Jesus taught us that our communication with God should be "one-to-One," with Him only, and NOT while in the midst of others.
After a short discourse on the follies of trying to appear religious in front of people, Jesus talked about prayer. “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others.
Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him” (Matthew 6:5-8).
The Greek word, "tameion" translated as "room" literally means an "inner storage chamber" or a "secret room."
Jesus' point was that a public prayer, announced on a street corner, awards the prayerful one all the attention he desires in worldly praise, and that, therefore, is all he can expect to receive;
whereas a quiet prayer, directed at God, and seeking Him only, and NOT the attention of passers-by, will reap spiritual blessings from the Almighty.
Matthew 6:6
"But you, when you pray, enter into your closet, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father which is in secret; and your Father which sees in secret shall reward you openly."
Matthew 14:23 "And when He (Jesus) had sent the multitudes away, He went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, He was there alone."
bahmer wrote:
Whether you are in full quarantine or simply practicing social distancing, you are probably more isolated than usual due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Although you may consider isolation to be depressing, the Bible actually sees it as a spiritual ideal. From Moses to Elijah to Jesus, the Bible is full of examples of individuals who isolated themselves from society in order to grow closer to God. What does the Bible teach us about isolation?
A Mysterious Period
The story of Moses’ receiving the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai is among the most famous in the Bible. Moses is alone with God for forty days, at the top of a mountain. At the end he leaves with two stone tablets and his face is radiant. We don’t know much about this mysterious time of isolation other than Moses “neither ate bread nor drank water” (Ex. 34:28).
The Key to understanding Moses
When we turn to the Book of Deuteronomy, we learn an additional detail, “I lay prostrate before the Lord those forty days and forty nights” (Deut. 9:25). The original Hebrew word for “lay prostrate” is etnapal אֶתְנַפַּל from the root N-P-L (“to fall”). This is an extremely rare word in the Bible, literally meaning, “I threw myself down”. This single Hebrew word is the key to understanding the spiritual character of Moses.
Strengthen your connection to the BibleReading the Bible in Hebrew, we learn that Moses did not merely lie down on the ground waiting for the forty days to end. Rather he actively devoted himself to prayer and fasting, to atone for the sins of the people. During this global pandemic, you too can use this isolation to strengthen your connection to the Bible! Enroll today in our live online Biblical Hebrew course and throw yourself into the authenticity of Scripture.
Whether you are in full quarantine or simply pract... (
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