Matthew 6:5-8

Secret Prayer

1. Come into God's presence in prayer, v. 6.

   1. Pray to your Father who is in the secret place.

   2. The Lord does not forbid godly public prayer

• John 11:41, Acts 1:14

  1. Come into God's presence in your prayer room.

1. Pray to express not to impress, v. 7

   1. Use direct language not babbling.

2. Psalms 10, 12, 13

   1. Pray with living language expressing yourself to God.

3. Luke 11:1ff,

   1. Moses Exod 32:31-32

   2. Solomon, 1Kgs 3:6-9 (answer v. 10)

   3. Elijah 1Kgs 18:36-37 (answer, v. 38)

   4. Hezekiah 2Kgs 19:14-19 (answer, v. 20f)

   5. Tax collector Luke 18:13

   6. The Church, Acts 4:24-30 (answer v. 31)

   7. Stephen, Acts 7:60

   8. Paul Eph 3:14-19

   1. Pray with meaning.

4. 1Corinthians 14:15-16

1. Pray, not to inform God, but to conform yourself to His will, v.8

   1. We have no information to bring God that He does not already know.

   2. We lift up our hearts to God, our Heavenly Father.

2. Psalm 139:23

   1. We learn to conform our desires to His will.

3. Matthew 26:39

4. I love the LORD, because He has heard my voice and my supplications. Because He has inclined His ear to me, Therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live.

   1. Don't lose heart. Luke 18:1 Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart…

   2. 1Thess 5:17 pray without ceasing,