Mat 6:6 | KingComments | STEP | God abhors a prayer that serves no other purpose than to give others a ‘prayer demonstration’. In such a prayer, the prayer is addressed to God, but not so that God hears it, but so that others hear it. God does not even listen to it. That prayer is hypocrisy because it gives the impression that it is being made to Him, while it is done to impress people. The demonstrations are given in buildings and in public. All those who have no relationship with God themselves admire these demonstrations. That admiration is the reward for the one who ‘prays’. God’s reward passes them by. God’s reward is ready for those who do not seek honor from people, but who seek real contact with Him. Contact with God and speaking to Him is not a show. It is a personal and delicate matter. That is why we need to seek solitude. The chance of being disturbed from the outside must also be minimized: the door must be locked. For the time in which we live, it also means switching off the smartphone and similar devices so that we can pray undisturbed. Another important point is not to use meaningless repetition. The Lord means by this the case that a prayer is made as long as possible by repetition of words. That is a Gentile custom. An example of this is the praying of the ‘rosary’ in the roman catholic church. This does not mean that we should not pray for a long time. However, no one needs to know the duration and intensity of our prayer life. It is therefore good to pray briefly and powerfully in public. We do not pray to make known to God things He does not yet know. He knows everything long before we ask Him anything. We pray to get rid of burdens.

‏ Matthew 6:6

Prayer

God abhors a prayer that serves no other purpose than to give others a ‘prayer demonstration’. In such a prayer, the prayer is addressed to God, but not so that God hears it, but so that others hear it. God does not even listen to it. That prayer is hypocrisy because it gives the impression that it is being made to Him, while it is done to impress people.

The demonstrations are given in buildings and in public. All those who have no relationship with God themselves admire these demonstrations. That admiration is the reward for the one who ‘prays’. God’s reward passes them by. God’s reward is ready for those who do not seek honor from people, but who seek real contact with Him. Contact with God and speaking to Him is not a show. It is a personal and delicate matter. That is why we need to seek solitude. The chance of being disturbed from the outside must also be minimized: the door must be locked. For the time in which we live, it also means switching off the smartphone and similar devices so that we can pray undisturbed.

Another important point is not to use meaningless repetition. The Lord means by this the case that a prayer is made as long as possible by repetition of words. That is a Gentile custom. An example of this is the praying of the ‘rosary’ in the roman catholic church. This does not mean that we should not pray for a long time. However, no one needs to know the duration and intensity of our prayer life. It is therefore good to pray briefly and powerfully in public. We do not pray to make known to God things He does not yet know. He knows everything long before we ask Him anything. We pray to get rid of burdens.