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The Power of Prayer: Lessons from Matthew 6:5-8

Explore the profound teachings of Jesus on prayer from Matthew 6:5-8 in this sermon, delving into the importance of authentic communication with God, avoiding hypocritical behaviors in prayer, and embracing the knowledge that God already understands our needs.

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The Power of Prayer: Lessons from Matthew 6:5-8

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  1. Matthew 6:5-8 (NKJV) 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. 6 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;

  2. Matthew 6:5-8(NKJV) and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. 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. 8 “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.

  3. Sermon On The Mount:Lord, Teach Us To Pray Matthew 6:5-8

  4. Lord, Teach Us To Pray • We continue our ongoing study of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) • Last week we began chapter 6 by looking at what Jesus taught on doing charitable deeds • Jesus warned not to do them to be seen by men

  5. Lord, Teach Us To Pray • Obviously, our motivation for the things we do for others matters • We are not to do them to gain praise from men • When we do charitable deeds from a pure heart in secret, God will reward us openly

  6. Lord, Teach Us To Pray • Tonight we continue on in our text as Christ continues to speak about things that are important to our living acceptable lives before Him • Jesus now begins to speak about prayer • This subject is well worth our time spent in study of it

  7. Lord, Teach Us To Pray • 1. Why do we pray? (vs. 5-6) • Jesus begins by repeating some of the same characteristics that He gave for doing charitable deeds • “And when you pray…” • It’s not IF we pray but WHEN we pray • Prayer is to the spiritual as food is to the physical

  8. Lord, Teach Us To Pray • 1. Why do we pray? (vs. 5-6) • “…you shall not be like the hypocrites” • Hypocrite = actor • Proof of their acting was the fact that they “love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men”

  9. Lord, Teach Us To Pray • 1. Why do we pray? (vs. 5-6) • They were doing it all for show • Isn’t that what actors do today? • Just as with our charitable deeds, our motives matter in our prayer life • “You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss…” (Js. 4:3)

  10. Lord, Teach Us To Pray • 1. Why do we pray? (vs. 5-6) • Jesus tells us to go and pray in our room with the door shut • When we do such we prove that our only motive is to genuinely talk to our Father • It’s not for show, but rather to pour out our hearts to God

  11. Lord, Teach Us To Pray • 1. Why do we pray? (vs. 5-6) • This does not mean that we cannot pray in a public setting at all • However, we need to be careful that when we do pray in public, we are doing so for the right reason and not to merely be seen • God rewards those who come to Him

  12. Lord, Teach Us To Pray • 2. Watch what you say (v. 7) • Jesus warns not to use vain repetitions as the heathens do • This does not mean that we cannot use repetitions, but rather vain ones • Remember Jesus taught persistency in prayer (Lk. 18:1-8)

  13. Lord, Teach Us To Pray • 2. Watch what you say (v. 7) • These were men who were saying the same things over and over again for another reason • “For they think that they will be heard for their many words” • It’s as if they thought God would be impressed with them

  14. Lord, Teach Us To Pray • 2. Watch what you say (v. 7) • What’s impressive to men is not always impressive to God • Remember that God sees beyond the action and into the heart, which contains the motives behind the action • Our words should be sincere and not said to impress men

  15. Lord, Teach Us To Pray • 3. Don’t forget who He is (v. 8) • Jesus plainly teaches not to be like the hypocrites and heathens • That’s why it was so important to learn prayer from Christ and not others • On one occasion He was asked, “Lord, teach us to pray” (Lk. 11:1)

  16. Lord, Teach Us To Pray • 3. Don’t forget who He is (v. 8) • We need to sometimes be reminded of who it is that we are praying to and the power He possesses • That’s what Jesus does here when He says, “For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him”

  17. Lord, Teach Us To Pray • 3. Don’t forget who He is (v. 8) • There are some glaring truths that we learn from this statement that Jesus makes • We learn that God is all-knowing (omniscient) • We learn that God is concerned with us and notices us and our needs

  18. Lord, Teach Us To Pray • 3. Don’t forget who He is (v. 8) • We learn that God does not need a detailed explanation of what we need or why we need it • We also learn that God wants us to communicate our needs to Him, even though He knows these things

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