God sees what is Done in Secret and Rewards the Righteous
Intro: Well morning friends and visitors. My name is Matt Johnson and today we continue our study of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. In this sermon Jesus is calling people to hear his words about righteousness and put them into practice. But Jesus doesn’t simply want us to do the right thing. He wants us to do the right thing, for the right reasons…
Prayer: Well who is your favourite TV actor or movie star. I think my favourite male actor is probably Denzel Washington. I like him as an actor and its kind of an added bonus that he professes Christian faith. Now when it comes to female actors I like Margot Robbie. I particularly like the way Margot plays Harley Quinn in the DC Universe. She plays the role so convincingly that you could believe she really is Harley Quinn. The added bonus with Margot Robbie is that she is Australian.
Now I’ve got you thinking about movie stars today because ACTORS play a role to entertain an audience and impress other people. But Jesus says there should be NO ACTORS in Gods Kingdom. THE THREE SECTIONS today on giving, praying and fasting are joined together by a couple of words and one of the key words is HYPOCRITE. Now in the original biblical Greek the word hypocrite came from words linked to acting AND the theatre. A upokrites was a person who played a character on stage to impress and entertain other people. Now if you were a really good upokrites – you’d might even get an academy awards from the watching crowd. But Jesus is saying no acting for men in Gods kingdom.
THE PROBLEM is Judaism (and dare I say the Christian Church) has some of the BEST PROFESSIONAL ACTORS in the world. Many of them are pastors, bishops and even popes. And some of them play the role of being a Christian so convincingly that when their true colours eventually come out in an affair or pilfering money or not really believing in Jesus’ resurrection – we’re all in shock We’re like; “hang on, I thought they were the real deal.” This is a hupokrites.
But the problem runs even deeper. Even when we are REAL CHRISTIANS there is still A FLESHLY PART in ALL of us that wants to make ourselves look better than we really are. We ALL want other people to think we are good, godly, mature Christians. OUR SINFUL FLESH is still bent towards doing things for our own glory. Make ourselves look good. WHEREAS GODS SPIRIT in us wants us to do everything for Gods glory. Flesh or Spirit. So Jesus is kind of asking – why are you doing your righteous deeds. Is it really A) about Gods glory or your own glory? Are you doing your righteous deeds for an audience of One (which is God) or are you hamming it up for the crowd in church.
Jesus’ point is that God knows the difference. God is not simply looking at our actions. God is looking at OUR MOTIVES. Its not enough to do the right thing. Jesus wants you to do the right thing, for the right reason. And our TRUE HEART towards God is most revealed by what we do when no one else is watching – except God.
Big Idea: Jesus wants us to Practice our Righteousness for God Alone
Show: Matt.6:1 (Slide 2)
Explain: Well today – verse 1 governs all Jesus’ words about giving to the poor, praying and fasting. Jesus says you MUST NOT DO GOOD CHRISTIAN THINGS in order to be seen by others. Now this list of three spiritual things is not exhaustive. This principle applies to everything we do as Christians. If we are doing Christian things with the PRIMARY PURPOSE of being seen by other people and impressing other people then we will have NO REWARD from God. THE POINT IS God is not simply looking at what we do. God is looking at the heart and motives with which we do things.
Now up to this point in the Sermon on the Mount Jesus has been explaining what TRUE RIGHTEOUSNESS looks like in Gods kingdom. Let me show you. (Slide 4) As you can see Jesus is FOCUSSED on the importance of righteousness in Gods Kingdom. Then Jesus explained: TRUE RIGHTEOUSNESS means LOVING your enemies, not just your friends. It means being GRACIOUS even with people who hurt us. It means keeping our WORD not just our oaths. Righteousness means being faithful in marriage not just with your body, but with your mind. And righteousness means much more than not murdering people. It means getting rid of all anger and malice in our hearts. So JESUS’ STANDARD for righteous in Gods Kingdom is really, really high. You think how on earth am I going to do this?
