Authentic Righteousness | Prayer

SCRIPTURE | Matthew 6:9-15

PRACTICING AUTHENTIC RIGHTEOUSNESS.

Demonstrated By A Transformed Life.

We Have Talked About Worshiping The Right God The Wrong Way:

The Substandard Worship Of God Is Clear From Chapter 6:

THEIR ATTITUDE AND MOTIVES

TOWARD THEIR RELIGIOUS ACTIVITY

WAS INADEQUATE.

JESUS REESTABLISHED GOD'S VIEW

ON BEING AUTHENTIC.

The Apostate Form Of Judaism Existed Even Before Jesus,

It Exists Without Christ For Centuries And Even Today.

The TRUE Religion Of The Old Testament Was Fulfilled In Christ Jesus.

The Judaism That Rejects Christ Is A False Religion.

JESUS CAME AND SET A CORRECT STANDARD.

JESUS CAME TO SET A DIVINE STANDARD.

HE Says To Them:

I Am NOT Come To Destroy The Law And The Prophets.

I Am Come To: Reaffirm Them.

I Am Come To: Reassert True Righteousness.

I Am Come To: Re-Establish God's Established Standard.

I Am Come To: Explain God Sees Even Covert Action Of Hypocrisy.

SO: In Chapter 6: Jesus Tells Them:

They Have The Wrong Approach To:

The Things Of Life.

What Defiles You.

Theology.

Worship.

PRAYER.

So What Is The RIGHT Approach To God ?

OUR WORSHIP TOWARD GOD

SHOULD COME FROM THE DEPTHS OF A PURE HEART.

DO NOT BE PHONY:

In Your Giving: In Your Praying: In Your Fasting:

So, Jesus Really Unmasks Hypocrisy.

PREVIOUSLY: THE PROPER ATTITUDE IN PRAYER.

1. PRAYERS OF VANITY:

A. The Recognition Desired:

THE MOTIVE OF YOUR PRAYER MATTERS !!

If Offered To Receive The Recognition And Praise Of Men,

It Is Nothing More Than Words Uttered From Our Lips.

B. The Reward Displayed:

Prayer Offered Simply For Recognition And Public Praise.

They May Receive It, But That Is All.

C. The Rebuke Conveyed:

We Must Pray With A Sincere Heart.

We Must Pray With A Genuine Desire For God To Do Anything,

2. PRAYERS OF SAMENESS:

Jesus Addressed The Repetitive Prayers Of The Heathen.

A. Their Practice:

No Thought Or Desire In Their Prayers,

Just Familiar Words Repeated Over And Over Again.

THE FOCUS IS THE ATTITUDE OF OUR PRAYERS.

Prayer Needs To Flow From The Heart,

B. Their Perception:

Ensure That Our Motive Is Pure.

Ensure That Our Attitude Is Right.

3 PRAYERS OF SINCERITY:

THE ATTITUDE OF PRAYER GOD DESIRES.

BE CAREFUL:

DO NOT Pray In A Way That PLEASES MEN NOT GOD.

DO NOT Pray REPETITIVE THOUGHTLESS PRAYERS.

Be Careful TO SENSE THE URGENCY Of Prayer.

Be Careful TO SEE THE NECESSITY Of Prayer.

Be Careful TO BE EARNEST In Prayer.

Be Careful TO BE SINCERE When We Pray.

Our God Is Not Limited.

Our God Is Not Bankrupt.

Our Every Need He Can Supply.

Bring Your Needs In Life To The Lord.

Bring Your Difficulties In Life To The Lord.

SO THE KEY TAKEAWAY TODAY:

JESUS ADDRESSES ATTITUDES AND MOTIVES OF PRAYER.

SOME PRAYERS ARE UNACCEPTABLE.

SOME PRAYERS ARE HEARD AND ANSWERED.

NOW VERSES 9 THRU 15:

AUTHENTIC PRAYER BEGINS WITH GOD: 9-10:

AUTHENTIC PRAYER DEPENDS ON GOD: 10-15:

SO, PRAY THEN LIKE THIS:

OUR FATHER IN HEAVEN:

IT BEGINS WITH GOD.

GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD:

IT DEPENDS ON GOD.

Jesus Gives A Simple Model Of Prayer For His People To Follow.

Known As The Lord's Prayer:

But Jesus Could Not Pray This For Himself.

Jesus Would Not Pray For Forgiveness Of Sin For Himself.

It Might Be Better Called: THE DISCIPLES PRAYER:

This Outline Explains The Right Attitudes Of Prayer.

This Outline Explains The Components Of Prayer.

AN APPEAL FOR A DECLARATION TO GOD,

AN APPEAL FOR FORGIVENESS FROM GOD,

When Jesus Teaches Us How To Pray, 

And This Is The Model Of How To Pray, 

Beginning And End Of That Prayer Focuses On God,

THE FOCAL POINT OF THE PRAYER THEN:

IS ON THE GLORY AND THE KINGDOM, 

THE HONOR OF GOD, 

THE EXTENSION OF HIS KINGDOM. 

