Charity, Prayer, and Fasting: How not to lose your rewards

1. Charity, Prayer, and Fasting: How not to lose your rewards

2. The Mechanics of Love • Motivation: The Reason Why • Volition: Your Responsibility • Means: God’s Enablement

3. 6:1 Be vigilant not to perform your righteousness before men for the purpose of being seen by them; so if indeed you do not maintain this vigilance, then reward you do not have from your Father Who is in Heaven.

4. 3 Categories of “Practicing Righteousness” Prayer Fasting Giving Alms 6:16-18 6:1-4 6:5-15

5. 6:2 Therefore when you perform charitable giving, do not sound a trumpet before you, like the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets so that they may be glorified by man! Amen I am telling you, they have received in full their reward.

6. The Wisdom of Charity Prov 22:9 The one with a good eye, he will be blessed, For he gives some of his food to the poor/low/helpless (DAL). Prov 22:16 He who oppresses the poor/low/helpless to make himself increase, Who gives to the rich, certain decrease/lack! Prov 28:27 He who gives to the poor (ROSH) will never want, But he who shuts his eyes will have many curses.

7. Charity and Culture • Most givers do so for the purpose of self-advancement. • “It makes me feel good” • “If I give, I will get something I want” • Most poor people despise the notion of “charity.” • “We don’t want your charity.” • “I’m not some charity case!” • Yet the same people have no problem with government entitlements!

8. Q: What does the Mosaic Law call it when there is a mandated tax, part of which goes to feed the poor? A: “an offering to the Lord.” Num 18:24, cf. Dt 26:12 • Yet in our governmental structure of taxing some to feed others we say the “others” are entitled. • The false dignity of the “entitled” dishonors the Lord who has established charitable giving as a form of worship. • In general those in power who mandate entitlements for the able-bodied are trying to get their vote. • Yet ironically, most of the poor who begin taking their “entitlements” never escape from their poverty.

9. Giving can become a system of control. Remember Gen 14:23. • All sustainment comes from the Lord, who gives freely.

11. vv6:3-4: The real “Secret” So when you perform charitable giving, it must not know, your left what your right is doing! In order that your charitable giving will be in secret, and your Father Who sees in secret will reward you!

12. Secrets • The test of faith in “secret” acts of righteousness is: • Do you really believe in the existence of God? (even when things don’t go your way??) • Do you really believe that He is a “rewarder of those who seek Him?” • If you really believe what God has said, then there is no need to go after blessings from another source. • If you bless yourself, you will not be blessed by God. Mt 6:1-4, cf. Gen 14:23

13. 6:5 And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites Because they love in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets having stood, to pray in order to be seen by men. Amen I say to you, they have in full their reward.

14. Worship? • If performing charitable giving is a matter of faith and obedience between you and the Lord, how much more is PRAYER? • Yet, as with all their worship, religious “hypocrites” will take what rightfully belongs only to God and give it to people. • Their motivation is self-advancement because they “think more highly of themselves than they ought to think.” • Jesus is teaching a lifestyle of self-advancement through “self-abasement” or humility. • Don’t sell out for anything less than eternal reward.

15. 6:6 6 σὺ δὲ ὅταν προσεύχῃ, εἴσελθε εἰς τὸ ταμεῖόν σου καὶ κλείσας τὴν θύραν σου πρόσευξαι τῷ πατρί σου τῷ ἐν τῷ κρυπτῷ· καὶ ὁ πατήρ σου ὁ βλέπων ἐν τῷ κρυπτῷ ἀποδώσει σοι. But when you pray, go into your inner room and after closing your door, pray to your Father Who is in secret and your Father who Sees in secret will reward you.

16. “When” you pray • “When” is an important word in these passages. • WHEN you give • WHEN you pray • WHEN you fast • These things are expected by cultural conditioning from the Mosaic Law • However each of these things is part of the Law as a component of personal, internal-external righteousness.

17. v6 But when you pray, go into your inner room and after closing your door, pray to your Father Who is in secret and your Father who Sees in secret will reward you.

