Matthew 6:1-17
I. \\#Matt 1:1-3:17\\ The Presentation of the King
A. \\#Matt 1:1-2:23\\ The Offering of the King
1. \\#1:1-17\\ The King is Offered to the Reader
2. \\#1:18-25\\ The King Is Offered to Joseph
3. \\#2:1-12\\ The King Is Offered to the East
4. \\#2:13-23\\ The King Is Offered to Herod
B. \\#Matt 3:1-17\\ The Announcement of the King
1. Announced by John
2. Announced by the Father
II. \\#4:1-7:29\\ The Person of the King
A. \\#Matt 4:1-4:29\\ Powerful but humble
1. \\#4:1-11\\ Powerful but humble before Satan.
2. \\#4:12-17\\ Powerful but humble before government.
3. \\#4:18-22\\ Powerful but humble in the selection of His
disciples.
4. \\#4:23-25\\ Powerful but humble in ministry.
B. \\#Matt 5:1-7:29\\ Wise and Godly
1. \\#5:1-2\\ The Setting
2. \\#5:3-12\\ Be All You Can Be
3. \\#5:13-16\\ Do the Work
4. \\#5:17-19\\ Honor the Law
5. \\#5:20-6:18\\ Do It Better-Grace Always Exceeds the Law.
a. \\#5:21-48\\ Grace exceeds the Law in our dealings with people.
(1) \\#5:21-22\\ Keep It Civil
(2) \\#5:23-26\\ Make It Right
(3) \\#5:27-32\\ Keep It Pure
(4) \\#5:29-30\\ Control Your Vessel
(5) \\#5:31-32\\ Make It Work
(6) \\#5:33-37\\ Keep It True
(7) \\#5:38-42\\ Go the Second Mile
(8) \\#5:43-48\\ Love Them Anyway
b. \\#6:1-18\\ Grace exceeds the Law in our dealings with God.
(1) \\#6:1-4\\ Give unto God Alone
(2) \\#6:5-15\\ Pray unto God Alone
(3) \\#6:16-18\\ Fast unto God Alone
Chapter six is a continuation of the same message of Christ, that is the Sermon
on the Mount \\#Matt 4:1-7:29\\. In a broader sense, it a continuation of
Christ showing us that this Jewish King is different from all other Jewish
kings. He is wise and godly like no other \\#Matt 5:1-7:29\\. And it is a
continuation of Jesus teaching us that we are to do it better than those who have
gone before us \\#Matt 5:20-6:18\\. Grace will always exceed the Law.
I. \\#5:20-6:18\\ Do It Better-Grace Always Exceeds the Law.
A. \\#5:21-22\\ Keep It Civil (Don’t be angry without a cause.)
B. \\#5:23-26\\ Make It Right (Be reconciled to thy brother.)
C. \\#5:27-32\\ Keep It Pure (Don’t lust.)
D. \\#5:29-30\\ Control Your Vessel (Do whatever is necessary to bring your
body into subjection.)
E. \\#5:31-32\\ Make It Work (One man, one woman, one lifetime)
F. \\#5:33-37\\ Keep It True (You shouldn’t need vows.)
G. \\#5:38-42\\ Go the Second Mile (Surrender your personal rights.)
H. \\#5:43-48\\ Love Them Anyway (Love your enemies.)
I. \\#6:1-4\\ Give unto God Alone
1. In a nutshell, this is a lesson that deals with pride and humility as
the reason for giving.
2. \\#6:1,2,3\\ "alms"
a. Giving alms is benevolent giving, such as giving to the poor, the
widows, or the orphans.
b. Notice that the issue here is not Jesus telling His followers to
give alms.
(1) The issue here is Jesus telling His followers not to give
money to the poor in such a way that it will promote them.
(2) The fact is that Jesus is assuming His followers are going to
give to the poor!
(a) Hence, God’s people should always have a heart for those
less fortunate.
(b) The Bible makes it clear that part of religion, which is
the service we render to God, is to take care of the
poor. (That is taught in the Old and New Testaments.)
De 15:7 If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of
thy gates in thy land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden
thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother:
Ps 41:1 To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.» Blessed is he that considereth
the poor: the LORD will deliver him in time of trouble.
Lu 6:38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and
shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the
same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.
c. \\#6:1\\ Jesus’ command.
(1) \\#1\\WHEN you give, do not give to be seen of others.
(a) \\#2-4\\ Jesus goes on to clarify what He means by
that.
i. \\#2\\ "do not sound a trumpet before thee"
aa. This is not to be taken literally but
figuratively.
bb. Simply put, do not draw attention to yourself
or your gift.
ii. \\#3\\ "let not thy left hand know what thy right
hand doeth." Don’t tell anyone.
iii. \\#4\\ "That thine alms may be in secret" - Let
your benevolent giving be a secret gift.
(b) So Christ is specific in this command. Give to the poor
but do it without others knowing.
(2) \\#1,2,4\\ WHY to give this way.