Everything Has To Fit Into That Context, 

So That All Prayer In A Sense Is Controlled By The Kingdom, by The Glory Of God. 

This Truth Is Really Basic To Our Prayer Life.

John 14:13. Whatever You Ask In My Name, I’ll Do It That The Father May Be Glorified In The Son.

Prayer Begins And Ends:

Not With The Indulgence Of Man, 

But With The Glory Of God,

Not With The Building Of My Empire,

But His Kingdom, 

Not With Getting What I Want,

But Doing His Will,

Not With The Elevation Of My Name.

But With The Hallowing Of HIS Name.

EVERYTHING IN PRAYER REVOLVES AROUND:

WHO GOD IS.

WHAT GOD WANTS.

HOW GOD IS TO BE GLORIFIED.

That Is The Sum And Substance Of Proper Praying.

Anything Else Is Going To Lead To Self Indulgence.

PRAYER IS PRIMARILY WORSHIP.

It Is Godward.

It Is Not For Me To Get Get Get.

It Is To Allow God To Be Glorified.

My Prayers Should Be NOT Primarily For What I Can Gain.

My Prayers Should Be For The Glory Of God.

FIRST THOUGHT IN THIS PRAYER:

GOD’S PATERNITY, GOD IS FATHER.

OUR FATHER WHO ART IN HEAVEN.

We Go To God Because He Is Our King Our Monarch, Our Judge, Our Creator But ALSO OUR FATHER.

Isaiah 64:8,

Now, O Lord, Thou Art Our Father,

We Are The Clay And Thou Our Potter,

We All Are The Work Of Thy Hand.

That’s The Recognition.

You Made Us.

You Gave Us Life.

You Gave Us Birth.

You Supply Our Resources.

We Belong To You Through Through Faith In Christ.

We Are Your Adopted Children.

And When I Come To God In Prayer,

We Come To Our LOVING FATHER.

This Was A New Revelation In Many Ways To The Jews.

They Saw God As Father Only In A National Sense.

If God Is Seen As Father In The Old Testament,

He Is Seen As The Father Of A Nation,

Not An Intimate Loving Father Of An Individual.

Jesus Came And Revealed God As An Intimate Loving Father.

Romans 8:15: Paul Says: Abba Father which Means PAPA.

Those Are Terms Of Endearment, Terms Of Intimacy.

SECOND THOUGHT IN THIS PRAYER,

GOD’S PRIORITY,

Verse 9: Our Father Who Art In Heaven, Hallowed Be Thy Name.

Here Is The First Petition. 

And The Essence Of This Petition Is Worship.

God, The First Thing I Pray Is That Your Name Be Hallowed.

The Fundamental Duty In Prayer:

Your Needs Must Be Given A Secondary Place

The Lord Is Freely Accorded The Preeminence

In Our Thoughts, Desires, And Supplications.

The Glory Of God’s Great Name Is The Ultimate End Of All Things:

Every Other Request Must Not Only Be Subordinated To This One,

But Be In Harmony With And In Pursuance Of It.

WE CANNOT PRAY CORRECTLY

UNLESS THE HONOUR OF GOD

BE DOMINANT IN OUR HEARTS.

Recognition That God Is Father.

Recognition That God’s Name Is To Be Hallowed.

Hallowed Be Thy Name: That Simply Means All That God Is.

WHICH MEANS TO EXALT OR LIFT ON HIGH.

In Those Days The Name Of Someone Was The Sum Of them.

Who They Were. It’s Still That Way To Some Extent.

God: There’s An Image Of All That He Is In That Name.

God’s Name Is The Sum Of All That He Is.

Christ’s Name Is The Sum Of All That He Is.

The Name Stands For The Nature, The Attributes, The Character, The Personality Of God.

So What This Petition Is Saying:

Father, May Your Person, Your Identity, your Character, Your Nature, Your Attributes, And Your Reputation Be Hallowed.

GOD PATERNITY,

GOD'S PRIORITY,

3. GOD'S PROGRAM.

Verse 10 Says, Thy Kingdom Come.

Here Is A Prayer For The Advancement Of God’s Kingdom.

This Marks Every True Man And Woman Of God Through The History Of The Kingdom.

The Saints Of The Ages Have Been People Who Greatly Were Concerned About God's Program:

WHAT IS GOD'S PROGRAM?

THE ADVANCEMENT OF GOD’S KINGDOM,

Not The Building Of Their Own Empire,

Not The Padding Of Their Pocket.

Our Prayer Should Be About How To Advance The Kingdom?

We’re Not Praying Just About The Success Of Our Enterprise.

We’re Not To Be Praying Just About Our Particular Needs.

The Bottom Line Is: Lord, Just Let Your Kingdom Come.

Not Our Petty Kingdom, His Kingdom.

