Title: “Living Righteously Before Our Father” Script: Mt. 6:1-24
Intro: A prosecuting attorney called his first witness, a grandmotherly, woman, to the stand. He approached her and asked, "Mrs. Jones, do you know me?" She responded, "Why, yes, I do know you Mr. Williams. I’ve known you since you were a young boy. And frankly, you’ve been a big disappointment to me. You lie, you cheat on your wife, you manipulate people and talk about them behind their backs. You think you’re a rising big shot when you haven’t the brains to realize you never will amount to anything more than a two-bit paper pusher. Yes, I know you." The lawyer was stunned. Not knowing what else to do he pointed across the room and asked, "Mrs. Jones do you know the defense attorney?" She again replied, "Why, yes I do. I’ve known Mr. Bradley since he was a youngster, too. I used to baby-sit him for his parents. And he, too, is a disaster. He’s lazy, bigoted, he has a drinking problem. The man can’t build a normal relationship with anyone and his law practice is one of the shoddiest in the entire state. Yes, I know him." At this point, the judge rapped the courtroom to silence and called both counselors to the bench. In a very quiet voice, he said with menace, "If either of you asks her if she knows me, you’ll be jailed for contempt!" The judge was pretty insecure in front of this knowledgeable old woman. Do certain people unnerve you and cause you to act differently in front of them for their approval? Today’s message is for you (and me!). (Steve Shepherd illust)
Prop: Exam. Mt. 6 we notice 3 important insights in how we are to live before our Heavenly Father.
BG: 1. Sermon on the Mount. Masterpiece of a message. One main point: “How Kingdom People Are to Live.” 2. In this section our Lord highlights what true righteousness should look like, with an emphasis on the motives we employ in performing those acts.
Prop: In Mt. 6 we notice three important insights in how we are to live before our Heavenly Father.
I. Jesus Teaches that Righteous Living Requires Personal Discipline. V.1
A. Jesus Begins this Section of the SOM by Bringing into Focus His Goal for the believer.
1. As Christians we are citizens of Christ’s Kingdom. It is our highest loyalty and we need to obey His decrees as our Sovereign.
a. Now, if we remember what we have examined the last few weeks, we can remember that much of Mt. 5 dealt with the profound impact of the Moral Law of God. We saw what Christ said about the deeper application of God’s Word as it related to such things as murder, anger, adultery, oaths and speech and our relationship to our enemies. From our Lord’s interpretation of the Law we saw that Jesus gave the deeper meaning and pointed us to the Law of Love, which should be the Christian’s motivation. All of that section of the SOM would have us to realize that the righteousness God seeks in the life of His follower is an internal righteousness, characterized by a heart that is right with both God and neighbor. In contrast to the outward and peripheral righteousness of the religious elites of Jesus’ day, this message spoke to true righteousness being internal and thorough.
b. So, let us come back to V. 1 – Here we see Jesus’ prepositional statement for this section of His sermon: (Read v. 6 again.) Let’s be really clear in what Jesus is saying here… The citizen of Christ’ Kingdom WILL live/practice a righteous lifestyle. There is no dichotomy here between my “inward” spiritual life and the “outward” nature of my spiritual life.
2. As Citizens of Christ’s Kingdom we have internal as well as external responsibilities. I am sure that some of Jesus’ hearers that day thought to themselves: “This is wonderful! I can be inwardly pure and holy without any external effort at all.” “How liberating!” “How freeing!” However, Jesus is going to show us that actually, we are called to demonstrate external disciplines as citizens of His Kingdom.
B. Jesus Declares that True Righteousness is Expressed
1. True Righteousness is Expressed Externally in our Outward Disciplines.
a. Illust: Pretend: Beginning of the new year. You’re nearing middle-age and your doctor has told you that you’ve begun to develop a case of “Furniture Disease”. “What’s furniture disease, Doc?” “Well Chris, your chest has dropped into your drawers.” Now you go online to look at hiring yourself a personal trainer. You see two sites. One is for “Ian Paul” he is young and buff. There are pictures of him lifting and running, eating healthy, as well as training others. He has a decent resume, but he is younger and only has his BS and a few certs. Now, your Google search also reveals “Joey Luigi”, he’s about your same age. You see that he has a couple of advanced degrees, has written several peer-reviewed articles, 20 yrs experience. But strangely, in his current bio pic he’s about 50lbs N. of where should be, has 2 liter of pop and open bottle of bourbon while smoking a Havanan and he hasn’t even wiped the Dorito crumbs off of his desk! (Who are you choosings? “Luigi of course! Makes me feel better about myself!” No! If want results you hire Ian because you realize that he has both inward knowledge as well as external discipline!
