The Secret of Prayer - Part 2

As we continue our study of the Sermon on the Mount, the greatest sermon ever preached. And today, for the second week in a row, we study the greatest words on prayer ever spoken. The greatest words on prayer ever spoken. We're in Matthew chapter 6, and we're going to look at verses 5 to 8. Matthew chapter 6, verses 5 through 8. Our Lord says, And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret, and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions as the heathen do, for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them, for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him. Amen. Praise God. The title of our sermon today is The Secret of Prayer, Part 2. The Secret of Prayer, Part 2. We started last week and we said that the secret of prayer is secret prayer. The secret to improving your prayer life, the secret to having a warm and a loving and a devoted prayer life is secret prayer. The only thing really that will ever help us improve our prayer lives is being more with God in secret, alone. And last week we covered three things in verse 6. We said that prayer is different, prayer is expected, and prayer is deliberate. So if you didn't hear last week's sermon, I highly encourage you to go back and listen to that. We had three points. Today I want to give you four more points from verse 6. And we're just trying to cover every word in verse 6 because, again, I believe this is the most crucial, the most searing, the most beautiful teaching on prayer in the whole Bible. It's so simple, but our Lord gives us the very clue and the secret of prayer right here. Let's read verse 6 one more time. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret, and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. That's our verse today. Matthew chapter 6 and verse 6, and it is a key verse. I want to remind you of a quote from Leonard Ravenhill that I gave you last week. Ravenhill says, no man is greater than his prayer life. And I want you all to take that home with you and think about that. No man, no woman, no human is greater than their prayer lives. We can do everything in this life. We can get houses and apartments and barns and cars and get all that we ever could. And we can work as hard as we ever could. And we can even be manly men and we can have amazing families and who knows all the different things we could aspire to do. But it remains true that no one is greater than their prayer lives. If we're not doing all those things, bathed in prayer, having our hearts calmed by the Lord in prayer, actually engaging with secret friendship with God in prayer, then all these other things are just straw and stubble and they won't last and they won't matter for eternity. So I think it's very true what Ravenhill says, no man is greater than his prayer life. And I want to say one more thing before we dive into the text. I've been thinking about how to say this. Everything in the Sermon on the Mount is a privilege. Everything our Lord tells us to do is a privilege. And we can so often look at what he says here and we can say, it's drudgery. It's a duty. It's too hard. But I want to tell you all and I want to remind you and keep reminding you, it's a privilege. Christ told us in chapter 5, if you're dealing with sexual immorality, gouge out your eyes, cut off your hands. And we can look at that and say, that sounds so extreme. It sounds like law, but it's actually the law of Christ. It's actually a privilege. It's actually something where we should say, whoa, I get to stop watching porn. I get to stop engaging in that sin. I get to do that because Jesus tells me I can do it. You see, that's seeing it as a privilege rather than just drudgery or a duty. I was thinking of like swimming in the summer, right? Do any of us say, oh, I have to go swimming today. No. We say, I get to go swimming today, right? Or meeting a friend at Starbucks or whatever, do we say, oh, man, I got to meet that friend today. No, we say, I'm going to meet my friend, right? And it's the very same way right here with prayer. This is not drudgery. This is not just a duty that should weigh you down. I pray that every single one of us would say, I get to pray. And maybe I can only squeeze in a few minutes right now, but I get to do it. So I'm going to close my car door and I'm going to speak to my father. You see what I'm talking about? Now let's look at our Lord's words here. We're midway through verse six. I'm going to give you four points. Prayer is vocal. Prayer is childlike. Prayer is intimate. And prayer is full of expectation. And these might go by somewhat quickly. So follow me. Let's hear our Lord speak. Verse six, but thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet. And when thou hath shut the door, thy door, pray. Let's start right there today. That's our fourth point. Pray. Prayer is vocal. Because you've got to pray, right? You have to simply speak. You have to pray. Or literally in the Greek right here, it's vow. You have to offer up your vows to God. You have to say, Lord, I resolve to do this. Lord, I want to do this. Lord, I desire to do this. But we have to pray. We have to open our mouths. And here's the command. I want everybody to get this. You actually have to speak. You actually want to say things to God. How many times has anyone here said, I'm going to try to pray. I'm going to go get a loan. But then I almost immediately find myself texting