An Audience of One 
Prayer – Part 2 (Matthew 6:7-8) 

Baxter T. Exum (#1738)
Four Lakes Church of Christ
Madison, Wisconsin
May 26, 2024

Good morning and welcome to the Four Lakes Church of Christ! If you are visiting this morning or joining us online or on the phone, we are especially glad to have you with us, and we’d like to ask that you fill out a visitor card – online if you can, or if you are here in person, you can use one of the cards from the pew in front of you and give that to me on your way out this morning. Whatever works for you, we would love to hear from you, and we invite you to pass along any questions or prayer concerns.

We are here this morning not only to worship, but also to preach the love of God. He loves us so much that he sent his only Son as a sacrifice to die on the cross in our place. He died, he was buried, but he was this raised up on the third day. This is the good news, and we obey this good news by turning to God in faith, by turning away from sin, by publicly stating our belief that Jesus is the Son of God, and by being buried with him in baptism. At this point, we are born into God’s family, and the Christian life begins. And this morning we are sharing the example of Marcos, who was baptized down in Costa Rica this week. We don’t have too many details, but this looks to be under a bridge of some kind. And I’m sharing this one, because it involves Brian Kenyon, a friend and former classmate from Freed-Hardeman who has been directing the Florida School of Preaching for many years now. He and a group from the school of preaching have been in Costa Rica over the past week or so, and it looks like several have obeyed the gospel down there. Brian is on the left in this picture, as they study with Carlos. As I look at this picture up here, I’m just shocked that my former classmates are as old as they are. But we share the good news from Costa Rica as a reminder that the gospel is the same everywhere it’s preached, and you can obey the gospel right here in Madison, Wisconsin. And you can do it today. If you If you have any questions or concerns, please get in touch using the contact information on the wall up here (or on your screen at home). If you are joining us on the phone, you can send a text or give me a call at 608-224-0274.

This morning, we return to our ongoing study of the Sermon on the Mount by getting back to the first half of Matthew 6, where Jesus emphasizes the importance of practicing acts of righteousness “for an audience of One,” with God in heaven being that “one.” The theme for this series comes from Matthew 6:1, where Jesus says, “Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.”  And so, as we learned over the past several weeks, motive matters! If we do good to be noticed by the people around us, Jesus says that the praise we receive from the world will be all the praise we get, that God is not impressed at all. And with that warning as an introduction, we are looking at a series of three acts of righteousness that must be done not to impress the people around us, but instead, must be done “for an audience of One.” Two weeks ago, we started by looking at GIVING TO THE POOR, and we learned that as we give we must not give for the purpose of being noticed. Not that it’s necessarily a sin if somebody notices (after all, Jesus did tell us to let our lights shine in such a way that God gets the glory), but we are to give, knowing that motive matters. And last week, we moved into PRAYER, and we learned that when we pray we are not to pray in a way that attracts attention. So, instead of making a point of praying out there on the street corners, Jesus tells us to go into an inner room and that God who hears in secret will reward us. By the way, over the past week or so, I keep thinking about our practice of praying before a meal, even at a restaurant. And we have had some interesting conversations as a result of doing this through the years. Some have come up to the table and have thanked us for doing that. But, we don’t always pray before meals out in public. I’m curious what you think about this, but in our family, if it’s just us and if it’s fairly quiet, generally we pray together. And we may pray out loud when we are with a group, but not if it’s crowded or very loud. Basically, I don’t plan on standing up or shouting our prayer or anything like that. If it’s a big group or loud place, often, we will just jump right in or perhaps make a brief comment that God has given us some really good food. That’s just our tradition, but I’m curious as to what you may do.

But as we left it last week, we pray, not to attract attention, but we approach God in an “inner room.” But what do we say once we are in that inner room? Next week, we hope to dive in to what is commonly referred to as being the “Lord’s Prayer,” and we’ll discuss why this may not be the best description; in fact, we’ll learn why this is the one prayer Jesus never actually prayed. But before we get to the sample prayer, we still have one more warning. We have another bad and good; we have another danger to consider.

And again, as with what Jesus just said about giving and prayer previously, we will also have the bad and the good in this passage – what not to do, followed by some positive instruction. And today, we’ll just be looking at verses 7-8. These are the words of Jesus from Matthew 6:7-8. Jesus says,

And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.

Again, we have the good and the bad...

