[Biblemat] The Messenger Vol 002 Iss 036

[T. Sean Sullivan]

The Messenger

Published Weekly by Main Street Church of Christ

306 West Main Street, Newbern, TN 38059   731-627-3514



bibleanswers at charter.net                                    www.mainstreetcofc.com

 

Bulletin Editor: T. Sean Sullivan

 

VOLUME 002::ISSUE 036::October 28, 2007  

 

NEW SERIES: Lessons Drawn from the "Sermon on the Mount"

ARTICLE ONE: Humility In Service Matthew 6:1-7

ARTICLE TWO: Our Best Investment Matthew 6:19-21

 

Article One: Humility In Service Matthew 6:1-7

 

            The Sermon on the Mount continues into chapter six of Matthew. Jesus now focuses on the need of humility. Jesus was not the only instructor in the ways of "humility". This subject was also one of the many that we see in the lives of the apostles. They teach us that God owns all the glory and we are only His servants. There are situations recorded where people wanted to give the apostles glory for the work which God accomplished through them. In Acts 3:11-13, where the crowd focused their attention on Peter and the rest of the apostles as if they were the source of the power-even to the point where there were some who attempted to declare Paul and Barnabus as "gods" (Acts 14:8-15). In those situations the apostles denied themselves and pointed to God as the source of power. It was never the goal of these "works" or the workers to seek glory from men; they were strictly for the glory of God. The apostles knew that God would reward them. 

This part of the Sermon on the Mount-Matthew 6:1-7 uses both prayer and charitable deeds as examples to teach us. There is a great point that we need to grasp so that we can achieve what Jesus expects. In all things we must remember that God knows. Whatever we do, we need to focus on the fact that God knows our deeds and we should trust that He will reward us. 

 

Doing Good Without A Trumpet (1-4)
Jesus says, "Do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them". What are charitable deeds? Charitable deeds are the action of "sharing what you have with those who have not." Someone in need of charity is unable to provide for themselves. It would be easy to get a "big head" when someone else needs your help. We may feel like some kind of hero swooping down from the sky. Maybe "Charitable Deed Man"; along with this improper attitude also comes the search for vain-glory and adoration. We must realize that we too could just as easily become one who is in need. When it comes to other's need we are limited to sharing only from what we have been blessed with. 

Jesus continues to says, "Do not be like the hypocrites who sound a trumpet". A hypocrite is someone who attempts to look religious when they callused and worldly on the inside. You might say they are "a wolf in sheep's clothing"; like the self-seeking scribes (Luke 20:45-47). Jesus said that they "appear" to be pious for their own gain; they do not love, they hate-they devour widows' houses. 

We need to keep our charitable deeds between us and God. We help others because we can and not because we are seeking recognition or glory. It is possible to do a charitable deed without the recipient knowing. To accomplish this proper conduct in charity we should try to not tell anyone about what we have done or plan to do. The anonymity of our deeds is not absolutely essential it is the fact that we do not purposely seek more than just doing the deed itself-knowing that even if no one ever knows you did it, God knows.

 

Praying Without A Scene (v. 5-7)

Jesus continues with His discussion of humility and now switches examples to prayer. Jesus says, "Do not be like the hypocrites who love to stand on the corner of the streets". The hypocrites were perverting one of our greatest blessings and privileges-prayer. In prayer we have an opportunity to: Praise our Creator (Consider the Psalms); open our hearts to God (James 4:8); seek relief from our daily burdens (1 Peter 5:7) and as a Christians prayer can be used to ask forgiveness for sin (Acts 8:22). In addition prayer can be used to ask for wisdom (James 1:5) or even the well-being of self and others (Ephesians 1:16; Romans 1:9; Philemon 4). The "hypocrites" were abusing the opportunity of "prayer" in order to draw attention to themselves. Prayer, that is supposed to be a humble petition, had been changed into a pursuit of vain-glory and base selfishness. 

Jesus instructs us to keep our prayers between us and God. Jesus instructed His audience to pray in secret-even as far as to close the door of your own room. We understand that prayer is not confined to our rooms just as Jesus Himself prayed in the Garden (Matthew 26) so there must be something else to this teaching. Prayer is between man and God and it is not to be misused for personal pride. We are to pray meaningfully. Prayer is to be full of thought and a humble embrace of what prayer is. One may stand up in our midst and proclaim, "Let us pray" then, with simple words and a humble attitude, praise and petition our Creator-this would be right. On the other hands if another was set on impressing us with grand words and overt humility he would have to start his prayer with, "Listen to me pray." Prayer is to be from the heart and not just a memorized verse. Jesus told us not to use "vain repetitions in our prayers. We need to understand that our words change with our needs and that there is no single solution to memorize and use with every situation of prayer.

