Matthew 6

Matthew 6:1-4

CHAPTER SIX

D. THE MOTIVES OF THE WISE AND GODLY MAN

(Matthew 6:1-18)

1. HIS BASIC MOTIVE. (Matthew 6:1)

TEXT: 6:1

Take heed that ye do not your righteousness before men, to be seen of them: else ye have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.

2. HIS MOTIVATION FOR DOING OTHERS GOOD. (Matthew 6:2-4)

TEXT: 6:2-4

When therefore thou doest alms, sound not a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have received their reward,

But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:

that thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father who seeth in secret shall recompense thee.

THOUGHT QUESTIONS

a.

Are we not supposed to do our good works before men, that they may be seen of them and glorify the Father who is in heaven? (Matthew 5:16) How, then, may we harmonize these two ideas: doing good works to be seen of men and not doing our righteousness to be seen of men? (Matthew 6:1)

b. Why is sincerity a quality so imperative to living the godly life? or, why does Jesus warn His disciples against public display of their righteousness? c.

How is it true that one receives his reward when he does his righteousness to be seen by men?

d. Is secrecy an absolutely essential ingredient which validates all of our religious acts, for example, our giving, service to others, prayer or fasting? Does Jesus intend in secret absolutely or relatively? In other words, what happens to the efficacy of one’s righteousness if someone should see it? e.

What difference would it make between one means of giving alms or another, if the giver failed to apprehend the right concept of what constitutes true riches and where they should be sought? (cf. Matthew 6:19-21)

f.

Is it wrong to tell others what we do for God? Is there ever any justification for doing so? What reservations would you have about doing so?

g. Analyze the process of becoming a hypocrite. Point out the motivations, the temptations, the factors which cause a man to enmesh himself in a net of pretence. Apply your analysis to the Pharisees, endeavoring to show the steps by which they became what they were. h.

How is it possible that such expressions of sincere love for God or outgoing helpfulness to one’s fellows, like prayer and almsgiving, should become the very means of expressing one’s hypocrisy?

i.

Do you think that it is always possible to determine whether a man is carrying out his religious duties (alms, prayer, fasting, etc.) from ulterior motives and not rather from earnestly sincere ones? While it may be easy to describe a hypocrite, can you always be sure you have one identified in an actual person?

PARAPHRASE

Take care not to perform your religious duties in public with an eye to being noticed by others. If you do, you have no wages coming from your Father in heaven.

Thus, when you give money to the poor, do not announce the fact with a fanfare of trumpets, like the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you that they have received their wages in full. But, on the other hand, when you give money to the poor, your left hand must never know what your right hand is doing, that your charity be secret. Your Father who sees what is secret will pay you.

SUMMARY

Jesus states a simple, commercial truth: a man is the servant of him for whom he works, regardless of any pretences to the contrary, and from his true employer he may expect his due and from no other. The Lord’s admonition is clear: hypocrisy involves trying to please both God and man, but God accepts no second place to any man. Therefore, stop trying to please men if your one desire is to serve God!

NOTES

1. HIS BASIC MOTIVE: He serves God disinterestedly (Matthew 6:1)

Jesus has not changed His subject, because this section (Matthew 6:1-18) is but an examination of the religious motives of His disciple, which, as the true explanation of the disciple’s actions, must far exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. (Cf. Matthew 5:20) The immediate connection with the foregoing section (Matthew 5:43-48) should also be clear: even the most sincere are sometimes turned aside from their seeking to be perfect in the Father’s judgment (Matthew 5:48) by the praise or censure of men. Therefore, true righteousness, according to Jesus, is just trusting God and trying to do all that He says, with a view to pleasing Him only. Again, as preparation for the section which follows (Matthew 6:19-34), this part lays the essential groundwork by exposing superficial religionists who would try to serve both God and their own interests at the same time.

To Jesus, religion and morality must be identified with each other: without religion, morality has no basis outside man himself and is worthless; without morality, all religious acts we valueless and the proof of a bogus religion. Therefore, religion meets its test in the deeds it produces; not mere acts, but deeds which proceed from a heart of active faith in God. The faith which will not express itself in the obvious expressions of faithful devotion is nothing but an apparition, a phantom. (Matthew 25:31-46; Galatians 2:10; Galatians 6:10; James 1:27) But deeds of righteousness may not be done from human favor, even though we express our righteousness by means of our actions toward men. We must not do our righteousness because of social conventions, or because men expect us to do so, but because we belong to Jesus, and because we want to express God’s generosity in the world. The reason Jesus must speak so frankly here is that there is a danger that His disciples be prone to succumb to the often ungodly influences of their associations in the world, to the point that they seek their praise rather than that of God. To the Christian, it matters not with what kind of associations he must live-whether with husband, wife, business associates, social pleasures or whatever-cause their conduct, praise or expectations are not to control him.

But let us look beyond His criticism of those hypocrites of His generation to see how prophetic and universal is the application of His critique to our hypocrisies today. For unless we apprehend that right relation with God which must prompt and pervade all of our righteous acts, we will do little better than did they for whom Jesus had such searching judgments. Here in this section, Jesus brings the Kingdom man up short to look at himself in the mirror of motives, saying, Be honest now: what are your real motives for your religious acts? It is too easy to overlook completely this critical question as to why we do what we do, while concentrating on how or what we say or do. The Lord is sure that if a man is not perfectly honest with God, all of his other acts or relationships cannot possibly be sound. Jesus must challenge the motives for all our g o d deeds, by striking telling blows against our desire for human notice and recognition, against our ostentation and out hypocrisy.

The Pharisees and scribes were past masters in this dubious art (Matthew 23:5-6). ISBE (article: Pharisees 2364) provides the explanatory background:

In a time when religion is persecuted, as in the days of Antiochus Epiphanes, or despised as it was in the Hellenizing times which preceded and succeeded, it would be the duty of religious men not to hide their convictions. The tendency to carry on this public manifestation of religious acts after it ceased to be protest would be necessarily great. The fact that they gained credit by praying at street corners when the hour of prayer came, and would have lost credit with the people had they not done so, was not recognized by them as lessening the moral worth of the action. Those who, having lived in the period of persecution and contempt, survived in that when religion was held in respect, would maintain their earlier practice without any arriere-pensee (mental reservation, HEF). The succeeding generation, in continuing the practice, consciously acted. They were poseurs. Their hypocrisy was none the less real that it was reached by unconscious stages.

Another factor which enters into the question of what makes a hypocrite is our marvellous ability to do things by habit. This faculty permits man to progress from one learned skill to another, without having to repeat each action consciously. But this very capacity represents also a dire menace to man’s sincerity in the area of personal relations with others and with God. For when religion becomes habitual, the mind can easily go elsewhere while the body automatically continues the external acts called worship.

In Matthew 5:21-48, Jesus proved that bad motives in the heart always produce wicked deeds and that the motives themselves are condemned as well as the deeds; here He demonstrates that a sinister motive even vitiates a good deed, There is such a thing as being damned for doing the right thing in the wrong way or from the wrong motives, Now, in an exacting religion where public esteem is granted to the most pious, it is humanly natural that those, who refuse to pay the price for the necessary character, should seek to counterfeit the actions of the pious, in order that they too might enjoy the acclaim of their peer group. Being empty-hearted, they often resort to quite shoddy imitations of real religion, because their express purpose is that of keeping up appearances and of exalting themselves to get what they want and they wish to pay as little as possible. But the better imitations involve taking those acts, which should be real expressions of sincere love for God and out-going helpfulness to one’s fellows, and sucking out of them all of the original, right motivation. Thus, they become acts which are regarded as having merit in themselves, without regard to the heart motives of the doer. The nature of such hypocrisy is unaffected by the problem as to whether or not the one who fakes the conduct of the righteous really accepts as valid the standard which motivates the righteous to act as they do. Their avowed purpose is doing their righteousness before men to be seen of them, since they have come to look upon these acts as a means of purchasing the respect of men and the favor of God. (Cf. Matthew 6:2)

Earlier (Matthew 5:16), Jesus urged that our purposes and sole motives be to live so that our actions stimulate men to glorify God. For this to occur, these actions must of necessity be seen of men, but there is no necessary contradiction with the present passage, since the real issue is settled in the heart, in the desires, and not in the external act itself. The problem is not whether the deeds are seen or not, but whether we seek the glory of God or of men.

Else ye have no reward with your Father. It should be self-evident, but seldom is, that the value of praise is to be determined not merely by what is said and meant, but by the stature and character of the one who thus grants his approval. The shallow acclaim of the immediate crowd often provides exciting food for the self-seeking, and under this stimulus one may strive to do even greater eyecatching wonders. But, having no intention to do God’s will sincerely, such doers of great works are already judged by God as being corrupt. Their righteousness is SIN regardless of the magnitude of their deeds. (Cf. Matthew 7:21-23; 1 Corinthians 13:1-3) Ironically, the praise they sought proved to be worthless toward gaining entrance into the Kingdom. In fact, it cost many their one great opportunity to gain it. (Cf. John 5:44; John 12:42-43) Only a fool would grasp after the transient, empty praise that men can give, only to lose the eternal reward of the Father. On reward, see below on Matthew 6:4; Matthew 6:6; Matthew 6:18 and the introductory essay: The Reasonableness of the Redeemer’s Rewarding of Righteousness.

NOTE: The KJV has take heed that ye do not your alms. instead of righteousness at Matthew 6:1. The word translated alms (eleemosunen) is supported only by the Washington manuscripts from the IV or V century and other later manuscripts, The ASV and all other modern versions follow the better reading, righteousness (dikaiosunen), supported by the manuscripts Siniaticus and Vaticanus, both of the fourth century, as well as other important witnesses.

2. HIS MOTIVES FOR DOING OTHERS GOOD: He gives and serves without ostentation. (Matthew 6:2-4)

Matthew 6:2 Sound not a trumpet. This is a figure of speech, deliberately exaggerated by Jesus for effect. The Pharisees would have been too shrewd to go to this limit, although the logic of their system called even for this kind of overt self-praise. Probably Jesus is taking a humorous poke at such hypocrisy in such a way as to get His audience to laugh at this caricature beautifully designed to render unforgettable the serious lesson it taught. As the hypocrites do. Jesus spares no words for those who sin by self-glorification, which they try to bring about by feigning unselfishness. While they give the impression that they intend to give to the needy, their real motive is to receive honor from men’s praise. (Cf. Romans 12:8, Let him who gives do it with sincerity**!) In the synagogues and streets:** to assure a ready audience. Barnes, ad loc., argues that Jesus could not mean the Jewish meeting place, on the ground that synagogue means any meeting place, not just the synagogue, and on the absence of evidence that charity was distributed there. Perhaps so, but no clearer place is indicated, than a place of prayers .and Bible study, for the practice of hypocritical giving or praying. After all, he who seeks to be thought pious would surely seek to convince the very elect in the synagogue itself, so as to enjoy their esteemed favor, would he not? That they may have glory of men: Jesus bares their real motive for giving to others. No hypocrite would dare own this purpose as his, for he would immediately lose the praise of others; therefore, this is his ulterior motive. Any difference between one’s professed public purpose and his real one indicates the extent to which he is a hypocrite. (Cf. Matthew 15:7-8; Matthew 22:18; Matthew 23:5-29) Mixed motives cancel each other out: since one is really serving himself, his religious motive is corrupted; because his religious motive is soiled, he is not really serving his best self! Let the man who would invest his money in the work of the Lord do so with no mental calculation as to what he may realize from it through increased financial gain or personal distinction. But how many respond to an obviously needy person or cause, satisfied that God has seen and this is sufficient? How many would even stop giving if they went unnoticed and others- did not praise? Only merciless self-crucifixion can put to death these selfish desires to be noticed. (Matthew 16:24-27)

**They have received their reward. **It is not always possible to distinguish in others the difference between courage born of convictions and just plain audacity. The unsuspecting naturally praise those who are unashamed to give public witness of their faith and generosity, But, in the perspective of eternity, what is the value of this ignorant acclaim? On the other hand, perhaps those who praised them saw right through their thin veneer of respectability and gave them equally hypocritical commendation. They got paid off in the coin they used, Receive reward (apecho) is a commercial technical term meaning to receive a sum in full and give a receipt for it. (Cf. Mark 14:41; Luke 6:24; Philippians 4:18; Philemon 1:15)

Matthew 6:3 When thou doest alms. For the OT viewpoint on alms-giving, look into these passages: Leviticus 25:35-36; Deuteronomy 15:7-11; Job 29:11-16; Psalms 41:1; Proverbs 14:21; Proverbs 19:17; Proverbs 21:13; Proverbs 28:27. Giving of alms is but the Greek word for mercifulness (eleemosune from eleemon, merciful, from eleos, compassion, pity). The desire of Christians to help the needy is natural; Jesus assumes that His disciples would do it. But they would need direction on how .to go about it. (See notes on Matthew 5:42)

Let not thy left hand. Here, by means of a humorous hyperbole, Jesus exaggerates for effect the means to bring secrecy to our giving. He explains His meaning in Matthew 6:4. The humor is seen in the question created in the mind of the hearer: But how could my left hand be ignorant of the deeds of my right, since neither have minds of their own and both are but instruments of my mind? But that is just the point: both hands represent the giver and he must so learn to do good to others that it becomes an unconscious life habit with him. If we would free ourselves from being overly conscious of men’s praise, rather than invite their attention to what we do, we must not even give our actions the whole of our own attention. Thus, the hands have absolutely nothing to do with our giving, any more than they cause us to sin. (See on Matthew 5:29-30; Cf. Matthew 18:8-9) The whole matter is settled in the heart. (Cf. coveting, pride in Mark 7:21-22) Jesus does not intend a mechanical rule for hiding our gifts. Lenski notes (258): One might hide all his giving in the secret hope of eventually being discovered and then being praised for the saintly secrecy of his gifts! If men never learn of others-’ giving, they can hardly praise them, and, as a consequence, these latter are not likely to be disturbed by others-’ praise that never comes. Jesus wants His disciples to learn to be satisfied with having helped someone, without any ulterior thoughts about their being noticed and admired.

Matthew 6:4 **that thine alms may be in secret. **Since the antithesis of Jesus-’ meaning is ostentatious giving, and not merely public giving, it becomes clear that He does not intend that giving must be absolutely secret to the extent that, should any see the gift, its value as righteousness is automatically compromised, Rather, Jesus intends secret in a relative sense: again His point is a question of the right motive. Not all righteous deeds could be concealed. (Acts 4:36-37) In fact, He Himself called attention to the unselfishness of the p r widow (Mark 12:41-44). Paul publicized the liberality of the Macedonian Christians (2 Corinthians 8:1-5; 2 Corinthians 9:1-5) to stimulate the giving of the Corinthians. But the Christian is to study ways to avoid display, for it is never necessary to see to it that others see our deeds, even in order to cause them to glorify God. Such deeds cannot long be hid, if they represent really unselfish service for Jesus-’ sake. (1 Timothy 5:24) But there are times when a Christian may rightly excite his slower brethren by his own forthright example of generosity (Hebrews 10:24), but he must be careful lest he also stimulate in them a desire for the same public notice he received. (Cf. Acts 4:32 to Acts 5:11)

Thy Father seeth in secret. What a man does in secret reveals more about him than all his known, public acts could ever tell about him. God knows these secret desires and motives, and judges the man accordingly. (Romans 2:16; 1 Corinthians 4:5; Hebrews 6:10) Ethically it would be nice if man would always just give simply because he has to, i.e. because of his overflowing kindliness which allows him to do no other, However, Jesus meets man on a lower level and gives him an ideal that challenges him to rise far above mere overflowing kindliness. He grounds His ethic in a much firmer basis: a religious basis: Give only to be seen by your Father, so that in reality you are serving only Him, seeking only His praise. Maintain this single-mindedness regardless of how many others find out about your generosity. Your Father shall recompense you. Happy is the man who has only one judge and seeks only one exceeding great reward. The hypocrite has a thousand judges whom he can never trust to bless him, nor can he ever hope to satisfy their caprice. But a one-judge. man can work his way through life, helping people, knowing exactly where he is going and whom he is trying to please. And he is quite happy doing just that. The meager smiles of his contemporaries leave him unmoved, for his eye is fixed on the Father. (Romans 12:11; Ephesians 6:5-9; Colossians 3:23-25)

Observe how gently and yet how surely Jesus divides the sheep from the goats: choose this day whom you will serve, decide whose praise you cherish, whose frown and criticism you really fear. Jesus knows that this is the finally decisive index to true discipleship. By promising the recompense of the Father to those who would but seek it, He also disappoints those who are impatient for immediate acclaim. By offering this promise, Jesus leaves open His great invitation to be one of His, and yet He knows that men will reject the high calling of God and choose their own condemnation. (Cf. Hebrews 11:26, (Moses-’) attention was on the reward.)

FACT QUESTIONS

List some of the famous good deeds of the Bible that became famous for the simple reason that they who did them either told others about them, or else they did them in the presence, or to the knowledge, of others. Name some of the well-known acts of selfless generosity recorded.

