SERMON ON THE MOUNT TEACHING SERIES PART 7
Notes
Transcript
7
How Not to Be Religious
Matthew 6:1–6, 16–18
Not conforming to the world is a familiar New Testament concept. But it is not so well known that Jesus also called us not to conform to the religious establishment. He saw (and foresaw) the worldliness of the nominal church and commanded the Christian community to be truly distinct from it in life and practice.
Personal Reflection. A friend that you invited to a Bible study has declined by saying that he/she finds all Christians to be hypocrites. Why might he/she say that? What would be a way to respond effectively?
I would ask the person if they know or what their view of an authentic Christian is and see how they answer that. This will tell you whether or not they are using the word hypocrite as an excuse in their own rejecting of God or if they are sincere in their estimation. If they have a skewed definition of what a Christian is, that would give you an opportunity of clarity. Christians are REPENTED SINNERS (active) saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. The first thing a Christian is, is a declared sinner. If they sincerely have encountered the hypocritical christian, then I would simply ask them if they have been pretending to be my friend....if yes, then who’s the hypocrite? If no, then why not? You either have pretended to be friends with a Christian hypocrite, making you a hypocrite yourself, you have a friend who is a Christian who doesn’t seem to be a hypocrite which means that not ALL Christians are hypocrites, or you have accepted a Christian hypocrite as a true friend, therefore you can’t dislike them all that much.
“Looking forward to seeing you at the bible study.”
Personal Reflection. Which of your words and actions might a person find hypocritical?
In Matthew 5 Jesus taught us that our righteousness must be greater than that of the Pharisees (because they obeyed the letter of the law, while our obedience must include our heart) and greater also than that of the pagans (because they love each other, while our love must include our enemies as well). Now in Matthew 6 Jesus draws the same two contrasts regarding our religion. He says that we should not be hypocritical like the Pharisees and not mechanical like the pagans.
Jesus began his instruction on the hill by portraying in the beatitudes the essential elements of Christian character, and went on to indicate by his metaphors of salt and light the influence for good which Christians will exert in the community if they exhibit this character. He then described Christian righteousness which must exceed the righteousness of scribes and Pharisees by accepting the full implications of God’s law without dodging anything or setting artificial limits. Christian righteousness is righteousness unlimited. It must be allowed to penetrate beyond our actions and words to our heart, mind and motives, and to master us even in those hidden, secret places.
Thus again Christians are to be different from both Pharisees and pagans, the religious and irreligious, the church and the world. That Christians are not to conform to the world is a familiar concept of the New Testament. It is not so well known that Jesus also saw (and foresaw) the worldliness of the church itself and called his followers not to conform to the nominal church either, but rather to be a truly Christian community distinct in its life and practice from the religious establishment, an ecclēsiola (little church) in ecclēsia. The essential difference in religion as in morality is that authentic Christian righteousness is not an external manifestation only, but one of the secret things of the heart.
Read Matthew 6:1–6 and 16–18.
1. Jesus illustrates the principle of verse 1 by focusing on three religious practices: giving, praying and fasting. What images come to mind when you read about the hypocrites in verse 2?
1. I think about the movie Alladin. Alladin has went into the tomb and brought out the magic lamp. He has rubbed it, and out pops the genie, telling him that he will grant him three wishes. Alladin’s eye as fixed on a certain prize, thte heart and approval of the princess. But he knows that he has no chance at that without really impressing the people as a whole, so he ask to be made into a pseudo prince, this mass parade is granted in which he is exalted as a far away prince, trumpets sounding, songs being sung, music playing. He’s throwing food and jewels to the poor as if to be “a savior,” when in fact his whole mission, his inward desire, was not to help anyone, but rather to pretend to be something, so as to win the approval of men, namely the heart of a princess.
2. I think of a friend of mine, going through a divorce, who’s words to me were, “I pretended to be what I thought/knew she wanted to me to be” (religious). I’m not who I pretended to be, she loves God and desires to read her Bible and what not, that’s just not me, and I pretended to be in to that so that she would like me, love me, want to be with me. I pretended to be what I needed to be not for her reward, but ultimately for mine.
3. I think of videos that you see of people doing something for the poor or helpless, often on social media, in which they are being video taped giving or helping those in need, but not a video tape by some unknowing bystander, a video tape of production, a video tape with the giver being a key note speaker to launch the event of the giving. There’s as button for comments and likes, and you can be guaranteed that nobody is more concerned with the comments and likes more than the production team, more concerned with that than with the actual lives that might’ve been touched.
4. I think of the sinner’s prayer that preacher’s in this country have adopted, to get decisions for Christ. I led 50 men and women to Christ last night, I baptized 50 people this weekend, etc. Paul preaches Christ alone, not by fancy methods, but through plain and simple gospel truth. He doesn’t use clever plans and strategies, he preaches Christ alone, and knows the increase is God’s. He even rejoices in how few he baptized and is glad that he didn’t baptize many, lest he be named as someone to glorify! Does not the increase belong to God alone? Yet man seeks the glory even in the very conversion of souls!!!