I.	...and we start with the BAD part of this example (in verse 7).

“And when you are praying,” Jesus says, “do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.” We have an interesting translation issue going on here. The NASB has Jesus condemning “meaningless repetition.” The KJV has Jesus referring to “vain repetitions.” The NIV has Jesus saying “do not keep on babbling.” The ESV has Jesus condemning the use of “empty phrases.” It all goes back to a word that’s only used once in the New Testament, and that’s part of the problem. It’s a compound word, with the second part being the verb form of “word,” so the second part of the word is a reference to “speaking.” But the first part of the word is a bit of a mystery. Transliterated over into English, it’s “BATTA.” Some have suggested that it’s a form of onomatopoeia, a word that sounds like what it means – a word like buzz, or whack, or tweet. If that’s the case, the word is perhaps mocking pagan cultures who would simply repeat these short syllables over and over in their prayers, “batta, batta, batta, batta, batta,” and so on. Sounds like a baseball game to me. Another theory out there is that the word is tied to the name of a pagan king who was known for stuttering, King Battus of Cyrene! And he was famous for this. Years ago, I took a class in “voice and articulation,” and I remember the professor having us do an exercise where we had to repeat certain phrases “while smiling like Jimmy Carter.” And as soon as he said that, all of us knew exactly what to do. He wasn’t making fun of Jimmy Carter, but Jimmy Carter will always be known for his huge smile. Well, King Batta was perhaps known for stuttering.

However, in spite of the confusion in translating this word, we know what Jesus was saying based on the context: Don’t do THAT, “...as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.” The reference, then, is to “meaningless repetition,” which is why the NASB translates it as it does. These people were making sounds which made no sense, and they were repeating these words over and over again for the purpose of being “heard.” So, the Gentiles (or the pagans) thought of prayer not as a relationship with a deity, but they thought of prayer as a transaction: The key to getting what I want is to repeat myself over and over again. Like a kid begging for a candy bar at the grocery store, the child might think that more words ups his or her chances, “Please, please, please, please, please,” and yet that’s not how it works, does it? But the feeling may be that the more I repeat myself, the better my chances – almost like playing a slot machine: If I pull this handle enough, certainly something will eventually happen. Maybe it’s tied to a feeling of insecurity when we pray. One thing I appreciate about Facebook Messenger is that when you send a message you can see when the other person has seen your message (and other platforms may do this as well), but I know the message has gone through. We have no such reassurance with God, so perhaps that’s one reason why we might be tempted to repeat things.

In the world, we might think of the prayer wheels where Tibetan Buddhists use a hollow cylinder either inscribed with or filled with written prayers, and each spin of the cylinder represents a repetition of those prayers. So, you can walk by and spin that wheel, and you have just prayed a dozen times. I’ve seen something similar at our favorite Indian restaurant over on Monona Drive. I don’t know if that’s what it is, but they have these spinning wheels in the entryway. Or maybe we’ve seen the prayer flags. My Tibetan neighbors just hung a prayer flag on a maple tree that’s about to get big enough to shade part of my garden. This is just over my fence. I can reach out and touch these. There seem to be differing traditions with these, but the general idea is that you hang a series of these flags printed with prayers or blessings and as the flags flap in the breeze and deteriorate over time, those blessings are released in some way. I’m hoping my garden is especially blessed this year! But it’s this idea I believe Jesus is condemning here. Prayer is not a formula where more prayer equals better results.

Or, concerning repetition, perhaps something else comes to mind, “Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women,” and so on. Or, ironically, perhaps we think about the prayer that comes right after this, “Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name,” and so on. Has that prayer ever been repeated in a vain or meaningless way? Absolutely.

Or, in the Bible, we might think of Elijah’s showdown with the prophets of Baal. In 1 Kings 18, they met on Mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal prepared their sacrifice, and then they “...called on the name of Baal from morning until noon saying, ‘Baal, answer us.’ But there was no voice and no one answered.” They continued, and they cut themselves with swords until the blood gushed out, and the Bible says that they “...raved until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice; but there was no voice, no one answered, and no one paid attention.” In contrast, Elijah prayed once, his prayer was only about 40 words long, he spoke words that were simple and made sense, and God answered.