What does the answer to the previous question have to do with seeking the proper interpretation of the admonition: Take heed that you do not your righteousness before men. that your alms be in secret?

What is the meaning of righteousness as Jesus uses it in Matthew 6:1?

Harmonize the two ideas of reward mentioned in Matthew 6:1-2. How is it true that the hypocrites have received their reward, when Jesus explicitly warns that hypocrisy brings no reward with the heavenly Father?

What is meant by doing alms?

What is the reward with your Father? (Matthew 6:1) Is this the same as His recompense (Matthew 6:4)?

What is the reward which hypocrites have already received?

What is meant by the hyperbole about the left and right hand?

What should be the impact upon the hypocrite to whom Jesus indirectly addresses the words, Thy Father sees in secret?

10. Show the relationship between the present section (Matthew 6:1-18) with Jesus-’ plan of presentation as this relationship is seen in what has preceded and for what this section prepares. In other words, how does the content of this section fit into the overall outline of Jesus-’ argument in the Sermon on the Mount?

Matthew 6:5-15

D. THE MOTIVES OF THE WISE AND GODLY MAN (Matthew 6:1-18)

3. HIS MOTIVE FOR PRAYING TO GOD. (Matthew 6:5-15,)

TEXT: 6:5-15

And when ye pray, ye shall not be as the hypocrites: for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have received their reward.

But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thine inner chamber, and having shut thy door, pray to thy Father who is in secret, and thy Father who seeth in secret shall recompense thee.

And in praying use not vain repetitions, as the Gentiles do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.

Be not therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.

After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

10. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as is heaven, so on earth.

11. Give us this day our daily bread.

12. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

13. And bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

14. For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

15. But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

THOUGHT QUESTIONS

a.

Examine your own prayer-life to determine whether your prayers are filled with empty forms and repetitions. For whose ears do you pray?

b.

How did Jesus intend this model to be used as a pattern for all prayers? Are these words He uses an outline of ideas to which we may add our personal formulation of the content, or does Jesus intend that we use precisely His words, adding nothing?

c.

If we take Jesus-’ words as a general model for our own praying, do we follow the emphasis of Jesus, putting the things that are important to God first? Or do we usually lapse into the routine personal requests?

d. What does it matter if we avoid the hypocritical externalism in the prayers of the Pharisees, or even if we learn the correct wording of the Lord’s model prayer, if we fail to grasp what underlies prayer? e. Jesus taught us to pray: Hallowed be thy name. How does lack of humility in him who prays show that he does not really reverence God-s name? How does lack of sincerity profane God’s name? f.

Someone has observed that men probably really pray only a few times in their lives, while the rest of their prayers are mere vain repetitions. Do you agree?

g. Do you think that it is right for God to recompense (reward, repay) people for praying? (See Matthew 6:6) Why do you say this?

h. Is it possible for a man to be completely sincere in his prayer and yet destroy the very spirit of ideal praying, through his self-centered petitions? i.

Do you think that it is absolutely necessary to retire to a closet or inner chamber for prayer? Why do you say this?

j.

Is this model prayer really a model intended for use throughout all time, or intended for use only by Jesus-’ disciples before the beginning of the Church? Some say no. Do you agree?

k.

How does our concept of God affect our capacity or willingness to hallow His name?

l.

Is it always possible to remain unaffected by the fact that others are listening to our prayers offered in their hearing? How would Jesus-’ admonition about private praying and His condemnation of hypocritical prayers, help us to concentrate properly?

m.

Can you think of occasions when one must necessarily pray to God, when there are others present who have no intention of entering into the spirit of the prayer, an occasion on which one would be compromising or denying his -’ faith. were he not to pray?

n.

If pagan deities are really non-existent and an idol is nothing (Cf. 1 Corinthians 8:4), then why would Gentiles have reason to believe that they shall be heard. to the point of continuing their prayers for years?

o. If our Father knows our needs before we ask him, why pray then? p. Is it possible that Jesus intended the phrase Thy will be done as an explanation of the petition Thy kingdom come? What makes you answer the way you do? q.

In what sense is it true that our sins may be described as debts? To whom would we owe these debts? Had we paid them, how would we have done it?

r.

Do you think that forgiving those who sin against us is as important as faith. repentance or baptism? How do you justify your answer? Do you live and teach in harmony with your answer? But is God so hateful toward His creatures as really to bring any of them into temptation?

s. You Christians pray, Bring us not into temptation. Is this not a really useless, meaningless petition?

PARAPHRASE

And when you pray, do not behave like the hypocrites, for they are fond of standing up and praying in the meeting-houses and on the street corners so that everyone will see them. Truly I say to you, they have been paid their wages in full. But you, whenever you pray go into your room, shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. Your Father who sees all secrets will pay you.

Now when you pray, do not speak without thinking (using meaningless repetitions) as do the pagans to their gods. Their idea is that they will obtain a hearing in accordance with the wordiness of their prayers, Do not imitate them, since God your Father knows your needs even before you ask Him, So pray like this:

-Our heavenly Father, may your Name, Person and character be held in reverence! Your kingdom come: may your will be done on earth as it is done in heaven! -Give us today our daily food. Forgive us what we owe you in the same way as we have forgiven those who owe some obligation to us, Do not bring us into trials which might become temptations to us, but rescue us from the evil one.-'

For if you forgive others their sins against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you too. But if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your sins against Him!

SUMMARY

Praying to God while seeking the praise of men brings its own dubious results, but it automatically throws a switch that cuts God completely out of the communication. Hence, God has nothing to do with rewarding such hypocrites. True .prayer, offered to the Father alone, must be hidden from men’s eyes and praise. Empty repetition is useless, since your Father who is a true and living God needs not to be informed in great detail. Keep your prayer simple like the model given.

NOTES

3. HIS MOTIVE FOR PRAYING TO GOD (6:5-15) a. He prays only to glorify God, never self.

Matthew 6:5 Ye shall not be as the hypocrites. See on Matthew 6:1. Jesus lays another specific charge against the hypocrite: **loving to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners. **Their sin is not in the standing and praying publicly, but in their being seen of men and loving it. Standing while praying, as such, is not censured (Cf. Mark 11:25; Luke 18:11; Luke 18:13), but the pride which feeds on praise for piety is condemned. Their choice of such places for prayer was not mere chance in the sense that at the hour of prayer they happened to find themselves in some public place, but rather they made it their point to be found praying at the prayer hours. They derived particular enjoyment from this habit. (philousin) He does not condemn public prayer for the public benefit, in which others participate. Rather He denounces private devotions made public for private benefit. To be seen of men: they may have formally addressed their prayers to God, but they really directed them to men. Thus God had nothing to do with either hearing or answering their prayers. This is why the hypocrite has no reward coming from God. (Matthew 6:1) To be seen of men is all the reward they sought and got: **they have received their reward. **

But is there no danger even in leading public prayer during congregational worship? Indeed so, for the one who prays probably will find it no simple matter not to remember the many critical ears listening. It is too easy to desire to be regarded as a highly spiritual person, who enjoys exalted communion with God. Perhaps the worst form of pride is the desire to appear humble. One must examine his heart to determine whether his prayer would be simpler and shorter were he praying alone with God and whether the manner or content of his prayer is being affected by those who listen. This must never be construed as forbidding public praying for others as an expression of their common prayer. The Lords word, applied to this situation not immediately intended by His warning, remains a warning to the individual who is called upon to pray in congregational worship, that he, on behalf of the congregation, place sincere petitions before God.

b. He prays unostentatiously.

Matthew 6:6 But thou. Observe the change from plural to singular, a remarkable change from the preceding lessons addressed to the audience in general. This change of address is reinforced by six second person personal pronouns in this one Greek sentence, as if Jesus were saying, And now, my disciple, a word to you personally.

(1) The place of prayer: **thine inner chamber, **The closet (KJV) is any room that provides a place for private prayer. The use of a room is Jesus-’ vivid way of rendering concrete some specific place where one can pray undisturbed by others-’ eyes. (example: 2 Kings 4:33) The chamber is not absolutely necessary to fulfil Jesus-’ instruction, since He justified a publican who prayed in the temple with a right heart (Luke 18:13). The disciples saw and heard Jesus pray. (Cf. Luke 3:21; Luke 9:18; Luke 9:29; Luke 11:1) He encouraged His -’ disciples to unite in prayer, even if just two or three of them so met (Matthew 18:19-20). He purified the temple to be a house of prayer for all the nations (Mark 11:17), The early Church met together for prayer (Acts 1:14; Acts 4:23-31; Acts 12:5; Acts 16:25). Many a time Jesus-’ own inner chamber-’- was the solitude of the great out-of-doors. (Mark 1:35; Luke 5:16; Luke 6:12) Thus, Jesus means any place of privacy which permits being alone with God.

(2) The privacy of prayer: having shut thy door. This emphasizes the strictness of the solitude, for Jesus is concerned that His follower learn how to isolate his spirit in the midst of the crowd, the hurry, the confusion and lure of the world, and how to talk with God in perfect intimacy. Even those who pray in public must learn to shut out of their mind all awareness of human listeners, at least to the extent that they neither fear their censure nor seek their praise.

(3) The privilege of prayer: pray to thy Father in secret. This face-to-face encounter of a conscience with its God is calculated to create a sense of the proper perspective: though He is your Father, yet when you call upon Him, you should expect Him to act like a God, like the Ruler of the universe, who has a mind and a plan of His own, In this solemn, searching situation before one’s God, no other considerations must enter in to hinder the transformation of the individual as he seeks God’s will. Perhaps there lives a recent convert who does not feel himself ready to address the Father, being afraid he be not ready to commune with such a holy God. But the man who has been a Christian several years and yet cannot pray is a man in danger!

(4) he promise of prayer: thy Father who seeth in secret shall recompense thee. who is k secret is more than a description of the invisible God. Jesus uses this particular phrase to draw a relation in the mind of the hearer between the invisible God to whom he is to pray and the invisibility of his prayers to the eyes of others. Though no other ever see the fervency of your devotion, and thus can never praise you, yet the Answerer of prayer, who knows your every secret motive and the most inarticulate desire, reads your heart and answers accordingly.

What an incentive to sincerity! Not only does Gad hear the most secret longings of the heart, uttered when external circumstances make difficult a posture that would indicate to others that one is praying, but He also sees the divergency between our true desires and our formal prayers. For instance, one may secretly pray that God’s will be done in his life concerning a particular temptation, while really wishing that the temptation could be realized. But sincerity before God means that we pray exactly as we really are, always seeking to bring what we really are into line with what we ought to be according to the Father’s wishes.

The other side of the question must be stated here for balance. There are occasions when private devotions or prayers must be continued though others may be present and see. If one refuses to pray through fear of men, is this not rather a hypocrisy of the opposite sort? Should one refuse to pray because of the intimidation of others, would it not be an open denial of one’s secret faith? (See Daniel 6:10) However, extreme care should be taken to avoid ostentation even here, lest hypocrisy develop. After all, Jesus nowhere specified certain hours or places of prayer. The legalistic Pharisees had done this and had destroyed the spontaneity of true personal religion. Rather, He causes the soul to examine its motives for praying each time, and in this spirit it will make its own times and opportunities for prayer. Thus, man is ever on the testing block to prove his real reasons for desiring to be with God.

c. He prays properly earnestly concerned about what he says, avoiding thoughtless repetition. (Matthew 6:7-8)

Matthew 6:7 **Not as the Gentiles do. Be not therefore like

unto them.** If it be demanded why Jesus chose the pagans as a

negative point of reference, holding them up for criticism instead of censuring the rambling repetitions of the Jewish elders (Barclay, I, 196, notices two pertinent examples), let it be observed that He does this for several reasons:

1. The gods to whom the pagans continuously repeated their cries differ greatly from the God of Israel, your Father. Heathen deities, being the perverse inventions of human imagination, never answer prayer. Thus, their devotees, duped by their credence in their supposed existence, are forced to beseech these non-entities with a never-ending, useless succession of prayers. (Cf. 1 Kings 18:26; Acts 19:28; Acts 19:34)

2. By using the Gentiles as an example of what not to do, Jesus brings to the Jewish mind a classic example of the general principle readily accepted by the Jews: Now we all admit that the Gentiles heap word upon word to no end, since their gods are quite incapable of hearing or answering their prayers, Therefore, do not act as if your God is no better than theirs. By condemning-’ a major practice, flagrant among the pagans, Jesus touches every like example among the Jews, without ever mentioning them, However, some Jews, repeating their prayers to the true, living God, did so sincerely, quite innocent of the erroneous theological implications of their habit, and they thus could not be entirely blamed for it.

3. The difference in enlightenment between the Gentiles and Jews should be tremendous. They think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. This conclusion arises from their constant struggle with non-existent gods, from their seeming successes caused by freaks in nature or else by the generous blessing of the true God, and from the deceptive preachments of profiteering oracles and priests, But the Jews had no reason ever to think this, since God had always demonstrated Himself more than ready to answer their prayers. (Cf. Psalms 91:15; Isaiah 55:6; Isaiah 58:9; Isaiah 65:24; Daniel 9:20-23; Daniel 10:12)

Gentiles: see also on Matthew 5:47; cf. Matthew 5:43 on enemies.

Matthew 6:8 **Your Father knoweth: **this is the key to solution of the I whole problem of hypocritical ostentation and pagan repetition, for God knows heart motives as well as what things ye have need of. We matter to God! There are times in our life when we despise ourselves because of the painful awareness of our sin and unworthiness. But God’s detailed concern about each of our individual needs restores our self-respect. (Philippians 4:6-7) By saying your Father, rather than God, Jesus refers to the Almighty, not merely as Ruler of the Universe, but in the terms of the special relationship with which His child might readily approach Him in confident trust. If Matthew actually wrote The God who is your Father, as attested by some ancient manuscripts, this effect is heightened, while at the same time throwing into contrast the impersonal, unheeding gods of the Gentiles, That the false gods of the pagans have a definite part of Jesus-’ contrast is readily seen by seeking the logical subject of the passive verb they shall be heard, asking by whom do the Gentiles think to be heard? The answer is by their idol gods.

Your Father knows your needs before you ask him. Why pray then? Would it not be degrading to God, then, if we prayed at all? What if we omitted some detail in our request? Does not this phrase of Jesus reduce prayer either to a futile physical exercise or to an empty psychological auto-suggestion? These problems are born of a failure to apprehend Jesus-’ antithesis, for His mean is understood when one grasps what He had in mind as the opposite of what He said. The true antithesis is not: ALL prayer involves informing a supreme being of one’s needs in the hope that it will provide them; but: ALL empty repetition addressed to idols is unavailing. In this light, Jesus means simply, Your earnest prayers offered to your living, loving heavenly Father produce real results, since He is willing to answer the smallest, sincere prayer. The number of words has nothing to do with its efficacy. Thus, the basis of the objections to prayer is not to be found in Jesus-’ actual meaning. God does not have to be pestered, coaxed or harangued to make Him give, even though the pagans regard their gods in this way. Our loving Father, unlike heartless idols, is more ready to answer our prayers that we are to pray! (Cf. Luke 18:1-8)

However, in applying His words, the problem remains: if God knows our needs already, why pray for them?

1. Because He wants to hear from us, because He desires our fellowship and love. This is the most natural relation that could exist between a Father such as He and children such as we. Jesus-’ constant reference to your Father conveys a deeply personal sentiment that elevates the God-to-man relationship from one of Master-to-servant to one of Father-and-son, (Romans 8:31-32; 1 John 3:1-2; and especially in this Sermon on the Mount: Matthew 5:16; Matthew 5:45; Matthew 5:48; Matthew 6:1; Matthew 6:3; Matthew 6:6; Matthew 6:14-15; Matthew 6:18; Matthew 6:26; Matthew 6:32; Matthew 7:11)

2. Because the Father wants us to acknowledge our dependence upon Him, After all, He still gives and withholds (James 4:2). Presumptuous egotism tends to cause man to become self-sufficient, as if God were not providing every raw material that man himself must utilize, God’s position as Father does not automatically obligate Him to shower needed blessings upon self-indulgent children who refuse to crucify their pride and kneel to the Father’s will. (James 4:3)

3. Prayer is also necessary because of its psychological reaction in him who prays. It is not a mere psychological consolation by which the prayer convinces himself by an auto-suggestion that everything will be all right. Rather, right praying puts us into communion with Him so as to make us ready to receive those choice blessings He intended to give, In this private contact with God we see ourselves and our needs in a different perspective and we become better able to correct our own ignorance of our needs, Right praying is not consciously subjective nor just autosuggestion, that is, limited to and orientated toward man himself, The psychological factor of prayer lies in man’s bringing his will into line with that of the Father by talking intimately with Him about his needs, desires and plans. (Cf. James 4:13-17; 1 John 3:21-22; 1 John 5:14-15)

4. We need to pray to express our gratitude for the Father’s bountiful provision. (Philippians 4:6)

SOME APPLICATIONS

1. Prayers must never become a babbled formula in which the mind does not participate. The way our thoughts wander from our talk with God must be recognized for the lack of reverence it is for Him whose audience we have requested. This involves our learning to concentrate our complete attention upon the Father alone. But the same prayer-routine of requests each day becomes just as surely a string of beads as any pagan repetitiousness. Any such mechanized attempt to gain God’s favor must necessarily be doubly dangerous: it fails of its object and it deceives the one who SO prays by causing him to suppose he is really using the right means of communicating with his God, when in reality he is merely repeating words. One saving discipline would be the constant effort each day to concentrate upon expressing one’s daily requests in more personal, fresh language, since stereotyped terminology tends to remove prayer from the realm of sincerity and vitality.