(a) Secret giving is rewarded by the Father. Public giving
is rewarded by the public.
i. \\#1\\ If you give to the poor publically, "ye have
no reward of your Father in heaven."
ii. \\#2\\ Those who give to the poor publically, you
"have their reward."
iii. \\#4\\ But if you give secretly, "thy Father which
seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly."
(b) So the issue boils down to, "Are you giving for God’s
glory or yours. If you want the recognition, give it
publically so others will admire you. If you want God
to glorify God, give it privately and God will repay
you.
(3) WHO not to give like.
(a) \\#2\\ the "hypocrites."
(b) Jesus does not tell us who the hypocrites are in this
chapter, but it seems obvious that He is still
commanding His disciples of grace to excel in
righteousness over the scribes and Pharisees.
(c) \\#Matt 6:2,5,16\\ Jesus will mention the hypocrites.
J. \\#6:5-15\\ Pray unto God Alone - This section has three parts.
1. \\#6:5-8\\ How to pray
a. \\#5-6\\ We should pray secretly.
(1) This is the same teaching as Jesus gave for our giving.
(a) Jesus is again assuming that we understand that we are
to pray.
i. No command to pray is given here.
ii. It is not given because Jesus feels it is not
needed.
iii. Those under grace should know that they need to
pray.
(b) \\#5\\ Don’t pray "as the hypocrites."
(c) \\#5\\ Don’t pray "standing in the synagogues and in the
corners of the streets"; that is, don’t pray in public
areas.
(d) \\#5\\ Those who pray this way "have their reward."
i. The issue goes back to motive and reward.
ii. Those who want to pray for God’s glory, pray in
secret.
iii. Those who want to pray so that others will
admire them, pray in public.
(e) \\#6\\ When those under grace pray, they should pray
secretly.
i. "enter into thy closet."
ii. "shut thy door"
iii. "pray… in secret"
iv. Jesus does not mean one literally needs to stand
in a closet to pray. He means that we should not
pray for others to see us.
(2) Does this mean that it is wrong for us to have any public
prayers.
(a) My answer is "I do not believe so."
(b) Why? The kind of public praying that most do is not
their real praying.
(c) Typically, public praying is little more than asking
for a simple blessing or making a quick request.
i. I know that is still praying but I do not believe
that Jesus meant for us to quit all public
requests and blessings before God.
ii. I notice that Jesus Himself continued to do
this kind of short, simple praying in public.
John 11:41 Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid.
And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard
me.
42 And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which
stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me.
Lu 23:34 Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.
And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.
(d) Private prayer is normally more intense than that.
i. Earnest prayer is a conversation with God.
ii. Husbands and wives talk to each other in
public; however, most do not get into their
earnest conversations in public.
iii. It is my belief that what Jesus was commanding
us not to impress others by doing our earnest
praying in public.
(e) I do not fault those who will not pray in public.
i. Some believe this command means do not pray at
all in public.
ii. If that is your interpretation of this verse,
don’t pray at all in public.
iii. Of course, if you believe that, you need to also
go into a closet or some extremely private place
on a regular basis to do your praying.
b. \\#7-8\\ We should pray sincerely.
(a) \\#7\\ "use not vain repetitions"
i. Christ used the words "vain" and "repetitions"
together because the merely reciting a memorized
words to God is not purposeful praying.
ii. Again, prayer is a conversation with God. Merely
repeating a chant or even a few paragraphs to God
is not sincerely praying to Him.
(b) "as the heathen do, for they think that they shall be
heard for their much speaking"
i. Jesus describes those who attempt to converse with
God this way as heathen.
ii. In the Bible, heathen are typically unsaved people.
At the best, they would be saved people with no real
understanding of prayer.
iii. Jesus also explains their motive. These people think
that the more words they use, the more impressed God is
going to be with them.
iv. While Jesus never directly says so, that apparently
is not the case.
(c) \\#8\\ "Be not ye therefore like unto them" - Jesus
plainly says that this is not the kind of praying that
disciples of grace should do.
(d) "for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of,
before ye ask him."
i. If God already knows what we need, why does He tell
us to pray?
ii. The reason we pray is NOT to inform God of our needs
or the condition of others.
iii. Informing God of our needs is not wrong. In fact, we
are told to tell God these kinds of things. However,
God does not have us pray because He needs us to give
Him information.
iv. Our needs are the cause to motivate us to pray.
v. What does God want when we pray?
aa. He wants us to be with Him. To have fellowship
with Him.
bb. He wants us to worship Him. To adore, praise,
and magnify Him.
cc. He wants us to be dependent upon Him. To need
Him and to recognize we need Him.
vi. Telling God what we and others need is one of the
doors which takes us to God’s destination.
aa. If all we do in prayer is tell God our needs
and the needs of others, we are still vainly
repeating ourselves.
bb. God wants us to use those needs to have a real
conversation with Him.
2. \\#6:9-13\\ An example of praying
a. \\#9\\ "After this manner therefore pray ye"
(1) This introductory statement makes it obvious that Jesus
was giving an example of how Christians should converse
with the Father.
