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We finished the book of Titus. 
The Lord willing, in a couple of weeks, we'll start a new book 
in our evening services. Next Sunday will be the Lord's 
Supper. So tonight, I thought we'd look at Jesus' instruction 
on prayer. In Matthew chapter 6, verses 
5 to 13, I'll read the section, and then we'll pray, and then 
we'll look at this passage in detail. So Matthew 6, beginning 
in verse 5. And when you pray, you shall 
not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing 
in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that 
they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they 
have their reward. But you, when you pray, go into 
your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your 
father who is in the secret place. And your father who sees in secret 
will reward you openly. And when you pray, do not use 
vain repetitions as the heathen do, for they think that they 
will be heard for their many words. Therefore, do not be like 
them, for your father knows the things you have need of before 
you ask him. In this manner, therefore, pray. 
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, 
your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this 
day our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we forgive our 
debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, 
but deliver us from the evil one. For yours is the kingdom 
and the power and the glory forever. Amen. Well, let us pray. Father 
in heaven, we thank you for the written word of the living and 
true God. We thank you for the incarnate word, even our Lord 
Jesus Christ, And for his instruction here in Matthew's gospel, I pray 
that you'd give us ears to hear, hearts to receive these things, 
and God may it affect the way that we come to you in private. 
May you keep us from the things that Jesus cautions against, 
and may you lay upon our hearts these petitions that are given 
by our Lord. We ask God that we would be faithful 
in the private place, that we would be faithful in the corporate 
prayer meeting. that we would be faithful as 
families as well, seeking the face of the living and true God. 
For certainly the days in which we live necessitate a prayerful 
response on the part of the people of God. You said to the prophet, 
you were looking for a man that would stand in the gap. And Lord 
God, we pray that as the people of God in this generation, we 
would stand in the gap. We would be prayerful for civil 
authority, we would be prayerful for our families, for the Church 
of Jesus Christ for those needs that we come into contact with. 
Help us to be in earnest with reference to this blessed privilege 
of seeking the face of God in private. Forgive us now for all 
of our sins, forgive us for all of our transgression against 
a holy God, and fill each one of us now with the spirit of 
the living and true God. And we ask in the name of the 
Lord Jesus Christ, amen. Well, in this section of the 
Sermon on the Mount, essentially, we have chapters 5 to 7. Christ 
sits down, and he teaches not only his disciples, but the multitudes. 
And in this particular chapter, or section here in chapter 6, 
he is dealing with religious observances. If you notice in 
verses 1 to 4, he is talking about the act of almsgiving, 
charitable deeds. After our section, he then addresses 
fasting. So in between there, he deals 
with the place of private prayer. So with reference to the people 
of God, there are those things that Jesus assumes. He assumes 
that we will give alms, he assumes that we will pray, and he assumes 
that we will fast. So I want to investigate what 
he teaches concerning this act of private prayer. And there 
are three things that Christ emphasizes here. First, in verses 
5 and 6, you have the motivation with reference to prayer. In 
verses 7 and 8, he has the manner of true prayer, and then in verses 
9 to 13 he gives the model for prayer. And so we'll look first 
of all at the motivation with reference to prayer in verses 
5 and 6. As I mentioned, there is an assumption 
made by our Lord. He makes it in verse 5, and then 
he makes it again in verse 7. He says, and when you pray, There's 
no imperative. There is no command. There is 
no exhortation. But again, Christ assumes that 
the people of God will be prayerful. He assumes that the people of 
God who have been blood-bought, those who have the Holy Spirit, 
those who are born again, those who walk by faith in the living 
and true God, will be a people of prayer. And as he assumes 
this, he gives instructions according to this. And as we considered 
in the book of Acts, back in chapter 9, remember how Saul 
of Tarsus was identified. The newly converted Saul of Tarsus 
was identified as a man who prayed. In Acts 9.11, we read, Arise 
and go to the street called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas 
for one called Saul of Tarsus, for behold, he is praying. No 
doubt in his life as a Pharisee, he prayed. No doubt in his life 
as a very religious man in Israel, he prayed. But it wasn't until 
he was converted that he's identified by this particular aspect of 
his Christian life. John Gill says, so as he had 
never prayed before, Now he prayed with the spirit and with the 
understanding from a feeling sense of his wants for spiritual 
blessings, such as he had no knowledge of nor desire after 
before. As soon as any are quickened 
by his grace, they cry unto him. Prayer is the breath of a regenerate 
man and shows him to be alive. He who before was breathing out 
threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of Christ, now 
breathes after communion with Christ and them. Now it's been 
well said that if you want to humble a Christian, ask him or 
her about their prayer life. I'm not suggesting this comes 
easy, I'm not suggesting that all of us are praying for hours 
a day, but it is the reflex action for those who have been born 
again. And again, in verses 5 and 7, Jesus assumes or presupposes 
that the people of God will pray. In terms of motivation, notice 
the comparison that Christ makes in verse 5. And when you pray, 
you shall not be like the hypocrites. In other words, don't be like 
those who profess faith in Christ. or profess the true religion, 
but do not know him. And this underscores the reality 
that even the hypocrite will pray. Even the unbeliever will 
pray. And the Lord cautions us against 
being like them. And notice specifically what 
he highlights concerning the hypocrite at prayer. He says, 
for they love to pray, standing in the synagogues and on the 
corners of the streets that they may be seen by men." They love 
to be on display. Their piety is not an act of 
worship unto God, but rather their piety is an expression 
of their own piety. In other words, they display 
themselves, they parade themselves. They stand in the synagogue, 
they stand at the street corner to gain maximum attention. That is not the spirit or the 
disposition that the believer has in prayer. It is just the 
opposite. We're not seeking the eyes of 
men, we are rather seeking the ear of the living and true God. 
