Practicing Righteousness

Intro

[Thank worship team]

Good morning Bethel Church, and good morning to our network of rural churches that are joining us live on YouTube. And if you are new here, I want to extend a special welcome to you. If you would, there are “Connect” cards in the seat in front of you. If you would fill that out there or at the Welcome Center outside of the sanctuary. We even have a free gift for you if you are new to Bethel. We would love to get in touch with you and discuss how to get connected to our church family.

Announcements:

[Announcement 1]

[Announcement 2]

TRANS: Pray

Opening Hook

How much difference can an audience make—even when the audience isn’t real?

Researchers at Newcastle University studied an honesty box in a staff coffee room. Employees could make tea or coffee and were expected to put the appropriate amount of money into a box. Nobody stood there collecting payment. It depended entirely on their honesty.

For ten weeks, researchers changed one small detail on the price list hanging above the box. Some weeks, the list displayed a picture of flowers. Other weeks, it displayed a pair of human eyes looking directly at the person making the coffee.

The rules never changed. The prices never changed. No cameras were installed. Nobody was actually watching.

But during the weeks when the eyes were displayed, people put nearly three times as much money into the box.

A printed pair of eyes changed real behavior.

Because we behave differently when we believe someone is watching.

We drive differently when we see a police car. We work differently when the boss enters the room. And if we aren’t careful, we can even worship, give, and pray differently when there are people nearby whom we want to impress.

An audience can change our behavior—but it can also corrupt our motives.

In Matthew 6, Jesus does not tell us that an audience is unimportant. He warns us about living for the wrong one. He asks us to consider: Whose attention am I seeking? Whose approval am I serving? And what reward am I hoping to receive?

The Big Idea

The reward you seek reveals the audience you serve.

The last two weeks we have been studying “heart issues:” Anger, lust, divorce, oaths, retaliation, and loving your enemies. Through all of it, Jesus exposes what is beneath the surface. There is more to it than just “making a bad choice,” it is about the condition of the heart that leads to destructive behavior.

Now Jesus will continue that line of thinking with His audience by talking about both prayer and generosity.

TRANS: If you are reading out of the Bibles in front of you, our passage can be found on page 825. If you do not have a Bible, please stop by the Welcome Center and take one. It is our gift to you.

Matthew 6:1 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.

Practicing Righteousness

Living for human recognition forfeits heavenly reward.

Matthew 6:1

Right away, this ought to bring up a question in our minds… Does this passage contradict Jesus teaching that we ought to be salt and light?

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.

Jesus clearly teaches that our good works are to be seen so that glory can be given to the Father. But pay attention to the end of verse 16: we are to have our good works seen *in order that* others may give glory to God! But here Jesus speaks about practicing righteousness for human recognition, not for the glory of God.

This is about motive.

Unless prompted by the right motives, religious activities, including doing good deeds to others, are of no real spiritual value and receive no commendation from God. It does matter greatly why we do what we do.1

1 Michael J. Wilkins, Matthew, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 2004), 272.

What is this about forfeiting heavenly reward?

The New Testament talks at length about how those who follow Jesus will be rewarded for their faithfulness. This is not about entrance into the Kingdom, but rewards in the Kingdom.

Paul says in 1 Corinthians 3:14-15

1 Corinthians 3:14–15 ESV

14 If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.

James says in James 1:12

James 1:12 ESV

12 Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.

And of course, Jesus speaks of rewards in heaven often through the parables, such as the parable of the Talents in Matthew 25:23

Matthew 25:23 ESV

23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’

Jesus is saying, what reward you could have enjoyed in heaven is forfeited when you practice “righteousness” before other people and not for God.

TRANS: Motives matter. Your audience matters. Now Jesus dives into his two key examples… starting with generosity.

Matthew 6:2–4 ESV

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.

Your generosity reveals your audience.

Matthew 6:2-4

Jesus launches into an example of your motives corrupting a good action — generosity. And he gives us a word to focus on, which is one of our 10 key concepts: Hypocrisy

Hypocrisy is not struggling with sin; it is pretending you do not.

Matthew 6:1–2, 5, 16; 7:3–5

The key word here is “pretending.” Many Christians throughout the centuries have used the idea of an “actor” to describe what a hypocrite is. And this picture is not from thin air. It is right in the original language.

