March 2 2014 Steve Rahter Matthew 6 1 18 audio

Steve Rahter 

www.praisetabernacle.com

Praise Tabernacle

People Restored And Inspired Serving Everywhere This is a non-denominational Church, Charismatic in expression. Senior Leader is Pastor Steve Rahter 2235 Ocean Heights Ave. Egg Harbor Township, NJ 0823

Sunday March 2ndMatthew 6:1-18As we wrapped up chapter 5 last week, Jesus was explaining what it would look like to be “perfect” or “mature” disciples. Here in chapter 6 He continues to explain what our goals for maturity should be.“Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.2 “So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 3 But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.So for starters Jesus says "Don't do things like the hypocrites do."  The word hypocrite is actually the same word for "actor."  A hypocrite is someone who acts religiously -- who does all the outward actions of religious behavior but doesn't have the proper inner attitude.  Jesus is saying “don’t just be an actor – someone who is acting religious but is really a fake.”The Pharisees were constantly showing off their religiosity. They would make a big public display of their prayer life, their giving to the poor, and when they were fasting they would draw attention to that fact by covering themselves with ashes and looking hungry. The Pharisees were basically show-offs.  Jesus warns us to “beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them.” That’s the real issue: doing religious-looking things in order to be noticed and praised. The Pharisees wanted their religious acts to be seen in order to receive glory. That phrase, “do not let your right hand know what your left hand is doing” is an Aramaic expression that means “keep it quiet.” Giving, prayer, and fasting are all supposed to be done quietly so that our heavenly Father, who sees the things that we do in private, will be the one who rewards us.  Jesus says this is true not just of our giving, but every area of our spiritual life, including prayer.5 “When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 6 But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.Does this mean that we should never pray out loud in front of other people, even in church? I don’t think that’s the case, because Jesus prayed publicly many times, but if we look through the Gospels we’ll also see many references to Jesus praying privately, with no one else around, including:Matthew 14:23: After He had sent the crowds away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone. Matthew 26:36: Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to His disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” Mark 1:35: In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there.Luke 5:16: But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray.Luke 6:12: It was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God.So Jesus modeled both public and private prayer for us. Both have value, but the point is that if we’re praying in public just so people will be impressed, then the prayer has no value in God’s eyes.In verses seven and 8 Jesus gives another “don’t” when it comes to prayer:7 “And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. 8 So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.The concept of repetitive prayer is found in many religions, including Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam. But God intended prayer to be a conversation, not a monologue. He doesn’t need you to repeat the same words over and over as if your chances of getting an answer increase every time you say the words. Jesus points out the simple reality that our heavenly Father already KNOWS what we need – He doesn’t need us to remind Him over and over – He just wants us to talk with Him and spend time with Him.So after giving us a few lessons about what prayer SHOULDN’T look like, Jesus demonstrates what true prayer SHOULD look like:9 “Pray, then, in this way:‘Our Father who is in heaven,Hallowed be Your name.10 ‘Your kingdom come.Your will be done,On earth as it is in heaven.11 ‘Give us this day our daily bread.12 ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.13 ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’Notice in verse 9 that Jesus says to “Pray in this way”, not “Pray these exact words”. Even the Lord’s Prayer can become pointless if we’re just repeating the words mindlessly without really meaning them. That’s how I used to pray my “penance” prayers when I came out of the confessional!In showing us a new way to pray, Jesus established the basis for the relationship between Christians and God as a Father-child relationship! God is our Father.That was a revolutionary concept that Jesus was bringing forth when He spoke the words: “Our Father who art in Heaven, Hallowed be Thy name.”This opening verse tells us that prayer is basically a conversation with our Dad. In fact, the word that Jesus uses for Father is “ABBA” which means “DADDY”. It was the word that little children used.So we can talk to our Dad, the one who created, directs, and sustains the universe!The other significant word in this opening verse is “hallowed” which essentially means “holy”, and points out that God is separate from His creation, over all of creation, and perfect in every way. So even though He’s our Dad, we should still come to Him in an attitude of worship and reverence, recognizing His power and position in the universe.The words of verse 10 say, “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” God has a perfect will, a perfect plan for this world. As we pray we are submitting our lives to accomplish His will. Philippians 3:20 explains why “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.” As citizens of heaven we fall under heaven’s jurisdiction, so we need to follow the instructions of heaven’s king– just like everyone else does in heaven. Then things will be on earth as they are in heaven.And as citizens we are allowed to ask the king for the things we need. “Give us this day our daily bread” (verse 11). The Greek word translated “daily” is found only here in this prayer, no where else. It has been understood to mean “daily necessities”.This means we bring our financial needs, our relationship needs, our food, shelter, health