When people say, “I’ve tried prayer, and it didn’t work,” what Jesus is saying is, “You used prayer, not the way I designed it, but with a false model of spirituality.”

For Jesus, the importance of prayer is revealed in a little unobtrusive word at the beginning of this passage in the Sermon on the Mount: the little word “and.” Right before Jesus talks about prayer, he talks about our engagement with the poor and the needs of the world. Then he says, “And when you pray …” Because in Jesus’ understanding, it’s the people who are characterized by the most radical interiority who have the most courageous, visionary engagement with the needs of the world. And before Jesus gives us a model of prayer, the famous Lord’s Prayer, he tells us two other models of prayer that we should avoid.

Let’s look at 1) the two false models, 2) the true model, and 3) a few practical ideas on how to go about it.

This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on May 9, 1999. Series: The Mount; Life in the Kingdom. Scripture: Matthew 6:5-13.

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