Effective Prayer

Text:

Matthew 6:6:

But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

 

Theme:

Effective Prayer

 

Introduction:

• The Gospel according to St. Matthew, the first book of the New Testament and of the Gospels of Jesus, the Christ, is the book that contains this scripture.
• Matthew, the disciple of Christ, wrote in more detail the life of Christ and His ministry that any other Gospel writer even though the book was written over 5-10 years later than the rest of the Gospels.
• The text is at the point in Scripture around the end of the famous Sermon on the Mount. Here, Jesus taught the multitudes of the Word of God Himself.
• The text is the entry of the Scripture into our Lord’s teachings on prayer through the example of the familiar Model Prayer, which reads:
  • “Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.  Give us this day our daily bread.  And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.”
• Jesus taught this prayer as a model for praying effectively.
• Effective prayer makes a way out of no way! — Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, and the only way to God and His blessings is by Jesus and through prayer…effective prayer.

 

Body:

THE TEXT PAVES THE WAY TO EFFECTIVE PRAYER:

 “when thou prayest”

• Not if, but WHEN – prayer is a must in the life of the Christian
• Luke 18:1 “men ought always to pray, and not to faint”

 

 “enter into thy closet”

• Closet is defined in two ways:
  • As a noun – a small room for privacy
  • As a verb – to shut up in a private room for confidential talk
• Both definitions realize the important character of PRIVACY in this “room”
• Where is the “room”?
  • Physical “room” – a location, a place that you cherish for its privacy
    • closet, bedroom, den, bathroom, car, office, park, by a lake, in the woods
  • Metaphysical “room” – a state of being, focused on prayer to God
    • God is being honored and solicited, we are not being praised nor pitied!
• Get focused on God and not on self or worldly matters!
• “Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” – Prayer is commanded to man by the presence of God, Himself, as Creator and Savior of all!  For this reason, Jesus directs us to get into our Christian “closet” which is knowledge of and praise of who God is.

 

“when thou hast shut thy door”

• If you don’t shut the “door”, you could go right back out into the confusion of the world or self.
  • The door for the child is the eyes – open eyes make a child open to distractions
  • The door for the adult is the mouth – Prayer is the cry of the soul and NOT the mind or mouth.
• A closed “door” is a prerequisite to effective prayer, NOT an afterthought!

 

“pray to thy Father”

• Pray to God, NOT to our deeds
  • Not your church attendance, but God’s attendance in our life
  • Not your volunteer work, but God’s volunteering to save our life
• Pray to God, NOT to our problems
  • Not your troubled family, but the Father who has adopted us
  • Not your unpaid bills, but the Savior who paid the price on Calvary for our sins
• Pray to God, NOT to our sins
  • Not your mistakes, but the Father who is good and perfect
  • Not your shortcomings, but the Savior in whom all things are possible
• It’s about GOD, NOT about US!
• “Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:” – Prayer is a petition to God based on His Promise and not on our worldly or human desire.

 

“which is in secret”

• When you have gone into your “closet” and shut the “door”, all of your Worship, Petitioning and Repentance is done in secret.
• Privacy characterizes this conversation, setting, and relationship.
  • This personal, private, and powerful relationship with God is the path through which prayer flows to God.
    • PERSONAL – Only one participating – As the 23^rd Psalm says, “The Lord is MY shepherd”
    • PRIVATE – Only one present – As the boy Samuel said to the Voice in the temple, “Here am I”
    • POWERFUL – Only one provided with power (of God’s presence in Sprit) – As when Jesus said, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.”

 

“thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly”

• God hears our prayer through the secrecy of our “closet”
• As the hymn says, “Remember me, Remember me. Oh, Lord remember me!
• God answers our prayer openly
  • God doesn’t deal in covert activity
  • In the Philippian jail, Paul demanded that they be openly released since they were openly convicted.
  • When God answers our prayer, WE KNOW IT! And others should also!
    • “For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever.” — From the bowels of human witness, we can exclaim this affirmation of belief and praise to God.
      • When you see it, you have to say it!
      • The witness is what is seen now, but the faith is in FOREVER. – What God has done NOW makes me want to praise and serve Him forever!
      • This is our response to the many ways that God has blessed us!

 

Conclusion:

• Let us look at “Amen.”
  • One of the most common yet most overlooked words of the bible.
  • All the people of Israel were commanded to say “Amen” after their blessing and cursing in Deuteronomy 27:26.
  • David concluded Psalm 106:48 with the words “…let all the people say, Amen. Praise ye the Lord!”
  • In the New Testament, “Amen” is a name given to the Lord Jesus Christ.
  • Now, “Amen” is explained thusly:
    • “Amen” signifies emphatic approval to what has been said or written.
    • Say “Amen” to the pattern of prayer as well as the principle of prayer as laid out in the Model Prayer.
    • “Amen” is the word of faith and conviction.
    • “Amen” means that you believe God is able to do exceeding abundantly above all I can ask or think.
• Prayer without selflessness is ineffective
• Prayer without God’s praise and worship is ineffective
• Prayer without repentance is ineffective
• Prayer without petitioning is ineffective
• Prayer without faith in God is ineffective
• Prayer without trust in God is ineffective
• Prayer with a true “Amen” is effective!
  • To affirm our faith in God, say Amen!
  • To praise God as our waymaker, say Amen!
  • To praise God as our battle-ax, say Amen!
  • To praise God as our Lilly of the Valley, say Amen!
  • To praise God as our rock in a weary land, say Amen!

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