Thus far in our studies in the Sermon on the Mount, we've seen that first, Christ describes the believer's character, and this he does with a series of Beatitudes. Secondly, he goes on to address the believer's influence. We are called to be soft and light, which involves impacting not society as a whole, but Christ says, men. It is people for whom we let our lives shine, and it is people, not society, not cultures, but lives that we change one life at a time. by the power of a godly testimony and our willingness to share the gospel with others. Then Christ goes on in this sermon to address the believer's relationship to the law. And we are called, like Christ, not to break or to abolish the law, but rather to fulfill the law. That is, to see the law lived out in its fullest sense in our lives, meaning we embrace not only the letter of the law, but we could say the spirit of the law. Which, when we do that, we're not taking a restrictive approach toward the law, It's the other way around. We make it more full in our lives. Now, as Christ continues in this Sermon on the Mount, he turns his attention to the issue of the believer's piety, that is, those practical and devotional expressions of our faith. But before we encounter the words of Christ further in the sermon, would you join me for a word of prayer? Our Father in heaven, we commit this time to you again, asking your blessing upon your word. Minister to your people as we bow and surrender before thus saith the Lord this morning. And may the power of your Spirit convict the hearts and challenge us that we might truly surrender lives to you and live lives that are intended for your glory and for your honor. And this we ask in the name of your Son, Jesus the Christ. Amen. Christ begins in Matthew chapter six, verses one through four, turning his attention to the issue of our piety with these words. He says, Take heed that you do not your arms before men to be seen of them. Otherwise you have no reward of your father, which is in heaven. Therefore, when thou dost thine arms, do not sound the 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 the reward. But when thou dost alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doth, that thine alms may be in secret, and thy father, which seeth in secret himself, shall reward thee openly." A few observations from this passage. First of all, in verse two, Christ says, don't sound the trumpet before you when you do your almsgiving. In this case, he's referring to charitable gifts, giving to help people that are poor and impoverished and in need. And he says, don't sound the trumpet. Now what is he talking about here? There are three common interpretations. First of all, some think that he's referring to the thirteen shofar chests that were in the temple complex. A shofar chest was a collection box where people would give for the poor and the needy. And so as an act of worship to God at the temple, these were set around the complex and you could throw money in and then of course the priest would distribute that to the poor. And they were called shofar chests because they were actually in the shape of a shofar horn. in something by reference to the trumpet, that that's what Christ is referring to. Don't make a big scene out of throwing your money in and make a lot of noise if you throw it into the collection box so people will look and say, boy, he's throwing a lot into the box there. But I don't really think that's what Christ is talking about here because, of course, Christ talked about what they were doing in the synagogues and in the streets, not in the temple complex. A second interpretation is the idea that maybe some, such as the Pharisees, were going around literally sounding a trumpet before them as they would walk through the streets giving out their money to the poor so that people would notice. But again, there's no historical documentation suggesting that the Pharisees actually walked around the streets with literal trumpets and sounded that. So the third interpretation, which is the one that I would hold, that again Christ is simply using a rhetorical device. We've seen him use a number of rhetorical devices already in the Sermon on the Mount, hyperbole and illustrations coming up. We'll even see him using a little bit of humor to make his point. So I understand that this is a rhetorical device. Christ here then is speaking figuratively of sounding a trumpet, and it's not really unlike our modern expression where we speak of somebody tooting his own horn. You know, don't go around tooting your own horn. And that's what Christ is really talking about. I don't think they were literally sounding trumpets, but again, this is just that figure of speech. You know, don't sound a trumpet. Don't make a big to-do when you do something for the sake of the poor. Now, in this regard then, as he continues in verse 3 after he says, don't sound a trumpet, then he says, in fact, don't even let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Now, if your left hand doesn't even know, then it's certain that nobody else knows what the right hand has done. But you know, there's also an application that we can draw out of this phraseology. And that is that Christ is not only saying, hey, you know, other people don't need to know. He's also saying, in fact, don't even make a point to remember your own generosity. Now, from a purely pragmatic standpoint, obviously. Believers need to have some record keeping for tax purposes, for example, and so forth. You have to be able to document your charitable giving. And being a good steward of God's resources means, in fact, that you do monitor your resources for the glory of God. So Christ isn't ruling that out in that sense. But from a spiritual standpoint, I think what Christ is