Men's Group (2)

Matthew 6:1-4

So you all finished up last time with the passage of Love your enemies or even “...be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

Really the culmination of a section where Jesus has said over and over “you have heard it said...”

It is very clear that Jesus is pointing to the concept of you and I not just taking everything to the least degree, but holding God’s Word fully.

Let’s process for a minute.

Any perfect people in here?

Anyone matching the law fully?

Anyone clinging to the law for hope?

So how do we get from being perfect to “your righteousness”?

Let’s read Matthew 6:1-4.

Matthew 6:1–4 ESV

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. 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. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Beware = literally to take care— The idea is to be mindful of the out come of what is about to be spoken of.

You see in our last chapter the are a couple of verses that seem contradictory to this passage at first glance.

Matthew 5:14–15 ESV

14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.

Some may look at verse 1 of chapter 6 and hold a contradictory statement, but it is not so.

You see 14-15 are dealing with the righteousness or righteous work of Christ as evidenced in the life of the individual. We know this based on vs. 16

Matthew 5:16 ESV

16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Vs. 14-16 point to God getting glory

Matthew 6:1 points to the individual getting glory.

Psalm 115:1 ESV

1 Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness!

Here is what vs. 1 is starting...it is giving the idea of Jewish piety; almsgiving, prayer, and fasting.

Here we deal with Alms or generosity towards others.

Look at vs. 3-4

“The way to avoid hypocrisy is not to cease giving but to do so with such secrecy that we scarcely know what we have given.

One might say, if we love, we do not keep a record of how much we gave.

What I am saying… is we should not be holding it to the penny.