prayer requests. Or reading a devotional. Or studying scripture. Or preparing a sermon. Or listening to a sermon. Or, you see what I'm saying? And all of a sudden, maybe I put apart 20 minutes to pray, but I haven't prayed. I'm doing all this other stuff. Our Lord tells us, it's simple. It's your mouth and God. We've got to spend some time opening up our mouths before our God. And I've found at times that sometimes you have to read less of scripture. You read one verse. And then stop and talk to God about it. So that we're not just in our prayer time and just studying and reading all my chapters for the day. Our Lord says here, and we ought to take it to heart, pray. Pray. Open your mouth. Bhaktsingh, who was one of the most amazing Indian evangelists. I think I've told you all about him before. He brought Bibles into the hands of all the children who would come hear him preach. And every time he started to preach, he would say, where is your sword? And everybody would have to hold up the Bible. And then they'd all clap, because they all had new Bibles. We all ought to appreciate our Bibles that much. But Bhaktsingh is his name. And he said this. There are certain thoughts which we cannot share with others. But we can speak to God freely. And tell him every thought. We can go to him at any time, anywhere. And hear his voice. My first point is that it's very simple. We need to go to God and open our mouths. And I would encourage you that you get vocal about it. Not always just in the mind. But we open our mouths and we pray. Amen? Second point. Let's say fourth, prayer is vocal. Fifth, prayer is childlike. Look at verse 6. Pray to thy father. Prayer is childlike. Listen, Christians. If you've been bought by the blood of Jesus Christ, you've been bought by the blood of your elder brother. And now you've been adopted into the family of God. And now when we pray, our Lord says, and makes it so simple, pray to your father. In these few little words, he's telling us to be childlike. He's saying, yes, we all have problems with our earthly fathers. Yes, our earthly fathers haven't even come close to giving us a model of our father in heaven, have they? But we speak to our father in heaven. And you have to be childlike if you want to enter the kingdom of God. Remember when our Lord says that? When we have to speak to our father. This tiny word here, father, distinguishes Christian prayer from all other prayer. Did you all know that? Did you all know that no one else in the world prays and calls God father? This word, thy father. Muslims don't speak to their father in heaven. Mormons don't speak to their father in heaven. Or if they are, they're speaking to a false father. All the false religions, they don't speak to their father. And they don't have intimacy with their father. But we can honestly say, can't we? He's my father. I'm a child of God. It's so beautiful. Back in those fellowship conferences, let me tell you a few little stories about praying to your father. In those fellowship conferences we used to have here, people were having a prayer meeting in the other room. And there was some people that I was intimidated by in their prayer lives. Tim Conway was there. And Mack Tomlinson. And I was scared of these guys. And I didn't know how to pray. And after one of those sessions, I went to Tim Conway and I said, Brother, I'm just, I'm having the fear of man. I don't know how to pray in this prayer meeting. And he said, why don't you just say father? And then you'll have a shoe in the door. You see his point? What he was saying is, why don't you keep it simple? Why don't you not think about fear of man? Why don't you just say father? And then you've begun praying and people are going to expect you to keep talking, right? So then you're part of the prayer session. I exhort you all, just say father. And our prayers can be so simple. Father, help me. Amen. Just say father. Do you all remember that Luther hymn, A Mighty Fortress is Our God? Do you remember when Luther writes about Satan? One little word shall fell him. Everybody remember that one? One little word shall fell him. One little word will take down Satan like an axe takes down a tree. And I always wonder, what's that one little word? And it doesn't say in the song. Go back and look at that song. It doesn't say it. The next verse doesn't say it. And that word is da da da. But if you look at Luther's little table talks with his students, you'll find him obsessing over one word. And I think he is the theologian of this one word. It's the word father. I believe in the bottom of my heart that when Luther wrote one little word will take down Satan, the word he was thinking of is father. Father. And so we can try to cast out demons. And we can try to do all these wonderful things in spiritual warfare that we're called to in the scripture. But one of the most powerful things, the most powerful thing we can do is just say father. And in saying that we're reminding ourselves that Christ died for me, that I'm a child of God, that I have a father in heaven, that these demons can't touch me. They have no place in me because he's my father and he always hears me. And I want to tell you one more story about father. If you go to Toronto this coming week and every single week on Wednesday night at 630 on Christie Street, in the middle of that city was the church that I got saved in. And in every single prayer meeting, I can tell you without a doubt, you will meet a little tiny Filipino woman whose name is Vicenta. And she's a very, very dear woman. And every time you hear her start her prayers, she'll say this. Oh, father, thank you that we can call you father. Let me just tell you that again. I want us to all take a field trip up to Toronto and go there 630 to their prayer meeting. And I know you're going to find Vicenta there because at times she'll take the subway for two hours to get to prayer meeting. She doesn't let anything stop her. And then she'll get there and every time she'll say, father, thank you that we can call you father. And you all might say, is that just vain repetition like the Pharisees that Jesus describes here? I tell you, no, it's not. It's just that every week she would warm her heart by reminding herself, father, this is the greatest privilege. We can call you father. No matter what our earthly fathers have done to us, we can call him father. And one other thing, I was attacked by Satan for a good two or three years, I believe, in confusion about who I can call upon in prayer. I don't know if anyone has ever had this confusion, but I'm going to mention it to you now just in case you have. I went on for two, three years or so saying, can I call God father? Can I call him Jesus? Can I speak to the Holy Spirit? What can I do? And I was getting really confused. I actually went to our brother, Robert Gray, who should be back next week. And he said, well, what does Jesus say, Sam? You know how Robert talks like that? Well, what does Jesus say? Well, what does Jesus say right here? When you've shut your door, pray to your father. So the clearest way to get rid of that huge demonic hang up in my head, it was just to say, follow. Don't have to soup it up. Oh, God, almighty maker of heaven and father. We've said number four. Prayer is vocal. We've said number five. Prayer is childlike. Number six. Prayer is intimate. Let's read our verse again. Pray to thy father, which is in secret. And thy father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. Just take those few phrases with me. Pray to thy father, which is in secret, or who is in secret. And your father, who sees in secret. I love how Christ's thoughts right here, they just expand. And he seems to get obsessed with this idea. Your father, who is in secret, and your father, who sees in secret. It's like he's playing an accordion, and he's opening up the accordion here. And Christ remembers, oh, the father, he sees in secret. And he hears in secret. And I want to remind them about how he's going to meet with them in secret. He's opening that up to us. Everything in this verse, at this point, backs us up into a corner. And asks us, are you real with God? Do you meet with him in secret? In secret. And he lets those waves bathe over us. In secret. Do you have vital communion with God in secret? In private? And I just want to encourage you all of this. Step into this reality. Dive deeper into this reality. This secret reality with God. We, Kiara and I and Shiloh, went to Cousin's Island yesterday. And just swam on that Cousin's Island beach. And, you know, it took us about 20 minutes to just dip our feet in the water. And to say, oh, it's too cold. I'm not going further. And then dip our feet in the water a little more. Oh, maybe I can go a little further. And then dip your leg in it. Oh, it's way too cold. And then you come all the way out. But here Christ is telling us, your father is in secret. And your father sees in secret. And he's sort of wooing us to go out into the waves. And dive in. And meet him in secret. And, you know, it always happens with Kiara that after 20 minutes of just dabbling in. She dives in. And then she just wants to stay the rest of the day. That's how it ought to be with our Father. Remember this, Christians. He wants to meet with you in private, in secret, when no one else is watching. And then don't just dabble, but go all the way. Go meet with him. Go under a cherry tree this summer. Go find him for 30 minutes. Do it. Be quiet with him in secret. I love it. I love it. Here we learn two attributes of God that we must believe in when we go to pray. The attributes are that he's omnipresent. And that he's all attentive. Just think about it. He wants to meet with you in secret. That means he's present everywhere. And that means that he's ready to hear you. He's all attentive to your needs. He's available in secret. And he's attentive in secret. And I want us all to consider this just for a moment. Private prayer is a sign and a privilege of God's hidden people. God's secret people. Have you ever read in Psalm 83 and verse 3? God calls us his hidden ones. Anybody ever seen that? Or his hidden ones. His secret ones. It says in Colossians 3 and verse 3 that your life has been hid with Christ in God. You're one of his sweet little hidden ones. And that means that he wants to meet with you in secret. Take that title home with you. You're one of God's hidden ones. His precious private secret ones. Thomas Brooks, an old Puritan, said this. Listen. Consider that you only are the Lord's secret ones. His hidden ones. And therefore, if you do not apply yourselves to private prayer and to your secret retirements, that you may enjoy God in the corner, none will. Did everybody hear that? That's very convicting. He's saying there are only a few little secret ones, hidden ones, in this earth. And it's more and more true by the day if you all haven't noticed. The highest statistic, I've told you all this, in Portland, Maine, from Portland to Lewiston right now, is that there are about 8% of the population is faithful Christians. 