2. Beware of prayers that become associated with certain occasions. Surely every happening in life should be brought into the presence of God, but care should be taken lest the tendency develop to revert to the same prayer for the same occasions. Examples are numberless: thanksgiving at meals, praying at the Lord’s table, benedictions, pastoral prayers, etc.

3. Systematic praying is not an unmixed blessing. It could be a blessing if it helps those, who are careless in their prayer habits, to develop a closer, more regular walk with God. But a system can become a curse when it devolves into a thoughtless ritual to be completed. But prayer is not a gadget, nor is pure praying in the process itself, i.e. in the mere counting of words or minutes. We must not become so engrossed in the action of praying that our purposes and motives be forgotten. There is no merit in setting 20 minutes a day to pray for 20 minutes, any more than a 50-word prayer is of more virtue than a 250-word sample. God looks at the heart, not the clock!

4. But heart-felt petitions, earnestly repeated, are not necessarily wrong, even though some people do become intoxicated with words endlessly repeated as a substitution for prayer. (Cf. the Romanists-’ paternosters and are marias.) Yet, in offering some petitions, we are taught to be persistent in seeking the Father’s will. (Luke 18:1 ff) Sometimes the only difference between such persistent praying and mere empty repetition is the condition of the heart: the words may even be the same. Thus, two keys to a right heart are undivided attention fixed upon the Father, and earnestness of purpose. These are vastly more important than choice language or correct posture. Notice that Jesus prayed the same basic prayer three times in the garden. (Matthew 26:39; Matthew 26:42; Matthew 26:44) Paul also besought the Lord thrice. (2 Corinthians 12:8)

d. The Lord’s model prayer. (Matthew 6:9-15)

(1) The wise and godly man approaches God as Father, whose Name he really hallows. (Matthew 6:9)

Matthew 6:9 After this manner therefore pray ye. How are we to do this? As a form in itself, the prayer may be used as it is. (Cf. Luke 11:2, When you pray, say.) Certainly, Jesus did not intend only a verbal repetition of this prayer, since Luke (Luke 11:24) gives it another form by omitting words and phrases reported here. Again, neither Jesus nor His disciples are ever reported to have prayed this form, although they prayed often. (Cf. Matthew 11:25-26; Matthew 26:36-44; John 17; Acts 1:24-25; Acts 4:23-31) He intends this prayer to be a format, an example of correct prayer, to function as a model or an outline upon which we may build our own supplications. One important element omitted from Jesus-’ model, that He added later when His disciples were more prepared to receive it, was the signature, in my name. (See John 16:23-27; John 14:13; Matthew 18:19-20; Colossians 3:17) Until His disciples grasped something of His nature, He did not include this feature. However, this is not to say that He could not have included it, for He could have done so with the specific purpose of reaching them who He was and in what new relation they were to stand before God through Him.

Since unaided man hardly knows how to approach God (Cf. Romans 8:26), it is viral that Jesus reveal a list of the most important matters which every prayer should touch. Thus, the extent to which our prayers deal with (in one way or another) the significant issues that Jesus included in this model reveals the degree of seriousness we attach to our Lord’s wisdom in exhorting us to pray after this manner,

Pray ye, But what individuals or group constitute this ye? Jewish contemporaries of Jesus? only His disciples of every age? Yes, both. because the conscientious praying of this prayer cannot help but bring the farthest outsider into the kingdom, since the implications of its phraseology covers a multitude of requirements. Who could ever really pray, Thy will be done, without offering willing submission to all that God has revealed of His will?

Our Father who art in heaven. What dynamic propositions are included in these simple words of address?

1. Our God is Father. This truth settles our relation to the unseen world: we need not fear a host of unknown forces out there, since we abide in our Father’s love. He is not merely Ruler of the universe, but Father, not just a Father as conceived by just any religious orientation, but the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,-’-’ as He revealed Himself historically and personally in Jesus. (Cf. John 1:14; John 1:18; John 3:13; John 5:17-18; John 12:49-50; John 14:6-7; John 17:3; Matthew 11:27) The idea of God as Father is hardly an OT concept, although some passages suggest it, (Cf. Deuteronomy 32:6; Psalms 103:13; Psalms 68:5; Isaiah 63:16; Isaiah 64:8; Jeremiah 3:4; Jeremiah 3:19; Jeremiah 31:9; Malachi 1:6; Malachi 2:10) It took Jesus to reveal Him as Father. Therefore, He is Father in a special sense to those who accept Jesus-’ revelation. (John 1:9-13; 1 John 1:3; 1 John 2:22-23; Ephesians 1:5)

2. He is our Father: this speaks of our relation to others who are His children. We share this glorious relationship: God is no man’s exclusive possession. Selfishness is eliminated a t the outset. Even in the most sublime moment of exalted conversation with the Father, our mind must be alive to the uncounted hosts who, with us, call upon the Father, ALL of the personal petitions (Matthew 6:11-13) maintain this altruistic motif. (Study the content of Paul’s prayers, to see how his concentration upon God brought to mind all the other Christians: Romans 1:7-10; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Ephesians 1:15-19; Ephesians 3:14-19; Philippians 1:3-11; Colossians 1:3-14; 1 Thessalonians 1:2 ff; 2 Thessalonians 1:11; Philemon 1:4-6) Note that though Jesus teaches us to pray Our Father, He Himself never so addressed God in His prayers. Usually He says, My Father. His unique deity stands out even in His prayers.

3. He is our Father in heaven. This majestic description of His palace reminds us of the scope of His existence and His infinite elevation above us. (Cf. 2 Kings 8:27; Isaiah 66:1-2 a; Jeremiah 23:24; Hebrews 12:25) Not only has He set His dwelling in the heavens where He rules (Psalms 11:4; Psalms 103:19), not only has He established there His throne of grace (cf. Hebrews 4:14-16; Hebrews 7:26; Hebrews 8:1), but there He would have us place all our desires, hopes and dreams (Matthew 6:20; Psalms 73:25; Philippians 3:20; Colossians 1:5; 1 Peter 1:4). But can we truly address His as Father in heaven, when we really seek only earthly ends? (Cf. Luke 17:32 in context) This strikes an immediate contrast between this heavenly God and all the gods of the earth who must dwell in temples made by human device and whose subjects are their human inventors.

4. He is our Father whose name must be Hallowed. This indicates the character of our relationship to Him. This great God, who would have us call Him Father, is still God whom we must approach with awe, wonder, reverence and devotion! Father must never be cheapened to an easy sentimentalism or a crude vulgarity. (Cf. Notes on Matthew 5:33-37) What a sharp rebuke is this both of common blasphemy and of the refined hypocrisy of those who utter God-s Name in prayers addressed to the ears of men! It cuts deep into blind partisan zeal and outward wickedness that would hide behind God-s Name, as if it somehow justified all practices done in its shadow. (Cf. Isaiah 52:5; Ezekiel 36:18-23; Romans 2:24; 1 Timothy 6:1; Titus 2:5; 2 Peter 2:2)

Even a cursory reading of the OT usage of the Name of God reveals that the Name does not mean simply that word by which He is called, such as Elohim, Adonai, El Shaddai, Jehovah, El Roi, or some other distinguishing title. (Cf. Psalms 48:10; Psalms 33:21; Psalms 61:5; Psalms 111:9) Technically, this figure of speech is a metonymy of the adjunct, i.e. the name of something is mentioned instead of the thing itself. So, Hallowed be thy Name means Hallowed be Thou thyself. Just as no name has reality by itself, but is only real or has meaning as it reveals, describes or indicates that for which it stands, so God’s Names have meaning only as they reveal different aspects of God Himself. His Name emphasizes His nature, character and personality as He reveals Himself to man, His Name draws attention to His glorious attributes of omniscience, omnipotence and omnipresence as well as His matchless moral character of holiness, love, justice and mercy. And Jesus is at the heart of everything that God-s Name reveals. (Cf. John 10:30; John 14:9; John 17:6; John 17:11-12; John 17:26) Therefore, Jesus is not asking us to hold in superficial regard certain words which refer to the Deity; far from it! Our prayer must be, May I do what is in my feeble power to accord your nature and character, as represented by your Name, that unique, honored place which You deserve.

How may we hallow, treat as holy, or reverence God’s Name? By simply doing all that is involved in worshipping God: Him. Jesus forbids the irreverence of a disobedient life. (Luke 6:46) We must live up to the dignity of so noble a relation as that with our Holy Father. We hallow His Name by giving thanks at every remembrance of His goodness, by our utter humility, and, most of all, by our submission to His will, Meditate upon John 12:27-28 in the context of Jesus-’ sermon Dying to Live, and glory in the Lord’s own example of upholding God-s will even in the face of certain personal suffering. (Cf. Peter’s exhortation 1 Peter 3:15)

Note how perfectly connected is every part of the prayer: before we are capable of reverencing His Name, we must know and confess what sort of God He is. We would feel little reverence for a deistic god who winds up the universe like a giant clock, flings it out into space to run down, and turns his back upon our problems because he is not interested in us. Nor could anyone take the pagan gods very seriously, with their all-too-human vices. But our God, as we know Him through His Word, is the perfect balance of wisdom, power, righteousness and love. He is not unwilling to hear so that He must be cajoled into listening, nor is He ignorant of our needs. This kind of God shows Himself worthy of all our adoration, our reverence, our service.

(2) The wise and godly man seeks first God’s kingdom and His righteousness by submitting himself to God’s will. (Matthew 6:10)

Matthew 6:10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so on earth. The word kingdom to Jesus-’ Jewish audience would immediately call up in their minds visions of the great messianic rule of the Son of David (Mark 11:10; Luke 14:15; Luke 17:20-21; Luke 19:11; Acts 1:6). However mistaken may have been their concepts regarding the kingdom, yet Jesus DID come to establish God’s kingdom. (Matthew 4:23; Matthew 10:7; Matthew 11:11-13; Matthew 16:18-19; Matthew 16:28; Matthew 21:31-32; Matthew 26:29) Historically, the kingdom was concretely realized when the Holy Spirit descended upon the apostles on Pentecost, thus empowering them to open the doors of the kingdom to as many as the Lord our God shall call unto Him. (Acts 2; Acts 8:12; Acts 19:8; Acts 20:25; Acts 28:23; 1 Corinthians 15:24; Colossians 1:13; Hebrews 1:8; Revelation 1:6; Revelation 5:10; Revelation 20:6) Thus, some would object to praying this petition on the ground that the Church, the most obviously visible and practical evidence of God’s reign upon earth. has already come. But it is significant that Jesus did not say, Thy Church come, for the Church and Kingdom are not necessarily Co-extensive, One may be part of the Church and yet not be fully part of God-s Kingdom. (Acts 14:22; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; 1 Corinthians 15:50; Galatians 5:21; Ephesians 5:5; 1 Thessalonians 2:12; 2 Thessalonians 1:5; 2 Timothy 4:18; James 2:5; 2 Peter 1:11) Therefore, if the kingdom I& defined as the perfect submission of the will of man to the reign of God, there is no time at which this phrase is outdated, Indeed, we may pray for the consummation of all things in God’s glorious rule (1 Corinthians 15:24-28). Artificial and exclusive distinctions that force the kingdom of God into a dispensational or a millenial framework are false at worst, and at their best are inadequate whereinsofar true. There will always remain a sense in which God’s rule is not completely acknowledged by even the best of Christians. It is unfortunate that this should be so, but it will probably remain so until the judgment. Any admission of imperfection or failure to love is an index of the extent to which God’s kingdom has not come in one’s heart, an indication of the point at which God-s will is not being done by the Christian as he knows it IS being done in God-s heaven. (Cf. Romans 14:17)

Thy will be done. This formulates the best definition of God-s kingdom ever expressed in the life of the individual, in the government of the universe, in God’s moral victory at the consummation of the ages. In these simple words rests the simplest statement of man’s deepest commitment, his most far-reaching confession and his most satisfying decision. Each time man prays this way, he aligns himself with the ultimate Creator and Governor of stars and sparrows, of men and morals! There exists no greater religion than to pray these words sincerely and to walk consistently in the light of their implications. What are some of these implications?

1. As in heaven so on earth. The manner matters: the example is clear, God-s celestial servants render Him constant, prompt, humble and cheerful service, (Cf. Psalms 103:10-22; Isaiah 6:1-8; Daniel 7:10; Hebrews 1:14) Doing God’s will is not a matter of perfect obedience when we are finally ushered into His presence at the end of time, but a practical putting into effect His slightest wish on earth right now!

2, Thy REVEALED will be done, God has expressed that part of His total purpose which He expects us to get done. (Hebrews 1:1-2; Hebrews 2:1-4; Matthew 7:21; Matthew 12:50; Matthew 18:14; Matthew 26:42; John 6:29; John 6:39-40; Romans 12:2; Ephesians 1:3-14; Ephesians 5:17; Ephesians 6:6; 1 Thessalonians 4:3; 1 Thessalonians 5:18; 1 Timothy 2:1-4; Hebrews 10:36; Hebrews 13:21; James 1:18; 1 Peter 2:15; 1 Peter 4:2) Can we really pray thy will be done, if we question His wisdom, deny His right to our obedience or resent any of His commands? Further, can we pray thus, if we have made little or no effort to search His Word for every indication of His will as it touches every phase of our life? In this petition we pledge ourselves to do things God’s way whereinsofar He has actually revealed His will, and we pledge our opposition to all that opposes Him. (Cf. Romans 8:5-17; Ephesians 2:1-3; Ephesians 4:17-24; Ephesians 4:27; Ephesians 5:1-20; James 4:4; Romans 1:18-32) But even our opposition must be accomplished in conformity with God’s plans for our dealing with His enemies and opposition.

3. Thy UNREVEALED will be done. The Father has wisely not told man everything that is part of His will for the universe. God’s unrevealed will for our lives may be seen in certain events, joyous or calamitous, which the disciple accepts. (Study Acts 21:1-14; Romans 15:32; 1 Corinthians 4:19; James 4:15; 1 John 5:14) If we have placed our lives wholly under our Father’s control, we may accept without murmur, hesitation or doubt whatever He chooses to send, whether suffering, trials or crosses. This decision is already made when one submits himself to the will of God, and is maintained by continued commitments as each situation arises. This is not a tone of defeated resignation or of bitter resentment because of the irresistibility of God’s judgments, but the willing, glad choice that is sure of God’s wisdom and love.

If, then, seeking first the progress of God’s kingdom means willing, active, personal obedience to His will, then let us do the little everyday duties here and now with all deliberate vigor, so as to fulfil our part in promoting His reign on earth! God has revealed enough in His written Word to keep us so busy doing the things that really matter that we shall have little time to worry about the unknown facets of His will of which He has not informed us.

(3) The wise and godly man acknowledges God as the Giver of all

Matthew 6:11 Give us this day our daily bread. This petition begins a series of three petitions for self, but, observe, they follow those which glorify God and put man in his right place before God. The man, thus orientated toward God and consumed with a real passion for His kingdom, turns to three personal needs: food, forgiveness and fortification.

Our daily bread. Matthew and Luke (Luke 11:3) use one of those rare words in Greek that is so rare it has been found only once elsewhere in the history of the Greek language: epiousios, usually translated daily. Since word meaning is discoverable from the many examples of the way people use the word, epiousios is almost incapable of translation. Barclay (I, 217) states that that other Occurrence of the word was on a woman’s shopping list which contained an item beside which this word had been written. He assumes that the word means for the coming day, that is, as we arise in the morning we pray, Give us today the bread for this day which lies before us. Others, deriving the Greek word from various roots, construe it to mean: necessary for existence, or for the following day, or bread for the future, or bread that comes to the day, that belongs to it., or bread for the next day. Whatever the actual meaning of the word, the best explanation must take into account the accompanying words of our authors who say, Give us today (Matthew) and everyday day by day (Luke: to kath hemeran, cf. Luke 19:47; Acts 17:11). These words would lead one to conclude that the word epiousios does not refer to time at all, since that element is specifically mentioned in other words. Further, the word must modify bread in some way. If so, it may mean, Give us that food portion which is coming to us, that is, we are asking for that ration which God apportioned to our need even before we pray. (Cf. Matthew 6:8; Matthew 6:32; Proverbs 30:8)

Jesus is trying to teach us total dependence upon God. What a supreme introduction this petition is to the section which develops it! (Matthew 6:19-34)

I.