But What You Really Pray For Is That The Kingdom Would Come However And In What Way,

And Through Whomever God Would Want It To Come.

THE CENTRALITY OF PRAYER THEN IS WORSHIP.

We Go To A Loving Father, but That Means We Accept That He Knows Best And In Obedience Respond To Him. 

In Our Prayers, We Should Be Concerned About:

The First Thing Is His Glory. 

The Second Thing Is The Extension Of His Kingdom. 

The Third Thing Is His Will Be Done,

GOD PATERNITY.

GOD'S PRIORITY.

GOD'S PROGRAM.

4. GOD'S PURPOSE;

Verse 10, Thy Will Be Done On Earth As It Is In Heaven.

Thy Will Be Done.

MEANS: God, Do Your Purpose.

We Should Always Pray:

Lord, Do Your Will.

That Should Be What We Always Want !!!

We Should Not Want Anything That Is Not God's Will.

We Should Not Want Anything That Is Not For God's Purpose.

And Even Though God Is My Father And Loves Me,

And Even Though If I Ask Him For Bread He Won’t Give Me A Stone,

And If I Ask Him For Fish He Won’t Give Me A Snake,

Even Though God Has Resources Unlimited To Give.

Those Things Are Given When They Will Give Him Glory,

When They Will Extend His Kingdom

When They Will Fulfill His Will.

SO, OUR PRAYERS SHOULD BE CONTROLLED BY THESE.

THAT’S HOW JESUS TAUGHT US TO PRAY.

So, The End Of Prayer Is Not So Much Tangible Answers.

the End Of Prayer Is A Deepening Life Of Dependency.

The End Of Prayer Is A Greater Sense Of Being a Part Of God’s Kingdom And What God Is Doing.

First I Ask For My Needs To Be Supplied.

Secondly, For My Sins To Be Forgiven.

Thirdly, Lead Us Not Into Temptation, Deliver Us From Evil.

We Pray For Needs.

We Pray For Cleansing.

We Pray For His Protection.

But All Within The Contexts Of His Glory.

PRAYER IS WORSHIP.

A Worshiping Prayer Gives God The Right To Be God,

To Glorify His Name, 

To Extend His Kingdom.

To Do His Will.

THAT IS HOW GOD WANTS US TO PRAY AND BE HEARD !!

Authentic Righteousness | Praying

Matthew 6:5–8.

PRACTICING AUTHENTIC RIGHTEOUSNESS Is Our Focus.

Last Time We Talked About Authentic Giving:  This Time Authentic Praying.

What Is Clear About The Most Religious Leaders In Israel At The Time Of Jesus?

THEIR ATTITUDE AND MOTIVES

TOWARD THEIR RELIGIOUS ACTIVITY

WAS INADEQUATE.

JESUS REESTABLISHED GOD'S VIEW

ON BEING AUTHENTIC.

WHO WERE THE LEADERS JESUS WAS TALKING WITH IN MATTHEW 6 ?

SCRIBES AND PHARISEES AND SADUCEES.

THEY ASCRIBED TO THE RABBINIC TRADITIONAL JUDIASM:

APOSTATE JUDIASM:

Originally Worshiped The Right GOD The Right Way.

It Fell Away Into Apostasy:

It Became Works Based, Tradition Focused, Self-Righteous, False.

INTERNAL TRUE RELIGION: BIBLICAL CHRISTIANITY:

Being Humble Toward God,

Repenting Of Sin According To The Moral Law Of God,

Turning Toward God For Forgiveness Of Sin,

Finding Salvation By Faith Alone In Him.

WE LEARNED LAST TIME:

YOU KNOW IT IS APOSTATE WHEN:

THE TRADITIONS AND INTUITIONS OF MEN

ARE MORE AUTHORITATIVE

THAN THE AUTHORITY OF HOLY SCRIPTURE.

WHEN IT IS NOT INTERNAL HEART CENTERED WORSHIP

OF THE ONE TRUE GOD THRU JESUS CHRIST THE SON.

Scripture Is Very Clear: There Is One God And Only One God,

There Is One Lord And Only One Lord,

God In Christ Has Been Revealed As Savior, Redeemer, And King.

There Is One And Only One Inspired Revelation, The BIBLE.

There Is Only One Accurate Correct Interpretation Of The BIBLE.

There Is ONLY ONE Plan Of Salvation In The BIBLE.

APOSTATE JUDAISM AND CHRISTIANITY ARE NOT COMPATABLE.

JESUS CAME AND SET A CORRECT STANDARD.

HE Explained To Them:

You Have Torn Down The DIVINE Standard.

You Have Reconstituted A HUMAN Standard.

Your Human Standard Is NOT Acceptable To God.

HE Says To Them:

I Am NOT Come To Destroy The Law And The Prophets.

I Am Come To: Reaffirm Them.

I Am Come To: Reassert True Righteousness.

I Am Come To: Re-Establish God's Established Standard.