saying, apart from the written records and your tax records and so forth that you have to keep, don't in your own mind go around with this mental list of all the good things that you've done. We can illustrate the idea in another realm, although it's somewhat of a negative illustration. That is when somebody has sinned against you, somebody has committed an offense against you. You know, you don't need to remember all the things that people have done wrong against you, all the ways that they've wronged you and all the things they said that you didn't like. You know, some people do that. I mean, there's a list right on their mind. And you ask them, oh, yeah, so and so, they did this. And they said, boy, I'll never forget they said this. I mean, that list is right there. I mean, you just ask them in a moment. It's right there on the front of their mind. Now, obviously, we do have a memory. So if you really had to think about it, maybe you could call your mind and bring something to the front, you know, forward to the front of your mind. But that's the way it ought to be. You know, I'm sure I've wronged my wife at times. She's probably done things that were offensive to me. But, you know, we don't keep track of these things. There is no list. That's why standing here, if you ask me, what has your wife ever done that has offended you or said that you didn't like? I got nothing. Nothing. I'm sure in 23 years of marriage, but nothing. My mind's a blank. Because I don't keep lists. And if I sat here long enough and started thinking back, because obviously I do have a functioning memory, although it's functioning less and less well, the older I get, I could probably come up with something. But that's the point. I'd have to work at it. But some of you, to your shame, you wouldn't have to work at all. Name certain people and you don't have to do anything at all. Oh, yeah, it's right there. Now, the point is, Let the list go. Drop it and forget it. Now, as that's true with people's offenses against us, it's also true with our own acts of generosity. You shouldn't be keeping some list. Well, yeah, I did this and boy, I did that. Because, of course, if you do, well, that soon becomes just a means of patting yourself on the back and congratulating yourself. It becomes a means by which people begin to gauge their own spirituality. Look how generous I've been. And so you don't need to be keeping track. Forget it. Very honestly, I don't even remember what acts of generosity I've done. I just don't keep track. Now until you begin to engage your spirituality that way, in fact, part of the process is you'll even soon find yourself comparing yourself with others. Boy, I mean, you know, at least I've done more than other people do. In fact, hold your place here and I turn your attention to 2 Corinthians chapter 10, where Paul expressly warns us against this danger of comparing ourselves with others. When we start trying to measure ourself and our spirituality in terms of what other people are doing or aren't doing, that is not a wise thing to do. But you're setting yourself up for that when you start keeping a list and you start comparing lists. In 2 Corinthians chapter 10, And verse 12, the apostle says, for we dare not make ourselves of the number or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves. But they measuring themselves by themselves and comparing themselves among themselves are not wise. Paul says, I don't play this game. I don't go around comparing myself with other people. That's not the measure. Now, if you want a standard by which to measure and compare yourself, make the standard Jesus Christ, make the standard in the Word of God. See how you measure up to Christ. Not other people. And so I think when you talk about not letting your left hand know what your right hand is doing, he's saying, you know, there even needs to be a sense of self forgetfulness. I mean, I don't know. It's pretty reflexive. I don't know. I just kind of gave there was a need I gave and I went on and I never thought about it again. And that's our comments about almsgiving. Moving on to verses 5 through 8, he turns to another aspect of piety, and that is our prayer life. And in verses 5 through 8, Jesus says, And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are. For they love to pray, standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy father, which is in secret. And the father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. But when you pray, use not vain repetitions as the heathen do, for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore likened to them, for your father knoweth what things you have need of before you ask him." And a couple of practical observations here from the comments of Christ. Again, first of all, there is the reminder that prayer was not primarily for public consumption. Of course, there is a time and a place for public prayer, a time when, for example, an assembly of believers is gathered together and the congregation would be represented in prayer during that worship service. Somebody leads the congregation in prayer to the throne of God. But even here in such a setting, we must be careful not to violate the intention of Jesus' speech, the spirit of Jesus' words here. Even public prayer must be oriented to turn our attention toward God and not to the one praying. And one of the ways in which sometimes prayer draws attention to itself is by being unduly long. You have probably witnessed, as I have, a number of lengthy prayers where the person is caught upon the prayer just seems to keep going, going, going, start getting tired. You need to. to sit down. And you know, I can't help but notice Jesus' reference here to the much speaking here in verse 7. They think they'll be heard for their much speaking. And