Ours is a NECESSARY dependence upon God for anything that sustains life, for bread does not mean just so much wheat baked and cut a certain way. (Psalms 37:3-4; Psalms 37:25; Acts 17:25-28) And since our dependence is necessary, we must neither presume upon nor despair of God-s provision, (Matthew 4:3-4, see Notes)

2. Ours is a DAILY dependence upon God: today, day by day. As long as it is called today, we do not need tomorrow’s bread (Matthew 6:34; Psalms 127:2). This kind of trust cancels that anxious worry about the distant and unknown future which is so characteristic of the life that has not learned to depend upon the Father. As a matter of fact, we are given only one day at a time with which to live anyway: every morning of the world is always another today, never a feared tomorrow. We must live one day at a time, confident of the Father’s provision. The Jews had to learn this (Exodus 16:1-21) and so must we (James 4:13-16). But this dependence does not dispense with-’ our daily work for today’s bread (Ephesians 4:28; 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12; 1 Thessalonians 5:14; 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13; 1 Timothy 5:8) Rather, it is an acknowledgement of God’s power working in us to earn that which He provides (Cf. Genesis 3:19; Deuteronomy 8:1-20, esp. Deuteronomy 8:18) Each day we must work as well as pray for food, since without God we can do nothing and without our effort and collaboration God will do nothing for us.

3. Ours is a HUMBLE dependence upon God. It is for bread that we ask, not luxuries. What a rebuke is this of our constant struggle and straining after more and more of this world-s good things of life! Since all we have has been given to us, our pride and selfishness are thereby rebuked. Too often we claim to be rich, increased in goods and have need of nothing, when in reality we have to knock at the Father’s door for even a crust of bread. We are debtors to God for every bit of sunshine or rain, every mineral and every faithful farmer that has been given to provide us our bread; otherwise we would have starved.

Quite naturally, the psychological result of sincerely praying this way is deep contentment and freedom from worries and freedom to spend the rest of our God-given time and energies in useful endeavor. (Philippians 4:6-7; Philippians 4:11-13; Philippians 4:19)

(4) The wise and godly man seeks forgiveness in relation to his own mercifulness. (Matthew 6:12)

Matthew 6:12 **And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. **Having asked God to provide food that we might live, we immediately confess that we have no right to live. By asking His forgiveness for not having lived perfectly, we admit that it is only by His grace that we could even hope to live. But before we are able sincerely to beseech God-s forgiveness, we must honestly face the fact that we need to pray for it. If we view our sins as only a disease, only a human weakness, merely a social embarrassment, or an impersonal moral deterioration in the race, then we need not bother God with prayers like this, But we must see sin in its true light as rebellion against God’s government, a factual disobedience of His law, an insult to His character and a rupture of our relations with the Father. (See notes on Matthew 5:48)

Our debts is a figurative phrase meaning sins (Cf. Luke 11:4), especially those sins of omission. When some deed of love is left undone, that failure is sin and becomes something owed but not paid. (Cf. James 4:17; Luke 12:47)

As we have forgiven. How about our prayers? Are we always sincere when we say these words? Would we really want God to use this measure on us? Have we really forgiven even if the offence has been committed 70 times seven? (Cf. Matthew 18:22) One must be fully aware of what he is doing when he utters this frightening petition, for it is quite clear that if one prays it with some unsettled quarrel or some unhealing grudge or animosity, he is asking God NOT to forgive him! (cf. Matthew 5:21-26)

Our forgiving others is not a meritorious act in itself which somehow obligates God to forgive, without regard to other factors, just anyone who chooses to forgive an offence. Only Christ’s death can be the ground for our being pardoned. (Acts 4:12; Romans 3:22-26; Romans 5:6-11; Hebrews 9:14; Hebrews 9:22; Hebrews 9:26-28; Hebrews 10:10; Hebrews 10:12; Hebrews 10:14) But our forgiving others IS a condition or necessary qualification our position under God’s grace. So long as we harbor implacable resentment toward others, it is presumptuous to hope for His mercy for ourselves. (See Matthew 6:14-15) Why must we be merciful? (Matthew 5:7)

Because forgiveness is a quality which demands of us that moral disposition seen in the Father when He forgives us. By exercising mercifulness, we grow to be more and more like the Father (Luke 6:36).

2. Because there is no virtue more becoming those of our sinful condition: we need mercy! (Cf. Matthew 18:21-35)

3. Because mercy and forgiveness bring with them humility, self-denial, love and peace-making.

Jesus offers a simple safeguard against our overevaluation of men’s praise. If we remember that they are sinners in need of God’s mercy as well as our forgiveness, this fact greatly reduces the value of their praise in our own eyes, What difference does it make to a condemned man whether his fellow criminals think highly of him or not?

Our debtors. Jesus-’ words debts and debtors, as indicated before, refer principally to sins; hence, they do not require that all financial arrangements to pay be merely forgotten or forgiven. Otherwise, normal business relations could not exist without some type of credit system. However, if circumstances render a debtor incapable of paying, the disciple may feel compelled to forgive and forget even that financial debt. However, Jesus-’ word covers all manner of social debts. (See on Matthew 5:23-26) The principle is clear: our debtors must be forgiven before we can pray aright. While it might be true that we hesitate to forgive them at the moment they sinned against us, yet we will have to have already forgiven them before we may seek our own forgiveness from God. Even though we yet call them our debtors in the prayer, it is obvious that we no longer really think of them as such, since we have released them of that obligation.

(5) The wise and godly man confesses his own vulnerability to temptation and his need for God’s help. (Matthew 6:13)

Matthew 6:13 And bring us not into temptation. But, is God so wicked as to expose any one of His creatures to temptation? But so to ask is to formulate the wrong question, since we are not to blame God for our temptations (James 1:13), because He is not the real source of our temptations (James 1:14-15). How shall this dilemma be solved?

The first part of the answer is found in the meaning of the word usually translated temptation (peirasmos) or (-to tempt (peirazein). Their primary meaning is to put to a test, to test, to prove; hence, any such trial or test that reveals the quality of the thing tested. By extension of meaning, these words take on the additional significance: to test with a view to discover one’s weakness in order to cause him thereby to sin. Thus, the same word (peirasmos) may be taken either as an examination of quality or else as a deliberate attempt to trick into sin. Unfortunately, even the same situation in our lives possesses both of these qualities. How do we tell the difference? The difference between a temptation to sin and a test of character lies in the viewpoint from which it is considered.

GOD’S VIEWPOINT:

a. God never tempts anyone to sin. (James 1:13) Therefore, from His standpoint, that in which we are praying not to be led certainly is not temptation.

b. God does put men to tests that try their strength. loyalty and their ability for further service. (Cf. Genesis 22:1-19; Exodus 20:20; Deuteronomy 8:1-3; Deuteronomy 8:16; Deuteronomy 13:3; Judges 2:22; Judges 3:1; Matthew 4:1) He also helps them to overcome the tests and emerge as stronger, finer men. (1 Corinthians 10:13; Hebrews 2:18; Hebrews 4:15; 2 Peter 2:9) Any of His tests, whatever its particular nature, is designed by God to produce His character in us. (Hebrews 12:1-11)

c. Although God does permit Satan to tempt us, these temptations are, as far as He is concerned, tests of our loyalty to Him. As God views them, Satan’s temptations are but another form of useful testing the nature of our steadfastness and another means of producing an even more durable character in us, ever more capable of resisting temptations. (Cf. Job; Hebrews 11:37)

d. God does not test us by misrepresenting the case, as does Satan. Nor does God bait us to do evil. But He does force us to make the moral choice involved in any trial. God’s purpose is to make us decide, causing us to grow.

2. SATAN’S VIEWPOINT: It seems that Satan’s purpose is always to destroy us by tricking us into sinning. (Cf. Matthew 4; Luke 4; Acts 5:3; Acts 26:18; 1 Corinthians 7:5; 1 Corinthians 10:12-13; 2 Corinthians 2:11; 2 Corinthians 4:4; 2 Corinthians 11:13-15; 2 Corinthians 12:7; Ephesians 2:2; Ephesians 6:12; 1 Thessalonians 3:5; 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12; 1 John 4:4; 1 John 5:19; Revelation 12:9) He misrepresents and deceives us by making wrong appear to be right and quite justifiable, while he makes right and good to appear unnecessary, fanatical or even wrong, (Cf. Matthew 13:22; Romans 16:18; 1 Corinthians 3:18; 1 Corinthians 6:9; 1 Corinthians 15:33; Galatians 6:1; Galatians 6:3; Galatians 6:7; Ephesians 4:14; 2 Thessalonians 2:3; 1 Timothy 6:9; 2 Timothy 3:13; Titus 3:3; Hebrews 3:13; James 1:22; 1 John 1:8; 1 John 3:7; 2 John 1:7) These passages also note some of Satan’s secondary lines of approach.

3. OUR VIEWPOINT:

a. We may rejoice in those trials which assail us, knowing that they help to produce in us steadfastness and perfection of character. (Romans 5:3-4; James 1:24; 1 Peter 1:6-9)

b. Yet, we must not desire to be tempted, for only fools rush into temptations where the Son of God says it is dangerous to tread! Jesus knew the power of the Evil One, and here He warns against a foolish seeking to be tempted. This phrase, bring us not into temptation, but deliver us, rises right out of His wilderness experience. It is a cry that is real and pleading. c. Deliver us from the evil one: fearing Satan’s influence and our own ruin, we pray to be delivered from him. He is quite capable of twisting any of God’s tests into a temptation that would destroy us, if we would but yield.

d. Knowing our own natural weaknesses (James 1:14-15), we ask God not to lead us into these trials of flesh and spirit. Though it be natural that we cringe from the fires of testing, yet we admit, by saying Deliver us.. that God will certainly thus refine our souls.

So, our prayer not to be led into temptation must mean: Do not bring us into those crises of soul that, in view of our weakness and Satan’s deceit, could become for us temptations.

Another interpretation, which arrives at the same conclusion, regards Jesus-’ word temptation as an example of the figure of speech, synecdoche, by which a part is put for the whole or vice versa. Therefore, Jesus mentions temptation, which is but a specific part of all those trials which put the conscience into crisis. Or, if Jesus means temptation as a metonymy, a figure by which the name of one thing is exchanged for that of another because of some relationship between them, then, since all trials could become temptations to sin or could contain enticements, the Lord is indicating the most dangerous side of our trials. However, He cannot be construed as meaning that God is the Author of the temptations themselves.

Finally, Jesus may not have even meant temptation by that neutral word that He actually used (peirasmos). Instead, if we follow the primary meaning, we understand Him to mean, Do not bring us into trials or tests, in the same sense in which He pleaded with the Father to let that bitter cup of suffering pass from Him, fully knowing that it was to that very end for which He had come into the world. (Cf. Matthew 26:39; Matthew 26:42; Matthew 26:44 with Matthew 20:28) Some might object that this would be praying a prayer about which we knew there was little prospect of its being answered according to our intent. Yet, who knows the mind of God or what He would do in our behalf beyond what He has already promised? However, as in the Gethsemane prayers so also in our petitions, there must be a humbly submissive nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt. (Cf. Matthew 6:10) This is tacitly admitted between the yearning of the soul to avoid hard trials, and his entreaty to be delivered from the devil who most certainly hurls his awful attacks during these trials that one knows must surely come.

Praying this prayer, we admit our vulnerability to temptation. But we also admit the weaknesses of others: Lead US. deliver US. Thus, when we pray, we are agreeing not to be the stumbling-block in the way of others nor be their devil. (Cf. Matthew 16:23; Matthew 18:1-14; Romans 14:1 to Romans 15:1; 1 Corinthians 6:12-20; 1 Corinthians 8; 1 Corinthians 10:23-33) Further, we agree not to become our devil by deliberately throwing ourselves into the path of temptation. (Cf. Matthew 26:41; Mark 14:38; Luke 22:40; Luke 22:46) Unfortunately, most of us keep one eye open to the temptation we pray not to be led into. Thus, even the devil cannot be blamed for our yielding. Therefore, if we would cooperate with God as He rescues us from danger, we must make use of those means which He has provided. (1 Corinthians 10:13) The only sure protection against the confusion and deception involved in most trials is to live so constantly with the truth that the false or twisted values or reversed judgments be immediately exposed for what they are. God has already provided the surest protection in the truth of His word. (2 Peter 1:3-4; Cf. Matthew 4:1-11 and Jesus-’ use of that Word) Observe the close relationship between being sanctified in the Word and being guarded from the wicked one (John 17:6-19). This disciple’s prayer, a cry of weakness, leans upon God, the Master of all circumstances who can do something about them (2 Peter 2:9), fully assured of His strength that perfects itself in our weakness, (Cf. 2 Corinthians 11:30; 2 Corinthians 12:9-10; 2 Timothy 3:3; 1 John 5:18)

DOXOLOGY: For thine is the kingdom the power, and the glory forever. These beautiful words provide a fitting closing to this prayer, but the earliest evidence for the use of these words in connection with the prayer is around 130 AD., in the Didache. There is no clear evidence that either Matthew or Luke wrote these words. Rather, the proof is clearer that the early Church adapted this prayer for congregational worship by adding the popular doxology as a conclusion. Thence it found its way into some early manuscripts and was handed down with the prayer, until discovered and removed.

Matthew 6:14-15 See Notes on Matthew 5:7 and Matthew 6:12. We must substitute our failure to forgive with real forgiveness of failures if we expect the Father to show us mercy. (Matthew 18:35; Mark 11:25; Pa. Matthew 18:25-26) Thus, God-s forgiveness puts us under heavy obligation (Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 3:13). For excellent examples of human forgiveness, study Joseph (Genesis 45:1-15; Genesis 50:17-21); David’S kind of forgiveness as he ran from Saul: he just kept running and kept forgiving (1 Samuel 24; 1 Samuel 26); Paul, having been so maltreated by the Jews, yet could not keep from praying for their salvation. (Cf. Acts 14:19; Acts 17:1-13; Acts 21:27 to Acts 23:22 with Romans 9:1-3; Romans 10:1-3)

FACT QUESTIONS

1. Explain thy kingdom come. What is meant by the kingdom in this petition? In what sense may this petition be intended, for instance, by the Jewish disciples of Jesus, who first heard Him? by a Christian?

2. List the elements of the Lord’s Prayer which should be included in our prayers.

3. List some of the great public prayers of the Bible, in which men did not go into their closet, shut the door and pray to the Father in secret.

4. List as many prayers of the Bible as you can, in which the same basic petition is repeated two or three times or more, and yet it is obvious from the context of these prayers that they were heard of God and were not vain repetition.

5. What is the closet (KJV) or inner chamber? Show how Jesus intended this word, by citing examples from His prayer life and that of the apostles who applied this teaching.

6. What kind of repetition in praying did Jesus mean to condemn?

7. What is meant by Hallowed?

8. Explain how God’s Name is to be Hallowed.

9. What is meant by God’s Name? Is this to be taken literally, or as a figure of speech? If a figure, what figure would it be, and what is the reality for which the supposed figure stands?

10. In what sense is it true that God is in secret? (Matthew 6:6)

11. Why did Jesus criticize the vain repetitions of the Gentiles? List several reasons why Jesus would not necessarily have mentioned the repetitiousness of the Jews in this particular argument.

12. What is the antithesis of Jesus-’ words Your Father knows your needs before you ask Him? How does a correct recognition of this antithesis help to understand what He means by these words?

13. What other elements, plainly indicated in other passages, should form part of our prayers, although they have not been listed in the petitions of the Lord’s model?

14. Is the concept of God as Father an Old Testament concept? That is, is the evidence plentiful or scarce that the Jews readily thought of God as their Father? What difference would this make in view of Jesus-’ revelation of God?

15. What is meant by will in the phrase: Thy will be done? What does this will include? Can men know this will? Has God revealed any of it? How or where?

16. What is admitted as true by the phrase: as in heaven?

17. Mentally divide the Lord’s Prayer into six basic petitions. What single idea characterizes the first three requests? the last three?

18. What lessons does Jesus want us to learn by praying for our bread each day?

19. How does Luke’s version of this prayer help us to understand Jesus-’ intent behind the words debts and debtors? Must we dissolve all our financial arrangements by which others owe us money, before we may pray for God’s forgiveness? Who are our debtors?

20. What does Jesus mean by the word temptation? Literally or figuratively? If figuratively, what figure of speech is it? What other translations are possible for Jesus’ original word?

21. What is the earliest evidence for the popular doxology that is often added to the model Jesus gave, to give it a fitting conclusion?

Matthew 6:16-18

D. THE MOTIVES OF THE WISE AND GODLY MAN

(Matthew 6:1-18)

4. HIS MOTIVATION FOR FASTING. (Matthew 6:16-18)

TEXT: 6:16-18

16. Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may be seen of men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have received their reward.
17. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thy head, and wash thy face;
18. that thou be not seen of men to fast, but of thy Father who is in secret: and thy Father, who seeth in secret, shall recompense thee.

