You are not to be like the hypocrites

Matthew 6:1-24 (NASB) from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.

² “So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. ³ But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, ⁴ so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

⁵ “When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. ⁶ But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. ⁷ “And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. ⁸ So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. ⁹ “Pray, then, in this way:

‘Our Father who is in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
¹⁰ ‘Your kingdom come.
Your will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹ ‘Give us this day our daily bread.
¹² ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
¹³ ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’

¹⁴ For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵ But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.

¹⁶ “Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. ¹⁷ But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face ¹⁸ so that your fasting will not be noticed by men, but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

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

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

John 1:1-5,14 says:      In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was with God in the beginning. ³ Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. ⁴ In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. ⁵ The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it….¹⁴ The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.     So what we have in these teachings of Jesus is the incarnate Word of God speaking the Word of God, becoming the written Word of God. Surely these words of Christ are vital to our faith and life.

In today’s text Jesus speaks about the hypocrisy of some religious people. Hypocrisy is one of the most often criticisms spoken against Christians. So let’s pay attention to what Jesus says about it.   Jesus says:       “So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.”     There are many wealthy people today who are great philanthropists, giving large sums of money to various causes. These gifts and donations are well documented and publicized. So while they may accomplish much good, as Jesus says, there is no eternal reward for the good they do. I believe we will soon see a time when Christians will truly be challenged in the motive of their giving. As the government moves to take away the tax benefits of Christian organizations individual contributors will no longer get a tax deduction for their giving. Currently a significant percentage of giving to churches and Christian organizations is motivated at least in part by this earthly reward. For us as believers the true measure of giving is not the amount we give but the heart with which we give. In Luke 21:1-4, it says:   And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury. ² And He saw a poor widow putting in two small copper coins. ³ And He said, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all of them; ⁴ for they all out of their surplus put into the offering; but she out of her poverty put in all that she had to live on.”     The good news for believers is that God promises both a heavenly and earthly reward for those who will faithfully give to His work. Malachi 3:10 says:    Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,” says the Lord of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.

Jesus then begins to speak about hypocrisy in prayer. Surely there are many today who, like the hypocrites Jesus speaks about, love to pray on Sunday morning in church, yet throughout the week their conversation with God is minimal at best and perhaps nonexistent. The true power of prayer is not in the wonderful oration, it is not in the well planned progression of thoughts and themes. The power of prayer is that it truly is a conversation with the almighty God, the creator of the universe. It is based on a relationship that is forged in the intimate times of fellowship and communion with God. Once again the power of prayer is not based on the amount of words, but rather on the heart of the prayer. One of the greatest examples of powerful prayer is found in Matthew 14:29-31.

And He said, "Come!" And Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus.  But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord, save me!"  Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him,  

Three short words from the heart of one who believed got an immediate answer. Jesus says: “Your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.”   We are encouraged though to ask God for the things we need or desire. Philippians 4:6-7 says:  Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; ⁷ and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.  One final thing regarding prayer, Jesus says:  “when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.”    Though Jesus encourages us to pray in secret, I believe the greatest power of prayer is released when we pray out loud. God spoke the world into existence. He didn’t think it into existence. Just as when Jesus, the Word, teaches the Word there is powerful revelation, if we as believers of the Word will pray the Word there will be power released. Jesus said He would give us the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Praying the truth and promises of God’s Word into the situations and circumstances of our lives is one of those keys, a key about which He says:  "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven." (Matthew 16:19)

Let me leave you with one final word of encouragement and exhortation. As a believer, a follower of Christ, don’t concern yourself with the world’s opinion of you. Jesus says: “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. ¹⁹ If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you. (John 15:18-19)    They accused Jesus of hypocrisy too, actually saying that the miracles He performed were done by the hand of the devil.(Matthew 12:24)  So don’t be concerned if the world calls you a hypocrite. On the other hand, if God sees you as a hypocrite, repent. God alone can judge the heart. May we be so bold as the psalmist who says:   Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts; ²⁴ And see if there be any hurtful way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way. (Psalm 139) May we then pray as Jesus teaches us to pray:  

‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.  ‘Your kingdom come.
Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.  ‘Give us this day our daily bread.
¹² ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.  ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.   Amen.’     Amen.