in fact, hold your place here again and for the moment, let me turn your attention to Matthew 23 and verse 14, where more directly Christ gives a statement that is relevant to this idea, these public prayers. Matthew 23 and verse 14. And again, these are prayers that are not leading a congregation of prayer, though, but just to be seen. But the point is they draw attention to themselves. Now, many pious Jews would pray. In fact, they would pray three times a day, morning, afternoon, and evening. But Christ saying, listen, you know, during that regular prayer time, you don't need to draw attention to yourself. You can quietly pray in your own heart and mind and nobody needs to know. But some of these Jews, no, they would stop right there in the middle of the street instead of kind of quietly stepping aside, or even if they were on the job or running their business, just quietly stopping for a time of prayer when their heart is the opportunity permitted. They would stand right here in the street. And these prayers, a part of the way in which they would draw attention to themselves is that they would be long. Now, in Matthew 23, verse 14, Jesus says, "...woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayers." And therefore, you shall receive the greater damnation. So, you know, even when we have the opportunity to delete him, you know, in a public prayer, I think we need to. Be careful about not making long prayers that draw attention to themselves. From a pragmatic standpoint, as I said, you've got a congregation present. There may be elderly people, and if they're standing, they may need to take a seat. But more importantly, from a spiritual standpoint, it also makes you wonder, why is this prayer so long? Are you catching up on some prayer? You haven't been praying? That's the first thing you start wondering. Boy, you get praying and you think, oh boy, it's good to talk to God. I haven't talked to Him for a while. And they kind of get rolling there. It's just like, let's say, If my wife, again, let's say she's gone on a long trip for a couple of weeks. She gets back home and I haven't talked to her in a couple of weeks. Let me sit and have a lengthy conversation. How was your trip? Tell me about what happened. But let's say, on the other hand, you have a day where she's not working. She's home, around the house all day, and I'm there all day. And throughout the day, we have countless short conversations. I've been in touch with her all day long. So, that evening, I don't need to sit down and have a lengthy conversation. Tell me about your day. Well, I was there. I know about the day. We talked about our day all day long. So you don't need a lengthy conversation. But I think sometimes when people are called upon to pray, you almost get the sense, boy, you haven't been keeping touch with God, and so you kind of need a lengthy conversation. So for some of you, this may not be relevant. Maybe you're not called upon to pray often, but always at least be aware of that, that long prayers can be a way of drawing attention to the prayer itself rather than lifting our hearts and our minds, heavenward, where the direction should be. Christ's point is, although there is a place for public prayer, primarily prayer is a private thing. That's the place. That's the circumstance where we have, you know, detailed, heartfelt prayers. The second observation, turning attention back to Matthew chapter six, was that it should not be a mechanical kind of thing. In Matthew chapter six and verse seven, this again, notice the wording of Jesus where he addresses this idea. He says, but when you pray, use not vain repetitions as the heathen do. You know, the heathen. Saul, prayer is a means of manipulating the gods. Prayer was to them almost just like a magic charm. They believed in the power of words. And if you say the right words loud enough and often enough, while you force the gods to give the response that you want, you actually begin to impact the forces of nature and the gods who control nature. If you just keep repeating those words enough, Now, hold your place here and let me give you an illustration of this phenomenon from an Old Testament passage. 1 Kings 18. Now, this is a classic story. 1 Kings 18, verses 24-29. I say a classic story, but we do well to revisit it in this context and kind of see it in this light. 1 Kings 18, verses 24-29. The story that we're looking at here is the time when Elijah was engaged in a contest with the prophets of Baal. Hundreds of those false prophets. And there's just Elijah, one versus the hundreds. And they're going to settle this matter once and for all. Who's the real God? Baal, their false god, or Jehovah, the true God. And so this is where we pick up the narrative. And verse 24, then Elijah is speaking to these prophets in First Kings 18, verse 24. He says, And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord. And the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken. And Elijah said unto the prophets of Baal, Choose you one bullock for yourselves and dress it first, for you are many, and call on the name of your gods, but no fire under. And they took the bullock which was given them, and they dressed it and called on the name of Baal from the morning even until noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice nor any that answered. And they leaped upon the altar which was made. And it came to pass at noon that Elijah mocked him and said, Cry aloud, for he is a god. Either he is talking or he is pursuing or he's in a journey or for adventure, he's sleeping. There must be a wait. And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lances, for the blood gushed out upon them. And it came to pass when midday was passed and they procited to the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that there was neither voice or any to answer or any that regarded. Here's an example where the founder of Christ is talking about these heathens who are just saying these words over and over again and going through the rituals and routines, but it was all mechanical. And they expected that Baal could respond. They thought they could force him into responding, but nothing's happening, and no fire was falling down from heaven. Now, contrast with this, the simple prayer of Elijah. Now it's his turn. Verses 36-38. We're told in verses 36-38 that it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice that Elijah the prophet came near and said, Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God of Israel and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word. Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the Lord God and that thou hast turned their heart back again." Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice and the wood and the stones and the dust and licked up the water that was in the trench. Well, it's Elijah's time to pray, and his prayer was recorded in a verse and a half. It's a simple, short prayer. And the fire falls. What a difference. What a difference. Now, today, of course, most people don't worship idols in the sense that they did in the Old Testament, but much hasn't changed. I think we all know, for example, in Roman Catholic circles, they will say the rosary over and over as if there's some virtue in doing this ritual or this routine. But that's not really prayer. What about you? Has your prayer degenerated into a mere mechanical exercise? Just maybe going through the motions, well, I'm a Christian, I'm supposed to pray. Or are they the true, sincere, heartfelt times of genuine conversation and dialogue with God and wrestling with God over the issues of life? My, oh curse, your point of clarification again is needed. There are some prayers, like when you say grace before a meal, like giving a thanks for God's blessing. These may sound somewhat repetitive and formulaic. They're short, simple expressions of thanksgiving, and I think that's okay. Let me drag my wife into the sermon once again. If my wife does ten nice things for me in a day, and she likely would, or more, every time she does something nice, I might say, thank you, or thanks. I would probably respond the same way every time. A simple, short thank you is sufficient to acknowledge and express my appreciation. And that's the same thing. When you're saying grace before a meal, it's okay to express thanks in kind of a formulaic matter. I think that that doesn't mean that it's not a heartfelt thank you to God. The fact that we take time to stop and acknowledge God's blessings, I think is an appropriate thing to do. So we're not talking about that type of thing, but I'm talking about not when you say grace before a meal, but the more personal times of prayer. Those are the times when we need to be very careful that our prayer is truly a conversation with God. And this whole idea of not being mechanical, of course, although Christ is speaking here at prayer, understand that these are representative examples of our piety and of our expressions of our faith. This would apply to other areas of life as well. What about your church attendance? Just going through the motions of the church? I'm supposed to be there. I have to be there. Or do you really come looking for a blessing from God because you love the Lord and you want to honor him by honoring his day? What about singing the hymns during the time of congregational singing? Again, you're kind of going through the motions because the song leader announced the song number. I have to stand up and sing it. Lord, do you really pay attention to the lyrics? Do you think about them? Reflect upon the message of its theology? Let's be careful never to become just mechanical and routine in our worship and certainly in our prayer. As we progress, Christ gives us a third example. Let's look at verses 16 through 18 back in Matthew chapter six. Now, he goes on to talk a little bit more about prayer and how we should pray. First, we've recently seen how you shouldn't pray, primarily for public consumption and not in a mechanical way. He does go on to talk about how we should pray. We're going to skip over that for now this morning. We'll come back to that next week. But we're going to jump on down to verses 16 through 18 and look at his third example, though, dealing with the issue of piety. In verses 16 through 18, he says, Moreover, when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance, for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face, that thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy father, which is in secret. And thy father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly." So here Christ brings up the issue of fasting. Now, fasting technically was only commanded in the Old Testament on only one occasion, only one day of the year. That was on the Day of Atonement. But throughout the history of the Jewish people, they added extra fast days to their calendar. So this was extra biblical stuff. For example, after Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians, they initiated a fast day to commemorate and remember their sin that resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem. And in Jesus's time, many pious Jews held a tradition of fasting twice a week, every Monday, And every Thursday, they would fast. Now, why did Jews fast? What was the significance? What's the point of going without eating? Well, first of all, it was a sign of mourning and contrition. That was the purpose of fasting on the Day of Atonement. It was a way of showing one's contrition. So a sense of self-denial that really is