THOUGHT QUESTIONS

a.

Have you ever fasted? Why did you fast, if so?

b. Do you think fasting is a principle or is it a practice which represents a principle? Or, to put it another way, can one fast in another way that represents and abstinence from some habit, other than from food? c. Of what positive benefit is fasting, if he who fasts does not understand the relationship in which his body, with all its desires, stands to God? In other words, does fasting, by itself without that understanding, carry with it special spiritual benefits?

d. If it be true that ascetic practices in general tend to promote rigor of devotion, self-abasement and severity to the body, but are of no value in checking the indulgence of the flesh, (Colossians 2:23) of what value then is fasting, a practice which may be considered to be ascetic?

e. Do you think Jesus intended this directive concerning fasting for His Jewish disciples only, giving them instructions for its correct observance for that era, or is this directive a universal command intended for any era and any disciple? On what basis does one decide this?

PARAPHRASE

So also when you abstain from the usual comforts of life for religious reasons, do not look all sad and gloomy, like the hypocrites. They disfigure their faces in order to present to others the figure of one who fasts. Believe me, they have received all the wages they are going to get. But when you fast, do whatever is necessary for good grooming: for example, anoint your head and wash your face. Do this so that no one will know that you are fasting, so that only your Father who is invisible may know it. Then your Father who sees what is secret will give you what is right.

SUMMARY

Fasting, like giving alms or praying, to have value before God must actually represent the heart attitude of the one who so expresses himself. If fasting is to represent the affliction of one’s soul, it must be done before God, hence, secretly, lest men see and praise. Consequently, those whose fasting is deliberately aimed at public attention and personal self-exaltation have vitiated it into a tragicomic clown’s act.

NOTES

4. HIS MOTIVATION FOR FASTING: He humbles himself before God, not to gain men’s applause. (Matthew 6:16-18)

Matthew 6:16 To fast. The Law of Moses never prescribed fasting directly. Only in connection with the Day of Atonement was a command given to afflict your souls (Leviticus 16:29-34; Leviticus 23:26-32; Numbers 29:7). This order to humble, or bow, the soul, by restraining the earthly appetites, was interpreted to mean fasting (Cf. Acts 27:9), although the word actually meaning to go without food and drink-’ (tsum) came into use first of all in the time of the Judges. (Keil-Delitzsch, Pentateuch, 11, 405, 406; cf. Judges 20:26; 1 Samuel 7:6; Psalms 35:13. This latter passage shows the distinction in translation: I afflicted my soul with fasting.) Thus, only this one day of the year was legally set aside for appropriate observance in a right state of mind brought about by such abstinence. Nevertheless, the Jewish tradition had set as fast days also Monday and Thursday of every week. (Cf. Luke 18:12; Luke 5:33)

The professed purposes of fasting are wrapped up in the desire to express one’s sincerity by this departure from the normal pattern of living. Devout men of all ages have fasted when they found themselves in trouble or in danger or to guarantee the sincerity of their penitence and prayers. Other times they fasted to humble the spirit and obtain the victory over selfishness, pride and desire, Again, fasting is a natural expression of mourning or an attempt to expiate some sin or an expression of penitence or even a preparation to receive revelations. (Examples: at Deuteronomy 9:9; Judges 20:26; 1 Samuel 1:7; 1 Samuel 7:6; 1 Samuel 31:13; 2 Samuel 1:12; 2 Samuel 3:35; 2 Samuel 12:16; 2 Kings 19:8; 1 Kings 21:4; 1 Kings 21:27; 2 Chronicles 20:3-4; Ezra 8:21; Ezra 9:3; Ezra 9:5; Nehemiah 1:4; Nehemiah 2:2; Nehemiah 9:1; Esther 4:16; Daniel 9:3; Daniel 10:2-3; Jonah 3:5-10; Joe 1:13-14; Joe 2:15-16; Zechariah 8:18-19; Matthew 9:14; Luke 2:37; Acts 13:3; Acts 14:23)

Since fasting is a natural expression, it cannot be regulated arbitrarily, since it is what every person in the need or mood for it does naturally. At such times when the soul is so oppressed by the burden of sin, so stricken with grief, so apprehensive of impending trouble, so awe-inspired by the solemnity of a particular occasion, going without the usual sustenance becomes a natural reaction of the spirit, Such fasting is acceptable because it is a real expression of the man. Clearly, then, the frequency or duration of a fast must be determined by one’s personal constitution, need, regular activity and similar factors.

However, the Pharisees had wrung all of the beneficial content from the form of fasting. It is easy to see how what had been regarded as a guarantee of the sincerity of one’s repentance should become the substitute for it. Thus, they used fasting as a means of appearing righteous, rather than a means to get right with God. They made it feed their pride until it became a meritorious lever to tip the balance of God’s favor in their direction, thus giving them a false sense of control over God. Instead of humbling their spirits to faithful obedience to God’s commands, they prided themselves in fasting according to their own regulations. Thus, they advertised, with all deliberate external ostentation, what should have been top secret between their soul and God.

Sad countenance ,.. disfigure their faces. The Master spared no words for these hypocrites who assumed expressions of unfelt sorrow or superficial humility, Sometimes these expressions involved putting dust or ashes on the head, wearing an irritating hair- or sack-cloth shirt next to the skin, allowing the hair or beard to go loose or unkempt, and neglecting the appearance in general for the duration of the fast. But where the attitude is hypocritical, probably the one who fasts fools none, for, not having felt the genuine motivation to be thoroughly righteous, he must resort to such disguises as Jesus describes. God had roundly condemned those popular fasting practices of the OT period, which were not expressions of true heart righteousness. (See Isaiah 58; Joe 2:13; Zechariah 7:1-7) Perhaps the Lord intended a smile-provoking pun, a play on words seen only in the Greek (aphanizousin. hopos phanosin): They make their (normal) faces to disappear, so that they might appear to be fasting.

Matthew 6:17 Anoint thy head, wash thy face. Take any measure necessary to appear as you normally do daily, so that your fasting might never be noticed by men. Anointing one’s head is an allusion to the use of various oils as a refreshing skin protection against the dry hot air of Palestine. Whereas hypocrites had used such disguises, as are mentioned above, to hide the insincerity of their fasting, and, at the same time, to establish before men their sincerity, Jesus would have His disciples disguise their fasting exactly in the opposite way, with a view to guaranteeing their sincerity by reducing fasting to a matter done before God alone.

But, thou when thou fastest. Another personal word to the individual disciple, as in Matthew 6:6, also reinforced in Greek by six personal pronouns. But is this a word for every disciple of every age? While Jesus condemned the wrong formality and hypocrisy in some who fasted, it is obvious that He never meant that fasting should be completely eliminated from godly practice altogether. He rather assumes that His disciples will fast, in the same way that He assumes that he will help the needy (Matthew 6:2-4) or pray (Matthew 6:5-7). On the other hand, though fasting as a natural expression of anguish of spirit would continue to have its place in the spontaneous response of Jesus-’ disciple, yet Jesus Himself indicated later that organized, legalized fasting as a rite would not harmonize well with His program. (Cf. Matthew 9:10-17; Mark 2:18 ff; Luke 5:29 ff) Though Paul was clearly discussing various ascetic regulations which originated in human precepts and doctrines, yet it is clear that his condemnation of all such practices, even when no such regulations would be involved, touches fasting, for it is a clear example of asceticism. For, he says, these practices have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting rigor of devotion and self-abasement and severity to the body, but they are of no value in checking the indulgence of the flesh. (Colossians 2:8 to Colossians 3:17) It should be inconceivable but unfortunately is not impossible that one gratify his lust while enduring a forty-day fast. Thus, making one’s body suffer from hunger or thirst, while leaving the mind and imagination untamed, is futile. But one may well have a transformed mind and have crucified his flesh with the affections and lusts thereof, while eating and drinking too. (Cf. Romans 12:1-2; Matthew 11:18-19; Galatians 5:24) Therefore, fasting has no moral value in itself, It finds its only value in connection with those prayers, that repentance, that personal discipline, which fasting accompanies, and for which fasting makes excellent physical preparation. There are more important ways of afflicting one’s soul than merely by going without food or drink for a specified period: that sweet self-domination that keeps us from retaliating, that stern self-discipline that crucifies lust in our heart, that powerful self-mastery that refuses, in short, to sin.

Why fast then? As notable examples demonstrate, the early Church fasted on certain occasions (Acts 13:3; Acts 14:23), as did Jesus Himself.

1. Because, since fasting is a natural response, one will naturally fast when sufficient occasion demands it, His vital concern with His impending whirlwind ministry and His desert situation made Jesus’ forty-day fast a natural result. Although it is not said that Jesus refused the food brought by the disciples (John 4:6-8; John 4:31-34), yet His preoccupation with the Samaritans pointed out His understanding of true priorities.

2. Because fasting is not so much a duty for its own sake as a physical discipline to prepare one for other duties. In this sense, it may be good for the self-discipline. However, ‘one must not conclude that such periodic self-denial is better moral training than the ordinary temperance or moderation in all things. Denying self at every meal is a course much better adapted to preserve the mind and body in the best spiritual tenor any exigency might require.

Therefore, Jesus’ disciple is not bound by specific directions concerning the occasions or length of fasts, Rather, in line with the principles of Christian liberty (cf. Romans 14:1 to Romans 15:7; 1 Corinthians 6:12-20; chs. 8-11), Jesus allows him to decide for himself to what extent, in what way and how often he should bring his body under subjection to the glory of God.

FACT QUESTIONS

What does the NT teach about fasting? (regarding the appropriate use or occasions, the manner and purposes of it)

What was the ancient practice of fasting among the Jews? What attendant rituals or habits or expressions accompanied fasting?

List as many of the outstanding examples of acceptable fasts in the Bible as you can, describing who fasted, why, and, if possible, the results they obtained for having done so. Show why God respected the fast, even though in most cases those who fasted literally disfigured their appearance, wore a sad countenance and were seen of men to be fasting. In other words, what is the difference between their mode of fasting and that condemned by Jesus?

4. Is fasting appointed by God in the OT? Then, is it in force as a law under the present relationship to God by His covenant of grace?

Matthew 6:19-34

E. THE WEALTH AND WORRIES OF THE WISE AND GODLY MAN

(Matthew 6:19-34)

TEXT 6:19-34

1. HIS ATTITUDE TOWARD EARTHLY TREASURES. (6:19-21)

2. Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth. where moth and rust consume, and where thieves break through and steal:

3. but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust does consume, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:

4. for where thy treasure is, there will thy heart be also.

5. HIS ATTITUDE TOWARD HIS OWN DEDICATION TO GOD. (6:22-24)

6. The lamp of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.

7. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is the darkness!

8. No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

9. HIS ATTITUDE TOWARD THE NECESSITIES OF LIFE, (6:25-34)

10. Therefore I say unto you, Be not anxious for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than the food, and the body than the raiment?

11. Behold the birds of the heaven, that they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; and your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are not ye of much more value than they?

12. And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit unto the measure of his life?

13. And why are ye anxious concerning raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:

14. yet I say unto you, that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these,

15. But if God doth so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall be not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?

16. Be not therefore anxious, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?

17. For after all these things do the Gentiles seek; for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.

18. But seek ye first his kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

19. Be not therefore anxious for the morrow; for the morrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

THOUGHT QUESTIONS

a. What are the heavenly treasures we are to store up? (1) Are they the motivation for our serving God now, i.e. we serve God now so that He will reward us later? (2) Or, are they the result of our service to Him, in the sense that in this life we produce a more godlike character which cannot be taken away from us? (3) Are they both? (4) Are they something else? b. How are we to lay up such treasures? How can we know whether we are doing so or not? c. Does our treasure follow our heart, or our heart our treasure? d. Why is it ruinous to love and hoard money? e, At what point does our getting and using worldly wealth become idolatrous? How can we identify idolatry in this regard? f. W h y is self the world’s oldest and most dangerous idol? What is the relationship between laying up treasure on earth. serving mammon, and serving self or self-worship? g. Why are we more inclined to trust visible but temporary things and find it so difficult to trust Him who is invisible but has never yet failed us? h. Why does Jesus bring up the figure about the eye in this discussion of wealth and worries? What is the connection? i. On what basis does Jesus charge His listeners with being men of little faith? j. Who is the richest person in the community where you live? On what basis do you decide him to be the most wealthy? Does your standard agree with Jesus? k. Is being poor necessary to being righteous in God’s kingdom? Explain. l.

Are we to go without health, accident, life, fire or automobile insurance in order to show that we trust God to care for us? What is the relation between insuring ourselves against such dangers and our trusting God?

m.

Is laying up treasure in heaven a putting up a quantity of goods in heaven, or an attitude of heart toward God’s promises?

n. To what extent may we work for money (wages) without violating the Lord’s declaration that it is impossible to serve God and wealth at the same time? o. What do you think Jesus meant to teach about the whole body full of light? What is the condition of a man when he is full of light? p. What is the condition of a man when he is full of darkness? q. What is the tragedy involved if one’s light be darkness? r.

Why do you suppose Jesus mentioned mammon as the god to which men would offer service in opposition to God? What is SO significant about slavery to wealth?

s. What one fundamental sin finds expression in both greed and anxiety? t.

What is so wrong, according to Jesus, with saying, A man must live? Is it not true? Why?

u.

How is it true that the morrow will be anxious for itself?

v. What kind of impact would this entire section have upon the Jewish audience to which Jesus addressed these words? Does He contradict or confirm their concept of the Messianic kingdom and its attendant blessings? In what way does He do this? w.

The Biblical view of the heart of man usually takes into consideration his intellect, his will, his affections and his conscience. In Matthew 6:19-24 which of these phases of man’s being receive emphasis and in what connection are they mentioned?

PARAPHRASE

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth. where it grows moth-eaten and rusty, and where thieves break in and steal it. Rather lay up for yourselves wealth in heaven, where there is neither moth nor rust to destroy it, nor thieves to break in or steal it. For where you put your wealth. you unavoidably put your heart there too.

The lamp of the body is the eye. Now if your eyes are sound, you will have light for your whole body. On the other hand, if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. So if all the light that you have is darkness, how intense that darkness must be!

Nobody can be a slave to two masters, because either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot be R slave to God and to Money at the same time.

This is why I say to you to stop worrying about your living, wondering what you shall have to eat or drink, or about your body, wondering what you can get to wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more important than its clothing? Surely it is! Take a good look at the birds of the air: they do not sow nor reap nor store up food in granaries, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them, Are you not much more precious to Him than they? Of course you are! On the other hand, which of you can add a single hour to his life’s span by worrying? And why do you worry about clothes? Observe how the wild flowers grow: they do not wear themselves out working nor do they spin thread, yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glorious splendor did not clothe himself like one of these flowers. But if this is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is there today and is tossed into the oven tomorrow, will He not all the more do so for you, O men with little confidence? Certainly He will! Do not then ask anxiously, -What shall we eat?-’ or -What shall we drink?-’ or -What will we have to wear?-’ That is what pagans are always seeking. Do not talk this way because your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. Rather, seek first the Kingdom and the righteousness that He requires, and all these necessities will be provided you. So, do not worry about tomorrow, since tomorrow will have worries of its own. Let each day’s trouble be enough for that day.

SUMMARY

Put your trust in God alone! Put your whole confidence in things eternal, for only they are permanent. Concentrate your attention and service upon God and His promises, since double-mindedness is a really impossible course. It brings on unnecessary worries and draws the attention away from God. Real faith is able to concentrate upon God-s rule and provisions and accept life as a matter of course, living one day at a time.

NOTES

Because Jesus-’ teaching in this section is many-sided, we offer two outlines in the attempt to present more of the content of His message. It will be noted that Jesus-’ basic argument is Not that- but this. Therefore, in order to present as clearly as possible the negative and positive aspects or elements of His teaching, we outline the passage accordingly.