8%! Can you believe that? And think of that. Those are God's hidden ones. Those are his remnants. Those are his secret ones. And listen to what Thomas Brooks says here. If you all, the little 8%, if you all don't go and pray in secret, no one's going to talk to God. It's sad, isn't it? So let us take that privilege, that opportunity, and go meet with him. Give him the reward of his sufferings. Give God the reward of his election and of his salvation. We've said that prayer is vocal. Prayer is childlike. Now I'm telling you, prayer is intimate. Get used to the idea you're one of his secret ones. And finally, prayer is full of expectation. Prayer is full of expectation. Read this verse with me one last time. But thou, verse 6, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet. And when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret. And thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. That's the final promise. And I'm telling you that true Christian prayer is full of expectation. He ends by saying this. Your Father in heaven shall reward you openly. With open hands, manifestly, you'll be able to see it. He will reward you. I love this. If we are truly praying Christian prayer, we must pray with this expectation. That God's going to come through. That someday, right now you don't see it, right? But someday you're going to see it. And he's going to reward you openly. And it will be unmistakable. Maybe with a child. Maybe with a gift. Maybe with a blessing. Maybe with a spouse. Maybe with who knows what it might be. But the Father is going to reward you openly. I love that. Hebrews chapter 11, verse 6 resonates with this. In the writer of Hebrews, Paul says, But without faith, it is impossible to please him. For he who comes to God must believe that he is. Okay, so when you pray, do you believe that he is? Do you pray that God exists when you pray? You better. But secondly, listen. And that he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him. When you pray and you ask God, Lord, could we merge with that church? Lord, could that happen? Do you believe he's a rewarder of those who diligently seek him? He's going to reward you. He's going to come through for you. We've got to have that expectation. Let's end with these reflections. How will God reward us? How will God reward us? Look at verse 6. He says, What are some of the sweet rewards that God the Father can give his children? Well, first, right there in the prayer closet, he can reward you. Has anyone ever experienced that? You take some moments, you meet with God, and you realize he rewards you right there. He softens your soul. He says, as it says in John 14, God the Father and Jesus come and they make their abode with you. And for a few moments you feel, I'm with God. God is Emmanuel. He's here in the room with me. That's a reward in itself, isn't it? Secondly, he can reward you by actually answering your prayer. Two weeks later, two years later, down the line, Boom! You got it. It happens. He gives you what you asked for. Thirdly, he can reward you by not answering your prayer, but by calming your affections and expanding your heart. Has anyone ever experienced that? God might say no, but in doing that, he sculpts you. He warms you. He makes you kinder. He makes you sweeter. That's an open reward as well. And finally, what's the greatest open reward that God's going to give us? We spend time being his secret people, talking to him, closing the door, meeting with him. What's the final manifest open reward he's going to give us? Streets of gold. Perfection. Glory. The face of Jesus Christ before us. The presence of our father himself. And thy father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly on that day. I told you, put these two sermons together. Let me just mention these seven categories one more time. True Christian prayer is different. It is expected. It is deliberate. It is vocal. This is today's sermon. Childlike. Intimate. And full of expectation. And I want to close like I did last week by abasing myself before you all. I want to get down on my knees and beg you all to hear today's sermon. And I did this last week, so if you weren't here, I'm begging you all to. And you might think it's funny, but I want to beg each and every one of us to take our prayer lives more seriously. This is what makes it all matter. This is what makes our lives prepared for heaven. This is what sweetens us. This is what makes the Christian life worthwhile, brothers and sisters. Would you in this next month of August, would you spend more time with God in private, in secret? Close the door? Give him five minutes? Give him seven minutes at work? Would you please? I'm begging you all. Amen. Let's end there. Let's pray. Father, we thank you so much for this glorious word. I thank you for the clarity of our Lord's words here. And, Lord, I do ask that we would all take our prayer lives more seriously. And as we're talking about, Lord, that we don't see it as a duty, as a drudgery before you, but that we see it as an absolute joy to get along with God and to know that our Father will reward us openly. Oh, Lord, help us to take your words to heart. Not my words, but your words, Lord Jesus. Help us to live. In your name we pray. Amen.