humiliating and humbling oneself before God. That seemed to be a primary emphasis in the scriptures, although there were other reasons that people did fast. Which leads us to a second reason, and that is sometimes they would simply do it as a means of self-denial. It would be an exercise in self-discipline, a way of keeping our body under control. And so Jews would do this and say, listen, as believers, we ought to be people of character and temperance, and self-control is a godly character trait. And so I practice that in my own lifestyle by regularly denying myself food, showing I'm the boss. I'm in charge of my body. And of course, that does take some self-discipline. I remember my first experience trying to fast. I was 15 years old, and it was during the summer. I was out of school. And I set aside three days. I was going to read through the Bible in three days. I figured you can get through if that's all you do. You just kind of read all day long. I asked my parents to let me off of any chores or cleared up my schedule. I'm just going to read for the next three days. In fact, I had a chronological Bible where everything was arranged in the Bible in chronological sequence. I thought that would be an interesting experience to read through the Bible where everything is in chronological sequence. When a certain psalm was written, it's there. Or when the prophet lived, he put it there. And I thought, you know, I'm going to fast too while I do this reading and make a good spiritual experience. By lunchtime, I was starving. By 1 or 2 o'clock, I was so hungry I couldn't concentrate on anything I was reading. So I abandoned that notion. I thought, I'm not getting anything out of my reading because I can't even think about what I'm reading. So I went and got a bite to eat. And so I quickly abandoned my first experience at fasting. So it does certainly take some discipline. A third reason for fasting, though, is that it is a means of removing all physical concerns and distractions so that we can focus entirely upon the spiritual for a given period of time. It's really similar to the concept of why people will close their eyes when they pray. The point is we're removing all other distractions and we're taking our sight off of all other things. And fasting is a way of doing that for an extended period of time again, where you're kind of removing some of the distractions of daily life. Now, we find Jesus, remember, beginning his ministry by fasting for 40 days out in the wilderness. And I think that seemed to serve a twofold purpose. First of all, again, it was a form of self-denial. As a human being, Jesus was illustrating perfect self-control himself. He could go 40 days without eating. He was master of his body. And so he lives up to that model. And this is the case even when the devil tempts him. You know, after 40 days of not eating, the devil tempts him, you know, son of God, why don't you make yourself some bread out of these stones? Why are you going hungry when you could eat? But he's in control. But it is also, again, a form of removing himself from worldly distractions for this period of time as he prepares to enter into his ministry. It's a special time of spiritual focus. That's why he went out into the wilderness to get away from people and civilization and all the normal day-to-day stuff again. And so it seemed to be a twofold purpose for his fasting. The question then is, what is the expectation for believers today with regard to fasting? When Jesus talks about fasting here, then, is this relevant to you and me? Should we be practicing fasting? Are we spiritually deficient? Are we missing out somehow if we don't fast? And there are some that would suggest that. Some sometimes will say, you know, who practice fasting will tell you, boy, you're really missing out and you need to be doing this. Well, let me turn your attention to Luke chapter 5, verse 33. Luke chapter 5 and verse 33. Of course, we'll come back to Matthew 6 again momentarily, but Luke 5 and verse 33. We find this question posed to Jesus. We're told, they said unto him, Why do the disciples of John fast often and make prayers? And likewise the disciples of the Pharisees, but thine, eat and drink. So he's talking here about John the Baptist, and he and his followers fasted often. probably twice a week. They probably followed the usual routine, every Monday and Thursday. Also, the Pharisees did as well. They would regularly fast. And yet Jesus and His disciples did not fast, except of course the one occasion when Jesus is entering His ministry. He does the 40-day fast. But other than that, there's no record of Jesus and His disciples fasting during the time of their ministry. Now, based on the fact that a godly man such as John the Baptist and his followers did practice regular fasting, it's obviously OK to do so. Not like fasting is wrong. And since the Old Testament did command it on one occasion, one day out of the year, you can't say it's wrong to fast. But on the other hand, it certainly is OK not to fast, because Jesus and his disciples were not in a habit of fasting. So you can't say, boy, you're really unspiritual if you're not fasting, because from the one occasion when Jesus did it, he wasn't doing it. You had to be arguing that Jesus was spiritually deficient because he was not in a habit of fasting regularly. Now, Jesus does offer a response and he follows up in verse thirty four. Notice what he goes on to say, verse thirty four and thirty five. We're told that he said unto them, Can you make the children of the bride chamber fast while the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then they shall fast in those days. Now, was Christ here telling us to fast? Was He saying, well, this is an exceptional circumstance, but I expect believers