17/11/2022 - DO NOT ACT LIKE AN ACTOR

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And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.  Matthew 6.5

Not yet perfect in Christ, we spend most of our lives without praying or meditating on the Word, and God knows it. But when we are in trouble, we become hypocrites, whose translation from the Greek is “actors”. Now, to act like that is to think that the Lord does not know everything and that our prayer will not even be accepted before Him. When you cry out, be very sincere. Then you will obtain the favor of the One who is good.

Jesus said, “When you pray.” Now, that means that most of the time, we think we are in prayer, but in fact, we are wasting time. Prayer is a trial before the One who is the Truth. So, let us be alert to what we are going to ask, defend or claim. Whoever learns to pray according to the models recorded in the Bible is heard and rewarded. But the person who dramatizes as if he were in the theater will receive nothing (Luke 18.9-14). The Lord sees the intention of the heart!

By pretending that we are God’s best children, we declare that the Father is not Omniscient. Now, to try to make the Lord fall for our deception is serious and sad. Therein lies the craftiness of the enemy. Be true continually, obeying the Word. Whatever is more than yes or no is from the evil one (Matthew 5.37). The saints must never lie, for they stand before the Truth always (John 14.6).

The one who pretends to be someone he is not is deluding. Before it is formed in our mind, God already knows our thoughts (Psalm 139.4). So, for our own good, He disregards the deceitful request. Living in a society where deception is widely used both by authorities – who see nothing wrong with deceiving the people – and by clergymen, who create false claims – we need to remind ourselves constantly, that the Bible commands that our garments be white at all times (Ecclesiastes 9.8).

Be genuine and you will have God’s help to get rid of your problems. Don’t waste your time with untruths. Follow His directions to know how to act in any situation. The Word says: Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me (John 14.6). It is clear that the best thing to do is to sit at the Lord’s feet, like Mary, Lazarus’ sister, and learn from the Master (Luke 10.38,39).

It is foolish to show off before the Almighty to gain His favor. Everything we need has been given to us in Christ, who is the Word (John 1.1). So, when you read the Bible, know that you are standing before the Omniscient God, who has provided us with that which is essential for us to be successful. By confessing what is going on inside you and why you did something wrong, you will obtain forgiveness the very moment you pray (1 John 1.9). Believe!

If you are acting before the Most High, you have already received your reward: nothing. The Scriptures say that the answer will come according to the motive in our heart: Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap (Galatians 6.7).

In Christ, with love,

R. R. Soares