Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study
Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study

The Problem With People-Pleasing | The Gospels | Matthew 6:5–18

October 1, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

The Problem With People-Pleasing

Patrick Miller, a preacher, opens with an uncomfortable confession. The hardest part of preaching isn't the study, the writing, or the public speaking. It's his own motivations. "Part of me loves the accolades and kind words I get after a good sermon. Part of me loves the impression that preaching gives people that I'm a spiritually put together person." He admits this honestly: his sermons may be filled with truth and may do good in people's lives, but if his heart inside is rotten—preaching for himself rather than for God—he knows God sees it.

This temptation, Miller argues, isn't limited to preachers or people in public ministry. It's a temptation for all of us in various ways in our spiritual lives.

Jesus on Why We Pray

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches his disciples how to pray, giving them what we now call the Lord's Prayer. But before Jesus talks about how to pray, he gets to the heart of the matter: he talks about why we pray.

In Matthew 6:5, Jesus says: "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."

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What you'll learn

  • 1 (00:05) **Welcome & The Preacher's Hidden Struggle** - Patrick Miller introduces the podcast and immediately confesses his own internal battle with people-pleasing during preaching.
  • 2 (01:21) **The Heart of the Matter: Why We Pray** - Jesus’ teaching on prayer and fasting in the Sermon on the Mount reveals that our motivation for spiritual practices is more important than the practices themselves.
  • 3 (02:59) **The Lord’s Prayer is Sandwiched by Warnings** - Jesus’ teachings on prayer and fasting intentionally surround the Lord's Prayer, showing that motive is the critical issue.
  • 4 (03:13) **Expanding the Scope: It’s Not Just About Public Prayer** - The principle applies to every spiritual activity, even private ones, because all of us are tempted by people-pleasing.
  • 5 (03:55) **Sign #1: Broadcasting Your Spirituality** - The most obvious sign of wrong motives is signaling your spiritual practices to others, often in subtle ways.
  • 6 (04:54) **The Consequence of Seeking Human Praise** - If you invest in spiritual practices to appear a certain way before people, you will get that reward but lose the joy of closeness with God.
  • 7 (05:14) **Sign #2: The Desire to Be Appreciated** - A more subtle sign is feeling disappointed, bitter, or underappreciated when your faithfulness isn't noticed or thanked.

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Guests on this episode

Patrick Miller

Show Notes

Why do you pray, fast, and serve? Who are you really trying to impress? And what reward does your heart actually want? In today’s episode, Patrick explains how Matthew 6:5–18 shows us that spiritual disciplines are meant to draw us toward the heart of God, not earn the praise of people.


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Passage: Matthew 6:5–18

Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study

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