SO: In Chapter 6: Jesus Tells Them:

They Have The Wrong Approach Towards The Things Of Life.

They Have The Wrong Approach To What Defiles You.

They Have The Wrong Approach To Theology.

They Have The Wrong Approach To Worship.

They Have The Wrong Approach To Giving.

They Have The Wrong Approach To PRAYER.

JESUS SUMS UP

THE WHOLE AREA OF RELIGIOUS RESPONSIBILITY:

OUR WORSHIP TOWARD GOD,

SHOULD BE COMING FROM THE DEPTHS OF A PURE HEART.

Your Giving: Phony,

Your Praying: Phony,

Your Fasting: Phony.

So, He Really Unmasks Hypocrisy.

KEY TAKEAWAY:

PRAYER IS A DEMONSTRATION OF GOD’S WORTH.

PRAYER IS NOT A DEMONSTRATION OF OUR WORTH.

OUTLINE:

1. INAUTHENTIC PRAYING (6:5, 7).

A. PRAYING TO BE SEEN BY OTHERS.

B. PRAYING TO BE HEARD BY OTHERS.

2. AUTHENTIC PRAYING (6:6, 8).

A. PRAYING TO BE SEEN BY THE FATHER.

B. PRAYING TO BE HEARD BY THE FATHER.

6:5-8 When You Pray,

DO NOT Be Like The Hypocrites,

For They Are Fond Of Praying:

Standing In The Synagogues ,

And At The Corners Of The Streets,

So That They May Be Seen By People.

This Is The Truth I Tell You--They Are Paid In Full.

When You Pray,

Go Into Your Private Room,

And Shut The Door, And Pray To Your Father Who Is In Secret;

And Your Father Who Sees What Happens In Secret,

Will Give You Your Reward In Full.

When You Pray:

DO NOT Pile Up Meaningless Phrases, As The Gentiles Do,

For Their Idea Is That They Will Be Heard Because Of Long Prayers.

DO NOT Be Like Them,

For Your Father Knows The Things You Need Before You Ask Him.

1. INAUTHENTIC PRAYING (6:5, 7).

A. PRAYING TO BE SEEN BY OTHERS.

B. PRAYING TO BE HEARD BY OTHERS.

HOW NOT TO PRAY:

No Nation Ever Had A Higher Ideal Of Prayer Than Israel;

No Religion Ever Ranked Prayer As Top Priority Like Judaism.

The Rabbis Said: PRAYER IS GREATER THAN ALL GOOD WORKS.

But Certain Faults Had Entered Into The Jewish Habits Of Prayer.

These Faults Are NOT LIMITED TO Jewish Ideas Of Prayer;

These Faults Can Occur In A Community Where Prayer Is A Priority.

These Faults Are Not From Neglect.

These Faults Are From Misguided Devotion.

(I) PRAYER TENDED TO BECOME FORMALIZED.

There Were 2 DAILY PRESCRIBED PRAYERS For Every Jew.

THE FIRST WAS THE SHEMA:

"Hear, O Israel, The Lord Our God Is One Lord."

The Full Shema Had To Be Recited By Every Jew.

The Full Shema Had To Be Recited Every A.M. And Every P.M.

It Had To Be Said:

Morning: Before The Third Hour, 9 A.M. AND Evening: Before 9 P.M.

NO MATTER WHERE A PERSON FOUND THEMSELF: Home, The Street, Work, Synagogue, ONE Must Stop And RECITE IT.

Many Loved The Shema And Repeated It With Reverence, Love.

Many More Who RECITE IT OUT OF DUTY NOT HEART FELT INTENT.

The Shema Had A Chance Of Becoming A Vain Repetition,

It Might Be Mumbled Like Some Spell Or Incantation.

We Have No Room To CRITICIZE: How We Pray At Mealtime.

THE SECOND WAS THE SHEMONEH 'ESREH:

It Consisted Of Eighteen Prayers (And Later Grew To Be 19),

An Essential Part Of The Synagogue Service.

Most Of These Prayers Are Short,

All Of Them Are Very Lovely.

EXAMPLES:

The Twelfth Prayer:

Let Thy Mercy, O Lord, Be Showed Upon The Upright, The Humble, The Elders And Teachers Of Israel,

Be Favorable To The Pious Strangers Among Us, And To Us All.

Give Thou A Good Reward To Those Who Sincerely Trust In Thy Name,

That Our Lot May Be Cast Among Them In The World To Come,

That Our Hope Be Not Deceived.

Praised Be Thou, O Lord,

Who Art The Hope And Confidence Of The Faithful.

The Fifth Prayer:

Bring Us Back To Thy Law, O Our Father;

Bring Us Back, O King, To Thy Service;

Bring Us Back To Thee By True Repentance.

Praised Be Thou, O Lord Who Dost Accept Our Repentance,

The Jews Must Recite It 3x A Day: Morning, Afternoon, Evening.