And so Christ assumes that we'll pray, but he also cautions us 
against praying like these hypocrites. What they want is to be seen. What they want is to exhibit 
their own pride and their own self-righteousness. What they 
want is to be talked about in the town as being the pious fellows, 
the religious ones, the devoted ones. Christ will have none of 
that. We are not to seek the favor 
of men, but rather we are to seek the favor of God. And notice 
what he goes on to say at the end of verse 5. He says, they 
do what they do that they may be seen by men. And then he says, 
assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. It's no difficult 
thing to gain the attention of men in an exhibition of holiness. It is no big deal to gain the 
attention of onlookers by us standing on a street corner and 
praying to God. If that's what you're after, 
it's pretty easy to fetch. Christ says they have their reward. That's the thing that they're 
longing after. That's the thing that they are 
to get. Spurgeon says we are not where God sees when we court 
publicity and pray to obtain credit for our devotion. We are 
not where God sees when we court publicity and pray to obtain 
credit for our devotion. Again, the act of worship, which 
prayer in the first place is, is an expression of our devotion 
to God, not our craven desire to be recognized by men, not 
our sick and perverted and twisted mindset that is so governed by 
narcissism that we want attention for our acts of piety. He says 
essentially the same thing with reference to almsgiving. When 
you put money in the box, don't stand for a moment and blow your 
trumpet so everybody can see how great and noble and holy 
you are. That is absolutely contrary to 
acts of devotion. They're not acts of devotion 
to our reputation, to our self-exaltation, to our self-righteousness, but 
they are acts of devotion to the living and true God. So Christ 
provides a remedy to keep us from functioning with reference 
to this motivation that is like unto the hypocrite. Notice in 
verse 6, but you, when you pray, go into your room. There's an 
emphasis here on exclusion. It's probably a small storage 
room in the houses of the time that had a locking mechanism. 
Now before you conclude that I can't pray because I don't 
have a small storage closet in my room or in my house that has 
a locking mechanism, the point isn't the place. The point is 
the aloneness with God. This is private prayer. This 
isn't everybody gawking at you for praying. This is seeking 
the face of God and not seeking the attention of man. The absence 
of such a room does not mean the inability to pray in the 
manner prescribed. In other words, seek God alone. 
You can do it while you're walking your dog, you can do it in your 
bedroom, you can do it wherever you want, where men aren't, and 
where you aren't seeking the attention of men, but rather 
you are seeking God. So notice what he says there 
in verse 6. But you, when you pray, go into 
your room, and when you have shut your door, again the idea 
of exclusion, the idea of aloneness with you and God, Pray to your 
Father who is in the secret place, and your Father who sees in secret 
will reward you openly." Now, I would suggest that Christ is 
emphasizing here the necessity of faith. I am convinced that 
one of the greatest tests of, or expressions of, our faith 
is the act of prayer. The believer must walk by faith 
in the prayer closet, kind of like no other place. When you 
go into the secret place, your father, who sees in secret, will 
reward you openly. There's no feeling connected 
to this. You may come out of that secret 
place not having had sort of an experience, but you walk by 
faith. you understand that God is there. You see, the hypocrite gets his 
immediate gratification when there's a crowd of people standing 
there and them saying, wow, look at that holy man. Look at that 
righteous fellow. Listen to his beautiful prayer. 
That is his reward. But with reference to God, we 
go into the secret place, we offer up our supplications, our 
prayers, our intercessions, and our givings of thanks, but we 
don't typically get immediate answers. We don't typically leave 
the prayer closet and everything we prayed for is laid out right 
there for us. That is usually not the case 
with reference to prayer. So prayer is, in fact, an exercise 
by faith. The believer must believe that 
God is and that He deals or dwells with His people. In the prophet 
Isaiah in chapter 57 at verse 15, for thus says the high and 
lofty one who inhabits eternity, whose name is holy. I dwell in 
the high and holy place with him who has a contrite and humble 
spirit to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the 
heart of the contrite ones. Again, it's an expression of 
faith. I'm sure that you have experienced what I have experienced. 
You go into your secret place, There you pray to God, and at 
times it feels like nothing's happening. In fact, I've heard 
that from people before. I prayed, and nothing has happened. I'm not sure what we're looking 
for to happen. I'm not sure if we're looking 
for fireworks, a tingling among our extremities, some sort of 
inner peace. What is it that is the demonstrable 
representation that we have, in fact, found God? Again, it's 
faith Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 6 the Apostle says without 
faith It is impossible to please him for he who comes to God must 
believe that he is and that he is a Rewarder of those who diligently 
seek him. It's a diligent seeking after 
God again We often want to quantify it. I pray for five years days, 
and I never got what it is that I prayed for." Brethren, if that 
is your attitude in the secret place, you have a mercenary spirit. As well, you want to be prepared 
for negative answers. God answers prayer, not always 
in the affirmative. Neither do parents when they're 
rearing their children. Do you want, or if the child 
says, can I have a piece of cake? Sure. The child says, can I have 
another piece of cake? Sure. And the child says a third 
time, can I have a piece of cake? You say, no. We answered the 
child's request. But we know what's best for the 
child, so we're not going to keep shoving this kind of processed 
sugar down his gullet because we know that ultimately it will 
adversely affect him. There are times, brethren, when 
the answer from heaven is no. And as tough as that may be for 
us, we walk by faith in the Lord God Most High, who has promised 
that He works all things out for our good, to those who love 
God and to those who are the called according to His purpose. 
