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Thank you for joining me here. As I write this, I’m praying for the families affected by the flood that recently devastated areas along the Guadalupe River in Texas, especially those who have lost loved ones. May they find comfort, help, and healing among us and from above.

Last Week’s Work

REPETITION

With the Spirit’s help, I noticed the repetition of the phrase when you pray, which highlighted three statements about praying I summarized thus: don’t be a hypocrite (v5), pray in private (v6), and don’t drone on and on (v7). I believe these statements were made to emphasize two aspects of God: He sees you when you pray privately and will reward you (v6); and he knows what you need before you ask him (v8).

Next, I noticed various forms of forgive in vv12, 14-15. These establish the principle that forgiveness will be granted to us in the same measure we grant it to others. It’s interesting that Matthew referred to what is being forgiven as debts (v12) in the prayer, then used the term trespasses in the follow-up statement after the prayer. Though these verses aren’t my primary focus in this study, I wonder about the use of such dissimilar English words. If I have time when I’m working through the Refine step, I’d like to see if there’s a literal difference in the original text and what that might mean.

Finally, I noticed several “not”s in this passage:

• Do not be like the hypocrites… (v5).
• Do not heap up phrases… (v7).
• Do not be like them (v8).
• Lead us not into temptation… (v13).
• If you do not forgive… (v15).

 Of the five instances above, only the fourth, from my focus verse (v13), is part of the prayer pattern. The rest reflect Jesus’s teaching about the bad examples of the hypocrites and Gentiles, and the importance of treating others as you want God to treat you.

SPECIAL STATEMENTS

Seven Commands. Three of these are recorded in the first three bullets, above (do not be…, do not heap…, do not be…). Of the other four, three are in v6 (go into your room… shut the door…pray to your Father), and the last is in v9 (pray like this…).

One Prayer in vv9-13. But maybe not! Although it sounds like a prayer, and I’ve been praying almost those exact words for more than five decades in various church settings, this week the Spirit has really been drawing my attention to the phrase pray then like this… (v9, emphasis mine). More on that next week!

Two Promises. Your Father… will reward you when you pray privately (v6), and your heavenly Father will also forgive you when you forgive others (v14). Both of these are really good news!

Four Requests. These are all located within the prayer pattern: Give us this day our daily bread (v11), Forgive us our debts (v12), Lead us not into temptation and deliver us from evil (v13). The first two seem straightforward, but the last two? I’ll be glad to get some clarity there!

Three Warnings about ineffectual prayers—Do not be like the hypocrites… they have received their reward (v5), Do not heap up empty phrases and do not be like [the Gentiles] (vv7-8)—and how forgiveness works in the kingdom of God: If you do not forgive others…, neither will your Father (v15).

LISTS

This may be a first in my studies: I noticed a list and a sub-list here! They are:

3-Step Prayer Procedure:

1. Don’t grandstand (v5); pray in private (v6).
2. Don’t try to wear God down with words (v7)
3. Follow this 5-Step Prayer Pattern:
   A – Honor God (v9).
   B – Align your will with His (v10).
   C – Mention your need (v11).
   D – Ask for forgiveness (v12).
   E – Ask for protection from the real enemy (v13).

Dig-In Challenges

This week, let’s wrap up Step 3 by:

1. PRAYING: As always, start with the prayer we wrote for Step 1.
2. MINING: Read through the passage again looking for comparisons in or related to your focus verses. Look for similarities using like or as, quantitative/qualitative comparisons using more or less, and/or contrasts.
3. MINING: Next, look for causes or motives by focusing on key words or phrases I call cause connectors. In this chapter, look for the connectors for and that. Then check the text surrounding the connector for an action and the reason or explanation for that action. For example: in the sentence,
   I went to the store because I was out of milk:
   the action = I went to the store             because        the reason = I was out of milk.
   NOTE A: for and that don’t always connect an action and a reason. To determine if they do in this passage, read the sentences containing these words replacing for with because, and that with so that or in order that. If the new sentence makes sense and means the same as the original, make a note of the action and its cause.
   NOTE B: With all these connectors, you’ll find the action before the cause connector and the reason after it (like the example above).
4. MINING: Finally, see if you can find any conditions/methods required for something to happen. For example, does the text say if or when a certain condition is met, some outcome will happen (e.g., whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith (Matt 21:22)? Or does the author describe a particular method by which something happens—for example, specific steps taken to achieve something, or more generally by or through attributes or actions (e.g., saved by grace, through faith (Eph 2:8)? Does he use any adverbs (-ly words) that describe how action was accomplished?

These exercises are more involved, I know, but I’m confident you can do this with the Holy Spirit! Don’t forget to check your How to Dig Into Scripture Ourselves guide, and you can always reach out to me at [email protected] if you have questions.

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