to fast. Well, I don't think so. Because again, this is in a Jewish context. This is Jesus speaking in His capacity as the Messiah. And you've got the king of kings here coming over my kingdom. And he's talking about the Jewish nation. You're going to have reason to fast, because when you reject me and I'm gone, and the Romans come and Jerusalem is destroyed and you lose the nation, yeah, you're going to be fasting then. And notice again the cause of the fasting here. It is that primary purpose for fasting in the Bible, and that is as a form of showing contrition and for humiliating oneself and for mourning. And he's saying the Jewish nation is going to be mourning when you lose your Messiah. because you've rejected them. So I don't think that this is a statement that is so much relevant to the church. I would not interpret this as Jesus saying, well, I expect going forward, as a matter of expectation, that Christians should be fasting. In fact, fasting is mentioned 20 times in the New Testament. 18 of those references are in the Gospels, which, again, is in an Old Testament Jewish context. Jesus lives as a Jew under the law before the church had even begun. The other two times is in the book of Acts, all in one, the same passage where it's just referenced twice. This is when the church at Antioch prays and fasts before selecting Paul and Barnabas to go forth as missionaries. So apart from that one occasion in the book of Acts, that's it. And when you look at the New Testament epistles, not once, not once is fasting ever mentioned, not even in passing. So Paul, in his 13 epistles, doesn't talk about it. James, Peter, John, If, therefore, there was a real expectation from God that believers should be fasting and you're spiritually deficient if you're not doing this, you would expect somewhere in the epistles addressed to the church there would be some teaching or at least a reference and passing to fasting. But it's simply not there. The conclusion that I draw from that, then, is that you shouldn't let somebody make you feel that you're spiritually deficient if you're not in a habit of fasting. It's certainly okay if you want to pursue that for some of the reasons we've mentioned, as an exercise in self-discipline, or as a form of showing some contrition, or setting yourself apart from as many worldly distractions as possible. You're welcome to do that. There's nothing sinful about it. Just don't let somebody suggest that you need to be focusing on that. Far more important are other spiritual disciplines that the Bible does repeatedly speak of, In the epistles to the church, it's prayer, Bible reading, church attendance, and your involvement in evangelism. Those are the things you need to make a priority in your life. But turn our attention back to Matthew 6. Notice again that when fasting is practiced, how it is to be done. Well, verse 16, he says, moreover, when you fast, be not as the hypocrites of a sad town. Don't do it in a hypocritical fashion. That is not the show. In fact, you would have actually noticed that in all three examples that Christ gives you are piety. That is, almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. In all three cases, he says, don't do this in a hypocritical way. Don't be like the hypocrites. Now, the Greek word translated as hypocrite, which is actually what we get our English word, hypocrite, from the Greek word. That is the Greek word, hypocrite. Actually, its original meaning comes from the theater. It means to be an actor, to play the role of an actor, and to put on a mask. In the Greek theater, actors would change character, one character to the other, and they would have different masks. And they would put on one mask when speaking for one character and then a different mask. And that was what the word meant, to play the role of an actor, someone who's wearing a mask. And Christ is saying, hey, listen, don't just be an actor. This isn't a show. Now, performers, actors, they don't want to perform before an empty theater. They want an audience. And Christ is saying, but when you do your acts of piety, don't be like an actor who's looking for an audience. To be seen. And so the nature of the hypocrisy lay not in the fact that they were only pretending to fast, when in fact they weren't. And they really were fasting every Monday and Thursday. But it was in the fact that they did it for show. They did it to be seen, hoping and expecting that others would notice. We could, furthermore, say that they were hypocritical in the sense that they were only fasting, we could say, outwardly and physically, but not inwardly, not really in their hearts. In this regard, I turn attention to Matthew Chapter 15, where Christ makes a similar type of point. Of course, Christ makes that distinction between what you're doing outwardly versus whether you're doing it in your heart. In Matthew Chapter 15, verses 7 through 9, Christ quotes from the prophet Isaiah, He says, you hypocrites. Well, did Isaiah prophesy of you, saying, this people draw nigh unto me with their mouth and honored me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. And so Christ calls them here hypocrites. The nature of their hypocrisy is that you are saying things with your mouth, but the point is, it's only with the mouth, your heart. is far from me. And that is quite possible for a believer today, again, to do all the right things, to say the right things, and to go through the motions, but the heart not be in it. And that is hypocrisy. We've seen, then, that Christ warned against hypocrisy in all three examples he provides. But, of course, then the lesson is not to be restricted only to these representative examples. We'll always be careful that our expressions of piety and worship, then, are never intended for human