But before we condemn the pagans and the Catholics and walk away justified, thanking God that we are not like those people, we should probably ask: Are we ever guilty of using meaningless repetition in our prayers? Remember: Jesus isn’t talking to the pagans here; he’s talking to his disciples and telling them not to pray like the pagans. So, how might we be guilty of this? I’ve never built a prayer wheel. I’ve never been tempted to repeat ten Hail Mary’s. So how might this apply to us? As to the “meaningless” part, I remember people often asking God to “guide, guard, and direct us,” and it seemed to me that it was sometimes repeated without ever really thinking about it. Or perhaps we’ve heard someone ask God to bring us back together “at the next appointed time.” Do we think about that when we say it? The next appointed time is 7 o’clock this Wednesday on YouTube. We actually know when that time is. Or maybe we pray that we would partake “in a manner that is acceptable in your sight.” Those words are accurate, and that is certainly a valid request, as long as we actually think about it as we say it. Or what about always saying, “In Jesus name, AMEN,” at the end of our prayers? In John 14:14, Jesus says, “If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.” And I think it goes back to that. But was Jesus saying that God will only listen to prayers that end with, “In Jesus name, AMEN”? Is that some kind of magic formula? Is that the postage that sends our prayers on up to God? No. It’s good to acknowledge praying through Jesus when we pray, but let’s be sure to think about it instead of just repeating that phrase mindlessly.

So, this addresses the “meaningless” part, but what about the “repetition” part of this? Is Jesus condemning repetition in our prayers? And is it wrong to ever pray the same thing twice? No. Have we ever read Psalm 136? In that Psalm, David repeats the phrase “His mercy endures forever” twenty-six times. Over in Luke 11, Jesus was answering a question about prayer and told his disciples a parable about a man who wakes his neighbor up asking for food in the middle of the night. Jesus says that the man will be heard because of his “persistence” (he was repeating himself). Or we think of the Parable of the Persistent Widow (in Luke 18), where the widow continually harassed the judge until he caved to her request for justice. Or we think of Paul who prayed three times for his thorn in the flesh to be taken away (in 2 Corinthians 12). Even Jesus persisted in prayer. He prayed all night (in Luke 6:12) on the night before choosing the apostles. He prayed over and over again in the Garden of Gethsemane, even praying “the same thing,” Matthew says (in Matthew 26:44).

Jesus, then, is not condemning repetition, but he is warning against “meaningless repetition,” where we pile on words, thinking that we will be heard for our many words. Think about writing a 10-page term paper back in high school or college. I’ve got 7 pages of material, and I need to stretch it out, so I need to pad that thing. I need to whip out the thesaurus and stretch it out. No, that’s not how prayer works. One of the most meaningful and effective prayers in scripture is the prayer of the tax collector in Luke 18:13 when he said, “God, be merciful to me, the sinner.”

But I think we understand that there is a difference between a long and meaningful conversation and meaningless repetition. We might take an illustration from marriage. Imagine me trying to impress my wife, and I do that by going down to Walgreen’s and finding a romantic card, and I memorize what’s printed in that card, and then I repeat it to my wife several times a day. And imagine that’s all I ever say – over, and over, and over, and over again. I don’t think she will be impressed by that. In fact, that’s a bit creepy, isn’t it? On the other hand, most of us understand that people really get to know each other through long heart-felt conversations. In our relationship, for example, what really clicked for us was when I first gave her a ride home from college in Tennessee to her home in Rantoul, Illinois. I would offer rides to anybody going north, and we would cram into that ‘89 Honda Civic Si hatchback, and we would leave immediately after whoever had the last final exam. Back in December of 1991, we left around 7 o’clock at night, she got the passenger seat, and we talked all night long. That’s how we get to know someone, through a long, honest, and heartfelt conversation. Well, so also with God. The problem is not long prayers (sometimes long prayers are good); the problem is meaningless repetition, thinking that God will be more likely to hear us for our many words.

So, how do we pray meaningful words? And how do we avoid this meaningless repetition? There are times when we might benefit from preparing for our prayers. I don’t know about you, but when I need to make an important phone call, I will sometimes whip out a pad of paper and make a few notes; maybe a few bullet points of what I need to cover in that call. I don’t need to write it out word for word, but there can be a value in preparing for that conversation. So also when it comes to talking with God. So also with prayer. Perhaps we keep a list on our phone, or maybe we pray through the bulletin, or maybe we pray through our church directory, or maybe we pray through a passage of scripture. In Ecclesiastes 5:2, King Solomon says, “Do not be hasty in word or impulsive in thought to bring up a matter in the presence of God. For God is in heaven and you are on the earth; therefore let your words be few.” One way of doing that is by thinking about prayer before we actually pray. The important thing to learn here is that we are not to use meaningless repetition in our prayers, thinking that many words will somehow get us what we want.

