Matthew 6

Matthew 6 (NKJV)

Do Good to Please God

6 “Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2 Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 3 But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.

Note: This passage is pretty clear, don’t show off when you help someone or do a good deed. It is God who gives seed to the sower so we are just doing what He wants. Through the years in ministry, I have been handed money many times for someone else. They ask me to give it to a person and they don’t want them to know where it is coming from. Let God direct you as you do charitable deeds and don’t toot your own horn while doing it.

The Model Prayer

5 “And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 6 But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. 7 And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.

8 “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.

Note: We’re not to pray for show. Let the Spirit direct you and don’t stand and say the same thing over and over. That won’t get it done. When you are in a corporate prayer meeting, pray what God is showing you and then sit down. Pray in tongues and in understanding. Let the Holy Spirit flow through you.

9 In this manner, therefore, pray:

Our Father 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 forgive our debtors.

13 And do not lead us into temptation,

But deliver us from the evil one.

For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

Note: The Lord teaches us to pray.

a.  Honor God

b.  Pray for His will in your life not your desires unless they are His desires.

c.   Look for God’s way of doing things

d.  Ask for provision

e.  Ask for forgiveness where you have fallen short

f.    Forgive those that have offended you.

g.  Pray for a way out of the temptations that the enemy is throwing at you.

h.  Humble yourself and recognize where your strength comes from.

14 “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Note: Forgiveness brings forgiveness. Un-forgiveness brings un-forgiveness. It’s not pretty when we don’t forgive. It also brings in bitterness which will bread anger which leads to frustration which leads to fear which takes to the point of giving up on God. Don’t be that person.

Fasting to Be Seen Only by God

16 “Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 17 But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18 so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

Note: Fast! Just do it. Take time to Fast. Don’t moan and groan through it but let your light shine through it. Glorify God through it. When a hunger pain hits that the Lord. Ask God to reveal Himself to you when you fast. Ask Him to reveal what’s in you when you fast. Let change come to you through your fast like never before.

Lay Up Treasures in Heaven

19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Note: This is one powerful statement. “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” What do you pay most attention to? I know we have to work and maybe you have kids that need your attention, but where is your treasure? God wants you. He wants your attention. He wants to show you how to work, how to raise kids, how to love your wife. We could go on and on. God loves you and wants the very best for you or Jesus wouldn’t have come to give us life and life more abundantly. John 10:10

The Lamp of the Body

22 “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

Note: Guard your eyes. Protect them. Put blinders on if you have to. Jesus even said pluck it out if it offends you. He is serious about the eye gate, what we see. Let your eyes feast on the Word of God and the things of God. Renew your sight and begin to look through a lens from God.

You Cannot Serve God and Riches

24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.

Note: You serve God and He says He will supply all your needs. You serve money and it will bring destruction. God is our provider, our Jehovah Jireh. Put your trust in God. Don’t be afraid to trust God with your finances.

Do Not Worry

25 “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?

28 “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; 29 and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Note: Don’t worry. It doesn't help anything. Instead pray about everything and believe God at His word for you. This year we are going through the New Testament. Growing in knowledge and depth of the Word of God. Don’t miss out on what God has for you. Seek His way of doing things and His way of being right before you go anywhere else for wisdom. God has it and if we follow it, all will be well. We will have peace.