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Reading Matthew 6:5-8 where Jesus warns His disciples not to pray like the hypocrites who want praise from men, but pray to your Father in secret and He will reward you. Visit wwutt.com for all of our videos!
Jesus warned his disciples, warning us not to practice our righteousness before others so as to receive praise from men. Even when we pray, don't do it for others to acknowledge you. Pray to God when we understand the text.
This is When We Understand the Text, a daily Bible study in the Word of Christ. For he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. Tell your friends about our ministry at www .wutt .com.
Once again, it's Pastor Gabe.
Thank you, Becky. In our study of the Sermon on the Mount, we're in Matthew, Chapter 6. Let me begin by reading verses 1 -7 out of the Legacy Standard Bible. Hear the word of the Lord. Beware of doing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them, otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.
Therefore, when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be glorified by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.
But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. And when you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners, so that they may be seen by men.
Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. Therefore, do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
I guess that was through verse 8, I said we were going to go through verse 7. So Jesus is warning his disciples not to practice their righteousness so as to receive praise from men, but have a genuine heart that desires to honor the Lord.
And he gives three examples. It wouldn't be limited to just these three. There are plenty of other ways we can be hypocrites than just the three examples that Jesus gives here. But the three are giving to the needy, praying, and fasting.
We'll get to fasting probably next week. He picks that up in verse 16. So talking about prayer today, yesterday we looked at giving, today we're looking at prayer. Verse 5. When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men.
They're praying out in front of everybody else. They're praying out on the street corners, just standing there on the street praying so that you see this guy and you think, oh wow, what a holy, pious man that is.
And if that's all he's praying for, then he has received his reward in full. That's what Jesus goes on to say, truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. It's interesting to note about that statement, which he makes in verse 2 about giving to the needy and again in verse 5 about prayer.
He says they have their reward in full, meaning they're not getting anything else. If all they're doing this for is to receive the praise from men, then that's what they got and they're not getting anything else, especially from our Father who is in heaven.
And we're talking about a damning statement here. This isn't just Jesus saying something like, you know, when they get to heaven, they're not going to get as big a mansion as they thought they were going to get because they gave to the needy and they prayed before others to receive praise from men instead of recognition from God.
It's not talking about an eternal reward like a golden crown or something to that effect. This is Jesus saying if that's the reason why they're doing this, they're not going to get anything else. The reward that they've got, they have it in full.
They got everything they're going to get, the recognition and praise from men because that's all that they were after. Jesus is exposing the heart of these persons who do such a thing that when they give, they sound a trumpet in the synagogues and in the streets.
Look at how giving a person I am. Look at how generous I am. And if that's all they were after, they got everything they're going to get, the recognition and praise from men. And then you have the same thing said about those who pray.
They pray in the synagogues and on the street corners. They sound a trumpet about their giving in the synagogues and on the street corners. They pray in the synagogues and on the street corners. And it seems to be that this is the only place that they pray.
They don't do any prayer in private. They only pray where they can be seen and recognized by others. Nothing done in secret. And if there's anybody who could make such a judgment, who could deliver such a charge, it's Jesus.
For he knows the hearts of all people. There are certain things that Jesus says here. We would not be able to make those determinations. I suppose we could speak broadly. We could make a statement just like is said there in Matthew 6, 1, beware of doing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them.
But you can't point at somebody else and say, see this person, he's not even being genuine before God. He's just doing this to receive the praise of others. Well, do you know that? Do you know that that is his motive and his intention?
We have to be careful before we make such a judgment of somebody else. But Jesus certainly can say this about those hypocrites because he knows the hearts of people. As said at the end of John 2, he did not entrust himself to others because he knew what was in the heart of every man.
And to the churches in Revelation 3, he says, I am he who judges mind and heart, and I will give to each person according to their works. So Jesus certainly knows these things. He can say they are being hypocrites.
For the only reason they're doing this is to receive the recognition, the praise and the glory from others. And if that's what they want, they have their reward in full. This is exposing the condition of their hearts.
Be careful about reading this and thinking, well, I need to give a whole lot so that I will get a whole lot from my father. That isn't the intention here either. Or I need to pray a lot more so that I will be saved.
We're not talking about salvation by works. Jesus is simply saying that through these hypocritical acts, these men are showing who they are. They don't have a heart for God at all. It's not that they're just messing up in prayer and messing up in giving.
They don't have a heart that seeks the Lord. We'll see later on in Matthew where Jesus quotes from Isaiah saying, these people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. That's who these men are who are looking for their recognition in the synagogues and on the street corners, in the places of worship and out in public.
That's the significance of the synagogue in the street corner. So be careful that you do not become such a person, that you are looking for the approval of your fellow Christians in church. I'm just doing these things in church and everybody's going to see how righteous and awesome I am.
And I'm going to get pats on the back. Or you even go out in public and behave in such a way with open giving or open prayer just to receive the recognition and acknowledgement of others. Jesus says, if that's all you're after, truly I say to you, you've received your reward in full.