Just Like The SHEMA:

The Devout Jew Prayed It With Loving Devotion;

There Were Many More Who RECITE IT OUT OF DUTY OR HABIT WITHOUT ANY HEART FELT INTENT.

It Had A Chance Of Becoming A Vain Repetition,

It Might Be Mumbled Like Some Spell Or Incantation.

Again, We Have No Room To CRITICIZE: How We Pray At Bedtime.

(II) THE JEWISH LITURGY SUPPLIED STATED PRAYERS FOR ALL OCCASIONS:

All Aspects Of Life Had Its Stated Formula Of Prayer.

There Was Prayer Before And After Each Meal;

There Were Prayers In Connection With The Light, The Fire, The Lightning, On Seeing The New Moon, Comets, Rain, Tempest, At The Sight Of The Sea, Lakes, Rivers, On Receiving Good News, On Using New Furniture, On Entering Or Leaving A City.

Everything Had Its Prayer.

Clearly There Is Something Infinitely Lovely Here.

It Was The Intention That Every Happening In Life Should Be Brought Into The Presence Of God.

BUT, Again, Prescribed And Stated Prayers Can Easily RECITED OUT OF DUTY OR HABIT WITHOUT ANY HEART FELT INTENT.

(III) THE DEVOUT JEW HAD SET TIMES FOR PRAYER:

The Hours To Pray Were Specific.

The Rule Was To Stop Whatever Your During And PRAY.

Clearly One Might Be Genuinely Remembering God,

Or One Might Be Carrying Out An Habitual Formality.

THE CUSTOM: Remember GOD 3x A Day Everyday:

POTENTIAL DANGER: Becoming Just An External Ritual.

(IV) THERE WAS A TENDENCY TO CONNECT PRAYER WITH CERTAIN PLACES, AND ESPECIALLY WITH THE SYNAGOGUE:

There Are Certain Places Where God Seems Very Near,

But There Were Certain Rabbis Who Taught Prayer Was Not Heard If It Was Offered In The Temple Or In The Synagogue.

THE CUSTOM: Go To The Temple At The Hours Of Prayer.

POTENTIAL DANGER: Was GOD Confined To Certain Holy Places?

REMEMBER: The Whole Earth Is The Temple Of God.

(V) THERE WAS A TENDENCY TOWARDS LONG PRAYERS:

A Tendency To Long Prayers Is NOT Confined To The Jews.

In 18th Century Worship In Scotland Length Meant Devotion.

Rabbi Levi Said: Whoever Is Long In Prayer Is Heard.

If A Person Banged Long Enough At God's Door, He Will Answer.

(VI) THERE WAS REPETITION THAT WAS USED AND OVERUSED:

Endless Repetition Of Scripted Prayer Was Used To HYPNOTIZE.

Some Jews Did That With The Shema.

It Is A Kind Of Substitution Of Self-Hypnotism For Prayer.

Another Way In Which Jewish Prayer Used Repetition.

Attempt To List Every Possible Title And Adjective In The Address Of A Prayer To God.

One Famous Prayer Begins:

Blessed, Praised, And Glorified, Exalted, Extolled And Honored,

Magnified And Lauded Be The Name Of The Holy One.

(VII) CERTAIN JEWS PRAYED TO BE SEEN OF MEN:

The Jewish System Of Prayer Made Display Very Easy.

The Jew Prayed Standing, With Hands Stretched Out, Palms Upwards, And With Head Bowed.

Make Sure To Be At A Busy Street Comer, Or In A Crowded City Square:

So That Others See With What Devotion One Prayed.

So That Others Might Admire One's Exceptional Piety.

HOW TO PRAY:

JESUS LAYS DOWN TWO GREAT RULES FOR PRAYER:

1. HE INSISTS TO KNOW:

ALL TRUE PRAYER MUST BE OFFERED TO GOD NOT FOR SHOW.

Jesus Had Criticism: They Were Praying To Men And Not To God.

Whether In Public Or In Private Prayer,

A Man Should Have,

No Thought In His Mind,

And No Desire In His Heart,

But God.

2. HE INSISTS TO REMEMBER:

THAT GOD IS A GOD OF LOVE AND RESPONSES IN LOVE.

Jesus Emphasized:

God Is Ready To Answer MORE Than We Are Ready To Pray.

His Gifts And His Grace Do Not Have To Be Coaxed For Response.

WE COME TO GOD WHOSE ONE WISH IS TO GIVE.

Authentic Righteousness | Charity

SCRIPTURE | Matthew 6:1-4

PRACTICING AUTHENTIC RIGHTEOUSNESS: STUDY FOR 5 WEEKS.

We Will Compare Traditional Judaism To Biblical Christianity.

So, The Jews During The Time Of Jesus Obviously Had A Religion;

They Thought It Was Biblical.

It Was At Least Sophisticated And Certainly Complex,

But It Was Substandard.

Their Theology Was Faulty.

Their Theology Was Inadequate.

