Episode 40: Praying in private

Some prayers are public, which is as it should be. But there will always be the temptation to turn it into a performance of piety, using more sophisticated words than we would normally use, or using the catchphrases that mark us as part of the in-group. We might even try to sneak in a mini-sermon, or a bit of gossip disguised as prayerful concern. Against such things, Jesus teaches his hearers to pray in secret to God alone. 

What is Chunks: The Sermon on the Mount?

The "Sermon on the Mount," found in Matthew chapters 5 through 7, contains some of the best-known teaching of Jesus, including the Lord's Prayer. It also includes some of the most ethically challenging words in all of the New Testament. This show will explore the sermon bit by bit, as Jesus calls believers to a kind of righteousness that is lived out in the everyday challenges of relationships.