The Way - Day 238 (Matthew 6)

Pastor Tom's Journal on Today's Reading:
Matthew 6:1-4
After challenging His disciples about loving their enemies, He questions a person's motivation for doing good things. Ephesians 2:10 reminds Christians that they have been given a relationship with God so they might do good works. Although works do not earn the right for salvation, they are proof that a person is trusting in the substitutionary death of Christ. Faith in Jesus Christ always leads to good works. God expects us to show kindness toward others; however, the religious people of Jesus' day were only interested in doing charitable deeds so others could see them. The scribes and Pharisees were not motivated to do good because of their love for God, but so their peers would think they were spiritual. Jesus gives a very strong commandment to His disciples telling them to abstain from doing charitable things only for the recognition of others (v.1). The illustration used here is that of a person placing money into the offering (alms). The so called religious people were making a spectacle out of giving money to God and made sure that everyone was watching as they gave. Although the illustration is specific, the application is broad. How many times do you do good just to be recognized? Do you sing so others will think you are an amazing Christian? Are you involved in ministry only to be disappointed when nobody recognizes your effort? Do you give money to your church and discuss with others what you've given? Jesus despises those whose motivation is to be seen. The followers of Christ are expected to be different...when they do something good, careful measures should be taken to assure it is in secret. If a disciple is only motivated to please God, Jesus promises a reward (v.4) because God is the giver of all good gifts (James 1:17). Commit today to good works for the sole purpose of bringing recognition to God, not yourself.

Matthew 6:5-15
Prayer is a difficult subject to address because most Christians believe it is very fundamental to the Christian life, but most people (including myself) don't practice it like they should. Jesus thought prayer was pretty important and so did the religious people of His day; however, their approach was very distinct. The scribes and Pharisees (Jesus called them hypocrites) prayed only to be seen by others...it was a way to make people think that you were really close to God (v.5). They also prayed using a lot of words thinking that they would be heard because of long, drawn out prayers (v.7). Jesus viewed prayer much differently. First, He says to pray in private (v.6). Praying in private has much more to do than just being alone, it is an attitude which evidences dependence on God for all a person's needs. In verse 7, Jesus criticizes the hypocrites for their thoughtless prayers, so another element of prayer is that it comes from the heart. Again, throughout Matthew 5 Jesus has been more concerned about a person's heart than about outward actions. Then Jesus demonstrates a sample prayer, not so it can be repeated word for word but so we can gather some important guidelines when we pray. Verse 9 models praise to God for who He is. Verse 10 challenges us to pray for God's will to be fulfilled. Verse 11 challenges us to pray for God's provision for the day at hand. Verse 12 commands us to seek forgiveness from God for our wrongdoings. Verse 13a tells us to pray for protection against giving into temptation. Verse 13b desires that we acknowledge that all power comes from God and all glory goes to God. Verses 14-15 are a reminder that God wants us to approach Him in prayer with a clean heart. He encourages us to search our heart and see if there is anyone whom we have not forgiven - if there is, we must first take care of that situation before God will forgive us. We must remember that Jesus is not giving us a formula to pray, but some instructions on what it means to pray. In context with the rest of His teachings in this passage, Jesus wants us to pray from our heart. It is so easy to fall into the habit of praying because it is what we are supposed to do instead of praying because it is what our heart desires. God does not want thoughtless, mindless words but He genuinely seeks those whose heart is seeking after His heart. When our heart is privately submitted to God in prayer, He will reward us openly (v.6). This means that God will bring into reality what our heart desires. Make a commitment today to spend time praying to God each day...not just a set aside time, but a constant awareness of God's presence with you. When something good happens, recognize it is from God. When something bad happens, realize you need the Lord's strength. When you need to make a choice, seek wisdom from God (James 1:5). When someone else needs God's help, pray that He will intervene.

