As we begin our series in
Developing a Powerful Prayer Life, it is important that we pay close attention
to the Model Prayer. Some call this the Lord’s Prayer and some the Disciple’s
Prayer. Its name is not as important as the principles it teaches us regarding
prayer. The first one we have looked at is Why we pray and where.
We must pray in secret before we pray in public (Matthew 6:6). It is not wrong to pray in
public in the assembly, look at 1 Tim. 2, or even when blessing food, or
seeking God's help (John 11:41-42; Acts 27:35). But it is wrong to pray in
public if we are not in the habit of praying in private. Observers may think
that we are practicing prayer when we are not, and this is hypocrisy. The word
translated closet means "a private chamber." It could refer to
a room in a house. Our Lord prayed privately (Mark 1:35); so did Elisha (2
Kings 4:32ff) and Daniel (Dan. 6:10ff).
Next
week we will be looking at principles of prayer.