The Controlling Objective in Life: Undivided Trust in God

**NEGATIVE

POSITIVE**

DANGERS THAT MENACE THE FAITH OF DISCIPLES: Covetousness that is manifested according to circumstances as:

I. AVARICE (Matthew 6:19-24)

I. TRUST ONLY GOD (Matthew 6:19-24)

Proposition: Reasons why those who would be His disciples must put their trust only in God:

A. Treasures on earth means one’s heart set on earth which means total loss!

1. Moths corrupt it;

2. Rust eats it;

3. Thieves steal it, (Matthew 6:19-21)

A. Because earthly treasures are transient, ephemeral, while only heavenly treasures endure (Matthew 6:19-20)

B. Obscured judgment (Matthew 6:23) which leads to further moral darkness in every other decision and act.

B. Because earthly riches capture the heart, while heavenly treasures cause us to keep our heart set on heaven. (Matthew 6:21)

C. Indecision impedes concentration of energies and is virtually impossible (Matthew 6:24)

C. Because the selfish quest for wealth blinds and destroys human personality but heavenly riches keep our moral vision unimpaired

(Matthew 6:22-23)

D. Because to please two masters is impossible: the mere quest of wealth is sinful because incompatible with true love and loyalty to God (Matthew 6:24)

II. ANXIETY (Matthew 6:25-34)

A. Worry places a false and exaggerated value upon earthly welfare. (Matthew 6:25)

II. ONLY TRUST GOD (Matthew 6:25-34)

A. God gave life and the body, and can be trusted for things necessary to sustain life (Matthew 6:25)

B. Worry reflects on God’s loving cafe for man who is more precious to Him than birds (Matthew 6:26)

B. Lesser creatures than man do not pile up goods for an unknown and unknowable future (Matthew 6:26)

C. Worry fails to resolve life’s basic problem (Matthew 6:27)

C. Worry is useless (Matthew 6:27) (God who has ordained the length of our life and the make-up of our body can surely be trusted to sustain it.)

D. Worry about clothes seeks to realize a false ideal, were it a true ideal, it is patently unattainable (Matthew 6:28-29)

D. Surely the generosity which is so lavish to a flower of a day will not forget man, the crown of God’s creation (Matthew 6:28-30)

E. Worry destroys confidence in God (Matthew 6:30)

E. Anxiety for clothes is faithlessness (Matthew 6:30)

F. Worry betrays a practical paganism (Matthew 6:31-32)

F. Worry is beyond comprehension in one who has God as his Father (Matthew 6:31-32)

G. Worry would deny us all that is really good, important and eternal (Matthew 6:33)

G. God knows our needs, so we can concentrate upon doing His will and seeking to be right according to His standards and He will provide (Matthew 6:33)

H. Worry is presumptuous care about a day that God has neither promised nor given yet (Matthew 6:34)

H. Worry can be defeated by living one day at a time (Matthew 6:34). Every day brings enough burdens and problems. It is enough to deal with these without unnecessarily borrowing trouble from the future.

All that has preceded this section is sweet sentimentalism and unrealistic unless Jesus is able to remake men. Jesus knows that He cannot leave man as he is, bombarded by contradictory ethics and driven by inward desires and harassed by daily worries. Man must possess a moral principle that will rivet his attention on God, cause him to reject worldly ideals and treasure heaven above all other joys. Further, Jesus knows that there are two persistent, dangerous rivals to that one true objective that must command our undivided loyalty and effort, two rivals which will choke out His word every time: the worries of the world, the worries of life (Luke 8:14) and the deceitful attractiveness of wealth (Matthew 13:22). Jesus must destroy man’s confidence in wealth as a genuine support, and, by building his confidence in the Father, He must exterminate man’s worry. Only thus can the Master hope to expect men to take the Kingdom of God seriously and reach for the righteousness Jesus is requiring. Unless a man regard all earthly prizes as filth. he will not be much interested in leaving them to follow Jesus.

This section, if there were no other proof, would demonstrate that Jesus-’ unique message is from God and could not be the product of the highest insights of rabbinical thinking. These words (Matthew 6:19-34) must have sounded a wrong note in the ears of those Jews whose popular Messianic expectations required that the anticipated Son of David bring them a high degree of worldly prosperity, honors and Pleasures. (Cf. Matthew 19:24-25; Matthew 20:20-28; Luke 22:24) Far from seeing any danger in wealth and far from believing that, as a rule, it promotes unrighteousness, the Jews tended to regard wealth as a special blessing for their carefulness in observing the Law. Characteristically, the Pharisees thought of themselves as the unchallengeable proof of the causal connection between righteousness and riches. (Cf. Luke 16:14; Luke 20:47) However, in terms of human motivations, it is but a hairbreadth-s difference between glorifying and seeking wealth as one’s just deserts on the one hand, and the greedily grasping after wealth as one’s universal answer to all problems. And the children of Abraham had to hear this message whether it fit their scheme of Messianic prophecy or not.

The immediate connection with the preceding section (61-18) is particularly enlightening, for there Jesus warned against making the praise of men the end of our religious actions. Here He turns from His attack on man’s thinking too much of the praise of others to that self-deception which thinks too much of the riches of earth and makes them the end of all his daily efforts, And just as the cure for the former hypocrisy was a right appreciation of God’s judgment and a keeping of one’s heart set on the Father, even so here the disciples must keep the Father ever before their eyes. (Cf. Matthew 6:24; Matthew 6:26; Matthew 6:30; Matthew 6:32)

Jesus must challenge His follower to examine carefully his life to determine what is the really final controlling object of life. Running through the entire section is the necessity to fix one’s undivided trust in God. Divided loyalties dissipate the energies, nullify one’s efforts and warp one’s judgment. Though it would seem that He is talking about two widely separated subjects, i.e. avarice and anxiety, yet they are two expressions of the same covetousness. Both sins are obvious evidence of a basic worry, of insecurity, and of a desire for a little bit more, which in turn are evidence of a misplaced trust. Therefore, the Lord must take men’s eyes off their gold and fix their hearts on God.

I. AVARICE, or TRUST ONLY GOD

(6:19-24; cf. Luke 12:32-34; Luke 16:9-13)

A. THE ALLURE OF ACQUISITION AS AGAINST THE APPEAL OF ABIDING ATTAINMENTS (6:19-21)

Matthew 6:19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth. What makes a man desire to hoard up the treasures of earth? Basically, it is worry and insecurity, but covetousness plays and important role in this. (Cf. Luke 12:13-21; 1 Timothy 6:5 b- 1 Timothy 6:10. Note Paul’s emphasis: Those who desire to be rich. love of money. this craving. set their hopes on riches.) This is no condemnation of reasonable thrift or of the banking system of the day (Cf. Matthew 25:27), but a protest against that craze which so often drives men to set their whole heart on the amassing of wealth for selfish purposes as the only worthwhile purpose in life. Millions in property is not necessarily sin, nor is holding capital funds on earth a direct violation of Jesus-’ prohibition, if one holds them in use as a responsible stewardship and uses them for the advancement of God’s kingdom. Having possessions is not wrong, but we commit sin when they have us.

The deceptive attractiveness of earthly wealth is its being subject to all manner of destructive forces. (Cf. James 5:1-6) Jesus is saying, Do not be a fool and treasure what you cannot keep, what nature is bent on destroying and what the envy and covetousness of others is planning to seize! A moth can ruin the most expensive garment laid up in a chest. Rust consumes man’s most precious items of metal. The word Jesus used which is translated rust (brosis) literally means eating. Thus, the eating of it makes human food disappear (aphanizei) in the same way that the moth eats holes in fabrics. Thieves break through (literally: dig through the sun-dried brick or mud walls of the house and thus effect an entrance) and steal. In your greed to lay up earthly treasures, do not forget the greed of others, who, despite all your precautions, are able to relieve you of your possessions.

If in Matthew 6:21 Jesus is challenging us to examine the value of that which we treasure, He might be suggesting here that there is further folly involved in hoarding earthly wealth because of its relative worthlessness as measured against the true wealth of heaven. What is gold on earth is street paving material in heaven! What a fool is he who hoards mere sand and gravel. And what is worse, there is real peril in piling up earthly wealth. not in the possibility of their loss or ruin, since this happens also to the most righteous of men, but rather in the probability that the wealthy themselves are thereby imperiled. (Cf. 1 Timothy 6:9) A man may gain the whole world end after all lose himself! (Matthew 16:26) Those who spend life for the pleasures and riches of this world are getting cheated in the universe-’ greatest swindle. Even in this world, old sinners write bitterly that the anticipation of their fallacious and fleeting joys was much greater than their realization, The devil is a liar: earthly wealth cannot satisfy. The love of money will ruin everything! The rich young ruler refused to understand this (Matthew 19:21) and the Apostles almost missed their grip on this truth (Matthew 19:25; Matthew 19:27). Mary understood that earthly cares are not the whole of life; Martha failed on that occasion (Luke 10:41-42). The OT had taught much the same message (Psalms 49:6; Psalms 52:7; Psalms 62:10; Proverbs 11:28).

Matthew 6:20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, because they are sure, not subject to the influences that destroy all of earth’s brightest gems. Lay up suggests so to delight in something that we always long to have more of it, whether good or bad (see Matthew 5:6; Matthew 6:33; Luke 12:13-21): this speaks of our attitude toward wealth. Since it is impossible to send earth’s riches commodities into that heavenly country, because life there is enjoyed on a far different plane, it would seem therefore that Jesus-’ admonition refers primarily to our attitude as to what constitutes true wealth. If so, He is saying, Treasure heavenly wealth. Accept my viewpoint as to what constitutes the true riches. Put your dependence upon God’s promises.

But how is it possible to lay up in heaven our treasures? As suggested in the introductory section (The Reasonableness of Rewards), Jesus ever holds up before His disciples rewards and blessings of a spiritual nature. Another way of stating this same injunction might be: Consider heaven your treasure! That is, a right view of that which really satisfies one’s soul-the love of God and the fellowship to be enjoyed with Him and His, a clear conscience and an eternal joy-these restore a proper perspective that causes one to re-evaluate all of earth’s wealth in terms of winning an eternity with God. (See Psalms 16:2; Psalms 16:5-6; Psalms 73:25; Philippians 3:8) The important question to ask is not How much treasure must I lay up? but What kind of treasure? God is the Cashier of heaven and He accepts only one kind of coin: character. And when sounded, that coin must ring with deeds and faithfulness. We cannot send Him our gold, because they are not on the gold standard up there. Laying up in heaven is equivalent to being rich toward God and the opposite of laying up treasure for oneself (Luke 12:21). Luke 12:33 suggests that money given in mercy to those who need it, even if it means great personal sacrifice to do so, is the means of providing oneself with heavenly treasure. How SO? The command to give alms is aimed at the good of the giver, that his heart may be freed from covetousness and trained in generous service to others. This produces character, and that God accepts as true wealth. The irony that marks the difference between heavenly and earthly treasures is that we keep only what we give away, but we must lose all that we have kept! (Study Matthew 10:39; Matthew 16:24-26; Matthew 19:23-29; John 12:25) Paul summarizes this idea perfectly and shows the clear relation between the set of the heart and one’s attitude toward heavenly wealth. as well as how to lay up riches in heaven:

Religion is a means of gain to the man who knows when he has enough (wealth). We brought nothing with us into the world, and we cannot take anything out. Surely, then, if we have food and clothing, we shall -be satisfied with these. But men who set their hearts on being rich fall into temptations and traps, into many foolish and damaging desires that plunge men into ruin and destroy them. The love of money is the source of all evil. In the struggle to get it some men have wandered away from the faith and have impaled themselves on untold sorrows ,.. Tell the ones who are rich in this world’s goods not to overestimate themselves nor to set their hopes on anything so uncertain as wealth. Tell them to set their hope on God who generously supplies us all things for our enjoyment. Tell them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, to be ready to give away and share, thus laying up a treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they might grasp the really true life.

(1 Timothy 6:6-10, emphasis supplied)

Where neither moth nor rust ,., nor thieves. An investment in God’s promises is not subject to failure and loss; one is not being practical to disbelieve God’s promises in order to store up earthly treasure, One danger of wealth is that it causes us to fail to make life-s best investment in the kingdom of God: a hundred-fold in this life, and in the age to come eternal life! (Mark 10:29-30) Paul expressed this same concept, adding also the present body to the list of earth’s perishables which must be left behind in favor of an eternal abode in the heavens (2 Corinthians 4:16 to 2 Corinthians 5:9). Peter (1 Peter 1:14) exhausts the vocabulary as he holds before the eyes of suffering Christians that imperishable, undefiled and unfading inheritance kept in heaven for you. (See also Hebrews 10:34; Philippians 3:18) This is the reason that it becomes absolutely imperative that we rest our confidence in God instead of in our earth-orientated common sense, because there is so much in everyday life that seems absolutely to contradict what Jesus is saying we must believe. This is the acid-test as to which world we think is real and permanent: this one with all its seemingly cold, hard realities of fame and famine, of wealth and worries; or God-s world for which He would prepare us.

Matthew 6:21 For where thy treasure is, there will thy heart be also. Jesus seems to be using the word heart here in the sense of one’s affections, After all, what really gives value to a treasure is the affection of the heart. Nothing on earth really possesses permanent and objective value anyway, for value is too often a relative, subjective judgment based upon some temporary usefulness or on some relative necessity. This declaration of Jesus thus becomes a grave warning: Choose your treasure well, because, for good or ill, it will take your heart with it! Remember lot’s wife (Luke 17:32-33; Genesis 19:12-26) If our chosen treasure is earthly, it must partake of the transitoriness of all that is earthly and be forever lost when we relax our grip on it in death. On the other hand, if our earthly struggle has been for heavenly wealth. death only frees us to go to the eternal and real source of our joy and longing.

This is a psychological principle ever true: when a man’s thought and effort are concentrated upon gaining some prize, either heavenly or earthly, then the whole heart, i.e. the entire man, will become deeply involved in the effort. The man himself can think of nothing else, It will be the subject of his conversations, the content of his daydreams. To the disciple who would ask whether he be laying up heavenly or earthly riches, Jesus is replying, Go looking for your riches and you-’ll find your heart there too! They will be together. Jesus knows that He has nothing to worry about from the man who has his heart fixed on heaven, because that man will realign every other element of his life behind that one goal. (See special study on Temptation after Matthew 4:1-11)

Does Jesus intend these treasures in heaven to be: (1) the cause, the stimulation or the inducement for our work, or (2) the result or product of our earthly work? That is, are they something we produce or receive? Does He mean that we produce character by following His instructions, and thus produce a treasure that is eternal? Or, is He insisting that we keep our eyes fixed on heaven as our goal or treasure, thus producing a character that is capable of enjoying the wealth of God? The Apostles (Colossians 3:1-3; 2 Peter 1:3-4) seem to suggest that by diverting all our interest toward where Christ is, we will the more readily become like Him. And if the treasures we seek as the result of our work are spiritual goals, then they can also be the rewards for our service. So it is both. for Jesus reveals that a spiritual, godly character, by definition, is one which cherishes God above all earthly treasures, and reciprocally grows more and more like Him.

Psychologically, does our treasure follow our heart, or does our heart follow our treasure? Is Jesus-’ proposition reversible: Where your heart is, there will your treasure be also? That is, do we put our heart into something in which our treasure is involved, or do we put our money into that which has engaged our heart? Sometimes we are forced to spend our time, energy and talent for that which little interests our heart. But the sheer force of habit and involvement may easily draw our heart into a greater concern and may even produce an affection that is very strong.

For instance, many with high aspirations for accomplishment chafe under the necessity to earn a living, since it requires valuable time and drains necessary energy away from their real goals. Thus, earning a living may force a man to lay up his heart and treasure for something that, to him, is really a drudgery.

But these cases are probably less numerous than those where one has already deeply involved his heart and, as an expression of his affections, he pours out his treasures to realize the satisfaction of his heart. If so, Jesus is saying, Set your heart first, decide what will be your true treasure, because you will pay all else to get it! (Cf. Matthew 13:44-46)

If there seems to be a confusion between treasures considered as one’s present possessions, and treasures as the goal of one’s life, the confusion is an understandable one, since we all have a hard time distinguishing between what we are working for and that which we possess when it comes to resting our heart, hopes and confidence on them. The Lord’s principle adequately touches both concepts however.

Here are some critical questions about our ideas about wealth:

1. What does a man consider to be his true wealth?
2. How much does he think it is worth?
3. Whose does he think it is?

Can he live without it? Here are some tests to determine our attachment to this earth:

5. Am I strongly resolved to become comfortably wealthy?
6. Am I in a hurry to be that way? I
7. Do I regard my neighbor’s thriving prosperity with envy
8. Am I satisfied with my financial position? Why?
9. Do I trust my money to get me whatever I want?
10. Are my time, conversation and dreams spent chiefly upon earthly projects?
11. Do I grow angry, out of sorts or discontented when for any reason I fail to realize my financial goals, suffer losses or poverty sets in?
12. Am I willing to sacrifice my conscience or neglect my duty to better my financial picture or to hold my present position?
13. When in trouble, to what do I turn for relief? and discontent?

B. THE ACCURACY OF APPREHENSION ALREADY AFFECTS THE ATTITUDE (6:22, 23)

Matthew 6:22 The lamp of the body is the eye. This is a metaphor within an allegory: the eye is not literally the lamp of the body but is the means by which light is admitted into the body and interpreted for the body. Hence, figuratively it may be said to be the light of the body, As seen elsewhere (Luke 11:34-36) this same figure could fit other discourses. So the meaning must be determined from the context in which Matthew records it here. But Jesus does not explain the various elements of the allegory, as He sometimes does for parables (Cf. Matthew 13:1-43). The context of this allegory, Matthew 6:19-34, is entirely devoted to the viewpoint of the wise and godly man regarding wealth and worry. This little figure, then, is supposed to throw light on the entire section and especially the verses which precede and follow it: Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. (Matthew 6:21) You cannot serve God and mammon. (Matthew 6:24)

The eye is that organ of the body which receives light and, by means of the optic nerve, transmits this light to the brain and thence to the body. The accuracy of the image received by the eye, that is, the degree to which that image reflects the reality in nature, is controlled or affected by the quality of the eye. ALL other things being equal*, if the eye is sound,* the image received is accurate and so is received by the body as real illumination. However, if the eye is diseased or in some way abnormal or in one of the many stages of blindness, the individual is left in the dark to the extent of that abnormalcy of his eyes. This is the literal paraphrase of what Jesus says; but what does He intend to suggest by each of the terms?