b. As we delve into Christ’s Word today, we see that there is not to be a false dichotomy between the “outward” and the “inward” man of the believer. Truly righteous men and women will show their righteousness through their righteous behavior. In fact, Jesus reiterates that true righteousness is demonstrated in the external disciplines of the believer.
2. True Righteousness is Expressed Externally Through our Inward Motive.
a. Look again at v. 1 – Notice what Jesus does and does not say. He does not say: “Be careful not to do your acts of righteousness.” Nor does he say: “Be careful not to do your acts of righteousness before men.” Rather, he qualifies that sentence with: “to be noticed by them”. What is Jesus focusing on here? MOTIVES! Why we do something is often as or even more significant than what we do.
b. Now, in just a few moments, we will see the three illustrations Jesus uses in this message to highlight how our motives can influence the righteous deeds that we are supposed to manifest in the Christian life. He is going to show us that sacrifice, self-discipline, and self-denial are still called for in the Christian life. And listen, none of these activities come naturally, but rather they require deliberate effort in the life of the Christian.
C. Applic: There is much that seems to be understood in modern Christianity today that my personal Christian experience means that I no longer need to take or make any effort so as to be spiritual. I simply do what I feel while always making sure to “be true to myself” and just about any discipline is label as “legalism”. We had better look at the passage, because Jesus assumes that discipline is an essential prerequisite for vitality in my spiritual life.
II. Jesus Gives 3 Illustrations to underscore His Point: Alms, Prayer, Fasting vv.2-7
*Again, these 3 illustrations are used by our Lord to teach that external spiritual disciples must be governed by the correct motive if the action is to be honored by God.
A. 1st Illust: Our Relationship to Others Through Giving.
1. Jesus Gives an Easily Recognizable Picture of Giving from His day.
a. Illust: Wealthy Jews literally did this so as to draw attention to their charitable giving, especially at or near the temple. This man hires a trumpeter to play a fanfare to attract attention to his gift. Now, I guess we don’t hire buglers today…but we certainly have our press conferences and naming opportunities and plaques of recognition. And certainly not all of that is wrong or evil. However, in my carnality, I often wonder how much money would have been given to Uof I or UIHC had no naming opportunity been given.
b. Alistair Begg says the following about this passage: “Jesus says that this is not a gift in the sight of God. Rather, it is a purchase! The wealthy man is not helping the poor half as much as he is using the poor to help himself!” (p. 110, SOM, Begg). Jesus actually says that he has received his reward in full, an ancient accounting term to designate settled balances.
2. Jesus is not Saying Here that We are NOT to give Alms and Charity, even publicly, but Rather, that We are to Develop the Discipline of Financial Sacrifice.
a. Illust: When Al Gore ran for President in 2000 ad, he already had a reputation for raising awareness for the environment and challenging others to give large sums of money to reverse the threatened environmental apocalypse he told us that was just on the horizon. Well, as we know, when you run for public office, your life is open to the public. Gore and his wife were publicly humiliated when their 1997 tax return came out, showing their total charitable donations for that year to be $353!!! (CNN 4-15-1998). Many Christians behave this way.
b. So, what is the take away from this illustration? Are we not to give financially? Are we not to be charitable? Are we not to give to needy causes in both the Church and the world? Of course we are. Give! But when you or I do give, let’s try to forget about ourselves as well as others, and let us focus on being right in our attitude and motivation before God.
B. 2nd Illust: Our Relationship to Our Needs in Our Praying.vv5ff
1. Our Praying is to be Communication with God and not a Performance for People.
a. Now Jesus introduces us to another man. This is Mr. Prayer Meeting! He loves to pray in public to be noticed by others. He likes being a man of prayer. He is the first to volunteer in public prayer meetings. Unfortunately, he prays way more often in public than he does in private. He is more eloquent in public, more fervent in public, more intimate in his public praying than in his private prayers.
b. Illust: Many people have stated to me that they love to hear Pastor Zach pray during the service. Many have remarked that he has a gift for praying public, pastoral prayers. Many feel blessed by his as well as other individual prayers. Now, I know this is NOT true of Pastor Zach, but what would you think of his pastoral prayers if all week long, week in and week out, he never conversed with the Almighty!? It might change our views of one’s public prayers he we realized that the only time he or she prayed was publicly, and with an adoring audience.
