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THIS WEEK’S BIBLE INSIGHTS ARE BY:
Toby Hole and are based on Matthew 6:5-18 (NIV)
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO READ MORE ON THIS WEEK’S MAJOR THEME:
Exodus 16, Luke 18:9-14
5 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites... 7 for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
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.’
14 “For if you forgive other people
when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. 16 When you fast, do not look sombre as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”
Sunday January 26 - Private prayer
“And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray...
to be honoured by others.” Matthew 6:5
Travel to a European city, especially a city in the sunnier parts of Europe, and you are likely to see all sorts of performance artists entertaining the public for money – jugglers, living statues, acrobats and the like. They add to the colour and vibrancy of a city. Imagine then not jugglers but performers praying in loud and extravagant language. What might we make of that?
It’s not a sight that you are likely to see in the modern world, but in Jerusalem at the time of Jesus this would have been a common occurrence. The well-dressed Pharisees ostentatiously praying would not have been doing it for money. Perhaps they believed that they really were doing it to honour God; but Jesus saw through their pretend piety. In reality they were showing off to others: “Look how religious I am!” Unlike those hypocrites, Jesus says, do everything you can to hide your prayers from other people – not because you’re ashamed of praying but because the only audience that counts is your heavenly Father, and he can hear you just as well in a sealed room as in a temple courtyard.
Of course this doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t pray in front of others. We might do this regularly in our Sunday worship. But it is a warning for us to check our motives. Who do we really want to hear us?
Heavenly Father, whether I’m alone or with many, may the focus of my prayers always be on you and only you. Amen.
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PRAYER FOR TODAY