You want the praise and recognition of men? That's what you've got. And when you see that you will not get anything from your Father who is in heaven, there's no eternal reward for you. That's a pretty depressing thing to think that all I'm getting is the praise and recognition of others.
You think about Live Aid or any of these big charitable concerts that some of these superstars will do, and they will claim they're doing this for charity, this is to benefit the planet or it's to benefit other people.
They're practicing their righteousness before others. It's completely empty. Now I can say that about these persons, since they don't worship God, they blaspheme God. And the causes that they raise money for are anti-Christ.
They don't give glory and honor to Christ at all. So this is one such a fundraiser that I certainly can make a judgment about. But you'll have these big charitable concert events, and these persons standing out there think, oh, how giving, how wonderful, how great they are.
No, they're getting paid hundreds of thousands, if not millions of dollars. They're practicing their righteousness before others. They are getting praise and recognition from tens of thousands of people, and they're making all kinds of money, but that's all they're going to get.
And when they die, they don't take it with them. It will perish in the earth, along with the earth, when judgment comes, when Christ returns. What a depressing thing. You might look at those superstars and think, boy, they have it all.
Riches, they never have to worry about money again for the rest of their lives. They have the adoration of millions of people, but that's it. They get no recognition from their Father in heaven. They will hear on that day, depart from me, you workers of lawlessness, I never knew you.
Or as Jesus will say in Matthew 25, as we go on. Depart from me, you cursed into the fire prepared for the devil and his angels. So while you might look at a person from an earthly vantage point and think that they have it all, what a depressing thing to consider.
This is all they're ever going to get. And it will perish with the rest of the earth, with them even when they die. So Jesus says, don't practice your righteousness as so to receive praise from others.
Because that's all you're going to get, if that's all you want. When you pray, don't be like those who are looking for recognition in the places of worship and in the places of public. So that they may be seen by men, truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.
He goes on to say in verse six, but you, when you pray, go into your inner room. And when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
Now understand that this imperative that Jesus is giving here, this doesn't mean that we only pray in private and we should never pray in public. Perhaps you remember the story, I think this was last year of the high school football coach up in Washington state who was praying with football players after the football game was over.
They were meeting at midfield and this turned out to be a big thing. Originally, he was doing it by himself, but then players joined him and then players from the other team would join him. And of course, you've got the American civil liberties people who got all up in arms about this and the school threatened him.
They said, you have to stop bringing students together and praying to Jesus or we're going to fire you. Well, the man continued to do it and the school fired him, went all the way to the Supreme Court and he won his case.
There were people claiming to be Christians who were criticizing this whole thing and saying he never should have even been praying out there on the football field in the first place for Jesus said, when you pray, go into your inner room, shut your door and pray to your father who is in secret.
There were professing Christians who were saying that's what this guy should have been doing instead of praying out there on the football field, instead of taking this all the way to the Supreme Court.
And this football coach fought for his rights, which the constitution of the United States extends to him. Freedom of religion, freedom of speech, even he had every right to do that. And the students by their own free will could join them on the football field.
They weren't being required to do that. This man was exercising his first amendment right, both in his exercise of his religion and his and in his exercise of the freedom of speech. So he goes all the way to the Supreme Court to defend those rights and good for him.
He won. But that aside, he was not sitting or doing anything disobedient against God just by going out on the football field and praying in public. We can do that. In fact, the Bible praises people for doing such a thing.
If you'll remember in the book of Daniel, there was this edict or this injunction for 30 days where nobody could make a petition to anyone but the king. Well Daniel heard about this injunction and what did he do?
He continued the practice that he had been in regularly. He went up to his room and he opened his window toward Jerusalem and he prayed to God so that he would even be seen by others. Now he didn't do it for that reason.
This was what he always did. He always went to his room, opened his window toward Jerusalem, and he prayed. Well, there were these wicked men that had this injunction passed so that they could catch Daniel and have him thrown into the lion's den.
And so when they saw that he was praying, they had him arrested. This went against the law that had been passed. You can't make a petition to anyone but the king. And here is Daniel petitioning to his God.
So they had him arrested and they had him thrown in the lion's den. And of course, you know this story that the mouths of the lions were shut and they did not harm Daniel. The next day he was delivered and the king had the men who had passed this wicked edict thrown into the lion's den instead, along with their families and everything they own.
So the judgment came back on their own heads rather than on Daniel. But did God say to Daniel, hey, what are you doing? You shouldn't even have your window open. You need to go in the closet in your inner room and shut the door so that your father will see what is done in secret?
No. God honored Daniel and he protected Daniel. What Jesus is addressing here is to make sure you are not doing these things just to get recognition from others. So when you pray, is the only place you're praying in a place where you can be seen by other people?
You pray at church, you pray in public, but that's it. You don't pray anywhere else. Then you've received your reward in full. But in your prayer life, do you pray alone? Nobody else can see you. You're not even with your family.