2. Jesus Is Not Saying Here that We Are NOT to Pray in Public, rather, He IS Saying that we are to practice self-discipline in developing a lifestyle of prayer.
a. Illust: No nation ever had a higher ideal of prayer than the Jews had; and no religion ever ranked prayer higher in the scale of priorities than the Jews did. ‘Great is prayer,’ said the Rabbis, ‘greater than all good works.’ One of the loveliest things that was ever said about family worship is the Rabbinic saying: ‘He who prays within his house surrounds it with a wall that is stronger than iron.’ The only regret of the Rabbis was that it was not possible to pray all day long. (Wm Barclay, Gospel of Matthew, 2001, p. 220)
b. Jesus is also telling us that we are not to be “hypocrites” when we pray. Christ said that the hypocrites prayed standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others (6:5). This word “hypocrite” was used of actors in a play. They performed in order to receive applause from others. There is a tendency towards this in the midst of our prayers. We tend to think of the devil being only in the worst places like bars and brothels; however, I think sometimes Satan likes to show up at the church and other places of worship in an attempt to inspire self-seeking worship..
C. 3rdIllust: Our Relationship to Ourselves in Our Private Fasting. V.16ff
1. In this Illustration Jesus addresses our motives in Self-denial.
a. A third man is introduced to us in this illustration: “Mr. Sadface Growlystomach”. Now, we know from Lk. 18:12 that most Pharisees fasted two times a week (Monday and Thursday). On those days they made sure that their appearance tended to highlight the discomfort of their devotion. Did not put on lotions or oil. Wouldn’t smile. Some would even wear sackcloth to make sure everyone would notice their devotion to God.
b. Illust: Ramadan: Islamic holiday that lasts 29-30 days and is characterized by healthy Muslims fasting (food and drink) from sun up to sun down. Since it’s lunar based, certain years the days can be significantly longer. Ramadan is used to cause the Muslim to consider the plight of the poor. Second, it is to help purify one’s soul through fasting. Muslims are urged to retrain from immoral actions during this month as a show of devotion. Ramadan is strictly adhered to and enforced minimally through peer pressure and in some nations by the law with swift reprisals. Would it surprise you to know, which month during the Muslim calendar more food is traditionally eaten in a Muslim home than any other? You guessed it! Ramadan.
2. What is Jesus saying to us in this illustration?
a. Yes, we are to practice self-denial in our spiritual lives…and I hate to tell you (And me too!), that self-denial can and should include fasting. There is more than one way for a hypocrite to “disfigure” his or her face to let others know just how much they have sacrificed and just how hard it has been for them to serve Jesus so that we will idolize them and put them on an undeserving pedestal. There are plenty of gullible Christians who will line up to praise and blindly follow after the newest spiritual superstar!
b. Illust: Maybe there is a deep need that you believe you are called to take before the Lord in prayer and fasting. That’s great. You do that! But Jesus would tell you to take a shower, comb your hair, maybe splash on a little cologne, apply some deodorant, and BRUSH YOUR TEETH! 😊
D. Applic: Jesus tells us that when we practice certain spiritual disciplines, our motivation should only be to honor and impress our Heavenly Father.
III. 3rd: Jesus States Both the Danger as well as The Remedy
A. What are the Dangers Jesus is Attempting to Alert us to in these vivid Illustrations?
1. We all need to recognize that there are dangers in living our life of faith.
a. Illust: One the groups Jesus consistently had conflict with was the Pharisees. This religious entity had been in existence about 200 yrs at the time of Christ. They had started as a lay ministry. Their chief concern was purity and obedience to God’s Word. They attempted to live lives of practical holiness while divorcing themselves from the political ambitions of the Sadducee party. Their lives were characterized by good works, giving alms, daily prayer (3hrs!), fasting (2x per week!), as well as tithing. The term “Pharisee” literally meant “separated one”. You might say they were the Fundamentalists or Holiness Movement of their time.
b. Illust: Jesus’ view of the Pharisees should act as a warning beacon to us Christians today. As evangelical Christians I think this is a temptation we can easily fall into as well. We are zealous to read our Bibles, to pray, to live holy lives, to share our faith, to tithe, go to Church, etc. All of these excellent practices can become a “shell” of true faith when we, like the Pharisees of old have a greater desire to please and be noticed by men than by God.