You may think a bag of money would be a great thing. If I 
found a bag of money, which incidentally, We had a people, a people, a 
family in our church several years ago that found a bag of 
money. I mean, who finds bags of money? 
This particular family did. As far as I know, they turned 
it in, the time went, and they ended up getting it. It wasn't 
five bucks. It was a sizable load of cash. You may think that'll solve all 
your problems. You may think that'll keep your 
creditors at bay. You may think that'll be the 
answer to everything. But God knows you better. God 
knows you better than you do. And a bag of money might ultimately 
prove to be detrimental to your spiritual growth. So when we 
get into this mindset or this mode that unless he gives me 
specifically what I want, then he's not answering prayer. God's answer to prayer is not 
only in the affirmative, but it's also in the negative. So 
when we go into that secret place, we are to seek God. The believer 
does not enter the closet seeking experience. He doesn't go there 
seeking a feeling. He certainly doesn't go there 
as a means of therapy, which I think oftentimes people look 
at Prayer-like. They think it's therapeutic. 
It has such a beneficial impact upon the person who is praying. I just think that's symptomatic 
of our narcissism. We take an act of worship unto 
the triune God and we make it about us. We make it about our 
stability? We make it now? No, certainly. 
Praying to God, worshiping God, there is a great encouragement 
from God. But those who turn to prayer 
as a means of making themselves feel good or better, that is 
not the essence of true prayer. So the believer goes into the 
secret place, he's not like the hypocrite, he's not courting 
the favor of men, he isn't concerned about the eyes of men, he is 
rather concerned about the ear of the living and true God. And 
then there is this promise of blessing. And this is, again, 
the expression of faith. But you, when you have shut your 
door, but you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you 
have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret 
place, and look at what Jesus says, and your Father who sees 
in secret. I've often wondered this about 
prayer as well. How do we explain what a good 
time of prayer is? Have you ever used that? You 
don't have to raise your hand or nod or anything like that. 
But have you ever heard yourself say, boy, that was a good time 
of prayer? Again, how do we measure that? 
Typically how we feel. If we don't feel it, then it 
must not be good. Brethren, that's not what Christ 
says. It's an expression of an act 
of faith. We go into that secret place, 
we are excluded and alone with God, we need to believe that 
He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek 
Him. That is what I mean when I highlight that it is an expression 
of faith, that Christ promises blessing. Pray to your father 
who is in the secret place, and your father who sees in secret 
will reward you openly." In other words, leave it with God. You 
do your task, you do your privilege, you engage in what he assumes 
you're going to do, and then leave the rest with God Almighty. 
We can't manipulate Him. We can't make Him bless us. We 
can't cause Him to react or respond, rather, to what we say based 
on our motivation or our manner or anything like that. And that 
brings us, secondly, to the manner that Jesus prescribes. The manner 
of true prayer. Notice again in verse 7, He assumes 
that we'll pray. And when you pray, now notice 
the comparison, it's the long-winded heathen. Verse 7, so we've dealt 
with the motivation, don't be like the hypocrite. Now we're 
dealing with the manner, don't be like the heathen. Verse 7, 
and when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen 
do, for they think that they will be heard for their many 
words. So the idea that length of prayer 
will bring the favor of the gods. I'm not suggesting you should 
just about pray for about four seconds each day. Notice the 
Bible never tells you how long you are supposed to pray. Pray 
without ceasing, Paul says, but I don't think Paul means don't 
go to work. Call your employer and say, oh 
yeah, well, I'm praying today. See how long you keep that job. 
That can't be what Paul means because he tells the people of 
God to work hard with their hands and to mind their own business 
and to be faithful citizens in the body politic. But with reference 
to prayer, it isn't supposed to be that I've got to commit 
4, 5, 10 hours in an attempt to manipulate God so that God 
will answer my prayer. The reality that the heathen 
is basically rolling through a list of God names looking for 
any that will listen. Remember, in Athens, when Paul 
gets there, he sees this altar to an unknown god. They wanted 
to cover their bets, and the heathen did the same sort of 
thing. Older people know that years ago, before cell phones, 
we had these things that were called Rolodexins, or we had 
these other things that would flip up, and they had sort of 
the names and the addresses and the numbers. I know it was weird. We used to have to write these 
things down. We actually had to type them 
out sometimes. We couldn't just sort of put 
everything in our phone. It was a bizarre age, trust me. 
