July 30, 2023
Matthew 6:5-15 (READ AS WE GO)

Notes:

• We have covered verses in this section of the Sermon out of order.
• The KJV has the doxology, “For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.” This ending appears in many ancient manuscripts, but “It was not original.” (Utley) “Evidently, pious scribes added it later to make the prayer more suitable for use in public worship. They apparently adapted the wording of David’s prayer in 1 Chronicles 29:11.” (Constable, cf. Blomberg, 120, et al.)

The title of the sermon is “Kingdom Competency: Fasting, Giving, Praying, pt 2.” We are in the middle of the illustrations, instructions and applications that Jesus used to teach His audience against “acting out” righteousness before people and how to do rewardable righteous acts. The consequence of failing in these commands of righteousness is to have future rewards wiped away from our accounts. Jesus’ instructions for perfection called for righteous acts in three core elements of “Jewish piety,” fasting, prayer, and giving.¹ These acts are are not suggestions but are instead assumed to be a part of the community of God. Do these things of righteousness, but --Jesus warned-- “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them.” (6:1) You’ll remember Carson’s recap from last week: “Be perfect, but be careful.” ¶ After we look at Jesus’ warnings against prayer for show, we will be covering the Model Prayer, more often called The Lord’s Prayer. The value of these warnings and this prayer model Jesus gave us in invaluable. Many people have been saved from self-centered prayer because of this example. There would also be a significant gap in the Church without it. So I am looking forward to looking at this passage with you this morning.

SOMEONE READ vv 5-8
5 “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. 7 “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

• Jesus warns against praying like two groups of people:
  • The first, don’t pray like the religious actors.
  • The second, don’t pray like the heathens either.
  • Both of these groups share something in common: their prayers are for show.

The stages for the religious types for during Jesus’ earthly ministry was two-fold: public corners and their places of worship.

• Notice, Jesus doesn’t use the term “street” but instead uses the phrase “street corners.” These people want to be seen doing prayer in two streets not just one!
  • Did people do this in the first century or is this an illustration?
  • It’s hard for us to think this was a thing in Israel, but religious life looks exactly like this still in places of the orient.
  • That would seem strange to us, but this would have been a familiar sight in first century Judaism. Jews praying in public can still be seen today.
• The second potential stage for these religious types was their synagogues.
  • Carson described the possible scene well: “In synagogue services public prayer was customarily led by a male member of the congregation who stood in front of the ark of the law [the piece of furniture that housed the physical copy of the OT] and discharged this responsibility. A man could easily succumb to the temptation of praying up to the audience / congregation. The acceptable clichés, the appropriate sentiments, the [rich] tones, the well-pitched fervency, all become tools to win approval, and perhaps to compete with the chap who led in prayer last week.” (The Sermon …, 58)
  • Their reward? “Did you hear that prayer of brother So-and-so today? What a prayer!”
  • The hypocrite gets what he is after, but no more. The whole things turn out to be a what we could call a “public relations stunt.” (Carson, The Sermon …, 57)
• One thing is for sure even if it was an illustration: Jesus had in mind that people’s public prayers for the show of it was not to be tolerated in His people.

Jesus then says in essence, Don’t model the heathens either.
Verse 7 “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words.

• When not if … His audience prays. We are to pray.
• But not with “empty phrases” = battalogeō;
  • Can mean to babble; that is why eight English translation chose something like “babbling like pagans” or heathen.
  • this word is unknown outside the Bible² = to stammer … to “heap up” … to repeat the same things over and over, to use many and idle words. (Thayer);
  • The lost world used incantations which are “ritual recitation of verbal charms or spells to produce” an effect. (Wordnik)
  • So as France wrote, It was these “magical incantations, in which the correct repetition counted rather than the worships’ attitude or intention.” (The Gospel According …, 132; emphasis mine)
• So babbling:
  • Many Christian denomination join in thought with repetitive prayers which are more like Eastern mystics’ and resemble new-age chanting rather than biblically modeled prayers.
  • Man --left alone-- does not know how to pray. So we must applaud the humbleness of the disciple who asked of Jesus, “Lord, teach us to pray …” (Luke 11:1b)
  • “It is not many words God responds to, but an attitude of prayerful dependence.” (France, The Gospel According …, 132 f)
  • The Lord “calls for simplicity, directness, and sincerity …” (Blomberg, 118)

Another reason we don’t babble is in verse 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

• The prayers of the Saints are often marked by many words to say simple things. What Blomberg called, “long-winded and probably flowery or rhetorical oration.” (117)
• Jesus does not want us to say things 3, 4, 10 different ways in the same prayer. God is not a distracted teenager that needs repetition in thought to somehow, someway make things crystal-clear to Him with explanations that cover every slightest detail.
• Alos, who likes a child begging you! God’s doesn’t seem to like it either! That’s why we have verse 8. God knows what we need before it is spoken by us.
• Babbling shows a lack of trust power.
• Babbling shows a lack of trust in God’s love and care. Babbling minds think God to be indifferent.
• Babbling says, “God, I know best. Give me what I ask for.”
• We often refuse to fully turn our lives over to God and say, “In everything, You know what is best for me.”
• Jesus wants us to always remember that God knows what we need before we pray.