But now Jesus ups the bar even further. He says it’s not enough to do the right thing. You’ve got to do the right thing because you want to do the right thing for Gods glory. Look again at Matt.6:1 (ENTER; Matt.6:1). THE PROBLEM is many religious people are like professional actors. We do good, righteous, Christian things when people are watching us. But when we walk off stage everything changes. Now why do people PLAY-ACT at being Christians? Why would we WANT other Christians seeing us do good, righteous, Christian things? (PAUSE).
THAT’S RIGHT. We all want other people to like us. We are concerned about what other people think of us. Sometimes we even care MORE about what other people think of us, than what God thinks of us. So we then put on A GOOD SHOW when other Christians are watching because we want everyone to A) pat us on the back, B) tell us how good we are and 3) inflate our insecure ego’s. We love this stuff. It makes us feel great. But when we do it for man, we’re really doing it for self, not God.
So Jesus identifies three areas where people often play-act to impress others. FIRST, in our giving. SECOND in our praying and THIRD in our fasting. Now like I said this is A REAL PROBLEM even for sincere born-again Christians. There is a battle going on inside every one of us between A) the flesh and B) the Spirit. THE FLESH is primarily concerned about your own glory AND THE SPIRIT is primarily concerned about Gods glory. Now there is a war going on inside you between the flesh and the Spirit. Jesus is drawing your attention to this war. Every time you set out to do a good, righteous, Christian thing – YOUR FLESH will want to do it for fleshly reasons oriented towards serving self in some way and THE SPIRIT will want you to do it for true spiritual reasons that are really focussed on God’s glory. Many Christians are not even aware of this battle inside themselves. So they never really even stop to consider the motives of our heart. But Jesus is asking; why are you doing your righteous deeds? Is it really for your own glory or is truly for Gods glory?
Apply: The Bible says “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” (1Cor.10:31). Now that’s easier said than done. Everything you do as a Christian should be done for Gods glory, not your own glory. But the problem is most of us love self as much or more than we love God. This is why we really NEED A SAVIOUR to change our heart so that we really love God and desire His glory.
Point 1: Make sure you Give to the Poor for God’s Glory, not your own glory
Show: Matt.6:2-4 (READ)
Explain: Well as you can see – Jesus says that when we give to the poor we shouldn’t announce it with TRUMPETS. Now the shofar or trumpet was used in the Jewish temple to summon the Jews for worship. It was like ringing the church bell. But there is no evidence the shofar was ever blown when rich people gave money to the poor. Jesus is speaking METAPHORICALLY. And Jesus is probably the original source for the phrase “don’t blow your own trumpet”. You all heard that saying before; “Don’t blow your own trumpet?” Well Jesus is saying; DON’T!
When you tell people you’ve got an IQ of 146 your kind of blowing your own trumpet saying I’m really smart. When you tell people you’re a multi-millionaire you’re blowing your own trumpet in terms of wealth or entrepreneurial skill. Blowing your own trumpet is all about SELF-GLORY. So announcing yourself with trumpets carries the idea of drawing attention to yourself as some sort of King or Queen. “Look at me. Look at me. I’m royalty when it comes to giving, praying or fasting.” I’m the best…
Now we know GLORIFYING SELF is the main game of the world. But very often people become Christians and they just bring the self-glory game into the church and tweak the things we admire. Look at my Bible knowledge. Look at me praying in tongues. Look at my sacrifice as I wash feet. IT’S WRONG.
Apply: (GOSPEL) If God has saved us through the Lord Jesus Christ and given us new life – we are meant to use our new life to glorify God (not ourselves). God originally made men and women (and gave us life) for His own glory. God made us to glorify Himself. So when we fail to do what we were made to do our life is forfeit. We deserve to die. When we live for our own glory – we become narcissistic, we hurt other people and we disobey God. So we deserve to die.
But when Jesus died on the cross he took the penalty for your sin. You’re life was forfeit. But Jesus TOOK THE PUNISHMENT for you – so that you could have a second chance. Jesus did this for you because he loves you. So if you believe Jesus died for you and you ask God to forgive – well you get to go to heaven (even though you are a sinner). Now if you then love Jesus for saving you – Jesus says “use your new life to glorify God. That’s what I want you to do.” So our new Christian life is not about glorifying self. Life is about glorifying God. (Slide 8) Whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God (1Cor.10:31).