At any rate, the idea is that the heathen rolls through this 
rolodex, throwing out all these prayers to whatever God may hear 
and whatever God it may stick to. Knox Chamberlain describes 
it this way, one reason apparently for the pagans many words is 
that they are bewildered polytheists searching for the right listener 
or for the effectual name of the right listener. Related to 
this is the worshipper's expectation that once he has a hearing, he 
can wear down the resistance of the God by endlessly repeating 
his request. Again, we need to understand 
this in connection with other passages in Scripture. In Luke 
chapter 18, Christ teaches something concerning the importunate widow, 
that woman that goes to the judge and pleads her case. And the 
judge basically rebuffs her, but her persistence continues. 
And then the judge ultimately says, well, I don't fear God, 
and I don't regard men, but I'm going to go ahead and give her 
her verdict because I don't want her to keep bugging me. And Jesus 
draws from that the implication, shall not God avenge his elect 
who cry to him day and night? So we can't append a particular 
time in terms of how long or how much, but the manner behind 
this is that we're just praying. We're long-winded in the hopes 
that we will wear down the gods so that they will respond to 
us. And that is precisely what Jesus 
says in verse 7. And when you pray, do not use 
vain repetitions as the heathen do. Again, that cannot mean we 
can't pray for the same thing over and over again. It's vain 
repetition. highlighting, reciting the same 
words over and over and over again in the attempt of wearing 
down the gods so that they will answer us. But then notice, do 
not use vain repetitions as the heathen do, for, here's the reason 
why they do that, they think that they will be heard for their 
many words. It's an attempt ultimately to 
manipulate to coerce and to control God by our many words. And typically it serves as a 
foil for our complaint because we say, well, I prayed and I 
prayed and I prayed and nothing ever happened. And always implicit 
in that complaint is a dig at God. It is always a scoff at 
God. Because God is the target. He 
is the audience of our prayer. He is the omnipotent one. So 
if you have never pondered the reality that there's one of two 
answers that God can give, and a negative response is a response 
as well, then I encourage you to do so. Or else you're going 
to be frustrated, and you're going to walk around mopey, and 
whiny, and snivelly, blaming God that he hasn't given you 
the desires of your heart. Listen to what Spurgeon says. 
To repeat a form of prayer a very large number of times has always 
seemed to the ignorantly religious to be a praiseworthy thing. But 
assuredly, it is not so. It is a mere exercise of memory 
and of the organs of noise-making. And it is absurd to imagine that 
such apparent exercise can be pleasing to the living God. The 
Mahatmatins and Papists keep to this heathenish custom, but 
we must not imitate them." I think he's bang on, spot on, and right 
on. Now turn to the book of 1 Kings 
to see an instance of this. 1 Kings chapter 18 demonstrates 
this principle, demonstrates the manner of the heathen. And 
if you're not familiar with this section of scripture, it's very 
heathenish. Because essentially, you had 
a king in Israel by the name of Ahab. And Ahab married the 
woman of the year, Jezebel. And Jezebel was a Baal worshipper. 
And Ahab entered into Baal worship. And in fact, Ahab brought Baal 
worship into Israel. Now notice in chapter 17 verse 
1, after describing this situation where we have Ahab, we have his 
horrible bride, and we have Baalism in the nation of Israel, verse 
1 in chapter 17 says, And Elijah the Tishbite of the inhabitants 
of Gilead said to Ahab, As the Lord God of Israel lives before 
whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years except 
at my word. Notice there's no introduction. 
That's the first time Elijah the Tishbite is mentioned in 
Holy Scripture. There's no, oh, and by the way, 
there was this prophet, he had a wife named Betty, and they 
had a few kids, and they had a little piece of property. That's 
not the response that we find here. When we see that wickedness 
starts to abound, God has his man to combat that wickedness. Just like in Exodus chapter two, 
we have the foundation of the oppression of Israel laid in 
Exodus chapter 1. We might be fearful and fretful 
and think that there's no way the Israelites are ever going 
to make it out of this kind of oppression. What do we have in 
chapter 2? We have the birth of the Deliverer. The same sort of thing obtains 
in the birth narrative of our Lord Jesus Christ. The nations 
are steeped in darkness. Wickedness abounds. But God does 
not leave us to our own devices. He sends forth His Son, born 
of a woman and born under the law, to redeem those under the 
law. One man well said, whenever evil 
flourishes, it is always a superficial flourish. For at the height of 
the triumph of evil, God will be there, ready with his man 
and his movement and his plans to ensure that his own cause 
will never fail." So with reference to Elijah, he goes up against 
this man Ahab. They meet in the first part of 
chapter 18. And Ahab has the gall to call 
Elijah the Troubler of Israel. Ahab co-opts Baalism from Syrophoenicia 
and brings it into the confines of the Holy Land. And he has 
the wherewithal to accuse Elijah as being the Troubler of Israel? 
Well, after a bit of back and forth, Elijah now challenges 
the people of Israel. And notice in chapter 18 at verse 
20. So Ahab sent for all the children 
of Israel. gathered the prophets together 
on Mount Carmel. The prophets were 450 prophets 
of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah. That's a big number against the 
one man Elijah. Not that there were no other 
true prophets. We see a true prophet help Elijah 
previous to this, but in terms of a public prophetic figure, 
Elijah's basically on his own at this particular point. And 
just to add a bit of insult to injury, look at verse 19. Now, 
therefore, send and gather all Israel to me on Mount Carmel, 
the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Asherah. 