Matthew 6:16-18
Okay...I have to admit that I haven't done what we are about to talk about very many times. There have been a few occasions where I've fasted, so I'm not sharing out of a heart of experience but from biblical truth. May this challenge me to be more regular in fasting. First and foremost we must stray away from the current text to define fasting because Jesus does not describe it for us here, but only assumes we will do it. So, what is fasting? Fasting has always been associated with giving up food for a certain period of time in order to devote oneself to focused attention on a particular matter. Psalm 35:13 presents a scenario of fasting when David appears to be in a desperate dilemma with an opposing power who had betrayed a covenant. In Psalm 35:1-10 David lays out his situation and the sorrow of his soul as a result of his trial. David begins to talk to God about the situation and reveals a time when his accusers were in trouble and he responded with fasting and prayer and now they were turning their backs on him. Setting aside David's circumstances, he described the essence of fasting - when a heart is desperate for God to respond, he will give up things that sustain him in order to get God's attention. There are times throughout the Bible when people fast: times of punishment for sin (Joel 2:12), times when friends are in trouble (Psalm 35:13), times of personal afflictions (2 Samuel 12:16), times of danger (Esther 4:16), times of temptation (Matthew 4:1-11), and a few other things. Back to our passage...Jesus says that when you fast because of a desperate situation, do it privately and not so others will think you are spiritual. In fact, Jesus says to carry on with life as normal when you are fasting so as not to bring any attention to yourself (vv.17-18). Jesus doesn't want us to do things for show or so that others think we have this special connection with God. He wants us to be humble realizing that Christianity is not some public spectacle to see who can do the most good stuff, but rather about a humble heart that is desperate for God to respond. I'm not sure if Jesus' point was to communicate (in this passage) the ins and outs of fasting, but to keep driving home that the heart is more important than an outward show! How do you view the Christian life? Are all your actions carefully calculated to make sure others see your "spirituality"? If so, you've got it all wrong! It's not about dressing right, listening to the right kind of music, being seen at every church event, talking the spiritual talk, and all the other games we play with God. You see, God knows our heart and although we can fool others into thinking we are something, God knows who we really are...every part of us! So, quit trying to fool others. Get honest before God and surrender your heart to Him - that's what He wants! He doesn't care about all of our feeble attempts to make ourselves look good before others, He only cares about the condition of our heart.

Matthew 6:19-34
I feel that I am very materialistic. For some reason, I have a hard time being satisfied with what I have. Don't get me wrong - I feel blessed to have what I have and I realize that God has been good to my family, but sometimes these feelings of dissatisfaction creep back into my heart. It is something that I have to guard against the rest of my life. It seems like people in Jesus' day struggled with the same thing...knowing the difference between needs and wants. He begins His teaching on wealth with a bold statement - Don't lay up for yourselves treasures on earth (v.19)! Now He didn't condemn money, but using it in the wrong way. When a person acquires money so he can have more stuff, he has failed to realize that money/possessions are temporary and can be stolen or broken. Then Jesus makes another huge statement - whatever you treasure reveals what your heart loves (v.21). Jesus has been talking a lot about the heart and goes to the extreme of saying that where most of your money goes is a good indicator of what your heart loves. On the other hand, Jesus says to lay up treasures in heaven. What does this mean? It simply means to use your resources (money, home, car, possessions, etc.) in order to bring attention to God (bring Him glory). He is not talking about some prideful waving of money and possessions so that others will think that God has blessed you, but rather a loose grip on what you have to be used for God's glory. Use your car to bring someone to church. Use your home to entertain and encourage others. Use your money to give to missionaries across the globe who is spreading the Gospel. Jesus warned His followers not to be like the religious crowd who coveted money and possessions (vv.22-24). Their covetousness was a result of their corrupt and selfish heart. Jesus goes on to encourage His disciples to not worry about the basic needs of life because He will provide those things (vv.25-32). Matthew 6 closes with two verses that really sum up His teaching on wealth - be concerned first about bringing the attention of others to God and He will provide everything you need. What an amazing promise. Most of us have everything we need so let's start focusing on how we can use what God has given us to bring Him more glory.
 
Dear God, thank you for providing all my needs now help me to use the wealth you've given me to cause others to worship You also.