Now we know THE WORLD usually uses money to glorify self. BUT CHRISTIANS can also use money to glorify self. As a Christian you can buy glory in the church 1) by giving lots of money in the plate, 2) by being the one who rescues any church project falling short or 3)simply by becoming known as the rich benefactor of the church. So Jesus says look very carefully at your motives. Are you giving A) for Gods glory or B) your own glory? If you are giving for your OWN GLORY – it is not really righteous and you have already received your reward. Your reward people were impressed. But God wasn’t impressed because he saw your heart and weighed your motives. THE BAR is now getting very high and we need to remember “Blessed are the spiritually bankrupt.” Those who realise how far they fall short of Gods standards – run to Jesus for forgiveness and receive God’s blessing. None of us reach these standards…
Point 2: Make sure you Pray for God’s Glory, not for your own glory
Show: Matt.6:5-6 (READ)
Explain: Well as you can see another place Christians can be tempted to show off is in their PRAYERS. We pray in certain ways so that other people see us and are impressed. Now the two places where I believe Christians are most likely to use prayer to glorify themselves is 1) praying in tongues AND 2) leading public prayers in church. So let me make some comments on both forms of prayer.
FIRST the Bible is clear that PRAYING IN TONGUES is a spiritual gift that only edifies ourselves – if there is no translator. But church and public Christian gatherings are all about edifying each other. So, the Bible is quite clear that people should ONLY pray in tongues in public if there is a translator. 1 Corinthians 14 is very clear on this issue.
So if you want to PRAY IN TONGUES in a public Christian context – you need to ask yourself why? Is it really about Gods glory or your own glory? As you know 1 Corinthians 12 makes it clear that not everyone has the gift of praying in tongues. So if you use the gift of tongues in public without proper translation – why are you doing it? Its not building up others. So is it actually about glorifying self?
Now please know I’m not having a go at Christians praying in tongues. Many Christians I know pray in tongues in very biblically appropriate ways and they are often silent prayer warriors in the church. THIS IS GOOD. No one knows what they are doing. They don’t blow their own trumpet. But God sees and hears what they do in secret. But like any spiritual gift, whether that be 1) preaching, 2) words of knowledge, 3)leading worship or 4) praying in tongues – the temptation is to use our spiritual gifts to glorify ourselves, rather than glorify God. So if you have the gift of praying in tongues make sure you use it privately, unless there is interpretation AND God will see and hear what is done in secret.
But perhaps the most dangerous place for any Christian to pray is in church – LEADING PUBLIC PRAYERS. Public prayers are the exact opposite to Jesus’ words about going into your inner room and praying to God in secret. This is Jesus basic and normative advice for prayer because Jesus knows we are all too prone to play act if people are watching. THE ONLY TIME we are really raw, honest and vulnerable with God in prayer is when we are sure no one else is watching. That’s when we are real. No play acting. So we need to get VERY GOOD at praying honestly in secret before we can lead prayers on church…
You see, the Bible also tells us the church should be a house of prayer. The Bible says that when we gather in church PETITIONS, PRAYERS, INTERCESSIONS AND THANKSGIVINGS should be made for all people. So someone has to be crazy enough to then lead the rest of us in prayer – without showing off while everyone is watching. This is why I believe that ONLY MATURE CHRISTIANS can really lead the church in prayer without falling into this trap. When young or immature Christians lead corporate prayer – they often fall into holier than thou kinds of speech. Their prayers end up sounding like Shakespeare or the King James Version of the Bible because they are too focussed on the people in the church, rather than God. Other immature Christians often turn their prayers into MINI SERMONS where they are really showing off their Bible knowledge or teaching theology, rather than praying to God. Now thankfully we have some really mature Christians who regularly lead prayers in church.
Apply: My point is simply that you need A) to spend a lot of time honestly praying in secret to God before B) you can start praying in public before others. THE PROBLEM IS that our flesh is bent on glorifying self instead of God. So look at your Bibles or think about how THE LORDS PRAYER begins? It starts; “OUR FATHER IN HEAVEN HALLOWED BE YOUR NAME.” Now HALLOWED means exalted, revered and glorified be Gods name. So as we begin the Lord’s prayer – we are praying for Gods glory, not our own glory.