Now, notice this last clause, who eat at Jezebel's table. That 
means they are funded. They are subsidized by the government 
of Israel. They eat at Jezebel's table means 
that they reap the rewards of poor Israelite taxpayers. These are false prophets funded 
by the very nation that God gave to the very people that God gave 
this land to. So we go back to verse 20. Ahab 
sent for all the children of Israel, gathered the prophets 
together on Mount Carmel. And Elijah came to all the people 
and said, How long will you falter between two opinions? If the 
Lord is God, follow him. But if Baal, follow him. But the people answered him not 
a word. So essentially, what you have here is a God contest. 
Elijah throws down the gauntlet. Where do you stand? Are you going 
to worship Baal? Are you going to worship Yahweh? 
And it's that specific. Because most likely, understanding 
what we do about Old Testament religion, it typically wasn't 
the case that they completely repudiated Yahweh. They would 
mingle Yahweh with Baal. They'd have a bit of Yahweh with 
Asherah. It's called syncretism. It's 
a mingling of all the gods to try again to cover our bases 
and get precisely what it is that we want. That's why he lays 
it down in this proposition. If Baal is God, then by all means 
serve him. If Yahweh is God, then by all 
means serve him. But you can't mingle the two 
and somehow think that this is going to work out well. So Elijah 
proposes a contest. He says the prophets of Baal 
will bring their sacrifice, they'll call upon Baal, and then Elijah 
will present his sacrifice, call upon Yahweh, and whichever God 
answers by fire, well then that's the true and living God. Seems 
pretty simple. Seems pretty easy. And Elijah 
stacks the deck against Yahweh. Elijah stacks the deck against 
the living and true God. So that when all is said and 
done, they won't be able to accuse Elijah of having stacked the 
deck the other way. They've given home turf advantage 
to these prophets of Baal. He gives them the first opportunity. 
When it comes time for Elijah to present his sacrifice, he 
douses it in water. Because, of course, fire doesn't 
thrive when there's water. And so he, again, stacks the 
deck. So when Yahweh answers by fire, 
everybody in Israel will know that Yahweh is the true and living 
God. Very good, right? He gives them the first kick 
at the can. You go ahead, you bring your sacrifice. Now let's 
look how the heathen pray to their gods. Verse 26. So they 
took the bull which was given them, and they prepared it, and 
called on the name of Baal from morning even till noon, saying, 
O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice. No one 
answered. Then they leaped about the altar 
which they had made. You see, they think that their 
manner, they think that their fervency, they think that their 
earnestness will elicit the response of Baal. Now notice what Elijah 
does in verse 27. And so it was at noon that Elijah 
mocked them and said, cry aloud, for he is a god. Either he is 
meditating or he is busy, or he is on a journey, or perhaps 
he is sleeping and must be awakened. He mocks them, probably with 
a big fat grin on his face as he's doing it. He is making fun 
of them. He is challenging them. Anybody 
in Israel that had faith at that time would have found this to 
be a humorous expression from the mouth of the prophet. He 
challenges them, he goes to them, and now listen to their response. Verse 28, so they cried aloud 
and cut themselves. So initially, it's a frenzy that's 
just foolish. Now it's a frenzy that is actually 
violent against themselves. They move from this place of 
calling and calling and calling and leaping about the altar to 
now actually cutting themselves, thinking that the blood will 
appeal to Baal and Baal will obviously answer as a result 
of that. This is that manner gone awry. Verse 28, so they cried aloud, 
cut themselves as was their custom with knives and lances until 
the blood gushed out on them. Brethren, it's tough for all 
of us to make it to church regularly. Imagine if your religion had 
a custom of cutting yourselves with lances and knives. Imagine 
if your religion included bleeding on yourself to invoke the attention 
of your God. I dare say we have been blessed 
immeasurably. We have been blessed wonderfully 
by our gracious God. until the blood gushed out on 
them." Now notice in verse 29, and when midday was passed, remember, 
they started first thing in the morning. This was a long prayer 
meeting. This was one of those prayer 
meetings where you're secretly kind of looking at your watch, 
praying silently that the brothers will bring it to a conclusion. 
I mean, this was some prayer meeting. Verse 29, and when mid... Actually, I've never been in 
that prayer meeting. I'd actually enjoy that prayer meeting as 
a bit of a contrast to the prayer meetings I've been associated 
with. Not that our prayer meetings aren't great. But when the church 
of Christ is praying in this kind of way, not, you know, with 
the blood and the cutting and the frenzy and all that, that'll 
be a good thing. That'll be a good thing. So verse 
29, when midday was passed, they prophesied until the time of 
the offering of the evening sacrifice. Now look at how the author underscores 
their futility. But there was no voice. No one 
answered. No one paid attention. You see, they thought that in 
the expression of their religiosity, they would appeal to Baal, and 
Baal would certainly send forth fire to consume their offering. This, according to our blessed 
Lord Jesus, is absolutely positively wrong. It is an attempt to manipulate. It is an attempt to coerce. It 
is an attempt to control God. And that may work with Baal. 