The eye is probably to be identified with man’s intellect, his conscience, his moral vision, his viewpoint, his way of looking at things, his philosophy. The body becomes that major part of man which is affected by his outlook, namely his actions, the way he expresses himself on the basis of his way of looking at things. The light or* darkness* then stands for the degree to which the man comprehends reality as it actually is. Since all depends upon the quality of the man’s eye, that is the orientation of his convictions, it becomes imperative that we learn what kind of eye is single and what evil.

But here the difficulty begins, since the Greek words used are capable of various translations which in turn depend upon the interpretation given to the passage:

1. Literal, physical health:

a. haplous: sound (See Arndt-Gingrich, 85 and 697 for

b. poneros: sick-’ classical illustrations of these meanings.)

2, Figuratively: Generosity vs. Niggardliness:

a. haplous: generous, Cf. Romans 12:8; 2 Corinthians 8:2; 2 Corinthians 9:11; 2 Corinthians 9:13; James 1:5; Proverbs 22:9.

b. poneros: grudging, niggardly, ungenerous, mean stingy, cf. Deuteronomy 15:9 LXX; Proverbs 23:6; Proverbs 28:22; esp. Matthew 20:15; Mark 7:22.

3. Figuratively: Single-mindedness vs. Duplicity:

a. haplous: single, simple, fixed upon one object, one goal one Master, unadulterated with mixed motives, sincere, holy (cf. Ephesians 6:5; Colossians 3:22; 2 Corinthians 11:3)

b. poneros: double-minded, spoiled, vitiated by many selfish motives, evil. (Cf. James 1:5-8) Though poneros does not specifically mean double-minded, etc. but more generally, evil, wicked, worthless, etc., this idea may be derived from its antithesis (haplous) which, in this case, may mean single, simple, etc.

Obviously the first meaning is not the interpretation, since it is the literal expression which gives rise to Jesus-’ meaning. The meaning must be sought between-’ the latter two. It may be that Jesus has deliberately chosen two words that are capable of four meanings that all express His intent. For it is quite true that one’s selfishness (or generosity) affects his capacity to appreciate what Jesus was saying about wealth. It is equally true that one’s capacity to act upon Jesus-’ instructions depends upon his true and final allegiance. Again, the second and third definitions might not be so far apart after all, since one’s innate generosity or selfishness is really determined by the single-mindedness with which he expresses his life’s one great devotion.

Another demonstration that one’s single-minded dedication (or duplicity) affects his generosity (or selfishness), and vice versa, is seen in the immediate context preceding (Matthew 6:1-18) where only the man, whose mind was fixed upon God, could really give, pray and fast; all else was hypocrisy. The succeeding context (Matthew 6:24) preaches the same message: Choose well the one guiding principle of your life, whether your one Master will be God, in which case you will crucify your selfishness in the generous service you render others, or whether you will serve Mammon, in which case you will exalt selfishness to the throne of your heart. Your moral vision is definitely affected by that choice.

Thus, Jesus is at the same time making an observation and sounding a warning: He observes, by means of this allegory, that a man will be guided in his actions by the convictions which form his world-view; if these are mistaken or wrongly oriented, they cannot be trusted to give him true illumination regarding the truth about wealth and worry. The warning which underlies the observation (How great is that darkness!) is: Beware lest your worldly philosophy be nothing but moral blindness and failure to grasp the point of view from which I thus speak! The specific viewpoint to which Jesus has reference is the right philosophy regarding the source and use of wealth as well as whether one will be able to appreciate the true wealth involved in trusting God. (Cf. Ephesians 1:18 f with Luke 16:14)

C. ALLEGIANCE TO THE ALMIGHTY ALONE (6:24)

Matthew 6:24 No man can serve two masters. Jesus-’ expression is stronger than the English versions render it, for He said, No man can be a slave to (douleuein) two Lords. It is assumed that we were created to serve someone or something, (Cf. Genesis 2:15) but just one, not two. Two or more masters might jointly own a slave, but in this case he is really the slave of one entity; therefore, there is no contradiction of Jesus-’ proposition. In such a case Jesus-’ proposition is yet more clearly true when there is a contradiction between the orders of those who think they have a right to command the slave: he cannot obey contradictory orders. It is logically impossible both to do and not do at the same time.

It is also a psychological impossibility because the inner, personal motives of the slave will sooner or later force him to choose which master he desires to please. He would only delude himself if he thought it possible to recognize two Lordships. (Cf. Romans 6:16) But why did Jesus state so bluntly what should be so obvious? Because men of the world say that we can serve two masters. With a little subtlety here and some compromise there under the guise of diplomacy and tact, we can serve both. (Cf. James 4:4; 1 John 2:15-16) This is the self-deception that would grasp at both treasures of heaven and earth.

You cannot serve God and mammon. Mammon is a common Aramaic word for wealth. property, riches. Arndt-Gingrich, 491) There is doubtless personification here, but there is no proof that there was in NT times a Syrian deity called Mammon. (ISBE, 1972) The Lord does not here condemn the lawful and honest getting of money through diligent labor and wise care of funds. Careful stewardship in the gaining and handling of wealth is perfectly in harmony with Jesus-’ warning here. (Cf. Luke 16:1-13) But unless a man uses his money for God, it quickly becomes obvious which is his real god, (Cf. Hebrews 13:5) Note the genius of the Master: rather than name some pagan deity which would date this warning and seem to limit it to that era, the Lord renders His admonition readily applicable to any people or age, Wealth is the kind of god that a person can carry with him anywhere or hoard up in his treasury. Wealth is the god of selfishness, since man will abandon the heavenly Father for it; rare is the man who ever left the service of wealth to give himself to God. (Cf. Matthew 7:13-14) Money earned is coined life; money spent for self is a life spent for self; money wasted is life wasted. Mammon-worship is nothing but civilized life which organizes itself for itself without considering God. Another word for this covetousness is idolatry! (Ephesians 5:5; Colossians 3:5; 1 Corinthians 5:11) It is clearly idolatry because it is the taking away from God what is His due and giving it to a wretched creature. (Cf. Matthew 22:37; Romans 1:25)

You cannot be a slave (douleuein) to God and mammon. This is a disjunctive proposition: we must choose! This declaration is the hard-won conclusion of Jesus-’ wilderness battle (Matthew 4:10). Jay, cited by Pink (215, 216) shows the intransigence of the two masters, the impossibility to enslave oneself to both:

Their orders are diametrically opposed. The one commands you to walk by faith. the other to walk by sight; the one to be humble, the other to be proud; the one to set your affections on things above, the other to set them on the things that are on the earth; the one to look at the things unseen and eternal, the other to look at the seen and temporal; the one to have your citizenship in heaven, the other to cleave to the dust; the one to be careful for nothing, the other to be all anxiety; the one to content with such as you have, the other to enlarge your desires as the grave; the one to be ready to distribute, the other to withhold; the one to look at the things of others, the other to look at one’s own things; the one to seek happiness in the Creator, the other to seek it in the creature. Is it not plain that there is no serving two such masters?

This striking ultimatum forms the perfect transition between Jesus-’ comments on wealth and His teaching on worry (Matthew 6:25-34). The idolatry of covetousness is at the bottom of all straining after wealth and all worry over poverty and is as fatal to one’s spiritual perception as might be imagined. This is true because this worldly-mindedness is nothing but an unbeliever’s over-estimate of material good. It is only a matter of circumstances whether this covetousness will show itself in raking in the money or in solicitous worry. It is the same sin for the worldly-minded rich man as for the covetous poor man. It matters little to Jesus whether a man is rich or poor, but it matters greatly whose possessions he thinks they are, where he thinks he got them, and whether he could do without them. Jesus is demanding that we choose whom we will serve, trust and love: God or gold. Some might be tempted to say, There is no danger of MY laying up earthly treasure because so little of this worlds wealth comes my way that I can scarcely scrape together the barest daily necessities! But the poor must face this same decision as much as the rich. People, rich or poor, who worry are people who forget to pray. People who pray and continue to worry are double-minded, not having set their minds upon one Master, God. They do not yet trust God. (Cf. James 1:5-8)

II. ANXIETY, or ONLY TRUST GOD (6:25-34; cf. Luke 12:22-31)

A. AN APPEAL FOR AN ACCURATE APPRAISAL (6:25)

Matthew 6:25 Therefore I say unto you is the definite link between the principle just enunciated and the application which follows. Be not anxious (me merimnate) or -Be not unduly concerned or DO not worry are now much clearer translations that the KJV which said Take no thought. Taking thought 300 years ago meant exactly what is involved in modern anxiety; taking thought had no connection with giving careful thought to a problem or project. In fact, in this part of His discourse, Jesus is actually commanding His listeners to give very careful thought to their life, to reflect upon what really sustains it.

To understand the correct antithesis of Jesus-’ meaning, let US see what He is NOT teaching. Barclay (I, 258) notes: It is not ordinary prudent foresight, such as becomes a man, that Jesus forbids; it is worry. Jesus is not advocating a shiftless, thriftless, reckless, thoughtless improvident attitude to life; He is forbidding a careworn, worried fear that takes all the joy out of life. As seen in the parallel (Luke 12:22-48), man must think wisely and plan discreetly concerning the necessities of life. (Cf. Proverbs 6:6-8; 2 Corinthians 12:14; 1 Timothy 5:8; 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15) We are commanded to regard rightly and to plan seriously the use of these God-given blessings, Many people are careless about what they eat and drink, and they suffer for it, Some are thoughtless about their dress, and they become a disgrace to the race. They become careless about property and God holds them responsible for it. (Cf. Luke 16:9-13) Jesus does not countenance such imprudence, improvidence and carelessness.

Nor is Jesus pleading for utter indifference to earthly needs or material goods, for He admits our NEED for all these things (Matthew 6:32), There is no asceticism here.

Jesus is teaching against worry. Four times more he will fire verbal broadsides against anxiety (Matthew 6:27-28; Matthew 6:31; Matthew 6:34; see also Luke 10:41; Luke 12:11; Luke 12:22; Philippians 4:6) Worry about earthly treasure and bodily needs turns the heart from God to the slavery to mammon. This lusting after things that we do not have, this uneasiness and distraction of mind is sin and a sure sign that the heart is fixed on earth!

Be not anxious about your life, what ye shall eat; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Note that the phrase what ye shall drink has been omitted from more ancient manuscripts than those that contain it. If Jesus did not say it, the parallel with His later comment is much closer. Jesus is preaching against that false sense of values created by distrustful worry about the necessities of life. He is appealing for a return to sanity and a re-evaluation of those elements which sustain and bless our life: food and clothing**. Is not the life more than the food, and the body more than the raiment?** His rhetorical question is well-calculated to appeal for a recognition of the right order in man’s nature. That order of importance is a descending order:

1. The life and the body. Jesus’ word (psyche) is often used to express the life-principle which is the union of soul and body. (Cf. Genesis 9:4 LXX; Matthew 2:20; Matthew 20:28; Luke 12:20; John 10:11-18; Acts 2:27; Acts 20:10; Romans 11:3; Revelation 8:9) Jesus defined under what aspect He means the word life (pyche) by means of the questions regarding its sustenance: What shall we eat? Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (Matthew 6:25 a, Matthew 6:31) Therefore it is clear that He is speaking in a Hebrew poetic parallelism: life in the first member is equated with body in the second, while food in the first is changed to clothing in the second member of the parallel. This gnomic poetry form is really conveying positive information:

Life is more important than food; And the body is more than the raiment.

Thus, while the body is to be taken as parallel to the life, the mention of this particular phase of life advances the thought to introduce another senseless worry: that which covers the body, or, clothing.

But merely because of this parallel in His speech does not mean that Jesus is equating all that is one’s life (psyche) with his body (soma), because there is more to life than its union with a body. There is clear evidence that the soul of a man is also expressed by this word. (Cf. Matthew 10:28; Matthew 10:39; Matthew 11:29; Matthew 16:25-26; Mark 8:36-37; Luke 9:24; Luke 17:33; Hebrews 10:39; James 1:21; James 5:20; 1 Peter 1:9; 1 Peter 1:22; also Ardt-Gingrich, 901, 902 on psyche) Thus, Jesus is saying, You yourself are more important than the food you eat, the body you inhabit or the clothing that covers it! Men are prone to be more concerned about making physical life possible than about making life worth living. Mere physical existence is not worth the trouble to sustain it, if the problems of the soul are left unsolved. Life does not consist in the abundance or paucity of the things one possesses, eats or wears, but in the God-like quality of his personality, in the strength of his moral character.

2. The food and the raiment are definitely secondary matters when measured against the infinitely higher value of the life and the body, and, hence, are unworthy objects of anxiety. Clothing and food (cf. brosis, Matthew 6:19 note) may be echoes of Jesus-’ previous warning about the transistoriness of earthly possessions and His caution against putting one’s trust in them or thinking of them as final goals. (Matthew 6:19) Clothing is important (see Matthew 6:30; Matthew 6:32), but can never be as important as that body which clothes him who is made in the image of God! (2 Corinthians 5:2-5)

Therefore, in terms of priorities, the body is far less important than one’s spiritual existence, but it has needs far more pressing than the lack of clothing. The inferiority of the body compared to the man who dwells therein is seen at the point where the man leaves the body, At death none of us will have need of food and clothing. What folly to make our chief concern those things which perish with the using and over which death has dominion!

Back of this order stands God who established it, gave the life, formed the body and sewed its first suit of clothes (Genesis 3:21). Dependence is, the law of our being, because we were obligated to leave to God the size, form, color and nature of our body. Why should we not trust Him for its maintenance? But even the most spiritual of us argue in exactly the opposite way: I must live! I must be clothed and fed! I must know where I will live, where my next meal is coming from! I must have security! The great concern of such lives is obviously not God but how one is going to be enabled to live.

Jesus is objecting to worry because it gives to earthly well-being a false and exaggerated value and ignores the true priorities that must supersede those things which are the common objects of worry, such as food and clothing. (Cf. John 4:34; Philippians 3:9; Revelation 3:5; Revelation 3:18; Revelation 7:9; Revelation 19:8)

B. AN APPRECIABLE ADVANTAGE ABOVE ANIMALS (6:26)

Matthew 6:26 Behold the birds of the heaven, that they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; and your heavenly Father feedeth them. Jesus uses this illustration purposely to show the utter unreasonableness, from His standpoint, of being so anxious about the means of living. The birds do not sow, reap nor garner, for these are superior advantages that God has given to man. Birds do not have these possibilities. The thing condemned is not this work, because also a bird is a hardworking little creature, going out and laboring for its daily supply of food. Jesus-’ point is that, even without man’s superior advantages, there is not in birds that straining to see the unforeseeable future and seek security in things accumulated for it. They live literally hand to mouth. and yet they did not worry, because they are fulfilling the law of life that God has infused into their being. They are what they are, not because of their concern for themselves, but because of the concern of our heavenly Father for them! Their law of life requires that they live from day to day without worry for future supply. (Cf. Job 38:41; Psalms 104:25; Psalms 104:27; Psalms 145:14-16; Psalms 147:9)

And your heavenly Father feedeth them. He is their Creator; He is our Father. (Cf. Matthew 5:16; Matthew 5:43; Matthew 5:48; Matthew 6:2-3; Matthew 6:6; Matthew 6:8-9; Matthew 6:14; Matthew 6:18; Matthew 6:32 with Matthew 10:29-31) Already Jesus is testing the moral sensitivity of His hearers, even before He poses that poignant rhetorical question. But HOW does the heavenly Father feed them? Into their nature He has fused the instincts necessary for their survival, such as diet, migratory habits, etc. But these secondary causes for birds-’ actions are no less of the heavenly Father than if He operated directly in every single case. (Luke 12:6-7; Hebrews 1:3) Thus it is not the thought of the little bird about itself that provides its food, but the thought of the heavenly Father. It does not worry for its food; it just obeys the law of its life and becomes what it is. The law of our life is that we work for our food (Genesis 1:28; Genesis 2:15; Genesis 3:17-19). We were created to work, not to worry. Gathering into barns is no sin, even though it means saving for a future need; it is no more sin that sowing and* reaping.*

Are not ye of much more value than they? This theoretical question is designed to arouse interest and personal concern in Jesus-’ audience. Jesus would keep His disciples-’ eyes ever on the Father: of much more value to whom? Will God nourish birds and forget His own children? But your worry about your nourishment, whether you realize it or not, reflects on God-s love for you! (Romans 8:32) It also reflects on His sense of priorities: it assumes that He busies Himself with things of less importance in His universe while ignoring man whom He created in His own likeness and for His own personal fellowship! It also puts God into a religious compartment, separating Him from the practical affairs of life like food getting. The disciples are being put to a severe test: Is that relation which God sustains to you a vital one and does His daily provision really count for anything, or is your faith mere theory and cant? If we really trust Him, we may work without worrying!

