Myself and 4 others had a Radio Show bible study on KMBZ for 10 years. Many times we addressed that passage. Christ is dealing with a particular practice of the Pharisees. They made a big show of praying so that everyone would know just how spiritual they were. They were proud and in their prayers so that others would see them. That is, they took what should have been their private prayer life and made a public show of it so that others would be amazed at their spirituality. This is like those today to who continually brag on how much time they spend in prayer. Christ was teaching us that our personal prayer life is not to be displayed in public. He was not teaching that there was never an occasion for public prayer.
Public prayer is common in the Old Testament. Solomon prayed at the dedication of the temple (1Kings 8:22-23) and Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven: and he said, LORD God of Israel, there is no God like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath, who keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants that walk before thee with all their heart:
Elijah prayed publicly on Mt. Carmel (1Kings 17:36-37)
Ezra prayed before "a very great congregation of men and women and children" (Ezra 10:1) Now when Ezra had prayed, and when he had confessed, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, there assembled unto him out of Israel a very great congregation of men and women and children: for the people wept very sore.
We continue to see public prayer practiced in the New Testament even after the teaching of Matthew 6:6.
Christ prayed publicly before He raised Lazarus from the dead (John 11:41-42) "Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me. And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me."
Paul kneeled and prayed with the Ephesian elders before he left them (Acts 20:36) "And when he had thus spoken, he kneeled down, and prayed with them all."
And although we receive few clear statements about the order of worship in the early churches, an important piece of information is found in 1 Corinthians 14:15-16.
1Corinthians 14:15-16. "What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also. Else when thou shalt bless with the spirit, how shall he that occupieth the room of the unlearned say Amen at thy giving of thanks, seeing he understandeth not what thou sayest?
If you carefully read this passage, you will see that Paul stresses the importance of praying with understanding so that those who occupy the room of the unlearned can say Amen at the giving of thanks. This passage makes sense only in the context of public prayer. If no one is listening, then how could anyone say Amen? Other statements hint at the presence of public prayer in the early churches, but this one clearly shows that it was practiced.
One thing that might help you is to understand that the purposes of public prayer are a bit different from those of private prayer. In private prayer, we pour our heart out to God and tell Him all. We do not need to be concerned about sentence structure or form in any way. Just talk to God. However, in public prayer, we are leading, as we speak of someone "leading in prayer" we are leading others to look on God. We are directing the attention of others to the Lord and helping them rely on Him at this time.
