Practicing Righteousness

Opening Prayer Time

John 1:1–5 HCSB

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 All things were created through Him, and apart from Him not one thing was created that has been created. 4 Life was in Him, and that life was the light of men. 5 That light shines in the darkness, yet the darkness did not overcome it.

John 14:6 HCSB

6 Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

John 17:17 HCSB

17 Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth.

Ephesians 4:15 HCSB

15 But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into Him who is the head —Christ.

PRAYER

17 Sanctify them by the truth;

Your word is truth.

The Holy Bible: Holman Christian standard version. (2009). (). Nashville: Holman Bible Publishers.Prayer

Father, We asked that today we are sanctified/cleansed by the word, by Jesus.

:

1. Jesus paints a picture of the kingdom. (Matthew 5:1 - 10)

(it will cost dissent) v11

2. Jesus speak of the kingdoms purpose.

We are to be salt and light (13 through 16)

We are to affirm God’s always been with us. (17-20)

The goal is to practice bringing the wisdom of God to the world. God’s “Law/ Torah is not Statute Based. (Statutory) It is situational and based in relationship with Him.

3. Jesus reminds us of a plumbline.

Amos 7:7–8 HCSB

7 He showed me this: The Lord was standing there by a vertical wall with a plumb line in His hand. 8 The Lord asked me, “What do you see, Amos?” I replied, “A plumb line.” Then the Lord said, “I am setting a plumb line among My people Israel; I will no longer spare them:

The goal is to practice bringing the wisdom of God to the world. God’s “Law/ Torah is not Statute Based. (Statutory) It is situational and based in relationship with Him.

If we are faithful to hold up the plumbline we will find ourselves to be successful of gaining the right perspective on things such that we will make comparisons that drive us to Jesus to seek his grace and righteousness and not to our own.

Putting Faith into Practice: The Discipline of It.

John Stott breaks down chapter 6 accordingly

1 . A Christian is not hypocritical but real (;

2. A Christian is not mechanical but thoughtful ()

3. Christian ambition is not material security but God’s rule. ()

While that works for some I hav some different Ideas about how we are going to look at it.

Moving into Chapter 6:

Jesus Starts by speaks of our spiritual disciplines.

Almsgiving, Prayer and Fasting.

Matthew 6:1–4 HCSB

1 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of people, to be seen by them. Otherwise, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2 So whenever you give to the poor, don’t sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be applauded by people. I assure you: They’ve got their reward! 3 But when you give to the poor, don’t 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.

Matthew 6:1–4 The Message

1 “Be especially careful when you are trying to be good so that you don’t make a performance out of it. It might be good theater, but the God who made you won’t be applauding. 2 “When you do something for someone else, don’t call attention to yourself. You’ve seen them in action, I’m sure—‘playactors’ I call them—treating prayer meeting and street corner alike as a stage, acting compassionate as long as someone is watching, playing to the crowds. They get applause, true, but that’s all they get. 3 When you help someone out, don’t think about how it looks. 4 Just do it—quietly and unobtrusively. That is the way your God, who conceived you in love, working behind the scenes, helps you out.

And we practice our religion.

1-

WE ARE CALLED TO BE DIFFERENT

Do Not Practice Like...

There should be something about us that stands out about how we relate to God vs other folks in the world.

The Hyprocrite.

Almsgiving

The Discipline of It.

They pretend to God verses those who actually know God.

They pretend to God verses those who actually know God.

Matthew 6:1 HCSB

1 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of people, to be seen by them. Otherwise, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.

Matthew 6:5 HCSB

5 “Whenever you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by people. I assure you: They’ve got their reward!

Matthew 6:16 HCSB

16 “Whenever you fast, don’t be sad-faced like the hypocrites. For they make their faces unattractive so their fasting is obvious to people. I assure you: They’ve got their reward!

Mattew 6 5

Matthew 6

Prayer

We have at least three things that we are to practice, or at least Jesus told us to practice. expectations? Common.

SEE DIFFERENT

Don’t look to see what your peers are doing. Look to see the hurting and see what God has told you.

Don’t look at others and say look at me: Don’t be looking for people to Approve. People pleasers want to be seen and adored.

See the people who are hurting and minister to them.

Remember Oaths? Don’t swear by God, your head or others.

PROPER CREDITS

Matthew 6:3–4 HCSB

3 But when you give to the poor, don’t 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.

It’s not about getting credit. or drawing attention to yourself... It’s not even about Pointing out God....it’s about seeing God’s Children and being God to them. Be Love and they will ask when they are able to see. Jesus Will reveal himself in his time.

mat 6 3-4

Not worrying about being seen at all. Just be mindful of those in need. If you are seen ok, if not, ok. Neither seek it or deflect it. Just be jesus to people in need.

False Piety: it’s not me it’s God. The poor need to see it’s you who showed grace they cannot return. The others don’t. Often we don’t let the poor see.

It’s not that it can’t be known. It’s that being known matters not to you.

Letting your left and Right?

Fasting

Material Security

And we practice our religion.

Jesus Starts by speaks of our spiritual disciplines.

Almsgiving, Prayer and Fasting.

And we practice our religion.

1 . A Christian is not hypocritical but real (; 16 - 18

2. A Christian is not mechanical but thoughtful ()

3. Christian ambition is not material security but God’s rule. ()

Do Not Practice Like...

There should be something about us that stands out about how we relate to God vs other folks in the world.

The Hyprocrite.

They pretend to God verses those who actually know God.