Prayer That God Rewards | Matthew 6:5-8
Jesus compares three reasons that people pray to show the one that God rewards: (1) praying to impress people; (2) praying to access power; and (3) praying to express faith. This sermon is part 3 of "Messiah's Reward," Bryan Craddock's expository preaching series on Matthew 6 & 7.
I don’t know if you enjoy playing games. But when the rewards are big enough, you find out that we are all gamers at heart. We look for every advantage and take every shortcut. We might bend the rules and exploit every loophole to win the prize. The clearest example of that impulse that I have ever seen happened while my wife was potty training one of our children.
She created a little reward chart and said that every time they tried to use the toilet, she would give them a sticker. When the chart was filled, the prize would be a trip to McDonald’s. So, this toddler seized the opportunity to game the system. They spent the whole day going back and forth to the bathroom. No potty training was accomplished, but the chart was filled. So, that night I discussed new parenting strategies with my exasperated wife over Big Macs.
Do you think God ever feels that way about us? It’s one thing to game the system with your parents, your employer, or even the IRS. But that same impulse can distort how we relate to our heavenly Father. We look for shortcuts and bend the rules. We might even exploit prayer to get what we want.
The Lord addressed this problem through the Prophet Isaiah. His people were consistently going to the temple and offering sacrifices. But it was all a religious game. He called it a trampling of his courts. He said that he was weary of it all and couldn’t endure it. In Isaiah 1:15, he even said,
When you spread out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not listen; your hands are full of blood.
That sounds like exasperation to me. But the Lord did not give up on his people. He sent Isaiah to call them to repentance, and a few verses later in Isaiah 1:18, he graciously offered them the opportunity to be reconciled. He said,
Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.
Jesus came to bring about this spiritual cleansing. As John 1:29 says, he is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He gave his life as the perfect sacrifice, so that we can be saved by grace through faith and can draw near to God. But we still have that impulse to play games with religion, even in our approach to prayer. So, why bother putting forth the hard work to change if we are already saved?
In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells us that our heavenly Father will reward us for practicing righteousness. He does not say what the reward is, but his Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25:14-30 leads me to think that it will be commendation that we receive at his return and greater responsibility in his kingdom as he reigns on earth. Whatever the reward is, it’s far better than going to McDonald’s, and you can be sure that there are no shortcuts or loopholes. The Lord looks upon the heart. We cannot game the system.
So, how should this reward shape our prayers? Jesus has much to say, but he starts with our motivation for praying. In Matthew 6:5-8, he compares three reasons that people pray to show the one that God rewards. As we walk through his words, I encourage you to let the Lord work in your heart, because that is what is missing in the first two reasons that people pray.
Praying to Impress People
From time to time when I was growing up in Southern California, we would come across film crews shooting a movie or a TV show. In person, the props look phony, the facades look flimsy, and the actors seem to be overdoing it. You also see all the other things that are out of frame--the crew, the gear, and even the location that is seldom what it seems to be on camera. But with effects, music, and editing, it all seems very impressive as you watch it on screen.
If our reason for praying is to impress people, the opposite happens. It can seem very spiritual and real in person, but as our heavenly Father watches, he sees that we are overdoing it. In his eyes, we are treating our faith like a flimsy facade. Worst of all, we are using him as a prop in our performance.
Jesus addresses this wrong reason for prayer in Matthew 6:5. He says,
And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
Those who pray for this reason are hypocrites, actors putting on a show. They love the spotlight. So, they choose visible locations to stage their performance. The synagogue is where the spiritual people are. But that’s not a big enough audience. They want to make sure that sinners see them too. So, they pray on street corners.
If they want to be seen, then they probably also want to be heard saying impressive words in passionate tones with dramatic gestures. They might even say something like the Pharisee in one of Jesus’ parables. Luke 18:11-12 tells us that Jesus said,
The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.'
Now someone like this might argue that they are just letting their light shine just like Jesus said back in Matthew 5:16 earlier in the Sermon on the Mount. But does prayer bring God glory if it’s being done for show? No, Jesus says that those who pray to be seen have received their reward--not from the Father but from their audience. It was never about God. It was all about them. They have received the attention that they wanted.
At times, we are all probably tempted by the impulse to approach prayer as a performance. How can we overcome it? Jesus gives us the same instruction for prayer that he gave when he talked about helping those in need. In Matthew 6:6, he says,
But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Now Jesus does not mean that we should never pray with other people. In verses 9-13, he shares a model prayer that he phrases in the first-person plural: “Our Father in heaven… Give us this day our daily bread…” He prayed together with his disciples, and then after he ascended into heaven, they often met together for prayer. But if we only pray with other people, then something is not right.