approval, but only for divine approval. In fact, there was a well-known preacher in the early church, one of the church fathers. His name was Chrysostom. Now, that was actually the nickname that he picked up. Chrysostom is Greek for golden mouth. They called him the golden mouth one because he was such a great speaker, such a great orator. In fact, when he would preach sermons, the sermons would just be so fantastic, so well delivered, that when he finished preaching, Well, the people of the church would applaud and they would clap. Well, what a great sermon. And so he once preached an entire sermon on why it is inappropriate to clap after a sermon, because they kept doing that. So he said, well, I'm going to deal with that. Now, in the secular realm, we express our appreciation and approval of a performance by applause. The more we enjoy it, the more we applaud. Why not do so after a sermon or maybe a special music number? during a worship service. Well, Chrysostom argued that a sermon is not a performance. It's an act of worship. Special music during a service is not entertainment. It's not even a form of sacred entertainment. It's not Christian entertainment. This is not entertainment for Christians. It's not entertainment at all. It is an act of worship. And furthermore, the people in the pew are not an audience. You are not an audience. Instead, those in the pew should be participants who join actively in the worship by lifting their hearts and minds heavenward along with the speaker or the singer or the musician. Worship should always be participatory. So you join in with the person on the platform. You lift your thoughts and your mind heavenward along with him. No, we are not spectators then who, having been entertained and appreciated good performance, and say so with our applause. Well, then who is the audience? God is. Jesus stresses repeatedly in this passage that it is God, not other people, who is to observe our acts of devotion. And it is His prerogative, not ours, to express our pleasure or displeasure at the quality of the devotion. And of course, his assessment is not based upon performance, but upon what only he can see. And that is the heart of the one offering that worship. If we agree with the theology of a sermon or the message of a worship song, we believe it correctly and worthily extols God's glory. Let us express the agreement by all means. Let us throw in our amen. But, you know, ironically, after preaching, This entire sermon on why it is inappropriate to clap after a sermon, the people were so impressed with the sermon that they applauded. So easily are we tempted to retreat from our obligation to be active participants in the worship service and instead to adopt the stance of passive spectators, to arrogate to ourselves the right to assess or criticize an act of worship intended solely for the pleasure of God. not ours. In summary, then, let us give, not for the approval of others, but simply to meet the needs of others. Let us pray, not to impress others with our spirituality, but simply to get to know our Heavenly Father better. Let us fast, not for show, but for our own personal character development or contrition. All this does bring us to this question. How then does God express His appreciation for our acts of devotion? Well, for those who seek man's approval, there is no reward from God. At all. There is none. In the three examples that Christ provides here in Matthew 6, in all three examples, Christ stresses that those who do what they do for the eyes of men have already received their reward and it is already the reward they will get. Notice the last part of verse 2 in chapter 6. That expression. their reward. The last part of verse five. Verily, I say unto you, they have their reward. And again, the last part of verse 16. Verily, I say unto you, they have their reward. And when Christ says they have the reward, the Greek term here translated as have refers to receiving payment in full. It's like if you have a buyer, you give him a receipt showing that the purchase item is paid in full. That's the kind of terminology that Christ uses here. There is no reward. They were looking for the approval of men. They got what they were looking for. And that is it. And there will be no reward from God at all. Important point to recognize. But on the other hand, Christ also makes it clear that those who are seeking God's approval, they will receive a reward from God. Now, for some, this idea of rewards bothers them. I don't know why, but some people, it just bothers them. It strikes them as somewhat mercenary to teach that God would reward our acts of devotion. Oh, I shouldn't be rewarded for praying and fasting. Now, these people are more holy than God, I guess. They try to sound, even when they say it, it's like, well, you sound so spiritual, but is this really the teaching of the Scripture? Some would try to soften the idea of rewards from God by suggesting that in the end, that act of devotion is its own reward. Or that, for example, our reward in giving is simply to see the need met that we were hoping to meet. Wouldn't that be rewarding? Well, it would be, of course. Is that the only reward? They might suggest our reward in prayer comes only in getting to know our Heavenly Father better. Well, that's a reward. But is that the only reward? They would suggest that our reward in fasting is that we focus more intently upon the spiritual. Well, and that is rewarding, but is that really the total extent of God's reward? No, you cannot argue that. All of that ignores the broader teaching of the Bible on the issue of rewards. God honors our service, especially with honor and prestige and position. Time and again, He emphasizes that. Let me give you an illustration here from the Gospel of Matthew. Look