APPLICATION

• #1 Don’t or stop saying, “There’s no wrong way to pray.” ! There most certainly is! There are numerous wrong ways to pray.
  • People need discipleship regarding prayer.
  • Don’t tell people, “There’s no wrong way to pray.” We have a list here alone. Christians need instruction on how to approach God with our words. There are right ways to pray and wrong.
  • The longer wrong ways go on the harder it is to get people to pray the way Jesus instructed the Church.
• #2 Ridderbos said it well, "… prayer should always be as inconspicuous as possible."³
  • Don’t draw public attention to the way people pray.
• #3 Look to the Bible for its examples. It provides plenty of examples of how God is to be approached in prayer.
  • Listen to two of Paul’s prayer requests:
  • 2 Thessalonians 3:1-2, “Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed ahead and be honored, as happened among you, and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men.”
  • Colossians 4:2-4, “pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.”
• A few questions:
  • Do I pray more frequently when alone with God or in public?
  • Are my public prayers longer than my private prayers?
  • Do my public and private prayers sound different?
  • “Am I so busy scrambling to find expressions pleasing to my fellow worshipers that I am not really concentrating my attention on God …?” (Carson, The Sermon …, 59)
  • Our public prayers should match our private prayers. We should not embellish our public prayers.
• #4 Salomon said it well in Ecclesiastes 5:2, “Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few.”
  • Don’t do “charismatic prayers.”
  • Don’t explain things to death.
  • God knows what is needed and He is not a child that needs endless details of matters.
  • Don’t do repetitive phrases and sentences in our prayers. No babbling.
  • Illustration: “Father God.”
• #5 There is a place to ask God more than once for something. >>
  • For instance, our Lord taught us in Luke 18:1-8 via the widow who prays for justice again and again.
  • Paul asked God three times to remove the thorn in His flesh. (2 Corinthians 12:8) But then Paul received God’s answer.
• #6 Make sure, to the best you can, to pray prayers that are theologically correct.
• #7 Verse 6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
  • Jesus teaches that praying in private is the only way to ensure a rewarded prayer. This seems to be due to our propensity to be perceived in certain ways in public.
  • Secrecy is a key to guarding rewards. There are so many ways to get things wrong and so few to get things right. We must pay careful attention to our Lord’s words.
  • What we call “our egos” are powerful things and they constantly destroy what could be ours.
  • “The word ‘reward’ is recorded 30 times in the New Testament. With those occurrences, there is much instruction on the topic. God desires us to have deep understanding regarding how to maximize our reward possibilities that are available everyday.” (Robinson, online ver.)
  • “Secrecy is important because it takes the most faith. When we do things in secret like giving and praying, and those actions are between an individual and God alone, and one believes he will be rewarded later, it is both obedience and faith as a motivation.” (Robinson, online ver.)
  • “We, as fallen people, crave attention. The fleshly attention is a reward killer. People may see some of our works, but our ego is ready to relish the attention. We need to do everything we can in secret in this life.” (Robinson, online ver.)

Should we pray in public then? Of course. Are all public prayer prohibited?

• Fair questions.
• Jesus prayed in public, but He seemed to pray far more in private. Jesus prayed very brief prayers; He prayed all night at times. He assured His hearers here that our heavenly Father knows the needs of his children before we ask Him; yet Jesus also encourages those children to ask more than once in other parts of Scripture.
• Carson wrote that, Jesus’ “teaching never smacks of systematic theology.” >> (Carson, The Sermon …, 60)
  • There is no one size fits all here.
  • Jesus preaches in absolutes even when He is speaking about topics that have many variables. Unless we account for this, “we may neglect or distort what he says elsewhere on the same subject but under different conditions.” (Carson, The Sermon …, 60)
  • It takes wisdom, carefulness, and observation to not work oneself into a box with Jesus’ teachings.
  • We cannot always predict what Jesus would do in all situations.
  • WWJD, The better question to ask is “WDJD?” “What did Jesus do?” “How did Jesus pray?” “How did Jesus teach us to pray?” These are the better questions and responses from people of faith. Let’s do those things.

