Matthew 6:6 But when you pray, go into your private room, shut your door, and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Taher who sees in secret will reward you

So much in in Matthew 6:5-8 regarding prayer life

We often only focus on the “model prayer” in vv9-15, yet not on the expectation of the posture and position of the penitent one. You can model of vv9-15 all you want, but if we are just doing it publicly, we are missing the point.

v5 – Whenever you pray – Jesus uses two book ends here – the first is addressing the “God-Believing”

• Must not be like Hypocrites
• Pray to be seen
• They have their reward
• There is nothing wrong with public prayer but they are hypocrites because they appear to be seeking God, but they are seeking recognition. And do they have their reward – that word “reward” – hos misthos = wage, payment … so they get paid what they want to get paid and that’s the end of that. So, the question then is to whom do you pray, what do you seek to gain?

v7 when you pray – Then the other bookend – the Non-Believer

• Don’t be like Gentiles – Pagans
• Don’t Babble
• many words don’t make you heard – there are those that don’t believe in God, but in a circumstance, “we will try anything”, “let’s have good thoughts” “let’s manifest it by our words”
• Jesus says “the Father knows what you need before you ask” – he doesn’t need our information, he didn’t miss it

Well – Is God telling us NOT to pray? No, but in our desire and need to pray, what is our focus, where is our reward?

Don’t be like the self-absorbed God Worshiper, nor the self-indulgent false worshiper

v6 but when YOU pray

• Go Into Your Private Room – get alone, get to touch with the things you treasure
• Shut the Door
• Pray to the Father in secret
  • He Sees
  • He Rewards

The Focus is on communing with The Father

The Commitment is to separation from everything else

The Reward is from the Father. It is certain, and ultimately, The Father IS the Reward

WHEN – notice it says “when” not “if” – When you pray

• Go In – there is a decisive action, “I will go” – and “go” is in the active, imperative tense – I must go. Go in to a place, a time, it’s not as must about the location as the intention – Go to Meet God and Only God
• Shut Your Door – this instruction really stood out at me today – go in and close the door. Cut myself off from everything and everyone else. In this instance, I don’t need, don’t want their input, their answers, their approval. Shut off everything else, even my own preconceptions. (perhaps ask the question, “Lord what needs to be shut off right now as I pray?)
• Pray to your Father
  • Come to him
  • Give it to him
  • He is YOUR Father – that means there is a relationship. He is the source of life, he loves you, he cares for you. Every good and perfect gift is from him. (James 1:17)
  • The Hidden ones meets you in the hidden place
• He gives you the “Reward” – now this is a different word than in v5 – apodidomi = give up, give back, return, restore, award – there is an understanding of Grace, restoration, and reconciliation here.

Don’t be like the Believer who is only seeking earthly returns

Don’t be like the unbeliever that thinks they can manifest something with repetitive words, good thoughts, or “hocus pocus”

Be the one who seeks the Father, and his pleasure, his purpose, him personally do we seek.

Take a few minutes and go read Psalm 123:1-2; Psalm 18:1-3 and spend some time with The Father