TEXT: Matthew 6:5-8

SUBJECT: Exposition of the Sermon on the Mount #13: Motivation in Prayer

The first eighteen verses of this chapter provide a study in contrast. On one side are the disciples of Christ; on the other side are the Pharisees. Both parties did good works. Both did the same good works. Yet the two were as different as night and day. Why? Because of what motivated each. The Pharisees did good deeds "to be seen of men"; the Lord's people did them "to the praise of the glory of His grace". Hence, we must never be satisfied with an outward performance of duty. "The LORD looks on the heart". Therefore, He urges you and me,

"My son,

Give me your heart".

The first example is "charity". The Lord assumes that we care for the poor; that we help them in their distress. But He warns that we mustn't be generous for the sake of being known as generous. Or to build self-esteem. No, we ought to "do charitable deeds" for God's sake.

The second example is "prayer", vv.5-8. About it, we can say,

The Lord Jesus assumes that we pray. "And when you pray"--not "if". Is He right? He is, for prayer is at the heart of God's religion, both under the Old Covenant and the New Covenant.

The Israelites were often commanded to pray. I Chronicles 16:11 is a well-known example: "Seek the LORD and His strength; seek His face continually". Its saints were devoted to prayer. Daniel prayed thrice each day--at the risk of his life. David topped him with "seven times I day I praise You because of Your righteous judgments". Prayers were often remarkably answered, as when Joshua dared, "Sun stand still over Gibeon; and you, moon, over the valley of Ajalon". The absence of prayer was a sure sign of hypocrisy, no matter how pious one was in other ways. Job interrogated the wicked, "Will he delight himself in the Almighty? Will he always call upon God?"

Their obligation is doubly ours. For "to whom much is given, much will be required". We have far more than the saints did of old. Thus, we ought to be even more devoted to prayer than they were. I Thessalonians 5:17 puts it succinctly: "Pray without ceasing". Arthur W. Pink was on to something when he wrote: "A prayerless Christian is a contradiction in terms".

And so, the Lord assumes that we will be prayerful. But He's not content with just any old prayer. He wants our prayers--like our "charitable deeds" to be rightly motivated.

What is the right motive? He makes in plain in vv.5-6. Negatively, we must not pray as the Pharisees did, v.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 of men..."

The Pharisees were "hypocrites". In the First Century, the word meant "actors"; the Pharisees were "playing the part of godly men". They weren't godly--but wanted everyone to think they were. And they "put on their act" in various ways--especially in how and where they prayed. Where did they pray? In public places, "the synagogues and on the corners of the streets". There is nothing wrong with praying in these places--or anywhere. But they prayed in such places only! Why? "...That they may be seen of men". If your goal in prayer is "to be seen of men", why waste your prayers on God?

This brings up an important question: Is it wrong to pray in public? If this verse stood alone, we might say "yes". But it doesn't. At the tomb of Lazarus, the Lord Jesus prayed in public. The early church did. Paul commands it. In the context of the church, he writes, "I would, therefore, that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands..."

And so, it's not wrong to pray in public. For men, it is a duty. What is wrong? Not praying in public, but praying to the public. This is a serious temptation; anyone who's prayed in the prayer-meeting knows that. My public prayers, for example, are often better than my private devotions. They're often more humble, more fervent, more filled with the glory of God. This is "hypocrisy"--in Pharisee, in pastor, and in you. God save us from showboating. What a godless act this is. Is anything more blasphemous? To invoke the Name of an all-knowing God, and then pray for the ears of men?

The positive side of our Lord's teaching is this: "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".

As long as you're praying within earshot of others, your sincerity is unproven. Therefore, you must pray privately. It doesn't matter where or when or for how long, but you must be given to secret prayer.

This is the test of your motivation. If you pray better in public than you do in private, you "pray like the hypocrites". You pray "to be seen of men". And if you do, you "have your reward". In the words of the NIV, you "have your reward in full". You can expect nothing else. God will not receive your praise; He will not forgive your sins; He will not answer your petition. If you pray to men, they'll have to answer. But like Baal, men cannot "send fire".

But "your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly". The hypocrite receives nothing from prayer but reputation. The Lord's disciple, however, obtains much more: answers. Which do you prefer?

In sum: We mustn't pray to impress men. This is most easily done in public prayer, of course. But we can play the hypocrite with private prayers, too. How? By talking about how much we pray; by telling everyone how long our prayer-list is; by locking ourselves in our rooms and solemnly informing our family: "I must have time to pray". This, like the Pharisee's public displays, is a form of spiritual exhibitionism. It's good to be a "prayer warrior"; it's bad to tell everyone you're a "prayer warrior".

In vv.7-8, the Lord digresses from the subject of "motivation in prayer" and tells us how to pray in private. "But 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."

Our prayers mustn't become "vain repetitions". This means "babbling". When are we must likely to "babble" in prayer? When we pray "by the clock". Some Christians are too organized for their own good. They schedule prayer and pray for the allotted time--whether they have anything to say or not. Consequently, their prayers become "vain repetitions".

These "babblings" are very bad. Why? Because the "heathen" pray this way. They honestly think they "will be heard for their many words". The more they pray, the better their chances of receiving an answer.

The Lord thinks otherwise: "Your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask". This is strange. The very argument some use against praying, the Lord uses for praying. "If God knows what I need, why pray?" some ask. This doesn't make sense. We pray because He knows our needs and has determined to meet them--in answer to our prayers.

Let us, therefore, become authentic in our praying. In public, let's stop praying to each other and begin praying to God. In private, let's stop filling prayer quotas with clanging cliches' and begin praying "with the spirit and with the understanding".

May God help us do so, for Christ's sake. Amen.