 

Conclusion:

Religion is not for prestige or self-glorification. It is the practice of faith which has been revealed by our Creator; through which we seek salvation by humble submission to His will. God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble (1 Peter 5:5-6). When you do good do it because it is your privilege to be able to do so. Do not seek more from your good deed than merely your ability to see that it is done. 

When you pray; pray to God open your heart to Him because it is a privilege to pray. If your goal is to impress those around you then you have lost the true meaning of prayer. These two points declare the necessity of pleasing God in our lives. It would please God if you would change your life for Him today by becoming a Christian. There is a chart on the back of this bulletin that outlines the Bible plan of salvation. Please read the passages that it refers to and obey God's will today. ~tss

 

 

Article Two: Our Best Investment Matthew 6:19-21

 

Many of us put away money for a "rainy day". We call it a "nest egg", "savings", or "an investment in our future". How many of us are saving for the judgment day? Now hear this clearly: There is nothing wrong with having money! There is nothing wrong with having a lot of money. In fact, we are supposed to be good stewards of the blessings that God blesses us with and we are responsible to use all blessings well.

In this life we have more than just an "earthly tomorrow" to prepare for. Each of us has an unknown amount of time that will end, bringing us into an "eternal tomorrow". In this lesson we need to look at the text of Matthew 6:19-21. Jesus shares with us an investment plan for a place where it never rains. 

"Lay Not Up For Yourselves Treasures on Earth" (v. 19)

Does this verse teach that we are forbidden to have earthly possessions? Does it teach that we cannot be rich-cannot invest in a home or a retirement fund? No, we know that money is not condemned in the scriptures. Jesus does warn of the dangers of riches (Matthew 19:24) but it is the "love" of money that causes the problems (1 Timothy 6:6-10). We are clearly told not to put our trust in money (1 Timothy 6:17). We know that many brethren were wealthy. In Jerusalem, in Acts 4, there were brethren with land and extra houses. Among those brethren was Barnabus (Acts 4:36-37). Lydia was a seller of "high-end" goods (Acts 16:14-16). There must be something else that Jesus was trying to say. The warning is against the compelling desire for excess; Jesus is explaining that we must not put all of our focus on this world.

If we focus on today and tomorrow on the "planet earth" then we fit what Jesus is warning against here. Earthly treasures cannot be taken with you.  Jesus told us the truth about the temporal nature of our material things.  Material good can become moth food, they can corrode, and they can be stolen. There is a better investment for our time and energy. 

 

"Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven" (vs. 20)

Our wisest investment in not for a "rainy day" it is for "the Judgment Day". Our time and energy invested toward: reading, studying, and obeying God's word which results in our salvation (1 Timothy 4:13, 15-16). Unlike the "stock market" or "our tomorrows" the Judgment is certain. On that day we will be called to give an account for what we have done (2 Corinthians 5:10). 

We understand how to build up treasures here. We know that we must put money away in order to build up savings here. We can relate to these savings because they are tangible but how do we lay up treasures in Heaven? Heaven is spiritual-so we must build up spiritually. The guide of spiritual things is the word of God (Romans 8:3-6). We must obey God's word in order enjoy His promised return.

 

 

"Where Your Treasure Is, There Will Your Heart Be Also" (v. 21)

If someone were to ask you, "What is your greatest goal?"  Your immediate response is a clear indication of where your heart is.  If your answer has nothing to do with going to Heaven-we know what that indicates. 

If my heart is not on Heaven how can I get it there? Become more spiritually minded.  Fill your heart with the word of God (1 Timothy 4:13, 15-16; 2 Timothy 3:16-17).  Actually do what it says (James 1:17-22). Spend more time in prayer (1 Thessalonians 5:17-18).  When we grow in our focus toward God will be what we need to be. We will grow and produce fruit (John 15:1-8). We will not be choked out by the cares of this world (Luke 8:14). We will enjoy our life here (Galatians 5:22-23) but we will also acknowledge that this is not the end and we are just pilgrims in search of a better country (Hebrews 11:13:16).

 

Conclusion:

Obedience to this command of Jesus requires maturity. We need to be mature enough to know the difference between temporal and eternal. The "shiny things" of the world are very distracting but we must focus on the more important things of God. We must put all things in their right place-God first; the rest after God. We are living in a time when more people are investing for their future.  We need to take our view of the "future" to the next step.

Are you invested in God? He has invested much in you. His rewards are eternal, His promises are true, and He is waiting for you. Let's each determine that we are going to find our reward in Heaven and do God's will to achieve it. Will you obey God, right now? ~tss

 

 

 

 



 

 

If you are enjoying The Messenger and you know someone else who would like to receive it. Please forward it to them or send me their email address and I will add it to the list.   Sean

 

 
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