How to Pray Wrong Prayers without Really Meaning to Do So!
Matthew 6:6-10
1. PRAYERS MEANT FOR THE EARS OF MEN ARE INAPPROPRIATE
PRAYERS!
Jesus warned against praying in the streets, etc. so that others could see you praying and hear your prayers. His warning was that we are not to put
on a show for men.
Prayers are not to be spoken for the ears of Men! That doesn’t mean that men cannot hear our prayers, just that they need to be addressed to God
and meant for His ears.
This means:
A. Prayer is NOT the place where we correct our brothers and sisters in Christ.
EXAMPLE: Lord, I pray for ______________ and his sinful attitude. Please bring him to a place of repentance or judge him.
B. Prayer is NOT the place where we demonstrate our spirituality to others.
REMEMBER - Actions always speak louder than words. Your spirituality is measured in how you live, not how loud or how public or even how “beautiful” your prayers are!
Jesus said we need to enter our prayer closet, a private place of prayer. Why private? In private prayer we can draw close to God without distraction.
We have nothing to say to others in private prayer. We are in no danger of putting on a show for others if we are praying in our prayer closet. We are not
praying for the ears of men when we pray in private.
2. PRAYERS FULL OF “SPIRITUAL” FILLER ARE IMPROPER
PRAYERS!
Jesus warned against “vain repetitions” or babbling like pagans. At times, our prayer can become repetitive and ritualistic with little or no real feeling. Most of us don’t chant, but we might have “filler words” that we use to make our
prayers stretch out a bit.
As a stern disciplinarian in a Christian School setting, I once assigned a 500 word composition to a student regarding a public display he had put on in class. He had been disrespectful in a clowning sort of way. I assigned him to write a composition about his behavior and how he was not supposed to act as the class clown. His composition went something like this:
(Note- I have changed his name to protect him, even
though he was not so innocent)
“I, Evan Lansford, as a student in a Christian school, should realize that I, Evan Lansford, should act like a student in a Christian school. It is not the responsibility of Evan Lansford, a student in a Christian school, to act as a class clown in a Christian school. In fact, even I, Evan Lansford, a student in a Christian School, know that a Christian
school does not neet a class clown such as myself, a student in a Christian school named Evan Lansford....” It went on and on in the same manner. My mistake was asking him to read it before the class before I read it myself.
Sometimes, our prayers become full of repeated words and phrases as we seek to fill what we believe will be an appropriate period of prayer time. This is not a lot better than the silly composition that the young man wrote. What value do such repetitions have? I’m afraid that at times they become “vain” or “empty” and that we should avoid them.
Some people feel that they must pray for a certain amount of time each day. This might lead to a wrong practice of “forcing” ourselves to stay in a
place of prayer and repeating ourselves in prayer rather than praying from sincere hearts. If you feel that you must fill a certain period of time in prayer
you are praying from a sense of duty rather than a sense of love.
The relationship between a husband and wife is supposed to be one of love. I am certain that you married folks wish that you spent more time just
sitting and talking with your spouse. However, what sort of love would it be if your spouse declares, “I HAVE to stay and talk with you because I have to fill
at least ten minutes per day with our conversation or I am not being a good spouse.”
Choosing to go to the place of prayer is one thing. There are times when I personally make a choice to do something with my wife rather than to go
somewhere with my friends. Sometimes I do so because I feel I should do so and sometimes because I just want to do so. There will always be times when
we choose to go to the place of prayer because we know it is the right thing to do and there will be times when we come to the place of prayer out of a real
desire to spend time alone with God.
Forcing ourselves to stay in prayer for a set period of time is duty-prayer and does not spring from a love relationship. Pray as God leads you to pray. Listen to His voice. Do not feel that you must fill the silence with Words. Sometimes, we just need to listen. It is NOT the length of your prayers that pleases God, but rather the sincerity offered in them.
Do your prayers build your relationship with God or only serve to fill time?
3. SELF-PROMOTIONAL PRAYERS ARE INAPPROPRIATE PRAYERS
Luke 18:9-14
Jesus told a parable of a publican and a Pharisee praying at the temple. Looking at the prayer of the Pharisee we see that:
1. He declared that he was better than others
This was the major problem of the Pharisees- always declaring themselves to be more righteous than others.
2. He bragged about the sins he avoided (robbery, adultery, etc.) We are to confess our sins to God, rather than declare to God what we don’t do. God is more interested in honest confession that boastful declarations.
3. He boasted of the good he had done.
We never have to point out to God all the good we have done. He sees.
The Publican had an entirely different attitude. His very posture was demonstrative of his humility before God. This is likely the place where the Christian tradition of bowing in prayer and closing our eyes springs from. The man kept his head lowered in humility and would not look up towards heaven, but in distress he struck his chest and begged God for mercy.
Jesus made it very clear that the Pharisee was not right before God. His very pride and self-confidence had rendered his prayer worthless.
4. PRAYERS WHICH SEEK TO MANIPULATE GOD ARE
INAPPROPRIATE
Another selfish type of prayer is in the Bible. In the book of Jonah, after all that Jonah had experienced in the storm and the fish’s belly, he preached to the city of Ninevah, but is distressed when they repent.
In Jonah 4:2-3 we see Jonah speaking to God:
“O LORD, is this not what I said when I was still at home? That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and
compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, A God who relents from sending calamity. Now, O LORD, take away my life, for it is better for me
to die than to live.”
God responds to Jonah with a question, “Have you any right to be angry?” But Jonah doesn’t answer. Instead we find Jonah going out to a place
outside the city and in Jonah 4:6 we find him building a temporary shelter and sitting back to watch and see what God’s response to his manipulative prayer
is going to be.
At this point, Jonah has tossed down the gauntlet. He has declared HIS declaration to be more important than that of God’s. He has declared his
desire to see HIS will done, rather than God’s will. He has sought to put God into a corner. In essence he has told God to choose between the people of Nineveh and HIMSELF!
Our prayers should never seek to place God in a corner. However, when we seek to bargain with God, to emotionally move God, or to force God to act
and do our will.