Then we pray for Gods kingdom to come and God’s will to be done in our life. AGAIN, THIS IS ABOUT GODS GLORY. We are praying for things which we know will glorify God. Now after praying for Gods glory, we get to our physical and spiritual needs. Give me some food. Forgive my sins. Deliver me from the evil one. Acknowledging that we need God to provide our physical needs and spiritual needs is actually saying “I know you deserve the glory for everything in my life.” Now if you look at THE END of the prayer – you’ll see a little footnote “c”. If you look down the bottom of your Bibles you’ll see how the prayer finishes in many original manuscripts (PAUSE). You found it? Lets say it together – for yours is the Kingdom and the power and THE GLORY forever. Amen. Notice the prayer BEGINS and ENDS focussed on Gods glory. (Slide 11) Whether you eat or drink or whatever you do – do it all for the glory of God (1Cor.10:31).
Point 3: Fast for God’s glory, not your own glory.
Show: Matt.6:16-18 (READ)
Explain: Well, the last thing Jesus speaks about is FASTING. Fasting is all about going without food. It is about denying one of our strongest fleshly appetites – which is our desire to eat. Now originally, God told the Jews they had to fast each year on the DAY OF ATONEMENT OR YOM KIPPUR. It was the only time God told the Jews they MUST fast. Now because Yom Kippur was all about fasting while confessing your sin and approaching God in prayer – fasting, prayer and dealing with sin started to go together. So the Old Testament prophets sometimes called the Jews to pray, fast and confess their sins – that times of refreshing may come from the Lord. So this is the Old Testament background.
Now please notice – Jesus says in verse 16 – when you fast. He doesn’t say if you fast. Jesus is saying that when we fast we need to do it for Gods glory – not our own glory. Its not “Look at me, look at me I am a super mature Christian – I’m fasting.” Now I know some churches never talk about fasting and some Christians have never fasted. But Jesus says when you fast – make sure you do it for God’s glory.
Now please remember that Jesus finishes this sermon – saying “whoever hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise person who built his house upon he rock.” So it seems strange that Jesus would use an EXAMPLE OF FASTING – if he never expected Christians to fast after his death and resurrection.
Although there are not many references to fasting in the New Testament – there are some. JESUS SAYS 1) that when the bridegroom is taken away (talking about himself) then his disciples will fast (Lk.5:33-35). JESUS TELLS his disciples that some demons can only be driven out with prayer and fasting (Mk.9:29). It was during prayer and fasting that Gods Spirit chose Paul and Barnabbas for mission (Acts 13:23). And it was also with prayer and fasting that Paul and Barnabbas chose elders for all the churches of Asia Minor (Acts 14:23).
Apply: Now before you all go out today and decide to fast (which I know you’re all now dying to do) let me say its good if you understand what you’re doing. (I have printed here an official Anglican homily on fasting that was written in the C16th. It still remains one of the best things Ive read on fasting. So if you’d like a copy see me). I’d also say that before you fast – you need to consider the medical issues especially if you are diabetic. But I believe there is value in fasting.
First, fasting is all about denying the desires of the flesh. As we learn how to say NO to our body which is saying eat, eat, eat it is often easier to say no to other sinful desires of the flesh like porn, porn, porn. So fasting often aids us in self-control. Second when fasting is linked to prayer because we are making A VERY IMPORTANT DECISION – we show God our earnestness in fasting. When we pray and fast – we are saying to God this spiritual thing I am bringing before your throne in prayer is a really big decision. I really want to be led by your Spirit, not the desires of the flesh in this decision, so I am praying and I’m saying no to my fleshly desire. It is in this vein that Paul and Barnabbas seemed to pray before choosing elders in the church.
So friends, I believe there is A TIME FOR FASTING as Christians. But like all Christian practices we have to be doing things for the right reason and Jesus is really teaching us today… (Slide 14)