2. Notice the word Jesus uses to describe these type of men.
a. Vv.2, 5, 16 – hupokrites – As I said previously, this was a word from the Greek theater. In using this word, Jesus is pointing to the nature of the problem we must strive to avoid. We must never allow our faith to become theatrical, rather than genuine. In the ancient dramas actors did not wear makeup for their parts. Rather, they would hold up masks before their faces.
b. Secondly, in ancient drama, an important aspect of the play was held by the chorus. Often the chorus offered commentary on the action of the play, not unlike opera today. The “hupokrites” job was to answer the chorus. Jesus is saying that is exactly what the Pharisees had begun to do. Instead of answering to God alone, they had begun to answer the chorus of the public opinion of their followers. I think this is a pretty powerful warning to each of us today. Don’t be a hypocrite. Don’t pretend to be one thing while actually living as another. Don’t pretend to be seeking the approval of God while all the while seeking the approval and notice of men. Although it’s easy to hide our hypocrisy, it can be very difficult to deal with because it is deeply rooted in our hearts. Go to Christ in humble confession.
B. So What is the Remedy Our Lord Offers to this Spiritually Disabling Condition?
1. Take time to attempt to understand and deal with the duplicity of our own hearts.
a. Heb. 3:13 warns us against “sin’s deceitfulness”. How does sin deceive me? When I fail to realize or treat lightly the hold it still has in my heart.
b. Illust: In vv.1-18 God is called “Father” ten different times. Repeatedly, Jesus is addressing our hypocrisy in attempting to live righteously before and to be noticed by men. When we struggle with hypocrisy, like Peter did at Antioch (Gal. 2:11-14), we demonstrate that we are insecure in our relationship with God and vainly seek our security in what others think of us. Illust: This is exactly why Jesus had conflict with Pharisees. They inadvertently distorted God’s character into a tyrannical slave driver who placed greater and greater burdens on His followers. As such they really didn’t even know God as a Father, and despised the thought that He would show mercy to sinners…especially Gentile sinners.
2. As
a. Illust: One of the greatest parables Jesus ever told was what we call “The Parable of the Prodigal Son” (Lk. 15:1-32), although I think it really is misnamed (“Parable of the Older Brother”). Do you remember the context of why Jesus told the parable? Lk. 15:2 gives us the context: “The Pharisees and the teachers of the law grumbled, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” The attitude of the Pharisees is contrasted with the forgiveness, love, and welcome of the Father upon the return of the repentant younger brother. Despite the father’s pleas for the older brother to join the party, the eldest son spitefully replies: “Look, all these years I have been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders.” (v.29) What is your attitude of your Heavenly Father? Harsh Task Master or Loving Heavenly Father in whose arms you are eternally secure?
b. Illust: The 3-year-old felt secure in his father’s arms as Dad stood in the middle of the pool. However, as the father slowly walked toward the deep end, and as the water rose higher and higher on the father, boy’s face registered concern then panic, clinging more tightly to his father who easily reach the pool’s floor. Had the little boy been able to analyze his situation, he’d have realized there was no reason for fear, you see, his father was never out of his depth. At various points in our lives, all of us feel we’re getting out of our depth. Our temptation is to panic, for we feel we’ve lost control. Yet, as with the child in the pool, the truth is we’ve never been in control over the most valuable things of life. We’ve always been held up by the grace of God, our Father, and that does not change. God is never out of his depth, and therefore we’re as safe when we’re “going deeper” as we have ever been (Larson, Craig Brian: 750 Engaging Illustrations for Preachers, Teachers & Writers.p. 492)
C. Applic: Jesus teaches us in this passage that a religious hypocrite looks for a reward and finds security in the knowledge of what men and women think of him. By contrast, a true disciple of Christ’s, a citizen of His Kingdom, knows that his reward as is His salvation, eternally secure because of His loving Heavenly Father.