18. PRAYER: Phase 2 of a 3-Step Process • Phase 1: God Has Spoken • Phase 2: You pray, as commanded by God • Phase 3: God rewards you!

19. 6:7 7 Προσευχόμενοι δὲ μὴ βατταλογήσητε ὥσπερ οἱ ἐθνικοί, δοκοῦσιν γὰρ ὅτι ἐν τῇ πολυλογίᾳ αὐτῶν εἰσακουσθήσονται. Now when you pray, do not BATTALOGEW, like the Gentiles/Heathen/Nations/Everyone else, For they think that because of their many words they will be heard!

20. Battalogeo βατταλογέω (βαττολογέωv.l.; s. Rdm. 44; Mlt-H. 272) 1 aor.subj.βατταλογήσω onomatopoetic word; to speak in a way that images the kind of speech pattern of one who stammers,use the same words again and again,speak without thinking • Q: How are all the other people doing this when they pray? • A: They are casting spells by just repeating words without thinking!

21. v7 Now when you pray, Do not BATTALOGEW, like the Gentiles/Heathen/Nations/Everyone else, For they think that because of their many words they will be heard! Command Explanation

22. Prayer and Thought • The Lord wants us to think when we pray. • Saying the same thing over and over again is in direct opposition to the command of the Lord Jesus Christ. • Why? Because He wants you to mean it. • God’s philosophy of language is simple: Words have meanings that are construed by their authors. • So when you author a prayer, make sure you mean to say what you are saying!

23. 6:8 8 μὴ οὖν ὁμοιωθῆτε αὐτοῖς· οἶδεν γὰρ ὁ πατὴρ ὑμῶν ὧν χρείαν ἔχετε πρὸ τοῦ ὑμᾶς αἰτῆσαι αὐτόν. Therefore do not imitate them; For your Father knows the things you need (have need of) before you ask Him

24. 6:9 9 Οὕτως οὖν προσεύχεσθε ὑμεῖς· Πάτερ ἡμῶν ὁ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς· ἁγιασθήτω τὸ ὄνομά σου·

25. 6:10 10 ἐλθέτω ἡ βασιλεία σου· γενηθήτω τὸ θέλημά σου, ὡς ἐν οὐρανῷ καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς·

26. 6:11 11 τὸν ἄρτον ἡμῶν τὸν ἐπιούσιον δὸς ἡμῖν σήμερον·

27. 6:12 12 καὶ ἄφες ἡμῖν τὰ ὀφειλήματα ἡμῶν, ὡς καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀφήκαμεν τοῖς ὀφειλέταις ἡμῶν·

28. 6:13 13 καὶ μὴ εἰσενέγκῃς ἡμᾶς εἰς πειρασμόν, ἀλλὰ ῥῦσαι ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ.

29. 6:14 14 Ἐὰν γὰρ ἀφῆτε τοῖς ἀνθρώποις τὰ παραπτώματα αὐτῶν, ἀφήσει καὶ ὑμῖν ὁ πατὴρ ὑμῶν ὁ οὐράνιος· 15 ἐὰν δὲ μὴ ἀφῆτε τοῖς ἀνθρώποις, οὐδὲ ὁ πατὴρ ὑμῶν ἀφήσει τὰ παραπτώματα ὑμῶν.

30. 6:16 16 Ὅταν δὲ νηστεύητε, μὴ γίνεσθε ὡς οἱ ὑποκριταὶ σκυθρωποί, ἀφανίζουσιν γὰρ τὰ πρόσωπα αὐτῶν ὅπως φανῶσιν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις νηστεύοντες· ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν, ἀπέχουσιν τὸν μισθὸν αὐτῶν.

31. 6:17-18 17 σὺ δὲ νηστεύων ἄλειψαί σου τὴν κεφαλὴν καὶ τὸ πρόσωπόν σου νίψαι, 18 ὅπως μὴ φανῇς τοῖς ἀνθρώποις νηστεύων ἀλλὰ τῷ πατρί σου τῷ ἐν τῷ κρυφαίῳ· καὶ ὁ πατήρ σου ὁ βλέπων ἐν τῷ κρυφαίῳ ἀποδώσει σοι.