REJECTED PRAYERS

Matthew 6: 5-8 (CSB) - “Whenever you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by people. Truly I tell you, they have their reward. But when you pray, go into your private room, shut your door, and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. When you pray, don’t babble like the Gentiles, since they imagine they’ll be heard for their many words. Don’t be like them, because your Father knows the things you need before you ask him.”

Let us move into the second of the areas Jesus is discussing in the Sermon on the Mount – the area of praying. We will consider it in two parts – the Essentials in Prayer and the Elements in Prayer.

We will start the Essentials in Prayer. And in turn, we will look at this as Rejected Prayers and Received Prayers.

Consider first the Prayers that God Rejects.

Jesus teaches us that  God rejects Boastful Prayers (verse 5). In another place, Jesus gave a parable about the Pharisee and the Publican. This is a good example. You can read this in Luke 18: 9 – 14. Notice as you read how the Pharisee approaches God. I’ll wait while you read it.

Jesus then sums it up in verse 14. He comes back to the motive of the heart in this verse. To be seen of men. Jesus is not condemning public prayer – He is making sure that we know to whom we are praying. Ever heard a preacher preach a sermon in a prayer? Ever heard someone talk about things in the guise of a prayer? Jesus uses that distinction of hypocrite again.

Jesus then teaches that God rejects Babbling Prayers (verses 7 – 8). In the account of Elijah on Mt. Carmel in 1 Kings 18, we see this in the false prophets of Baal. The Greek word used here – battologéō – means to stammer, to repeat things over and over. The Gentile religions would have babbling prayers to their gods. The idea of many words to convince God can be seen as just trying to badger God. Jesus says that we do not need to try to twist the arm of God by many repetitions of useless words. Why? Because God knows before we ask.

So, why ask? Prayer is not to overcome God’s reluctance, to bless His people. Prayer is to prepare God’s person to walk in the will of God. Prayer helps us to clarify what we are wanting.

So, Jesus is helping us to see that God does not honor babbling, boastful prayers. He rejects them.

That brings us to the prayers that God receives. We will consider this tomorrow.