October 4, 2016

"When you pray, don’t be like those show-offs who love to stand up and pray in the meeting places and on the street corners. They do this just to look good. I can assure you that they already have their reward." Matthew 6:5

Each of us serve as an example - either a bad example or a good example.

Which are you?

Jesus pointed to the religious leaders of His day and told His followers, "Don't pray like them! They are bad examples!"

What would Jesus say if He pointed to your prayer life?

The point Jesus wants to make in pointing out the hypocrisy of the Pharisees is this, "Prayer must be sincere!"

In my next several posts leading up to my message on Sunday I will be sharing some examples of some classic sincere prayers from the Bible.

"Make this your common practice: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed. The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with." James 5:16

"About this time, Hezekiah got sick and was almost dead. Isaiah the prophet went in and told him, “The Lord says you won’t ever get well. You are going to die, so you had better start doing what needs to be done.” Hezekiah turned toward the wall and prayed, “Don’t forget that I have been faithful to you, Lord. I have obeyed you with all my heart, and I do whatever you say is right.” After this, he cried hard." II Kings 20:1-3

"Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight; so you are right in your verdict and justified when you judge. Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb; you taught me wisdom in that secret place. Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice. Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Then I will teach transgressors your ways, so that sinners will turn back to you. Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, you who are God my Savior and my tongue will sing of your righteousness. Open my lips, Lord, and my mouth will declare your praise. You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit;  a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise." Psalm 51:1-17

Do these sound anything like your prayers?

Sincere prayers are honest and heartfelt!

Some Doubted Him

"When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted." Matthew 28:17

Now, why did they put that last phrase in there? Isn't that curious? I understand that Matthew would want us to know that the eleven remaining disciples worshiped the Risen Jesus - but did we need to know about the doubters?

How could you doubt Jesus when He is right there; risen, alive, and triumphant?

This serves as one more proof of the authenticity of the Bible. Had it been written by men who were trying to deceive they would not have included those three words "but some doubted".

So, what should we make of that statement?

Personally, I take encouragement from it! Here's why:

First, it tells me that these "some who doubted" (and we don't know how many of them there were) worshiped through their doubts. Even though they were unresolved in their faith, they didn't let it keep them from falling at the feet of the Resurrected Jesus.

Haven't you come to church some time when you were struggling with a doubt? What better place to be when you are unresolved in your faith?

Second, it tells me that God can use spiritually unresolved people to change the world! This same group of eleven became the foundation for the Church of Jesus Christ. So, not only did they worship through their doubts but the served through their doubts.

How many times have you stepped out into some new endeavor for the Lord and you weren't sure what the result would be. It was scary and uncomfortable for you but you leaned on His strength and worked through your doubts! I'm sure you have done that. I know I have!

Third, it doesn't say whether the doubts they had were toward Jesus or about themselves. For every doubt I have had about Him, I have had a thousand toward myself. In fact, when God began to lay the calling for ministry upon my heart, I resisted for four years primarily because I had serious doubts about my ability to measure up to that calling. I believed God could do it I just didn't think I could. Fortunately, a good friend assured me that when He calls He enables.

Why are those three words included in this significant portion of Scripture? I think it is because God want us to know that it is okay to have doubts as long as we worship through them and work through them.

God is greater than our doubts!

If you are struggling with some doubts today - bring them to the feet of Jesus!

October 2, 2016

"When you pray, don’t be like those show-offs who love to stand up and pray in the meeting places and on the street corners. They do this just to look good. I can assure you that they already have their reward. When you pray, go into a room alone and close the door. Pray to your Father in private. He knows what is done in private, and he will reward you. When you pray, don’t talk on and on as people do who don’t know God. They think God likes to hear long prayers. Don’t be like them. Your Father knows what you need before you ask." Matthew 6:5-8

A man bought a donkey from a preacher. The preacher told the man that this donkey had been trained in a very unique way, (being the donkey of a preacher). The only way to make the donkey go, was to say, "Hallelujah!" The only way to make the donkey stop, was to say, "Amen!"

The man was pleased with his purchase and immediately got on the animal to try out the preacher's instructions. "Hallelujah!" shouted the man. The donkey began to trot. "Amen!" shouted the man. The donkey stopped immediately. "This is great!" said the man. With a "Hallelujah," he rode off very proud of his new purchase.

The man traveled for a long time through some mountains. Soon he was heading toward a cliff. He could not remember the word to make the donkey stop. "Stop," said the man. "Halt!" he cried. The donkey just kept going. "Oh, no... Bible!....Church!...Please Stop!!" shouted the man. The donkey just began to trot faster. He was getting closer and closer to the cliff edge. Finally, in desperation, the man said a prayer. "Please, dear Lord. Please make this donkey stop before I go off the end of this mountain, In Jesus name, AMEN."

The donkey came to an abrupt stop just one step from the edge of the cliff.