Their Attitude Toward Mundane Things Is Inadequate.

Their Doctrine About Love, Hate, Anger, Murder, Divorce, Swearing, Telling Lies, Taking Oaths WAS WRONG.

That’s Clear From Chapter 6:

THEIR ATTITUDE AND MOTIVES

TOWARD THEIR RELIGIOUS ACTIVITY

WAS INADEQUATE.

JESUS REESTABLISHED GOD'S VIEW

ON BEING AUTHENTIC.

Jesus Comes To The Pharisees And The Scribes.

Who Adhere To The System Of RABBINIC TRADITIONAL JUDIASM.

WHY IS RABBINIC TRADITIONAL JUDIASM A FALSE RELIGION?

Originally Judaism Was Godly: It Taught Scripture Correctly.

Love The Lord God With All Your Heart, Mind, Soul, Strength.

Love Your Neighbor As Yourself.

An Internal TRUE Religion:

Being Humble Toward God,

Repenting Of Sin According To The Moral Law Of God,

Turning Toward God For Forgiveness Of Sin,

Finding Salvation By Faith Alone In Him.

It Fell Away Into Apostasy:

Became Works Based, Tradition Focused, Self-Righteous, False.

YOU KNOW IT IS APOSTATE WHEN:

TRADITIONS AND INTUITIONS OF MEN WERE MORE AUTHORITATIVE,

THAN THE AUTHORITY OF HOLY SCRIPTURE.

WHEN IT IS NOT INTERNAL HEART CENTERED WORSHIP,

OF THE ONE TRUE GOD THRU JESUS CHRIST THE SON.

Scripture Is Very Clear: There Is One God And Only One God,

There Is One Lord And Only One Lord,

God In Christ Has Been Revealed As Savior, Redeemer, And King.

There Is One And Only One Inspired Revelation, The BIBLE.

There Is Only One Accurate Correct Interpretation Of The BIBLE.

There Is Therefore In The Bible ONLY ONE Plan Of Salvation.

Apostate Judaism And Christianity ARE NOT COMPATABLE.

The Apostate Form Of Judaism That Existed Even Before Jesus,

Continues To Exist Without Christ For Centuries And Even Today.

The TRUE Religion Of The Old Testament Was Fulfilled In Christ.

The Judaism That Rejected Christ Is A False Religion.

JESUS CAME AND SET A CORRECT STANDARD.

HE Explained To Them:

You Have Torn Down The DIVINE Standard.

You Have Reconstituted A HUMAN Standard.

Your Human Standard Is NOT Acceptable To God.

HE Says To Them:

I Am Not Come To Destroy The Law And The Prophets.

I Am Come To Reaffirm Them.

I Am Not Come To Set Aside One Thing Of God’s Law.

I Am Come To Reassert: True Righteousness.

I Am Come To Re-Establish: God's Established Standard.

I Am Come To Explain: God Sees Even Covert Action Of Hypocrisy.

SO: In Chapter 6: Jesus Tells Them:

They Have The Wrong Approach Towards The Things Of Life.

They Shouldn’t Be Anxious For What They Eat Or Drink Or Wear.

They Have The Wrong Approach To Theology.

They Have The Wrong Approach To Worship.

THEY ARE PHONY AND HYPOCRITICAL.

He Really Sums Up The Whole Area Of Religious Responsibility:

OUR WORSHIP TOWARD GOD,

IN OUR ATTITUDES AND MOTIVES,

SHOULD BE COMING FROM THE DEPTHS OF A PURE HEART.

Your Giving: Phony, Your Praying: Phony, Your Fasting: Phony.

So, He Really Unmasks Hypocrisy.

OUTLINE:

I. THE PRINCIPLE (MATTHEW 6:1).

II. INAUTHENTIC GIVING (6:2).

III. AUTHENTIC GIVING (6:3-4).

Jesus Commands His Listeners:

Of Practicing Your Righteousness Before Other People.

What Does The Phrase Your Righteousness Mean?

Does This Refer To Good Works Or Practices We Must Do To Earn Our Way Into Heaven, Our Eternal Reward? No!

The Bible Is Clear That We Cannot Earn God’s Forgiveness Or Do Enough To Be Awarded The Opportunity To Spend Eternity With Him In Heaven.

Think Of This In These Terms:

TO PRACTICE YOUR RIGHTEOUSNESS IS

A DEMONSTRATION OF HOW GOD,

HAS TRANSFORMED OUR LIVES.

Practicing Your Righteousness In A Way That Is:

To Show That Christ Has Made All The Difference In Your Life.

To Show That Christ Has NOT Transformed You: By Trying To Impressing Others.

We Lose The Approval Of God

When We Seek The Applause Of Men.

Righteousness To Be Noticed By OTHERS Is Self-Righteousness.

KEY TAKEAWAY:

BELIEVERS SHOULD BE GENEROUS WITH THEIR POSSESSIONS.