II.	Well, this brings us to the GOOD part of this passage.

We have the negative: Don’t use meaningless repetition like the Gentiles, thinking God will hear you for your many words (don’t be like that). And now we have the very good reason for this warning, “for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.” Unlike the Gentiles and the pagans, God is our Father. So here we have a picture that most of us can understand. And I know, not everybody has had a good relationship with their father. And that’s terrible, but generally speaking, we understand that fathers love hearing from their children. A month or two ago, our daughter called me, and as a dad, my first thought was: Is there a problem with the car? Are you stuck in a ditch? Do you need help with the lawnmower? Or whatever. But no, she was just calling to check in, and that was so awesome! So also with our Father in heaven. When we pray, he loves hearing from us, and he knows what we need even before we ask. And it’s an amazing thought! Years ago, I was listening to John DeBerry, a gospel preacher who represented Memphis in the state legislature down there before serving in the governor’s cabinet, and I remember him asking, “Has it ever occurred to you that nothing has ever occurred to God?” And what he meant by that is that God is never caught off guard by anything. God knows! And he knows what we need even before we get around to asking him for it. When we go to God in prayer and tell him that somebody in our family is sick, God will never say, “Wow, I never knew that! Thank you for letting me know!” God already knows it. “Oh, you would like to get married?” or, “You’re having trouble paying rent this month,” or “I’m worried about my children, I had no idea!” No, God is never surprised. And this goes for other needs we may have. When we are overwhelmed with life, he already knows. When our faith is weak, he already knows. When we are crushed by grief, he already knows. When we are struggling financially, he already knows.

And he provides for us even when we don’t think to ask. That’s another amazing part of this. When we think about it, maybe we realize that we ask God for almost nothing. Think about the clothes we’re wearing right now. Did you ask God for the shirt you’re wearing today? Did you specifically ask God for those shoes or those pants? Not me. My shirt is from Goodwill, my shoes are from the REI up in Minneapolis, and my pants are from a woman down in Illinois via e-Bay. I went online looking for Kuhl Rydr pants 35x32, these popped up, I hit the “buy now” button, and they showed up in my mailbox a few days later. I never asked God for these pants, but here we are. He knew what I needed even before I thought to ask. But when we do get around to asking, he’s already on it.

So why do we pray? If God already knows, then what’s the point of praying? I think we need to understand that we may have a number of reasons for talking to someone. Sometimes I need to inform somebody of something; I need to convey information. My wife and I see each other at the end of the day, and I tell her how my day went, because she doesn’t know, so I give her that information. I have informed. But there are other times when we may communicate for the sake of building a relationship. I inform, but then I also need to listen, and there is some back and forth, and we share the good and the bad, and we empathize and rejoice with each other and we are closer to each other at the end of it than we were at the beginning. In a marriage, a conversation may start with the exchange of information, but hopefully it moves to strengthening the relationship. It has been said that communication is more than mere words, but it is not less than words. So also with prayer. Even though God already knows, we still have to tell him what we need – not to impress the people around us, not to try to manipulate God with our many words, but we pray because God is our Father, and we value that relationship. Without the relationship, we might as well try spinning the prayer wheel.

By the way, one of the barriers to communication is that we’re sometimes worried about how somebody might react to what we are about to tell them. Have you ever not said something because you’re worried like that? I would ask for this, but they might say “no,” or I might confess this, but they might get angry with me? Let’s just note here that God already knows! That barrier to communication has already been taken away. He knows what we need, even before we think to ask.

And even though he already knows, he wants us to ask, because he values the relationship. He wants us to recognize that he is God and that we really do rely on him as our Father.

Conclusion:

This morning, we have looked at the danger of meaningless repetition, praying the same words over and over thinking that we will be heard for or many words. Jesus, though, tells us not to be like the Gentiles, because our Father in heaven knows what we need even before we think to ask. I don’t know about you, but I have been challenged by these two verses. I feel like I’ve gone back to school this week. There’s so much to learn when it comes to prayer, and I am looking forward to next week when we start looking at the sample prayer in the next few verses.

As we close our study this morning, let’s go to God in prayer:

Our Father in Heaven,

Thank you so much for hearing our prayer this morning. We praise you as our Father, and we are so thankful that you know what we need, even before we ask. Thank you for being with us, and thank you for speaking to us through your Son, and in your Word. We pray, Father, that we would always appreciate the amazing blessing of being able to talk with you – anytime, anywhere, and even when we really don’t know exactly what to say.

We are thankful for good news this week – for new arrivals, for cancers in remission, for safe travels; and we also ask for your blessing on those who are still struggling.

We come to you this morning in Jesus’ name. AMEN.

To comment on this lesson: fourlakeschurch@gmail.com