It's not just a matter of I'm leading my family in prayer. You yourself in your prayer life, in your private meditation with God, do you get away from everybody else and pray to your father who is in secret?
Now I think that you can certainly pray in your mind in whatever you do. I hear from all kinds of people who say, I pray when I'm in my car, I've got a long drive, so that's a good time to pray. You know what?
That is. That's a great way to spend your time driving a long distance, to spend that alone with the Lord in prayer. And good for you. But I think that there should also be a practice, there should be a discipline in your life.
I'm not saying you have to do this as though you're not saved unless you do. But I think that there should be a practice in your life in which you're away from every other kind of distraction. You're not concentrating on driving.
You're away from everything else, and you're just with the Lord. And you're just praying and sharing your heart with God. Schedule that time if you must. Make that time whenever you can, but give it to the Lord.
Dedicate it to God. It was Martin Luther who said, I have so much I've got to do today, I'm going to spend the first three hours in prayer. We always have time to spend with God, to get away from every other distraction, and just commit our minds and our hearts to the Lord.
Pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. And that's beyond just eternal reward. We have even earthly reward when we pray, in the sense that we're grown in sanctification.
Our minds are being conformed more to the image of Christ. We are being conformed to the will of God, desiring that His will would be done over our will. And we'll talk about that tomorrow when we get to the petitions in the Lord's prayer.
But Jesus goes on here. We've got two more verses to finish up, verses 7 and 8. When you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.
Therefore do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask of Him. Now I am often asked about a private prayer language. Is it biblical for us to have some kind of a prayer language that might be utterances that are given to us by the Holy Spirit, and nobody else knows what they mean?
We might not even know what they mean. Can we pray in such a way before Jesus? Is there such a thing as a private prayer language according to the Bible? And I tell you, this passage right here speaks exactly against that.
Whatever you happen to think about the interpretation of tongues in the book of Acts, or the way Paul talks about it in 1 Corinthians 12 and 14, there are debates had over those passages. But I think that what Jesus says right here would prohibit the meaningless babble that some people do in prayer and call that speaking in tongues.
Jesus says when you are praying, don't use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do. It's a pagan practice. There are pagans who do that, who practice the gibberish mumbo-jumbo speech in their prayers and think that some divine language is being given to them.
Even pagans practice that. It isn't from God. Let your prayers be like the prayers of Christ. What kind of prayers did Jesus model? What kind of prayers did the prophets or the apostles model? Look in Scripture.
Do we have a single example of them praying in such a way that they are uttering meaningless words that no one can understand, especially the person praying? So whatever verse, whatever other verse is out there that we might have a debate over concerning the speaking of gibberish that we call the speaking in tongues, this passage right here would prohibit that practice.
Jesus saying, don't use meaningless repetition. The pagans do that, and they think they're going to be heard for their many words by their false gods. You can see an example of this also with the priest of Baal versus Elijah in the book of first Kings.
They're all dancing around, calling upon Baal and heaping words upon words upon words. Elijah didn't have to do that. He just prayed to God, fire came down from heaven, consumed the sacrifice that he was offering.
But the priest of Baal, they went on and on and on about themselves, thinking that their many words would call the attention of their false god. That's why the pagans do that. Don't pray like them. Your father knows what you need before you ask of him, Jesus says in verse eight.
So pray the way that Jesus taught us to pray. Does Jesus go on from there in Matthew six verses seven and eight? Does he go on from there and then start speaking gibberish? Pray like this, I thought about a Kia but I bought a Honda.
Is that what Jesus says? I can even translate that for you, by the way, I thought I bought a Kia, but I bought a Honda. There's a translation of my speaking in tongues. Jesus goes on to give a clear articulation of what prayer should look like.
That's what the Lord's prayer is. It's a blueprint for prayer. So let's consider that tomorrow when we think about how should we pray then? How did Jesus teach us how to pray? Well, he told us to pray clear words and he said, pray then in this way, verse nine.
So we get to that model prayer and we'll consider the petitions in that prayer tomorrow. Heavenly Father, we thank you for giving us prayer. We can talk to God through prayer. You speak to us through your word as you have done today.
And we talk to you through prayer, knowing that our prayers are heard by God because we have Jesus, an advocate who is advocating for us before the father. As said in first John, we have an advocate before the father, Jesus Christ, the righteous.
So hear our prayers, teach us to pray, reward us because our heart is genuine before you. Not desiring the praise and recognition of others, but just to please our father who is in heaven. Thank you for giving us your son, Jesus, who died on the cross for our sins so that all who believe in him will not perish in judgment, but we will have the eternal reward, eternal life with God forever in glory.
Give us these things in Jesus name. Amen.
Thank you for listening to When We Understand the Text with Pastor Gabe Hughes. If you'd like to support this ministry, visit our website, www .wutt .com, and click on the Give tab in the top right corner of the page.
Join us again tomorrow as we continue our Bible study, When We Understand the Text.