"HALLELUJAH!", shouted the man.

It is hard to emphasize how vital prayer is to the Christian life, so getting it right makes a huge difference!

I'm sure that is why in His first teaching on prayer Jesus said, "When you pray, don't pray like these religious leaders. Rather, pray like this:"

1) Pray sincerely

Don't pray in a showy way trying to impress others with your piety. Prayer should not call attention to you it should call attention to God. Simply pour out your heart-felt desires to God in a humble and contrite spirit.

2) Pray secretly

When you pray, spend at least as much time praying alone in your secret place as you do publicly. Getting alone with God to pray is much more important than standing before people. Kneel before you stand!

3) Pray securely

When you pray, come to God with confidence in His love and grace and mercy. Know that He longs to hear from you and commune with you! You need not try to coerce Him or cajole Him to bend to your will. He desires to give you what you need!

What you say in prayer is important, but how you say it and where you say it is even more crucial. The story illustrated it but Jesus validated it!

October 1, 2016

"When you pray, don’t talk on and on as people do who don’t know God. They think God likes to hear long prayers. Don’t be like them. Your Father knows what you need before you ask." Matthew 6:7-8

As we have been examining this teaching of Jesus on prayer we have learned two truths from Him thus far:

1) Pray sincerely

2) Pray secretly

Today we will examine a third - pray securely. Come to God in a secure knowledge He is leaning toward you welcoming your prayer. You don't have prattle on with long and pretentious prayers. God doesn't have to be leveraged, cajoled or nagged.

Force?

These two verses from Jesus' teaching on prayer beg the question, "Is it the force of your prayer OR is it the focus of your prayer?"

It seems that, based on how the religious leaders prayed, they thought they could "soften God up" or "wear Him down" or "win Him over" by the sheer force and volume of their prayers. 

Have you been tempted to think that way?

 "When you pray, don’t talk on and on as people do who don’t know God. They think God likes to hear long prayers." Matthew 6:7

  

  "Can worry make you live longer? Why worry about clothes? Look how the wild flowers grow. They don’t work hard to make their clothes. But I tell you that Solomon with all his wealth wasn’t as well clothed as one of them. God gives such beauty to everything that grows in the fields, even though it is here today and thrown into a fire tomorrow.He will surely do even more for you! Why do you have such little faith?

Don’t worry and ask yourselves,“Will we have anything to eat? Will we have anything to drink? Will we have any clothes to wear?” Only people who don’t know God are always worrying about such things. Your Father in heaven knows that you need all of these." Matthew 6:27-32

  

·  Focus?


When you pray, come to God with the secure knowledge of Who He is and who you are in Him.

  "Don’t be like them. Your Father knows what you    need before you ask." Matthew 6:8

"I tell you not to worry about your life. Don’t worry about having something to eat, drink, or wear. Isn’t life more than food or clothing? Look at the birds in the sky! They don’t plant or harvest. They don’t even store grain in barns. Yet your Father in heaven takes care of them. Aren’t you worth more than birds?" Matthew 6:25-26

"But more than anything else, put God’s work first and do what he wants. Then the other things will be yours as well." Matthew 6:33

THROUGHOUT THIS CHAPTER JESUS REFERS TO GOD AS “FATHER” AND INSTRUCTS US TO DO THE SAME! HE TELLS US TO FOCUS ON THAT WHEN WE GO TO PRAYER AND BE SURE KNOWING:

·       He hears you!

·       He listens to you!

·       He loves you!

·       He knows what you need!

·       He cares about your needs!

·       He will provide what you need!

I don’t know about you, but I get excited about the thought of a God I don’t have to try to leverage, or coerce, or force to get what I pray for. It gives me a great deal of security to go in a room and close the door and pray to a God who loves me and longs to spend time with me and knows what I need and who is willing and able to provide it!

September 30, 2016

"When you pray, go into a room alone and close the door. Pray to your Father in private. He knows what is done in private, and he will reward you." Matthew 6:6

"When you pray", Jesus said, "Don't pray to make a public spectacle but go into a private place an close the door."

First, you are to pray sincerely and second you are to pray secretly.

Why pray privately not publicly?

• What if prayer is about not you being seen but about you seeing God?

• What if prayer is not about making an impression about God but about being impressed by God?

• What if not about being heard by God but more about hearing from God?

• What if prayer is not about displaying your religion in public but about developing a personal relationship in private?

• What about making sure you spend time kneeling in private before you spend any time standing in public.

Do you think Jesus had any of these things in mind when He instructed His followers "When you pray, go into a room alone and close the door"? 

Notice that Jesus didn't say, "Stay in that room alone with God forever and never come back out." He calls you into the world of darkness to be a light. It was Him Who prayed that you would be "In the world but not of the world?"