needs – directly to God. We must remember, however, to distinguish between needs and wants. Philippians 4:19 promises that “my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus”, but that isn’t a promise to give us everything we want. Some of the things we think we want aren’t actually good for us, and God knows what is best.In fact one of the reasons why God wants us to bring our requests to Him is so that we can learn the difference between what’s important in life, and what’s not important. When we see His answers to our prayers we find out what His will is, and then we can learn to pray more effectively in line with His will.Verse 12 is crucial. Jesus instructs us to pray, “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” 1 John 1:8-9 tells us “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”But, Jesus connects another issue to God’s forgiveness: our forgiveness of others who have sinned against us! If we’re asking God to forgive OUR sins, we have no right to hold anger, bitterness, grudges, or vindictiveness against them.Because again that would make us what…hypocrites. And how can we expect God to forgive us if we don’t forgive others?In Case you don’t think this is a major issue in Jesus’ mind, just jump down to verses 14 and 15, which put a rather strong exclamation point on this:14 For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.In chapter 18, verses 23-35, Jesus tells this parable as a reminder of what He taught us to pray here in the Lord’s Prayer:“For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. 24 When he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. 25 But since he did not have the means to repay, his lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment to be made. 26 So the slave fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.’ 27 And the lord of that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt. 28 But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay back what you owe.’ 29 So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to plead with him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you.’ 30 But he was unwilling and went and threw him in prison until he should pay back what was owed. 31 So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their lord all that had happened. 32 Then summoning him, his lord said to him, ‘You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33 Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you?’ 34 And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him. 35 My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart.”The simplest thing I can say to you regarding the issue of forgiveness is this: If you don’t intend to forgive others then don’t even bother asking for God’s forgiveness, or at least don’t pray “forgive me AS (or in the same way as) I intend to forgive those who have hurt me.” Because God will DEFINITELY answer that prayer by NOT forgiving you AS you have NOT forgiven others!In verse 13 Jesus said to pray, “And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil”.James 1:13-15 says “Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. 14 But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. 15 Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.”God never “leads us into temptation”.  We are tempted to sin by the world, our own sinful nature, and Satan.What we are really asking for is that God would not ALLOW us to lead OURSELVES into temptation, but would instead deliver us from the evil that constantly surrounds us. When we pray this way we humbly acknowledge that we are weak, and need God’s strength and guidance to survive through the temptations we face.1 Corinthians 10:13 also adds this about temptation:“No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.”So we’re all in the same boat when it comes to temptation, and we all need God’s way of escape to lead us OUT of danger.Jesus ends His teaching about prayer by saying, “For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen”. So we start out our prayer time with praise and we come back to praise as we end our prayers. Maybe it would better to say that we “pause” in our time of prayer because our prayers really shouldn’t “end” since 1st Thessalonians 5:17 tells us to “pray without ceasing.”And why would we really WANT to stop praying? We have a Father who loves us and enjoys our company, and wants to pour out blessings on us!The final verses we’ll look at today are simply an additional warning against hypocrisy in regard to fasting:16 “Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 17 But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face 18 so that your fasting will not be noticed by men, but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.Let me just gently put this into context with this modern day example. There is currently a lot of interest in something called “The Daniel Plan”. It’s a type of diet, or fast, developed by Rick Warren, who is the author of the best-selling book “The Purpose Driven Life”, along with Dr. Oz and a few other folks. Here’s what their website says:“The Daniel Plan is not just another diet. It's a lifestyle based on the biblical story of Daniel, who forsook the king's rich food in order to honor God's best for him and his friends. Those who ate simple foods and drank water instead of gorging on rich foods and wine looked better, and healthier. The diet emphasizes eating fresh, organic and unprocessed foods. Meals are heavy on fruits and vegetables and light on meat.”As you can imagine, I’m all for that plan – it’s both biblical AND practical.The reason I’m mentioning it in this context is that I think Jesus would probably be in favor of it too – but what He WOULDN’T be in favor of is posting to everyone on FaceBook that you’re doing the Daniel fast or how great you’re doing on it!I think what Jesus is saying here in verses 16-18 is that if everyone KNOWS that you’re fasting and tells you how awesome you are and how proud of you they are…well, that’s great, but God’s not impressed.If you want God to be blessed by your fast, keep it between you and Him. Jesus said, “don’t let your right hand know what your left hand is doing”Maybe we could also add, “don’t let your FaceBook friends know what your stomach is doing”!