Augustine notes the original sense of the Greek hupocritēs as ‘actor’: ‘Hypocrites are impersonators, mouthpieces for other characters, as in stories from the theatre’ (Lord’s Sermon on the Mount 2.2.5; Augustine 2014: 70). Similarly, Erasmus defines the hypocrites here as ‘those who are actors, wearing paint and masks’ (Erasmus 2008: 113).1

1 Ian Boxall, Matthew through the Centuries, ed. John Sawyer et al., Wiley Blackwell Bible Commentaries (Hoboken, NJ; West Sussex, UK: Wiley Blackwell, 2019), 132.

Christ-followers are called to a different kind of giving.

Illustrating the Text

Television: Examples of public, extravagant gifts are easy to come by. Take, for instance, the September 13, 2004, episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show, in which the host enthusiastically gave away new cars to each audience member. Or one could easily point to several well-known billionaires who have made public displays of their charity. While we should be careful in judging the motives of others, Jesus calls Christians to a different kind of giving: one with no acclaim or notoriety attached to it, one that is done in secret for God alone.1

1 Jeannine K. Brown, Matthew, ed. Mark L. Strauss and John H. Walton, Teach the Text Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2015), 69.

If people’s approval is your reward, don’t be surprised when that’s all you get.

So Jesus offers a solution: do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Now this, of course, is impossible. But as Jesus has used hyperbole to make a point before, so he does here.

The point is this: be generous in secret. Why? Because your heavenly Father Sees what good things are done in secret.

If you seek the applause of man, you’ll get it. But you’ll forfeit what reward was awaiting you from God. This does not mean you will not enter heaven, but everyone’s rewards in heaven will be different based on faithfulness.

So rather than “Tooting your own horn,” or as Jesus said, “sound a trumpet in the streets,” simply be generous and do not look for applause from man, but from God.

TRANS: Generosity reveals your audience. Now Jesus warns of another area of life we must not do with the wrong motives: prayer.

Matthew 6:5–8 ESV

5 “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. 7 “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

Your prayer reveals your audience.

Matthew 6:5-8

Again, we see the hypocrites like to make man their audience. They do “religious” things with the wrong motive. And hypocrisy is, “Hypocrisy is not struggling with sin; it is pretending you do not.”

The issue here is not praying in public, it is where you are directing your prayer.

The goal of prayer is the ear of God.

Charles Spurgeon

Why is Jesus talking about heaping up lengthy phrases? What is this reference to the gentiles?

New Testament scholar Craig Keener makes this observation:

Greek prayers sometimes piled up as many titles of the deity addressed as possible, hoping to secure his or her attention. Pagan prayers typically reminded the deity of favors done or sacrifices offered, attempting to get a response from the god on contractual grounds.

Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, Second Edition (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic: An Imprint of InterVarsity Press, 2014), 60.

Do we pray this way? We hope God will hear us because we say the “right” words or the right “amount” of words? Yet Jesus reassures us that we do not need to twist God’s arm, we need to simply ask. And Jesus instructs to do it in secret because this removes the heart-issue of praying to be heard by man. The Lord is good, and He works in our lives such that our prayers are not performative, but as they were intended.

When we understand that prayer is not a performance, we are able to properly make requests to God. And there is power in prayer!

*Illustration* 8-Word Prayer

Paul and Patty Durbin are home missionaries in Boulder CO.

      They have been in Boulder since 2020 after spending 11 years as missionaries in China.  Before that they were the pastors at the AG church in Devils Lake.  

Last year, Paul Durbin wrote a book called “The Anchored Path” was referenced in the Pastor lunch I attended last week.

This is one of Paul’s stories from that book from their time in China.

                  He writes: 

“My family was visiting residents at a nursing home.    And these places carry a particular sadness in China because in their culture, families traditionally care for their elderly at home.  These facilities often house those who have been left behind or forgotten…. or have no living relatives. 

          While on the outdoor patio, a nurse escorted an elderly man to me with an unusual request.  She explained this poor man had been dizzy for 11 years.   He needed assistance whenever he walked.    Then came the unexpected question: “What do you suggest for his condition?”

            Paul thought: I’m a pastor, not a doctor. “I offered a weak suggestion:  “Drink more water???”

           But then after a pause and considering the risk, Paul writes, “I dared to ask if I could pray.   This home was government subsidized, and I was offering something religious.”  