Jesus’ call for secret prayer gets at a heart issue. Private prayer is essential to having a personal relationship with God. Jesus does not command us to pray in this verse. He assumes that we will, and we find that same assumption in the Old Testament. There are hundreds of commandments in God’s Law, but none of them explicitly tells people to pray. It may be implied in the sacrifices and festivals, but it is not stated as such.
There are Old Testament examples of prayer, but they often use different terminology. The first mention of someone praying is in Genesis 4:26, and it shows us the connection between prayer and a relationship with God. It says,
To Seth also a son was born, and he called his name Enosh. At that time people began to call upon the name of the LORD.
For some reason all our English translations add the word “people.” That reading suggests that many were seeking the Lord. But the word for people or mankind is not in the original Hebrew text of this verse. It might be better to translate it by saying, “At that time, he began to call upon the name of the Lord.” In other words, Seth may have been the only one to do so.
God’s name expresses who he is and what he is like. So, the decision to start calling upon him is life defining. It is a commitment to seek him and to rely upon him in prayer. It is how you come to know him and to walk with him.
Several Old Testament passages speak of calling upon the Lord this way, but one in the little book of Joel stands out. The prophet was speaking about the coming judgment of the Day of the Lord, and he linked calling upon the Lord with salvation (Joel 2:32). Later in the New Testament, Peter quotes Joel’s words as he preaches the gospel on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:21). Paul also quotes them in Romans 10:12-13. He says,
For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For "everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
Are you personally calling upon the name of the Lord? Are you seeking him when no one else is watching? Or are you just using God as a prop to impress people and put on a show? I encourage you to pursue a personal relationship with our heavenly Father through prayer. As you do so, there is another wrong reason for prayer that we must avoid.
Praying to Access Power
We see it in spy movies all the time. Some powerful object is hidden away in a secure location. To get access to it, the hero must figure out a way to get through a hi-tech lock. He steals an identification card and discovers a secret pass code. He sneaks past the guards and fools a biometric scanner to take control of the object and save the day.
I don’t know if real espionage is anything like that. But it seems to me that a lot of people approach prayer that way. They assume that there is some secret formula for getting what you want. You have to pray in the right place, assume the right posture, say the right words, or repeat them the right number of times.
Their reason for praying is not to seek a relationship with the Lord but simply to access power. They pray as if they are reciting a magic spell. In Matthew 6:7, Jesus rejects that approach. He says,
And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words.
The word Gentile refers to everyone who is not Jewish. It may be hard for us to imagine, but until the church began to spread the Gospel, very few people outside of Israel worshiped the true God. They had their own deities. Many, including the Greeks and Romans, worshiped several gods. They believed that each one had power to control different forces of nature. So, if you wanted something specific, you needed to find the right deity, go to the right temple, and engage in the right ritual. If your request wasn’t answered, then you must have done something wrong.
A lot of people who call themselves Christians think the same way. They regard certain places as holy, as if there is better access to God there. They seek help from various saints who are supposed to have extra influence to get God to address our concerns. They even take the model prayer that Jesus has given us in Matthew 6:9-15 and repeat it in a mindless way as if that will unlock the blessing that they seek. So, they arrive at the same conclusion as the idol worshiping Gentiles. If your request wasn’t answered, then you must have done something wrong.
Praying to access power leads either to jaded skepticism or to frenzied desperation. We find an example of that desperation in 1 Kings 18. The Prophet Elijah issued a challenge to 450 prophets of a false god named Baal. They would prepare a sacrifice for Baal, and he would prepare one for the Lord. Then they would call upon their god to see if he would send down fire on their sacrifice, and Elijah would do the same. Verses 28-29 speaks of these false prophets and says,
And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them. And as midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice. No one answered; no one paid attention.
Elijah did not dance around and chant or harm himself. He simply knelt down to pray, and the Lord responded. Did he have some secret formula? Did he have special access to God as a prophet? No, the New Testament book of James says that Elijah was a man with a nature like ours. But James does make one qualification in that passage. In verse 16 of chapter 5, right before he speaks of Elijah, he says,
Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.
Some people take this verse to mean that some sinful deed will keep your request from being answered. They conclude that confessing that deed is another part of the secret formula for unlocking access to God’s power. But it’s not just one deed. There are countless sins in our lives. We are always falling short of God’s perfect righteousness. On our own, we have no access to God.
