Sermon on the Mount

Matthew 6:1-18

The Problem is we have wrong motivations driving our spirituality.

When we seek the Father, the Father is our full reward.

Me:

Why am I doing this?

Who is watching me? Who is the judge?

We:

God:

Matt 6:1 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them.”

Jesus tells us his main idea for this section in this verse.

Jesus is brining our motivations into focus regarding our acts of righteousness.

Jesus is instructing us to employ wisdom because earlier Jesus said people would see our righteous deeds and give glory to God, so he is not giving a one size fits all rule.

He is after the heart of the matter for his kingdom people.

Why am I doing this? Who am I doing this for?

The Father, or someone else?

If we practice righteous acts to be seen and lauded by others, then that laud of others is the only thing we receive from such practices.

If we practice righteous acts so as to be only seen to the Father, then we receive our reward from the Father.

Righteousness - Right relationship with God and others. Living in God’s world, God’s way”

Matt 5:20 “Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the pharisees then you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.”

What is the reward? why think this way?

The reward is simply what we are seeking. If we seek the praise of

others then that is what we will receive.

If you seek God, then you will receive God. If we practice our righteous

acts to be seen by the Father, then the Father will be our full reward.

To practice such acts of righteousness to be seen by others undermines

right relationship to God and other people.

Hypocrites - the greek word translated here is a term from greek theatre of someone putting on a show for others.

Practice- a way of life

There is a theology undergirding the way we do these ( or not!) these practices. Who you really believe God to be like is revealed in how we practice these acts of righteousness.

We learn how to do these practices through doing them. Its like playing guitar. You only learn to play guitar by playing the instrument.

1) Giving

Why do we give?

not prosperity gospel

not to “Pay it forward”

not to project an image

God is generous.

Take inventory of your blessings.

The kingdom of God is ruled by a generous God, and kingdom people extend that generosity to others in trust of the Father’s provision.

What keeps you from giving?

we cultivate generous character through the secret practice of giving. Like a musician learns to play guitar through the secret act of practicing it.

Why am I doing this? to share in the life of God.

We participate in the life of the trinity as we give. We share in the divine life.

who am I doing this for? My Father.

When we seek the Father in our giving, the Father is our full reward.

2) Prayer

The hypocrites was others to think them pious.

Jesus instructs his followers to get to a secret place and pray there.

Wisdom needed

Do not babble like the pagans? Is Jesus against praying for an hour?

Show example of a pagan prayer.

Theology undergirding these practices.

pagan gods needed to be cajoled, they are ignorant, petty, and just like humans in all their defects.

direct engagement with “my father” and he knows our needs. He has determined prayer to be integral to how his kingdom is worked into our world.

How should we pray? Recited prayers or spontaneous prayer?

Both and

The New International Version Chapter 6

“ ‘Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name,

10 your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

11 Give us today our daily bread.

12 And forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

13 And lead us not into temptation, s

but deliver us from the evil one.’

First part gets us into God’s world, the second part gets God in to our world.

When we pray we participate in the divine life of the Trinity.

Theology that God hears, and responds. We are about God’s kingdom coming and transforming our world and this vision is behind why we pray.

What keeps you from Praying?

commentary on forgiveness.

3) Fasting

What is fasting?

How should we fast?

What kind of theology undergirds the practice of fasting?

What keeps you from fasting?

Pastoral moment- When we identity wrong motivations driving our spiritual practices we stop doing these practices and we make a tragic error.

The proper response is to confess our wrong motivation and then repent, change our motivation to seeking the Father.

You:

We:

Processing Questions: