--Praying to the Father ~~
--[Please Read/ Matthew 6:1-18]

---"I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting."
--(1 Timothy 2:8)

--IS public prayer wrong? Did Jesus teach against public prayer? Why did He say we should pray in our closet? Let's take a look at Jesus' words: "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." The focus in this verse is on "seen of men," not on public prayer. Jesus was addressing a problem of hypocrisy and pride, which is common in the human heart. To combat this problem, He said we should pray secretly rather than publicly just to be seen of men.

Jesus was not teaching against praying in public, or even against others knowing what we pray or when we pray. When the prophet Daniel knelt to pray at his open window, he did not do it to be seen of men. But obviously he was seen of men; otherwise, no one would have known of his petition to another King. After the decree was signed, evil men watched to see if Daniel would pray at the window again, and we know the rest of the story.

Jesus Himself prayed in the sight of men before feeding the five thousand and before raising Lazarus from the dead. He took three of his disciples with Him to pray in Gethsemane. The early church prayed together in public. He is against hypocrisy. He is against pride. The desire to be "seen of men" is still revolting to Him. Let us walk in the Spirit of Jesus Christ with humility, meekness, and transparency. ~~
--BSW/HRT
--"Tremble"/ (lyric video/ live in Vienna / Jeremy Riddle)=<https://youtu.be/IyHLldbGxvo>
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