There is no doubt God calls you into the world to witness and serve and seek to reach the lost. BUT, first He calls you into a room to shut the door and be alone with Him.

"When you pray, pray secretly."

September 29, 2016

"When you pray, don’t be like those show-offs who love to stand up and pray in the meeting places and on the street corners. They do this just to look good. I can assure you that they already have their reward." Matthew 6:5

If someone asked you, "What is the purpose of prayer?" how would you answer?

Why do you pray?

I can't predict how you would answer but I am sure you don't pray just so you can impress others. 

That's the attitude and the motive that Jesus detests. He found it detestable in the religious leaders of His day and since He never changes, we know He must still be disgusted by it!

Think about it!

Think about participating in a spiritual act intended to help you to enter into fellowship with God but you choose to use for the purpose of drawing attention to yourself.

Think about feigning prayer to a Holy Almighty God specifically for the purpose of gaining respect and building a reputation for yourself! How lousy is that?

When you pretend to be something you're not by doing something you don't really mean, what does that make you? 

A fake? 

A fraud?

A phony?

Jesus uses the word, "hypocrite". That word comes from the Greek word "hypocrisis" which is the word used for an actor in one of their many plays. An actor is a pretender playing the part of someone he is not. The very accomplished actor can make you actually believe that character he plays is really who he is!

"Don't do that!" Jesus says!

"Don't use prayer to be your fake self, use prayer to find your real self!"

Jesus said that if you are praying public prayers to gain the respect and admiration of others, then if you manage to gain that respect and admiration you have your reward!

Jesus never did that. He never prayed loud raucous prayers intended to call attention to Himself. The vast majority of His prayer was done in secret places.

Whether He prayed publicly or privately Jesus prayer powerful, simple and sincere prayers.

The word "sincere" comes from two Greek words "sine" and "ceris". Put together those who words are translated "without wax". 

Why is that a big deal?

Melted wax was often used by potters to fill in the cracks that might develop when the pots were in the kiln. The melted wax would be poured into the crack, smoothed off and painted over to hide the crack. Once the pot was painted it was then sold with the first quality pottery. If the pot was set out in the sun the wax would be melted and the fault exposed.

Because this practice was fairly common a reputable dealer would advertise his pottery was "sine" "ceris" or "without wax".

So Jesus is saying, "When you pray let your prayers be sincere - "without wax".

Jesus was also saying, "The prayers of the Pharisees and the religious leaders are insincere. When it comes to prayer they were "cracked pots".

Sincere prayer comes out of a proper motive. Jesus refers to the insincere motives of the religious leaders prayers:

• They wanted to appear religious 
• They wanted to attain a reward
• 
  

However, Jesus prefers these motives for praying:

• To enjoy a relationship
• To enter into a reward

properly done allows you to enjoy a vital, vibrant and satisfying relationship with God. And when that happens He becomes you reward!

Are your prayers sincere?

Pray Secure Prayers

"When you pray, don’t be like those show-offs who love to stand up and pray in the meeting places and on the street corners. They do this just to look good. I can assure you that they already have their reward. When you pray, go into a room alone and close the door. Pray to your Father in private. He knows what is done in private, and he will reward you. When you pray, don’t talk on and on as people do who don’t know God. They think God likes to hear long prayers. Don’t be like them. Your Father knows what you need before you ask."

Matthew 6:5-8

Jesus referenced how the Pharisees and religious leaders pray and then pointed out to His disciples, "Don't pray like this!"

So, they must have wondered, "Okay then, how should we pray?"

That was the question He was waiting for!

After pointing out two things the religious leaders where doing wrong with prayer He told them them three things they should do right!

When you pray:

1) Pray sincerely

2) Pray secretly

3) Pray securely

We will examine these three aspects of prayer that honors God.

Without getting into specifics (which I will) what differences can you see at face value?

What is the opposite of sincerity?

Is it not hypocrisy?

When the Pharisees and religious types of that day stood in very public places praying loudly and pretentiously how does that impact you?

Have you seen anyone pray like that?

If so, how did it make you feel?

Have you ever prayed like that?

It's one thing to pray fervent prayers in public if you are praying personal passionate prayers in private.

Don't you think you can pray more sincere prayer in public if you are praying regularly in a secret place?

Jesus said, "When you pray, GO INTO A ROOM ALONE."

When you intentionally decide to get alone with God to pray you are serious about praying! That has to be the most sincere form of prayer wouldn't you say?

And don't pray long, wordy, flowery, religious sounding prayers. 

Pray secure prayers.

What are secure prayers?

When I say "secure" prayers I am referring to prayers addressed by someone who is secure in his relationship with His Heavenly Father and confident he doesn't have to beg God to hear him.

Are you secure when you come to God in prayer?

Do you ever feel like you have to beg God to hear you when you pray?

"When you pray", Jesus said.

When Jesus says, "When you pray", I say, "You should listen and learn!"