Well, actually, it doesn't work with Baal because there is no 
Baal. But it never works with the true and living God. We are 
not to approach him in a formulaic manner. I think much of new church 
worship today is connected more to Baalism than it is to Yahwehism. Yahweh wasn't worshipped from 
the waist down. Baal was. Yahweh was worshipped 
with the mind. You must love the Lord your God 
with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. Deuteronomy chapter 
4, you saw no form on Horeb, but you heard his voice. The 
people of God have always walked by faith in God, and He has communicated 
to them through His Word. That's how we are to respond 
to this. So back to our passage in Matthew 
6, Jesus applies this. He says in verse eight, therefore 
do not be like them. Don't be like the hypocrite who 
prays to be seen by men and do not be like the heathen who prays 
often long and even with blood in order to try and manipulate 
his God. Verse eight, therefore do not 
be like them for your father knows the things you have need 
of before you ask him. Again, the idea is not that you 
can never repeat yourself. The idea isn't, well, I prayed 
that God would save my friend, or God would save this particular 
person, or God would yield this particular blessing in my life, 
and I did it once 55 years ago, and that should just come. No, 
that's not what he's talking about. It's vain repetition with 
the purpose of trying to manipulate God so that he does what it is 
you're after. We are subject to his will. We don't try to make him subject 
to our will. And that is the essence of prayer. The manner of biblical prayer 
is not length or wordiness, but it's ultimately communion with 
the Father through the mediation of the Son by the power of the 
Holy Spirit. Now, if you have your pencil 
in 1 Kings 18, like I do, you can turn back there. Just to 
sort of illustrate this in Elijah's prayer. Imagine the reports, 
the news reports after that day. You know, these prophets of Baal, 
they spent all day. They danced around the altar. 
They gashed themselves. They were bleeding. They looked 
a spectacle. And then Elijah, it was his turn. 
So he prepares his sacrifice. He douses it with water. And 
his prayer was so brief. His prayer was so simple. His 
prayer was so short. Yes, but which God responded? It is the true and living God. 
Notice in verse 36, and it came to pass, at the time of the offering 
of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near 
and said, now here it is, this is his prayer, Lord God of Abraham, 
Isaac and Israel. Now, though it's brief, it is 
theologically powerful. He's appealing to our covenant 
God. He's appealing to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel. 
He goes on to say, let it be known this day that you are God 
in Israel and I am your servant. Again, theologically rich. Lord 
God, I want people to know your glory. Lord God, I want people 
to know that there is, in fact, a living God in Israel. Remember, 
this is the whole exchange in 1 Samuel chapter 17. When David 
kills Goliath, The end game is that all the earth may know there 
is a God in Israel. That is theologically good praying. He says, let it be known this 
day that you are God in Israel, and I am your servant, and that 
I have done all these things at your word. Hear me, O Lord, 
hear me, that this people may know that you are the Lord God, 
and that you have turned their hearts back to you again. Then the fire of the Lord fell 
and consumed the burnt sacrifice and the wood and the stones and 
the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench. 
Now when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces and 
they said, the Lord, He is God, the Lord, He is God. Now, you 
would hope, you might think, that this would put to death 
the notion of Baalism in Israel. It doesn't. But nevertheless, 
it is a wonderful display of the true and living God and the 
reality that we're not supposed to pray the way the heathen pray. 
thinking that because we pray lots of words, thinking because 
we engage in vain repetition, thinking that because we dash 
ourselves or we dance around an altar, whatever the case may 
be, we are not in a position to manipulate, coerce, or control 
the true and living God. And that's what Christ says, 
the end of verse eight, for your father knows the things you have 
need of before you ask him. In Isaiah 65, 24, we have an 
Old Testament illustration of this. It shall come to pass that 
before they call, I will answer. And while they are still speaking, 
I will hear. He knows what you need. Now, 
I know that sometimes people will say, well, he knows what 
I need. He's absolutely omnipotent. And he's sovereign. Then why 
pray? We'll deal with that in just a moment. But let's quickly 
look at the model prayer that Jesus offers for his disciples. 
We won't spend a lot of time here. It's simply the case that 
these are. It's sort of like an outline. 
It isn't the case that we use this the way I was taught as 
a young papist. You just sort of rattle through 
these prayers, and you just recite them. If ever there's an expression 
of or a display of vain repetition, it's the rosary. You say a series 
of Hail Marys, which that's just reprehensible. Hailing Mary, 
you hail God, not Mary. And then every 10th beat, I think, 
is an Our Father. So you just sort of run through 
these prayers in a vain, repetitious way. And again, the underlying 
assumption is that you're going to be heard for your many words. 
That is precisely not the reason Jesus gave us this model prayer. Why would he say, don't be like 
the heathen and pray, you know, vain things, thinking you'll 
be heard from it? Oh, but by the way, here's a prayer so you 
can run through it and pray it vainly, just thinking that because 
of your many words, you'll be heard. So you're supposed to 
look at each of these petitions, and you're supposed to ponder 
each of these petitions, and you're supposed to look for places 
to apply them. But that's another whole sermon. I just want to look at the petitions 
themselves. The God word petitions are in 
verses 9 to 11, and then you have man word petitions in verses 
11 to 13a. And what I mean by that is that 
God comes first. When we come to prayer, it's 
not in the first place about us. I know that's hard for us, 
because everything's about us. But when it's time for prayer, 
it's supposed to be God first. If ever there's a place to apply 
Matthew 6, seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, 
and then these things will be added to you. It's in the closet. 