BE CAREFUL TO GIVE QUIETLY SO OTHERS DO NOT NOTICE.

MATTHEW 6:1–4: BEING GENEROUS WITH OUR RESOURCES.

THIS ELEMENT OF GIVING DEALS WITH HOW WE TREAT OTHERS.

I. THE PRINCIPLE (MATTHEW 6:1).

RIGHT THINGS FROM THE WRONG MOTIVE:

THE KINGDOM LIFE IN THE REAL WORLD:

HAVE YOU EVER DONE THE RIGHT THING,

FROM THE WRONG MOTIVE?

To The Jew There Were:

Three Great Cardinal Works Of The Religious Life,

Three Great Pillars On Which The Good Life Was Based:

Giving | Prayer | Fasting.

Jesus Would Not For A Moment Have Disputed That;

Jesus Was Troubled About The Wrong Motives.

A Man May Give Alms,

Not Really To Help The Person To Whom He Gives,

But Simply To Demonstrate His Own Generosity,

And Seek Praise From Others.

Three Times Jesus Uses The Phrase:

Truly I Say To You, They Have Their Reward.

Translated: They Have Received Payment In Full.

IN YOUR GIVING:

This Indicates That God Will See Even The Most Covert Actions.

God Will Ensure They Are Properly Rewarded, Because It's NOT

That You Give BUT HOW YOU GIVE.

GIVING TO THE NEEDY

1 Beware Of Practicing Your Righteousness Before Other People In Order To Be Seen By Them,

For Then You Will Have No Reward From Your Father Who Is In Heaven.

THE GOSPEL CHANGES EVERYTHING ABOUT US:

THIS SHOULD BE EVIDENT,

IN OUR GENEROSITY WITH THE RESOURCES GOD HAS GIVEN US.

In Judaism, Nurtured As It Was On The Old Testament Scriptures,

There Was A Strong Concern For Charity, Particularly The Giving Of Alms.

The Old Testament Taught This Duty.

Proverbs 19:17 Says, He Who Is Kind To The Poor Lends To The Lord, And He Will Reward Him For What He Has Done.

Proverbs 29:7 Says, The Righteous Care About Justice For The Poor.

Psalm 41:1 Pronounces A Blessing Upon The One Who Does So, Saying, Blessed Is He Who Has Regard For The Weak.

The Rabbis Even Amplified This Teaching, Adding That Alms-Giving Delivers From Death And Will Purge Away All Sins (Tobit 12:9).

The Problem: Charity In Judaism:

Like Other Aspects Of Morality,

Was Largely External.

And Although It Was Far More Common Than In The Cultures Of Greece Or Rome, It Was Performed, Nevertheless, With Similar Motives.

Only With The Coming Of Jesus Christ Did Motives Change,

Only In The Power Of His Spirit Did Charity Flow From The Heart.

From A Divine Love Welling Up Internally.

II. INAUTHENTIC GIVING AND AUTHENTIC GIVING (6:2–4).

HOW NOT TO GIVE AND THE MOTIVE OF GIVING:

2 Thus, When You Give To The Needy,

Sound No Trumpet Before You,

As The Hypocrites Do In The Synagogues And In The Streets,

That They May Be Praised By Others.

Truly, I Say To You, They Have Received Their Reward.

Jesus Commands Us To Give In Secret In Order To Avoid Giving For The Praise Of Others.

But This Is Not Always Possible.

Sometimes Giving Will Inevitably Become A Public Matter.

Furthermore, Jesus Had Recently Told His Readers, “Let Your Light Shine Before Others” (Matthew 5:16).

How Should We Reconcile These Difficulties While Remaining Faithful To What Jesus Says.

The Fundamental Warning Jesus Issues Is Against Practicing Your Piety Before Men In Order To Be Seen By Them.

At First Sight These Words Appear To Contradict His Earlier Command To Let Your Light Shine Before Men, That They May See..

In Both Verses He Speaks Of Doing Good Works ‘Before Men’:

And In Both The Objective Is Stated, Namely In Order To Be ‘Seen By Them.

But In The Earlier Case He Commands It,

While In The Later One He Prohibits It.

How Can This Discrepancy Be Resolved?

The Contradiction Is Only Verbal, Not Substantial.

The Clue: Jesus Is Speaking Against Different Sins.

In Our Human Cowardice:

Which Made Him Say ‘Let Your Light Shine Before Men’,

In Our Human Vanity:

Beware Of Practicing Our Piety Before Men.

‘Show When Tempted To Hide’

‘Hide When Tempted To Show’

Last Five Words (“TO BE SEEN BY THEM”) Are Critically Important,

Because They Help Us See How This Does Not Contradict Jesus’s Command To “LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE BEFORE OTHERS” (5:16).

AGAIN: THE ISSUE IS ONE OF MOTIVE.

BE CAREFUL: Command Calling For Constant WATCHFULNESS.

When We Do Good Works: ASK YOURSELF:

Why Am I Doing Them?