2. In verse 1 Jesus commands us “not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them.” Yet in 5:16 he said, “Let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good deeds.” Is there a contradiction here? Explain.
The contradiction is in verbal only, not in principal or practice.
THE TRUTH IN BOTH THE COMMAND AND THE PROHIBITION CAN BE SUMMARIZED SIMPLY:
DO EVERYTHING FOR THE GLORY OF GOD AND THE PRESERVATION OF HIS NAME, NOT FOR MAN’S/SELF GLORY OR FOR THE PRESERVATION OF SELF.
THE SALT AND LIGHT APPLICATIONS ARE REFLECTED IN BOTH PASSAGES, IN BOTH, THE HEART IS THE SAME, DO NOTHING OUT OF SELFISH AMBITION OR CONCEIT, BUT ALL THINGS TO GLORIFY GOD.
A. B. Bruce sums it up well when he writes that we are to ‘show when tempted to hide’ and ‘hide when tempted to show’.
The commandment of being a light is a daily call of personal interaction. This command comes off of the heels of the beatitudes, in which the converted man’s spiritual characteristic traits are portrayed. BLESSED ARE. The last beatitude moves into blessed are the persecuted, showing that because of the first 7, the 8th is bound to happen. Nonetheless, we are not to hide our lights in order to protect self, rather we are to rejoice in this persecution, notice, a reward in heaven is great for such. This commandment is not about piety per say, it’s about the characteristics of those who are in Christ being portrayed, daily, rather than hidden or kept to self, wherein it gives no opportunity for others to see your good works, therefore giving glory to your Father in heaven.
The contradiction is only verbal, not substantial. The clue lies in the fact that Jesus is speaking against different sins. It is our human cowardice which made him say ‘Let your light shine before men’, and our human vanity which made him tell us to beware of practising our piety before men.
Besides, the end of both instructions of Jesus is the same, namely the glory of God. Why are we to keep our piety secret? It is in order that glory may be given to God, rather than men. Why are we to let our light shine and do good works in the open? It is that men may glorify our heavenly Father.
3. What does Jesus mean when he says, “But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing” (v. 3)? Why is this important (vv. 2, 4)?
As Spurgeon put it, ‘To stand with a penny in one hand and a trumpet in the other is the posture of hypocrisy.’2
Christian giving is to be marked by self-sacrifice and self-forgetfulness, not by self congratulation.
There is no difficulty in grasping his meaning. Not only are we not to tell other people about our Christian giving; there is a sense in which we are not even to tell ourselves. We are not to be self-conscious in our giving, for our self-consciousness will readily deteriorate into self-righteousness. So subtle is the sinfulness of the heart that it is possible to take deliberate steps to keep our giving secret from men while simultaneously dwelling on it in our own minds in a spirit of self-congratulation.
What happens when the right hand and left hand come together?
Prayer
Clapping
In every way I’ve shown you that it is necessary to help the weak by laboring like this and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, because he said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”
4. In what ways are we tempted to be hypocritical in our giving?
1. Any way which seeks a reward in which is not enough in the very reward of being given the grace and means to be able to give.
2. Any way in which our giving is done so with the “counting of loss.”
3. Any way in which our giving is a giving in which there is giving and withholding at the same time, see Ananias and Saphira in Acts.
4. Any way in which our giving is a formality and not from heart.
5. Any way in which our giving is brought about by comparison or contrast to others, either one upping or convincing ourselves that their enough is our enough.
The Widow’s Offering: Mark 12:41-44
41 And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. 42 And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. 43 And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. 44 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
The widow who gave her last two coins, who could boast more than to say that they gave everything they had, whether that be two pennies, or two million dollars, it was all that she had, but the key isn’t how much she gave but with that heart in which she gave it, a pure and undivided heart that has given it’s entire being to God, the real giving wasn’t here last two pennies, but rather her whole self to Christ, death to self, absolute surrender, total abandonment, she herself was the living sacrifice, the offering to God.
5. What was wrong with the way hypocrites prayed in Jesus’ day (v. 5)?
They prayed with unpure motives. They prayed to be seen, to cloak self love with piety. Ultimately, their prayers were not for men, rather for God. They didn’t make prayer a matter between them and God, they made prayer a matter between them in whoever was watching.
Rather than becoming absorbed in the mechanics of secrecy, we need to remember that the purpose of Jesus’ emphasis on ‘secret’ prayer is to purify our motives in praying. As we are to give out of a genuine love for people, so we are to pray out of a genuine love for God. We must never use either of these exercises as a pious cloak for self-love.
6. In what ways do hypocrites pray today?
They still pray to be seen, to entice, to gain trust. Lots of people don’t even pray, they just use the word “prayer” to gain or leverage a position of trust. I’ll pray for you “buddy.” You’ll have rich people claim blessedness or favor type prayers. The word blessed is thrown around in every way possible, excluding anything to do with a beatitude.