at Matthew 19, verses 28-29. Matthew 19, verses 28-29. In this case, Christ is speaking to His own disciples here. Matthew 19, verses 28-29. And Christ doesn't simply respond by saying, Oh, your reward in following Me? Following Me is its own reward. Notice what He says. Verse 28-29, Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, that ye which have followed Me In the regeneration, when the Son of Man shall sit in the throne of His glory, you all shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone that has forsaken houses, or brothers, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive a hundredfold and shall inherit everlasting life." Listen, Christ tells these disciples, listen, in eternity, or when this kingdom comes, you're going to be honored with a position of prestige. You will be co-ruling the nation along with me. You'll be sitting on thrones. This is a real indefinite reward. How now for them in the future? For those who have forsaken their families, He says you'll receive a much larger family. Yes, this would be a spiritual family, but for all of eternity. For those, He says, who have forsaken houses and lands, you will receive a hundredfold in eternity. No, folks, rewards are real. Rewards are not only here and now. God has honor and prestige and position, as well as even some rewards that we would say would be somewhat tangible in store for those who serve Him faithfully. So God sees any rewards. Indeed, Christ speaks not only the fact that he would reward, but did you notice again that he speaks of God rewarding openly. Your father who sees in secret will reward you openly. In that regard, I think of how this has been true in the life of David Brainerd. Remember, he was a missionary to the American Indians in the early 1700s on the frontiers. for several years. Now, he was not a famous person. He was not well-known during his lifetime. He was not like a Jonathan Edwards or George Whitfield whom everybody in the colonies knew. Nobody really knew David Rayner. Some friends and family members. But during the few years that God gave him on this earth... By the way, he died at the age of 29. He was not saved until less than a decade before he died. He had less than ten years to make his mark. in this world. In the few years that he committed to ministering to these Indians, he traveled alone on horseback through the wilderness, over 15,000 miles. And this, while terribly sick, he had tuberculosis. He was always coughing and spitting up blood and fever and sweats. The guy was just miserable all the time. I mean, just in pain and misery. Struggled with depression. On a number of occasions, he'd say, Lord, just take me home. I'm ready to go. Take me out of this world. By the time he was ready to go, he'd see some real difference. Some Indians showing spiritual interest. More getting saved and converted. He'd kind of squirm on. I see God has a reason for me being here. Souls are being saved. And by the way, not one of those Indians professed faith in Christ went back in those professions. These weren't people who made a profession. They were changed lives and lastingly so. And he knew he was making a difference in lives, so he'd kind of hang on again. Despite all the misery and the pain and the lonely hours, you know what he spent so much of his time doing? Praying. David Brainerd was a prayer warrior. He prayed and prayed and prayed, but nobody knew about this. He was alone out in the wilderness. Even family and friends did not know what kind of prayer warrior he was. None of this was to be seen. And he wasn't a famous person. This was just one man alone in the wilderness carrying out his ministry and praying for these Indians that he had such a burden for. As I say, he did die young at the age of 29. And it was only after his death that a friend of his, Jonathan Edwards, the famous preacher, came across his personal prayer diary. began coming through it, began to read it, and was so touched and so impressed with this man's prayer life that he thought, well, I'll publish this thing. I think it's been a blessing to me. It'll be a blessing to others. It challenged me. It might challenge others. It was published. And from his personal prayer diary, many have been motivated to become missionaries. From his personal prayer diary, many Christians have been inspired to a life of prayer. Some 250 years later, and his work, his prayer diary is still in print. Christians are still being inspired and motivated by his example. Now, during his lifetime. He never could imagine that this little anonymous life would, so soon after his death, become an open book and that he would come to rank among one of the most famous missionaries in the history of the church, responsible for untold many others going on to becoming missionaries and prayer warriors like himself. He didn't realize he was a trailblazer. He didn't realize he was a pioneer. He was just following God's burden on his heart. But he prayed and prayed. You see, Brainerd prayed in private, and God honored him openly before the church. For 250 years, he's been extolled and honored as a great saint of God. But you see, that's just the beginning of the honor of God. No doubt has a store for him. Can you imagine an eternity? In eternity, what honor, what position, what prestige will be his? You see, that will be his full reward. of a war that will never cease and none can ever take away from Him. Because here is a man who is truly praying in private. Now let us pray. Our Father, we thank You for the opportunity that we've had this morning to revisit the Sermon on the Mount. Help us to hear the words of our Lord and to be people who express our faith sincerely. and for your honor and glory. And this we ask for the honor of your Son, Jesus the Christ. Amen.