are not to use vain repetitions in prayer, we shouldn't use vain repetitions in praise either. Just give me the old hymns that talk of how great God is, and you can keep those modern praise songs. OK, now I'll get off my soapbox. Jesus said not to use vain repetitions, as the heathen do. Why? "for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking." Friends, God is not impressed by the amount of words that come out of your mouth.
Friends, God desires your prayers, but if you're praying just to make yourself look like something you're not, then it's wrong. Ask yourself this: Why do you pray? Is it because you want to live the life God expects? Or is it because you want to play the part of a Christian? Think About It.
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