7. Why and how is our praying to be different (v. 6)?
Our praying is to be done out of a genuine love and reverence for God. It is not that public prayer is prohibited, but if you don’t have a heart to devote private prayer to God, it is certain that your time of public prayer will at best be with a divided heart. Our motives in prayer are to be pure, and we are to see private prayer as a wonderful means of grace to all believers to spend time with our Father. We are encouraged to shut out all distractions, to come to him in prayer, and in rest, with no motive to be seen or heard by anyone but God.
8. How do you think the reward the Father will give us (v. 6) differs from the reward we receive from others (v. 5)?
The reward is internal, vs external. An external reward is like vapor or smoke, it is had in a moment, gone in a moment, you can only talk about what was, the gift from God is internal and eternal, it has no expiration, it is a multiplying fruit of grace. A receipt crumbles, the ink fades, hands get tired of clapping, but the internal graces from the one who rewards eternally, they do not rust, nor do they get eaten up by moths.
9. In verse 16 Jesus assumes Christians will fast (although few of us do). Why and how should we fast (vv. 16–18)?
DOES THE BIBLE PRESCRIBE FASTING?
Matthew 9:14–16 (ESV)
14Then the disciples of John came to him, saying, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?”
15And Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.
16No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch tears away from the garment, and a worse tear is made.
What is fasting?
It is an total abstinence from food for short or long periods of time, connected to a troubled spirit and self denial.
True fasting is always linked with prayer, unattached to this world, consumed by God, it is the response of an obedient, pure, and true heart.
There’s not prescription for fasting in the bible outside of the commandment for Israel to fast on the day of atonement. That day was fulfilled in Christ. However, fasting does take place throughout the Bible, and one thing is constant, no matter for what reason, it is never distinguished as being alone from prayer. Fasting is always connected to a time or times of prayer.
The evidence is plain that special enterprises need special prayer, and that special prayer may well involve fasting.
Biblical reasons for fasting:
Lamentation
Protection
Guidance
Humiliation
Condemnation
Ministry Selection/Direction
Seeking Revelation
10. Fasting was a way that people were trying to seek the approval of others. In what other areas are we tempted to seek the approval of people rather than of God.
What areas are we not tempted to seek the approval of people rather than God? You can find yourself in this very room doing that!!
Where is pride not lurking in all areas of our lives? The presence of pride is the absence of God. The answer here is that pride seeks opportunity in all areas of life, there is none in which it does not try to creep into. This is why we must mortify the flesh, die to self, and walk in the spirit, so we will not fulfill the desires of the flesh. In the flesh dwelleth no good thing, that means, anything done in the flesh, is independent of God, and therefore is sin.
Isaiah 58:3–7 (CSB)
THE PEOPLE- 3“Why have we fasted, but you have not seen? We have denied ourselves, but you haven’t noticed!”
GOD-“Look, you do as you please on the day of your fast, and oppress all your workers.
4You fast with contention and strife to strike viciously with your fist. You cannot fast as you do today, hoping to make your voice heard on high.
5Will the fast I choose be like this: A day for a person to deny himself, to bow his head like a reed, and to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Will you call this a fast and a day acceptable to the Lord?
6Isn’t this the fast I choose: To break the chains of wickedness, to untie the ropes of the yoke, to set the oppressed free, and to tear off every yoke?
7Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, to bring the poor and homeless into your house, to clothe the naked when you see him, and not to ignore your own flesh and blood?
11. How can this passage help to purify our motives?
EXAMINE OUR HEARTS!!!
PRAYER FOR HEIGHTENED TASTEBUDS FOR SIN
PRAYER LIKE ELISHAS PRAYED FOR HIS SERVANT- OPEN OUR EYES SO THAT WE CAN SEE
DEATH TO SELF
MAN’S CHIEF END- GLORIFY AND ENJOY GOD
PRAYER FOR THE SPIRIT TO WORK IN US IN ALL FACETS OF LIFE- TO MERGE THE ETERNAL WITH THE TEMPORAL SO THAT THE ETERNAL EYES ARE NOT CLOSED IN TEMPORAL DEALINGS
BLESSED ARE THE MEEK
NOT TO BE GLORY THIEVES
BIBLE GOVERNED
CHRIST CENTERED
SPIRIT LED
‘Ultimately’, writes Dr Lloyd-Jones, ‘our only reason for pleasing men around us is that we may please ourselves.’1 The remedy then is obvious. We have to become so conscious of God that we cease to be self-conscious. And it is on this that Jesus concentrates.
Ask God to help you focus on him (rather than yourself) as you worship.
LATER
Read Luke 18:9–14. How does this story illustrate what Jesus teaches in Matthew 6?
When have you acted like the Pharisee in this story?
When have you acted like the tax collector?
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS OR THOUGHTS