C. ANXIETY NOT ABLE TO ALTER ALTITUDE NOR ADVANCE AGE (6:27)

Matthew 6:27 And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit unto the measure of his life? Jesus word (helikia), translated measure of life (ASV)* or stature* (KJV) is particularly interesting because it is just enough ambiguous to suggest two fruitful lessons:

1. Physical stature, height (helikia; cf. Luke 19:3; perhaps also Luke 2:52; Ephesians 4:13) Plummer (Luke, 326f) objects that not many people give anxious thought to the problem of adding the length of the forearm (a pechus, or cubit) to their stature because it would produce a monstrosity and would-’ not be spoken of as something insignificant (Luke 12:25-26). However, this objection looks only at the adults as they were at that moment. But they were not always this way. They began as a being smaller than a span and grew by the gradual increase that God had ordained in the laws governing growth. Neither anxious worry nor loss of sleep nor beating one’s brains about it could have altered the exact height of a child at any stage of his growth.

2. Length of life (helikia; see Arndt-Gingrich, 345, for extrabiblical evidence of this meaning) Many people do worry about the prolongation of their allotted age by any amount. The image called up by this expression of Jesus is that of a man anxiously hurrying across the years of his life. He stumbles, grasping for his last breath and reaches out, clawing his way forward in the effort to have just another 18 inches along the path of life. He dies miserably short of this least goal! ALL of his previous worries have been in vain, because, worry or no, his life has run its come.

This time Jesus-’ use of the rhetorical question, Which of you. ? brings the hearer to make a pragmatic judgment about the actual results of worry, It is as if Jesus were saying, Your life of worry shows that you do not accept MY theory about God’s providence and care. Let us examine YOUR theory of constant worry: what does your theory produce? The basic problem we must both solve is that of prolonging your life as far as possible. After all, is not this why you worry? But does your theory make a man live longer? Does your sinful, unbelieving anxiety resolve this basic problem of life? No, it miserably fails at the very point where it was supposed to work!

Although Jesus did not mention it, as a matter of fact worry often shortens life through shattered nerves, stomach ulcers and heart attacks. These are often the result of constant worry which wears out of the mind and body, which distracts the attention from real sources of help, and which lessens the power of decision and pushes men gradually into a frustrating incapacity to deal with life.

D. THE ABSURDITY OF ATTEMPTING AN APPROACH TO AN ALLURING ARRAY OF ANEMONE (6:28-30a)

Matthew 6:28 And why are ye anxious concerning raiment? This question is the principle point of Jesus-’ description of the field lilies, not the fact that they perform no work. Consider the lilies of the field (ta Krina tou agrou). Just what flower Jesus indicates by this term is not known. Some think He meant the autumn crocus, the scarlet poppy, the Turks cap lily, the anemone coronaria, the narcissus, the gladiolus or the iris. Perhaps Jesus had no particular flower in mind, but was thinking of the extremely beautiful flowers that adorn the Galilean fields. How they grow: this is the precise connection in which Jesus brings in the flowers to illustrate His point about worry concerning clothing. They toil not, neither do they spin, i.e. without wearying themselves through struggle and without spinning their first thread to make clothing, they grow. But they were not designed to do these tasks of which hard-working men and women are capable. They, like the birds, do those simple tasks assigned to them, and God takes care of the rest. This is the point: men were not designed to worry; they were designed to trust God and to toil and spin without anxiety.

Matthew 6:29 Even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Solomon was without peer as Israel’s wealthiest, most magnificently arrayed king. (Cf. 2 Kings 10) The mention of Solomon’s glory suggests a secondary lesson: your ideal is false and patently unattainable. Would you seek to clothe yourself in rich raiment? Solomon’s class is still beyond you. But even if you had the wealth to put yourself on his level, one simple unworrying flower surpasses you and Solomon both! Thus, the struggle to put together lavish wardrobes must not become an obsession, since God is clothing flowers every year and we cannot compete with them for magnificence and beauty. Treasuring garments of great value is a false ideal because they are always rags when compared to the simplest flowers.

Matthew 6:30 a But if God does so clothe the grass of the field. How does God clothe them? His original fiat of creation has become God’s continually operative word that has provided for the nature and sustenance of the lilies and grass of the field. (Cf. Genesis 1:11) Some call that word of God natural law, but it is nonetheless God’s care, no matter how we denominate it. Which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven vividly describes the ephemeral nature of these little creatures who enjoy God’s personal care, In a country long stripped of its forests and where fuel would be scarce, grass and stalks of all kinds would be thrown into the outdoor clay-brick ovens to heat the interior for baking bread. When the oven was sufficiently hot, the ashes of the burnt grasses were swept out and the dough was placed immediately on the heated floor of the oven.

But is Jesus considering the beautiful flowers and the grass together as being thrown into the oven? Naturally, they would be Cut down together. If so, is He emphasizing their fleeting beauty, i.e. glorious flowers and refreshing grass in a desert country, or is He indicating their minor usefulness to heat the oven for baking bread?

1. If fleeting beauty, perhaps He is saying, In view of the brevity of life and the temporary nature of physical charm and the perishable quality of the most gorgeous garments, how baseless and foolish is pride over a handsome body and anxious concern for royal apparel! (Cf. 1 Peter 1:24; 1 Peter 3:3-4)

2. If –minor usefulness, then He may be saying, Man is of eternal usefulness to God, and if God is so concerned about so minor a creature as grass and flowers, will He neglect man who is to Him of infinitely greater value and enduring service? They are made but for a few days; God made man for eternity.

Shall he not much more clothe you… ? The same God who spoke into being that providential law for the clothing of grass and flowers, has also spoken His word of power to clothe man. Our God-given task is to do the work appointed for us (toil and spin of Matthew 6:28). It is by means of this work that He has ordained for us that He has chosen to provide for us. But concern for the unseeable and unknowable future is God’s business, not outs. Therefore, worry is a contradiction of our nature, just as it is absurd when applied to flowers and grass.

E. AN ALARMING ACCUSATION (Matthew 6:30 b)

Matthew 6:30 b O ye of little faith. (Cf. Matthew 8:26; Matthew 14:31; Matthew 16:8; Matthew 17:20; James 1:5-8) This is the most significant term of reproach Jesus ever used toward His disciples. In this context, their worry is a practical expression of infidelity because they distrust God for raiment, Jesus is proving decisively that theology and things definitely affect each other. The same faith that trusts God for grace and guidance must also trust Him for garments and groceries. Man is all one piece: the less he trusts God for his temporal needs, the less he really believes in His eternal mercies, since the same faith is called upon to lay hold of both. (Study Dc. 8 and Matthew 4:1-11) Therefore, anxiety is not simply a human weakness that we may excuse of a trifle about which we need not get too excited. It is grave sin for which we must be pardoned, for it chokes out faith in God’s word! (Cf. Matthew 13:22; Luke 8:14)

F. ANXIETY IS AKIN TO ALIEN AGNOSTICISM AND ATHEISM (6:31, 32)

Matthew 6:31 Be not therefore anxious. This is a command of the Son of God, a command equal to any other which the disciple is called upon to obey, a test of allegiance just as surely as baptism or public testimony or any other demonstration of faithfulness to Jesus. It is more than just g d advice which may be taken or left. Therefore emphasizes the relation of this command to the foregoing principles upon which the prohibition is based.

This anxiety shows itself in such questions as **What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? **Many more questions might be added, but these fundamental Ones cover a multitude of other worries. These are the very symptoms of distrustful people, the very complaints they make when they encounter losses or adversities befall them or their supply of necessities is apparently cut off, or when they lose their job or their investments do not pay off or they are stricken with some incapacitating disease. These very demands denote that they who ask them have no faith in God’s goodness.

To study the life of Jesus is to find out how simple were His daily needs and how stern was His devotion to the doing of God’s will, and such a study should shame us at the outrageous expense of our desires (Luke 9:58)! Further, if worry about the necessities is sin, what would Jesus call our unjustifiable anxiety about those things that are not absolutely essential to existence and may be called luxuries? Wall-to-wall carpets, boats, color TV, second and third cars, household appliances, etc. There is nothing wrong with these things in themselves except that they are of this earth. and, being the objects of our straining and our loving care, they may well become our real god. (Matthew 6:24)

Matthew 6:32 For after all these things do the Gentiles seek. Worry is characteristic of heathen unbelief, Of what use then is all our religious orthodoxy and knowledge if we still act like those who never heard of our Father? How many of us are pagans in a crisis? How many are daring enough to bank their faith on God’s character? Such distrust may be understandable in one who believes in a capricious, unpredictable god, but such conduct in a worshipper of our Father is totally incomprehensible. Another characteristic of pagans is that they think that they themselves must provide for all their needs without any dependable reference to the true God, There must be a marked difference in the practical affairs of Jesus-’ disciple that strikes a sharp contrast with the mentality of the world (John 17:14; Romans 12:2; Titus 2:12).

For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. Peter (1 Peter 5:7) puts it eloquently: Cast all your anxieties upon Him, for He cues about you. Jesus has revealed God as one who knows and can never forget our smallest concern, If we accept Him as Father on this basis, worry becomes impossible, for to worry is to deny both the wisdom and knowledge of God and to doubt His love. Notice that Jesus puts the emphasis here: He does not call Him God, in the sense of an omniscient Supreme Eking who would be expected to know our need, but Father, in the sense of one who both knows and feels our need.

Jesus is constantly trying to restore our proper perspective (Cf. notes on Matthew 6:22-23): life does not consist in concern for the merely physical and sensual aspect of existence. Food, clothing and shelter are not man’s greatest problems and must not sap his strength from his one main true obsession: kingdom righteousness.

G. THE APPROVED, ADEQUATE ANTIDOTE FOR ANXIETY (6:33)

Matthew 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. This is Jesus-’ positive answer to worry and covetousness, a program guaranteed to lead His followers into that peace of soul that only he can know who knows that he belongs to God. (Cf. Acts 16:19-25; Romans 14:17; Philippians 3:7-21) Barclay (I, 261) notes:

To concentrate upon the doing of, and acceptance of God’s will is the way to defeat worry.. A great love can drive out every other concern, Such a love can inspire a man’s work, intensify his study, purify his life, dominate his whole being.. Worry is banished when God becomes the dominating power of our lives.

Seek first is an interesting command because Jesus does not say what to seek second. He knows that He has nothing to worry about from the man who puts God-s will first and who trusts God for all the rest. Marshall’s pithy note (124) is quite apropos here:

Men are prone to put economic considerations first and to sacrifice moral principles for sake of their daily bread. The plea -I must live-’ is often advanced as an excuse for unethical behavior. When business men argue that -Business is business-’ they usually mean that it is exempt from ethical control. This word of Jesus is a call to moral heroism, to the high resolve to do that which is right in the sight of God whether it brings gain or loss, prosperity or adversity Whatever happens, moral claims must be met first.

Seek first his kingdom, his righteousness, in too many ears, sounds like an impractical leap in the dark, an attack upon that which our common sense says we must believe, a despising of all earthly institutions upon which we so naturally rest our confidence, and the destruction of our false sense of property and security which so greatly hinders our spiritual development. In fact, Jesus intends that we get this impression, because He is hitting desperately hard at our dependence on things. Later, in His discussion of the dangers that confront His disciple (chapter 7), He will reiterate the exhortation to confide our needs to God (Matthew 7:7-11) because of the constant danger of trusting something or someone else.

His kingdom means God’s rule, His will. (See Notes on Matthew 6:10) His righteousness means seeking to be righteous on His terms. (See Introduction to the Sermon and the Notes on Matthew 5:17 ff) God wants to give us the kingdom and all the benefits of His benign rule. (CY. Luke 12:32; see also on the Beatitudes) Why should we worry about all these other secondary matters? (Cf. Psalms 37:5; Psalms 55:22; Psalms 127:2; Proverbs 16:3; 1 Peter 5:7) ALL these things shall be added unto you. God knows we are not angels or machines, but men. (Psalms 103:13-14) He knows that we must be provided for. So, to test our faith and to strengthen our hope He subjoins His faithful promise of blessing. But He has also willed that we work without worry, because undistracted labor produces rich fruits both in securing our daily needs and in providing help for future needs both for ourselves and others (1 Thessalonians 4:10b-12; Matthew 5:14; 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13; 1 Timothy 5:3-16; Ephesians 4:28) On the other hand, those who ignore the Kingdom so that they can assure themselves of their life sustenance, will lose both the Kingdom and their life too! (Matthew 16:24-26)

H. ANXIOUS APPREHENSION ALWAYS ANTICIPATES ADDITIONAL ADVERSITY AND ATROPHIES ABILITIES (6:34)

Matthew 6:34 Be not therefore anxious for the morrow: for the morrow will be anxious for itself. (Proverbs 27:1; Luke 12:19-20; James 4:14) Only when we learn to live one day at a time can we really stop worrying. (See on Matthew 6:11) Worry about tomorrow is the sin of presumptuousness, for to do so one must necessarily assume that God will give him a day that He has not promised. The worrier might not even live to see the next day and thus he will have sinned by taking out of God’s hands a day that did not belong to him and never would exist for him.

Further, worry about the future tomorrows must ever suffer its own logical fallacies, its hypotheses contrary to fact. Tomorrow, by its very nature is an imaginary world, a handy word to describe the day that follows today. But tomorrow never comes, never exists. Every dawn brings another today with its problems, trials and difficulties geared to our capacity to deal with them within the dawn-to-dark limits of this day. (Cf. 1 Corinthians 10:13; Hebrews 3:12-14) The real future when it comes is rarely as bad as the tomorrow we had feared, Barclay (I, 263) observes:

We are still alive. Had someone told us that we would have had to go through what we have actually gone through, we would have said that it was impossible. The lesson of life is that somehow we have been enabled to bear the unbearable and to pass the breaking point without breaking.

Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. Jesus is using the word evil in the sense of adversity, problems, troubles, trials and difficulties, not however without some flavor of moral failure mixed in. The point is this: we must not borrow trouble from tomorrow as if today did not have it already in sufficient quantity. Jesus is telling us that each day already has enough problems to solve and that we must not burden and hinder our effectiveness to solve them by adding other unreal worries.

FACT QUESTIONS

1. What is the difference between treasures on earth and treasures in heaven?

2. How does a moth corrupt earthly treasures?

3. What is the literal meaning of the word usually translated rust (brosis)? Following this literal meaning, what is made to disappear?

4. How do thieves dig through? Why? Explain this figure in its local setting.

5. In this section does Jesus prohibit prudent saving for the future -of one’s family? Prove your answer.

6. Explain the metaphor: The lamp of the body is the eye.

7. Explain the allegory of the eye. What is meant by the eye, the body which is illuminated by it? What kind of eye is whole? What kind is evil? What is intended by the darkness that is in thee? When is thy body full of light?

8. Why can we not serve two masters! Explain why a divided loyalty is SO impossible and the attempt to serve both God and mammon so dangerous.

9. About what are we not to be anxious? (Matthew 6:25; Matthew 6:31; Matthew 6:34)

10. Define anxiety or worry in such a way as to show why Jesus considered it so sinful.

11. How is it possible to use our unrighteous mammon to serve God? (Cf. Luke 16:9-13)

12. What is the reason Jesus gives that we must lay up treasure in heaven, and not on earth?

13. How does God feed the birds, array the lilies of the field-’-’ and clothe the grass of the field? What does this fact reveal about how He feeds and clothes us?

14. Why was Solomon mentioned? In what connection?

15. Why was grass thrown into the oven?

16. What life is more than the food? Does Jesus mean here our spiritual or our physical life?

17. List several reasons, stated by Jesus in this section, why anxiety is sin.

18. What is the point of each of the following figures Jesus used?

a. Life is more than food and the body than raiment. b. Birds of the air. c. Add one cubit to the measure of one’s life. d. Lilies and grass of the field. e, Gentiles seek all these things. f. Tomorrow will worry about itself.

19. What is the kingdom which we must seek first? What did this phrase mean to the audience who first heard it? What does it mean to us?
20. What is His righteousness which we must seek first? What does this word mean, when taken in the context of all that Jesus revealed about it in this Sermon on the Mount?
21. If we dedicate ourselves to putting the Kingdom and His righteousness first, who will be responsible for our necessities?
22. What kind of evil was Jesus talking about when He said, Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof?
23. What are the great principles, taught in this section, which reveal I the nature and genius of Jesus-’ religion?