It's at the family altar. It's in the corporate prayer 
meeting. This is imperative that we understand that this is a 
conspicuous order. It is given for a reason. Just 
like the Ten Commandments begins with God and then ends with man, 
so does the Lord's Prayer. It begins with God and then ends 
with man. Don't mistake that. Don't think 
it's a literary divisor that Matthew and Luke just sort of 
worked the material that way. No, this is the way it's supposed 
to be. In the first place, we're to 
pray for the hallowing, the honoring, the glorifying of God's great 
name. Just like what Elijah does. He 
wants to magnify. He wants to manifest. He wants 
to demonstrate the greatness of the God of Israel. Again, 
you take that petition, and you start thinking through it, and 
you pray it back to God. Lord, help me to hallow your 
name. Help me not to misspeak. Help me not to engage in misdeeds, 
because when David sinned, Nathan the prophet said, by this you 
have given cause to the enemies of God to blaspheme. Lord, help 
my wife, help my children, help our local church, that when we 
gather together on the Lord's Day, it's about the Lord of the 
day. It isn't in the first place us, 
but rather God, that our church collectively would hallow the 
great and the awesome and the glorious name of God. See, it's 
not just a vain repetition, hallow it be your name, but it's a teasing 
out of the implications of that reality. And then the second, 
he speaks concerning God's kingdom. And we could delineate this into 
a two-fold kingdom. The kingdom of grace now and 
the kingdom of glory that comes at the end. So a Sunday morning, 
a Sunday afternoon prayer consistent with this is, Lord may your kingdom 
come through the proclamation of the truth. May your kingdom 
come as the Word of God goes forth. May that grace be manifested 
by the power of the Holy Spirit such that new sinners enter in 
to that kingdom. And of course, we think about 
that kingdom of glory. We say with John the Apostle 
at the end of the book of Revelation, even so, come Lord Jesus. I mean, 
brethren, isn't that the reflex of the heart of the person of 
God who's been blood-bought? Don't we want the eschaton? Don't 
we want the glory to come? Don't we want that place wherein 
righteousness dwells, where we commune with Father, Son, and 
Holy Spirit? I mean, that's the chief end 
of our religion. The chief end of man is to glorify 
God and to enjoy Him forever. So we pray that petition. God's 
name, God's kingdom, and then God's will. That God's will be 
done on earth as it is in heaven. In other words, we pray that 
for ourselves. Help me to be obedient to you, Lord. Help my 
children to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and to walk in obedience 
to the sovereign God. We pray for this society. It 
certainly doesn't look like what I think or expect heaven's going 
to look like. You pray or you tell us to pray 
that God's will be done on earth as it is in heaven. This is where 
we pray God criminalize abortion, criminalize euthanasia. We do 
not see abortion clinics and euthanasia in the New Jerusalem. And if Christ tells us to pray 
that the will of God be done on earth as it is in heaven, 
that is a legitimate expression of that petition. So you see 
God's name, God's kingdom, God's will comes first. And then there 
are those things that directly affect us. In the fourth place, 
in terms of overall petition, he tells us to pray for our temporal 
provision. Verse 11, give us this day our 
daily bread. We certainly do pray that for 
ourselves. God, help me to make money. Help 
me to buy product. Help me to get those things that 
I need to sustain life. This is where you'd pray. concerning 
medical challenges, health issues, the difficulties affecting not 
only yourself but your family and the church at large. These 
are legitimate things and expressions. And again, they're heads that 
we flash out in terms of the specific details. So temporal 
provision. And then he goes on to say, there 
are spiritual provisions that we seek from the face of God. And I would just summarize this 
as forgiveness and as protection. Notice in verse 12, forgive us 
our debts as we forgive our debtors. So we need God's forgiveness 
each and every day. I don't think there is a... I 
think it is the case that we ought to infer. When we pray, 
give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts, I think 
it wouldn't be unwise to add daily. or for each and every 
day, because we continually sin against God. And as well, God, 
give us the bountiful spirit that we see manifested in you 
to be able to forgive others as well, because we bump into 
each other, we engage in that sort of thing, we offend each 
other, we offend our wives. Some of us do we we have wives 
that offend their husbands not in my case But we have that and 
so we need daily forgiveness But then that protection notice 
what he says in verse 13 and do not lead us into temptation 
But deliver us from the evil one again a necessary petition. I remember going to to college 
and seeing the sorts of things in Southern California that a 
young man shouldn't be looking at. And I would take Bible memory. 
I'm not saying, boy, what a holy guy. I'm really not. But I would 
take memory verses and I'd try to look at those three by five 
cards walking to classes because I didn't want to be encumbered 
with that sort of thing. We ought not to pray, do not 
lead us into temptation while we blindly walk into temptation. But the bottom line is we seek 
from God the temporal provision and spiritual provision. But 
even before our food, even before our forgiveness, and even before 
our protection, God's name, God's kingdom, and God's will comes 
first. And then it ends with a doxology. 
If you're not in the King James tradition, you don't have the 
doxology. King James tradition has it. 
It's in a very early Christian document called the Didache. 