              “Even as I said it, I wondered if I had overstepped.  Would this nurse report me?  Would we be asked to leave?”

                  “Thankfully, the nurse reluctantly agreed to let me pray.”  “I kept it simple, since my Mandarin words were limited.”

I prayed 8 words:   “Dizziness go.  Healing come. In Jesus name. Amen.   

                   8 words.  

       When I said Amen, the residents were called to dinner.

The nurse led the gentleman away, and I thought nothing more of it.

               A few minutes later in the cafeteria, the same man came walking…..no striding……back to me with no help from His nurse who was struggled to keep pace behind him.       

                  With the nurse’s help, his message became clear:  He wanted to know the  EXACT words I had spoken?   What was the MAGIC FORMULA?

   Could I write them down?

           Because his dizziness was completely gone.  11 years of imbalance vanished in a moment.

           “It wasn’t the words,” I told him, as I was still processing what happened myself.  “It’s who I was talking to.  Jesus has the authority over sickness…..and He shares that authority with His family…..people like me who believe in Him”

               Paul says that after telling this man, “It wasn’t my words….it was who I was talking to”….. the two of them sat down together over lunch with a translator to help with the conversation.   

               With tears running down his face, this man whispered to Paul, “I’m just an old man everyone has forgotten…..No one knows I even exist.   Why would Jesus heal me?”     

             In his limited Mandarin, Paul had memorized John 3:16….For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

            Paul concludes, “after I quoted it: I gave a simple explanation and then asked, “Will you believe in Jesus?”  I think the man was almost offended by the question…..because he smiled at me and said:      “Of course I believe in Jesus….He just healed me, didn’t He?”

When we pray, it is not about saying magic words or going on and on, it’s about trusting in God. It’s remembering we are speaking the Creator. Our words of prayer should not be about impressing others, it should be about speaking to our Father (and we will talk about that in the next passage).

TRANS: Living for human recognition forfeits heavenly reward, so we must watch our motives, especially in the areas of generosity and prayer. So where is your heart? What are your motives? As we close our time together in the Word, i want you to ask yourself these two questions:

Two Questions

Do I practice righteousness only when others are around?

Think about the story I opened with — The eyes on the free-will donation box for coffee. Do you behave differently when you think others see you?

This is the test of sincerity. If obedience only feels worth it when someone notices, then I may not be serving God as much as I’m using “righteousness” to serve myself.

You may fool people, but you are not fooling God.

The Lord desires for you to be transformed from the inside-out. No longer using “righteousness” to serve yourself, but living righteously according to God’s work in you.

TRANS: But Jesus presses deeper than whether people see us. He asks us to consider why we wanted to be seen in the first place.

Whose approval is most rewarding to me?

This is the test of worship. The reward I crave reveals the audience I serve. If the praise of people feels more satisfying than the pleasure of the Father, then even good things like generosity and prayer can become a stage for self-glory.

During Lyndon Johnson’s presidency, one of his closest aides was Bill Moyers, an ordained Baptist minister.

At a White House dinner, Moyers was asked to say grace. As he prayed, President Johnson struggled to hear him.

“Speak up, Bill!” Johnson called out. “Speak up!”

Without interrupting his prayer, Moyers quietly replied, “I wasn’t addressing you, Mr. President.”

It’s a funny response—but it captures the central question in Matthew 6: Who are you serving?

Prayer is supposed to be directed toward God, but Jesus warns that we can speak to God while performing for people. Our words may be vertically directed while our hearts are looking horizontally for approval.

The reward you seek reveals the audience you serve.

Who are you serving?

When you pray, are you hoping that others notice you and your “spiritual” sounding words? Or do you simply speak to your Father who is in heaven?

When you are generous, do you toot your own horn? Or do you not care if anyone even knows the gift was made — because your Father who is in heaven sees what is done in secret?

The approval of others is fleeting and shallow, but the approval of the Lord is eternal and meaningful.

Who are you serving?

Conclusion : [text]

Pray

Talk About It/Think About It

What are some subtle ways we may seek recognition for practicing our faith?

How can generosity become a way of drawing attention to ourselves?

How might the presence of other people change the way we pray?

Do I practice my faith only when others are around?

Do I tend to lean more on the side of “doing for God” or “being with God”?

Whose approval is most rewarding to me?