“It is heathen folly to measure prayer by the yard.”[611]

“There were those of the Pharisees who looked upon prayer (even as Mohammedans, Romanists, and others do now) as having a certain degree of merit in itself.”[612]

“… Christ does not forbid us to persist in prayers, long, often, or with much feeling, but requires that we should not be confident in our ability to wrest something from God by beating upon his ears with a garrulous [long-winded] flow of talk, as if he could be persuaded as men are.”[613]

Notes

^{Notes from above may not be in numerical order.}

¹ Evans, 121; cf. Carson, The Sermon …, 56, Plumptre & France, 130.
² France, The Gospel According…, 132.
³ As quoted by Bloomberg, p 117 in footnote 58.
⁴ See Blomberg, 118 f and France, The Gospel According … 134.
⁵ “Those who maintain that for Jesus himself the kingdom of God had already come in his own person and ministry inevitably treat this second petition of the Lord’s prayer in a rather cavalier fashion. It must be interpreted, they say, in line with other sayings of Jesus. Why? And what other sayings? When all the evidence in the sayings of Jesus for ‘realized eschatology’ is thoroughly tested, it boils down to the ephthasen eph humas [‘has come upon you’] of Matt. 12:28 and Luke 11:20. Why should that determine the interpretation of Matt. 6:10 and Luke 11:2? Why should a difficult, obscure saying establish the meaning of one that is clear and unambiguous? Why not interpret the ephthasen [‘has come,’ 12:28] by the elthato [‘come,’ 6:10]; or rather, since neither can be eliminated on valid critical grounds, why not seek an interpretation that does equal justice to both?”[629, Millar Burrows, “Thy Kingdom Come,” Journal of Biblical Literature 74 (January 1955):4-5.]
⁶ Rick W. Byargeon, “Echoes of Wisdom in the Lord’s Prayer (Matt 6:9-13),” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 41:3 (September 1998): 353-65. As quoted in Constable.
⁷ E.g., Theodore H. Robinson, The Gospel of Matthew, p. 52; McNeile, p. 81; T. Herbert Bindley, “Eschatology in the Lord’s Prayer,” The Expositor 17 (October 1919):319-20. As cited in Constable.
⁸ Constable; edited for clarity.
⁹ France, The Gospel of …, 241.

Works Cited

Scripture quotations [unless otherwise noted] are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Click here to access the works cited web-page for this document, save those marked as “Notes” or “Other Works Cited”–if any. Most of these cited works correspond to the verses they are outlined with. In the case of general background information and references, one will find cited material with the Bible books the citations are associated with. ¶ Furthermore, there may be numbered notes that are URL linked; these are usually retained numbered notes from Thomas Constable’s, “Dr. Constable’s Expository (Bible Study) Notes.” These links are preserved “as is” at the time of this work’s formation and I usually include other citation information from Constable as well (e.g. authors’ names).

Other Works Cited

Note: Not all of the resources below were used in this particular sermon outline.

Augsburger, David. Dissident Discipleship. Brazos Press, 2006.

Blomberg, Craig L. Matthew. New American Commentary, vol. 22, ed. David S. Dockery, et al., Broadman Press, 1992. May be sourced from archive.org.
https://archive.org/details/matthew0000blom

________. Preaching the Parables: From Responsible Interpretation to Powerful Proclamation. Baker Academic, 2004. Sourced from archive.org.
(https://archive.org/details/preachingparable0000blom/page/82/mode/1up)

Bruce, Alexander Balmain. The Training of the Twelve. Ed., A.C. Armstrong and Son, reprint 1984, Kregel Publications, 1971 edition.

Carson, D. A. The Sermon on the Mount : an Evangelical of Matthew 5-7 Exposition. 1978, Baker Book House, fifth printing, 1989. Sourced from archive.org.
https://archive.org/details/sermononmounteva0000cars/page/54/mode/1up

_______. When Jesus confronts the world : an exposition of Matthew 8-10. Originally published by Inter-Varsity Press in 1988, Paternoster, 1995. Sourced from archive.org.
https://archive.org/details/whenjesusconfron0000cars/page/n3/mode/1up

Chambers, Oswald. My Utmost for His Highest. Our Daily Bread Publishing, Online ver.

Davies, W. D. and Dale C. Allison, Jr. A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Gospel According to Saint Matthew. T. & T. Clark, 1988. Sourced from archive.org.
https://archive.org/details/criticalexegetic0001davi/page/n7/mode/1up

Evans, Craig A. The Bible Knowledge Background Commentary: Matthew-Luke. Victor, 2003. Sourced from archive.org.
https://archive.org/details/bibleknowledgeba00crai/mode/1up

France, R. T. The Gospel According to Matthew. W. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1985.

France, R. T. The Gospel of Matthew. W. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2007. Sourced from archive.org.
https://archive.org/details/gospelofmatthew0000fran/page/n6/mode/1up

Harrington, Daniel J . The Gospel of Matthew. Sacra Pagina Series, vol. 1, A Michael Glazier Book, Liturgical Press (publ.), 1991. Sourced from archive.org.
https://archive.org/details/gospelofmatthew0000harr/mode/1up

Hendriksen, William. New Testament Commentary: Exposition of the Gospel According to Luke. Baker Book House, 1984.

Phillips, John. Exploring the Gospels: John. Loizeaux Brothers, 1988.

Plumptre, E. H. “Matthew.” Commentary for English Readers, Charles John Ellicott, Compiler/Editor, Lord Bishop of Gloucester Cassell and Company, Limited, 1905. Sourced from BiblePortal.com. Click here for a list of the authors of the CER.

Yancey, Philip. The Jesus I Never Knew. Zondervan, 1995.

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