So I think it is good in terms of its inclusion. For yours is 
the kingdom and the power and the glory forever, amen. So Jesus cautions us with reference 
to the motivation in prayer. Don't be like the hypocrite who 
wants the eyes of men. Jesus cautions us with reference 
to the manner of prayer. Don't be like the heathen who 
thinks that he can control his God and by his many words, get 
God to do what he wants. And then Jesus furnishes us with 
this model prayer to frame our minds, to frame our hearts, and 
to provide substance to us so that when we enter into the throne 
of grace, we're not saying, boy, I wonder what we should pray 
about. Here are several excellent petitions that ought to find 
their way into our closets. Now, the final thing I want to 
observe by way of application is the place of prayer and the 
sovereignty of God. If you look at verse 8, therefore 
do not be like them, for your father knows the things you have 
need of before you ask him. Again, that invites the criticism, 
then why pray? It oftentimes expresses itself 
in a prayerless one. Well, he knows what I need. He does look after me, so why 
would I spend time Seeking those things, kind of a hyper-Calvinistic 
approach with reference to prayer. I just want to give a few thoughts, 
and then we'll close. In the first place, prayer is 
commanded by God. He commands us to pray. Not in 
this passage. Jesus assumes that we'll pray. 
But the Bible does command people to pray. So when God commands 
us to do something, we're not to try to hyper-Calvinistic our 
way out of it. We are simply to obey him and 
pray. Secondly, prayer is an act of 
worship. It is an act of worship, not 
therapy, not self-help. Not promoting a better me, but 
it's an act of worship. It is devotion to God. It is 
an expression of our faith in God, and it is our submission 
to God. Thirdly, prayer is communion 
with the triune God, the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. Our 
confession of faith describes it this way, prayer with thanksgiving. 
being one part of natural worship, is by God required of all men. 
But that it may be accepted, it is to be made in the name 
of the Son, by the help of the Spirit, according to His will, 
with understanding, reverence, humility, fervency, faith, love, 
and perseverance." Good thing to remember. In the fourth place, 
I've already hit this nail, won't keep on hitting it, it's an exercise 
of faith. Without faith, it is impossible 
to please Him. Those who believe that God is, 
must believe that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek 
Him. Fifth, prayer is an expression of our dependence upon God, which 
I've already touched on. Sixth, prayer is a means of conformity 
to God's will. It's not us trying to conform 
God to our will, but rather it is an attempt for conformity 
of us to His will. I think John Owen explains this 
well. He who prays as he ought will 
endeavor to live as he prays. Let me just repeat that. He who prays as he ought will 
endeavor to live as he prays. J.C. Ryle says, May we resolve 
that by God's help our hearts shall go together with our lips. So it's a means by which we are 
conformed unto God's will and not an attempt to conform God 
to our will. Seventh, prayer is a means of 
expressing our thankfulness to God, that threefold sort of paradigm, 
guilt, grace, gratitude. Gratitude is expressed at the 
throne of grace by the worshiper who has been redeemed by God's 
grace. And then eighthly and finally, 
prayer is a means of unburdening ourselves upon the one who cares 
for us. Again, there is a therapeutic 
element in prayer, just not like the way the heathen teach us 
or the humanists teach us. You know, it doesn't matter who 
you're praying to, as long as you pray, it has a sort of a 
soothing effect on you. No, but true prayer is an unburdening 
of ourselves. Doesn't Peter say this? 1 Peter 
chapter 5 with Psalm 55 in his sort of mindset or background. 
Cast your cares upon God. Why? Because He cares for you. 
John Calvin makes this observation. He says, believers do not pray 
with the view of informing God about things unknown to him or 
of exciting him to do his duty or urging him as though he were 
reluctant. On the contrary, they pray. in 
order that they may arouse themselves to seek Him, that they may exercise 
their faith in meditating on His promises, that they may relieve 
themselves from their anxieties by pouring them into His bosom, 
in a word, that they may declare that from Him alone they hope 
and expect, both for themselves and for others, all good things." 
Now, if you are not a believer, it doesn't come because you pray. It is through faith in Jesus 
Christ. In other words, look unto him 
and be ye saved all the ends of the earth. For God is God 
and there is no other. Now, certainly prayer is a reflex. When we believe the gospel of 
our Lord Jesus, we will pray. We will be identified like Saul 
of Tarsus. Behold, he is praying. My point is, unless your prayer 
is a prayer and expression of faith in the living and true 
God, the idea that by praying, by reading Bible, by going to 
church, by these religious observances, I'm going to be rewarded with 
salvation. That is contrary to the scripture. 
That is contrary to the gospel of free grace. For if righteousness 
comes to the law, or obedience, or through works of righteousness 
that we have done, then Christ died in vain. Again, the prayer 
of faith directed at Christ is a most blessed thing. It is faith 
in Jesus. We're justified by faith. If you are not saved, look to 
Christ in faith, and then pray. Behold, he prayeth, is what Jesus 
says to Ananias to identify Saul of Tarsus. Well, let us close 
in a word of prayer. Our Father, we thank you for 
this section in Matthew's Gospel. We thank you for our Lord's instruction 
concerning almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. And I pray that 
as we consider these things, you would keep us from these 
abuses. Keep us from the motivation of the hypocrite and the manner 
of the heathen and give us wisdom, God, as we approach this model 
prayer afforded to us by our gracious Lord. And I ask, God, 
for any and all hearing these things that are not saved, I 
pray that you would do that work that is impossible with men and 
open hearts and show them the glory of Jesus Christ. And may 
they, by grace, believe on him and have everlasting life. And 
we ask this in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. We'll 
close with a brief time of meditation.