DO YOU LONG FOR APPROVAL FROM YOUR HEAVENLY FATHER.

So When We Give, We Should Do It Quietly And In Secret.

God Sees What We Give And That Is Enough.

If Others Do Hear Of Or See My Giving:

It Only Is To Encourage Them In Faithful Stewardship,

Not To Exalt Me.

Hypocrite Can Help Us Sense Why Jesus Condemns These Actions.

HYPOCRISY: Jesus Used This Word To Explain This Display.

One Who Lays Aside His True Identity And Assumes A False One.

He Is No Longer Himself But In Disguise, Impersonating Somebody.

It Is An Issue That Concerned Our Lord; Therefore, It Should Also Concern Us.

3 But When You Give To The Needy,

Do Not Let Your Left Hand Know What Your Right Hand Is Doing,

This Is Metaphorical And Somewhat Hard For Modern Readers To Understand.

Our Left And Right Hands Should Ideally Work Together And Thus Know What The Other Is Doing.

Jesus Is Asking Us To Avoid Allowing Even Close Contacts,

People Who Would Typically Know Every Move We Make,

To See Us Giving.

The Right Hand Is Normally The Active Hand.

So Jesus Assumes We Shall Use It When Handing Over Our Gift.

Then He Adds That Our Left Hand Must Not Be Watching.

There Is No Difficulty In Grasping His Meaning.

DO NOT TELL Other People About Our Christian Giving;

DO NOT EVEN TELL YOURSELF SUBCONSCIOUSLY.

For Self-Consciousness Will Deteriorate Into Self-Righteousness.

4 So That Your Giving May Be In Secret And Your Father Who Sees In Secret Will Reward You.

God Is Present In Our Lives And Observes Our Actions Even When We Don’t Recognize Him.

Thus, If Our Charity Is Never Known Or Acknowledged By Others,

We Should Feel Confident That The Only One Who Matters,

Sees Our Generosity And Will Acknowledge It In Heaven.

Although We Can Keep Our Giving Secret From Others,

We Cannot Keep It Secret From God.

No Secrets Are Hidden From Him.

So Your Father Who Sees In Secret Will Reward You.

To The Jew Giving Was The Most Sacred Of All Religious Duties.

The Same Word: Both For Righteousness And Giving.

To Give Alms And To Be Righteous Were One And The Same.

To Give Alms Was To Gain Merit In The Sight Of God.

To Even Win Atonement And Forgiveness For Past Sins.

There Was Even A Rabbinic Saying:

Greater Is He Who Gives Alms Than He Who Offers All Sacrifices.

GIVING STOOD FIRST IN THE CATALOG OF GOOD WORKS.

So, It Was Inevitable:

The Man Who Desired To Be Good Should Concentrate On Giving.

They Taught That Giving Alms In Secret is Greater Than Moses.

They Taught Giving Which Saves From Death Is Giving In Secret.

They Taught GIVE NOTHING Is Better Than GIVING SHAMEFULLY.

CUSTOM CONNECTED WITH THE TEMPLE:

There Was A Room Called The Chamber Of The Silent.

To Make Atonement For Some Sin, One Could Give Money Here.

Poor People Who Were Struggling Financially Were Helped.

But, Too Often The Giver Gave So That All Men Might See The Gift.

These Givers Gave Mostly To Bring Glory To Self Than To Help.

Also, During Worship, Offerings Were Taken For The Poor.

These Givers Were Recognized For How Much They Gave.

THE MOTIVES OF GIVING:

(i) A Person May Give From A Sense Of Duty.

Some Feel That Giving Is An Inescapable Duty.

Some Feel Their Purpose In Life Is The Duty Of Giving To Poor.

And Thus To Acquire Merit In The Sight Of God.

(ii) A Person May Give From Motives Of Prestige.

Some May Give To Get The Glory From The Giving.

Some Might Only Give When It Is Attached To Publicity Only.

Unless Duly Thanked And Praised And Honored There Is No Giving.

Without The Attention From Giving, Some Are Sadly Disgruntled.

Some Do Not Want The Glory To Go To God.

Some Give To Gratify Their Own Vanity And Sense Of Power.

(iii) A Person May Give Simply Because Their Heart Demands It.

Some Give Because Their Overflowing Love Demands It.

Some Give From A Sense Of Responsibility For Other In Need.

We Have The Pattern Of This Perfect Giving In Jesus Christ Himself.

Paul Wrote To His Friends At Corinth:

For You Know The Grace Of Our Lord Jesus Christ,

That, Though He Was Rich, Yet For Your Sake He Became Poor,

So That By His Poverty You Might Become Rich (2 Corinthians 8:9).

Our Giving Must Never Be The Self-Righteous A Sense Of Duty,

Our Giving Must Never Be To Enhance Our Glory Among Others.

It Must Be The Instinctive Outflow Of The Loving Heart;

We Must Give To Others As Jesus Christ Gave Himself To Us.