(2) Some think that this prayer is to be recited, that it is some
type of "secret prayer weapon," but giving us a recitation to
pray would be doing just what Jesus told us not to do in the
last two verses.
(3) What this prayer does is to show us what kind of spirit we
should have if we are to be effective in our praying. Just
like the Beatitudes were descriptions of what Christians
should be, so this prayer is a description of what effective
prayer warriors should be. Without these disciplines, our
prayer life will be hindered.
b. Notice the elements of Jesus’ example.
(1) \\#9\\ "Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name"
(a) Reverence and respect are a must.
(b) God is not the dude down the street. He is the holy God.
(2) \\#10\\ "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth,
as it is in heaven"
(a) Submission is a must.
(b) God is the King of a kingdom. We are His servants
to command.
(3) \\#11\\ "Give us this day our daily bread."
(a) Dependence is a must.
(b) We cannot provide for ourselves even the least of the
things that we need.
(4) \\#12\\ "And forgive us our debts"
(a) Repentance is a must.
(b) If our sin is not dealt with, there can be no
fellowship with God.
(5) "as we forgive our debtors."
(a) Having a forgiving spirit is a must.
(b) Jesus will speak more about this in \\#14-15\\.
(6) \\#13\\ "And lead us not unto temptation, but deliver us
from evil."
(a) Having a discerning spirit is a must.
(b) There are at least two elements involved in this
part of the prayer.
i. Being willing to follow God’s leadership is a
submission issue.
ii. Being able to follow God’s leadership is a
discerning issue.
(c) In order for our prayer time to be anything more
than a time of vain repetitions, we must have a
discerning spirit.
(7) "For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory,
for ever. Amen."
(a) Having a worshipping spirit is a must.
(b) This is the place that our praying is to take us, the
place of adoring, magnifying, and exalting our great God.
3. \\#6:14-15\\ A condition of praying
a. \\#15\\ "if ye forgive not men their trespasses"
(1) I find it interesting that the only condition for praying
that Jesus gives us here is that we have a forgiving spirit.
(2) Are there other conditions for effective praying? Yes.
(a) We are commanded to pray in God’s will.
(b) We are commanded to pray fervently.
(c) We are commanded to pray continually.
(d) We are commanded to pray with fasting.
(3) Why only mention this one here?
(a) As always, since the text does not tell us, we can
not know for certain.
(b) Perhaps because this is one of the most difficult
conditions for Christians to deal with.
(c) Grace is requiring the highest standards, even in
order for us to pray effectively. And one of the
highest standards is to be forgiving.
b. \\#14-15\\ "if ye forgive… your… Father will also forgive
you… if you forgive not… neither will your Father forgive
your trespasses."
(1) Christ is telling His followers that we cannot expect to get
from God what we are not willing to give to others.
(a) In this case, the commodity is mercy and forgiveness.
i. A Christian who will not forgive need not expect
God to forgive him.
ii. This is of great importance. All sin and all need to
know that fellowship with God and the privileges of
Sonship will be restored.
iii. However, if we will not forgive others, that will
not happen.
(b) The principal of giving what you want God to give to you
is true in other areas.
i. If you will not give help to others, do not expect
God to help you.
ii. If you will not give money to others, do not expect
God to give money to you.
iii. Whatever we need and ask God for, we should be
willing and ready to give to others.
(2) Does this mean that a person who will not forgive can
lose his salvation?
(a) No. You will notice that Jesus still calls God the
FATHER of the person who will not forgive his brother.
(b) Salvation is eternal and undeserved.
(c) This passage does not indicate a person’s salvation
ever comes into question.
(3) One sure thing this verse is stating is that you can not
receive from God what you will not give.
(a) Sin blocks the fellowship man can have with God and
the blessings that God can give to man.
(b) If those sins are not dealt with, man loses some of
his privileges of sonship.
(c) Those privileges will not be restored until we give
to others the very thing that we need, forgiveness.
K. \\#6:16-18\\ Fast unto God Alone
1. \\#16\\ "fast" - The topic has changed but the teaching is the
same as for giving alms and praying.
a. "be not as the hypocrites" - Jesus is still comparing the
disciples of grace to others, likely the scribes and Pharisees.
b. "they may appear unto men to fast" - The hypocrites desired
others to know when they were fasting.
c. "sad countenance… they disfigured their faces" - So they contorted
their faces to show how much agony they were experiencing.
2. \\#17-18\\ "when thou fastest"
a. \\#17\\ "anoint thine head and wash thy face" - Comb your hair,
trim your bread, wash your face - make yourself look as good
as possible.
b. \\#18\\ "appear not unto men to fast" - Again we are challenged to
carry out this spiritual admonition unto God and not to the eyes
of men.
3. "thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly"
a. This is the third time Jesus has given this principal
\\#Matt 6:4, 6, 18\\.
b. He has given it in regards to giving alms, praying, and fasting.
c. I take it that God is serious! If you want to be rewarded of
men for the service you render, do it unto men. If you want
to be rewarded of God, do it unto God.
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