Thankfully, Jesus came to fulfill the Law’s demand for atonement and its requirement for blessing. So, when we believe in him, his perfect righteousness is credited to our account. He is the only key we need. He is the one who opens the way to the Father for us. Hebrews 4:14-16 explains,
Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Jesus removes every barrier to open the way to the throne of God. He cleanses our sins and clothes us in his righteousness. Hebrews 7:25 even says that he intercedes for us. So, we don’t need to search for a secret formula or another mediator. We don’t need to work ourselves up into a frenzy. We simply need to trust him. Then we can draw near with confidence.
Does that mean that we’ll get what we want? Not necessarily. We need to understand the right reason for prayer.
Praying to Express Faith
My family was not part of a church when I was growing up. We celebrated Christmas and Easter, but there was no mention of Jesus. My parents weren’t hostile toward Christianity. They just weren’t interested. So, as those holidays drew near we talked about Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny.
Each year my brother and I would make a list of what we wanted. Then we would go to the mall to deliver them in person. Sometimes we received the requested gifts, and sometimes we didn’t. We never knew why. It was all a frustrating mystery.
I think a lot of people approach God that way. They check in a few times a year to make sure that he is informed about what’s on their list. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn’t. It’s all a frustrating mystery.
I suppose you could argue that by focusing on Santa my parents pushed us toward viewing God that way. I certainly chose to take a very different approach to the holidays in my household. But I also recognize that my parents were trying to spend meaningful time with my brother and I to cultivate strong relationships. I don’t think that they did it in the best way, but their desire helps us understand the right reason for prayer.
We should pray to express faith in our heavenly Father. He wants us to spend meaningful time with him, so that we know him and understand the plan and purpose that he has revealed in his Word. It’s not wrong to bring requests to him. But in Matthew 6:8, Jesus follows up his statement about people who think that they will be heard for their many words by saying,
Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
When we pray, we are not informing God about anything. He is all knowing. Remember Psalm 139:4? David said that even before a word is on his tongue, the Lord knows it. But it’s not just that he foresees what we need. He created us. He knows what we need better than we do. He does not just see the big picture; he is the one painting it. In Romans 8:28-29, Paul tells us,
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
We could spend hours unpacking the ideas in these verses. But for the moment, we can simply say that God’s good purpose is to make us like Jesus, and he will do what it takes to get us there. Sometimes our prayer requests align with that goal, and sometimes they don’t. So, why bother praying?
We pray to express our faith in our heavenly Father. It’s not about changing him or his plan. It’s about sharing our burdens and struggles with him, so that we grow in understanding his plan and relying upon his strength. Paul explains prayer this way in Philippians 4:6-7. He says,
do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Some people make their requests known to God but still don’t feel any better. They’re tempted to conclude that this promise doesn’t work. But this approach to prayer is more than dropping off your list. It stops to recognize and give thanks for God’s character and plan. It seeks not just a certain outcome, but the strength and peace to persevere no matter what happens. It’s a commitment to trust and not worry.
Furthermore, this conversation with the Lord doesn’t stop. It’s not just holidays or Sundays, it’s ongoing. We must keep surrendering those anxious thoughts to him as we look to his word to remind ourselves about who he is, what he is doing, and how he wants us to live. In 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, Paul says,
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
Is that the kind of relationship that you have with God? Are you just passing on a list to him? Or do you pray to commune with him as your heavenly Father and to express your faith in him?
__________
Jesus has more to say about this kind of prayer. As we continue in Matthew 6, we will explore the model that he gives us to follow, but we must be clear about why we pray. It’s not a game to impress people or to access power. Those approaches to prayer treat God like a prop or an idol. Instead, we should pray as an expression of faith in our wise and loving heavenly Father who helps us persevere through the challenges of life as he accomplishes his good purpose.
What is your response today? Are you calling upon the name of the Lord? If you have never done so, I urge you to start today. Believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. Confess your sins to him and trust Jesus to open the way for you to draw near through his death, his resurrection, and his intercession for us. If you would like to learn more about prayer, Luke 18 is a great chapter to read.
Perhaps you are a believer, but you are not seeking to walk with God. Would you renew your devotion to prayer? Perhaps you need to change why you pray. Set aside time to seek the Lord in private and keep the conversation going. Give him your burdens and draw upon his peace.
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope” (Rom 15:13).
Reflect
Which of the wrong reasons for prayer are you most inclined toward? Why?
How would you characterize your prayer life?
What steps could you take to deepen your devotion to prayer?