Matthew 6:9-13

⁹ “This, then, is how you should pray:

“‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
¹⁰ your kingdom come,
your will be done,
    on earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹ Give us today our daily bread.
¹² And forgive us our debts,
    as we also have forgiven our debtors.
¹³ And lead us not into temptation,
    but deliver us from the evil one.

Before Jesus taught us the Lord’s prayer, he said to his disciples in 6:5-6,”And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”

Why is it that the Pharisees receive their award when they prayed to be seen?

This is a good question and one that requires an answer that is probably more complex than the one I am presenting here, but never the less, I hope that my words are a blessing to you anyways.

The Pharisees, practiced what they thought was “good behavior” strictly from a motivation of self-preservation and human achievement. Their desire was to be seen by men and to reap the consequences that came from men having seen them. Simply, to be seen by men, meant that their social status would either be preserved, or progressed by any human standard within the Jewish culture during the time.

This is precisely Jesus’ point, when the Pharisees prayed, men certainly did see them and they certainly treated them on account of what they’d seen. This is the way of human behavior, we see the actions of others and come to conclusions about them that lead us to take this or that action towards them.

Jesus says that clearly, they get what they want from their flouted prayer lives, but what they want is worthless. The opinions of others are worthless in comparison to the opinion of God. So when you pray, go into your room, close the door, and pray to your Father who is unseen…

Is Jesus saying that we should never pray in public? That we should never pray in an area where others can see us? Far from it! Jesus is expressing the proper orientation of the heart when engaging with the Lord in prayer. He goes on to explain how we should go about praying.

First in worship of the Father, “hallowed by Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done.” Honor Him in worship and reverence to position yourself in right relation to Him when you come into His presence.

Humbly express gratitude and a heart of mercy, “give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.”

Declare faith in the Lord and His direction, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”

And declare His glory, “for Your’s is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.”

I encourage you to look at other commentaries about Jesus’ words here to gain a deeper and better perspective about His message. I can only say so much, and I have very little to say, but there are others who have much to say on this prayer and it will do you good to seek their knowledge.

Reminder: Weekly War Cry

Pray for the President of the United States, that He would be lead by the Holy Spirit and be enabled to be an instrument of God for the good of our nation. Pray for him to be given wisdom, good counsel, sound advice, and to be in alignment with the will of God.