"Give"

Good morning, church.

Would you turn with me to Matthew chapter 6?

Matthew 6 · chapter mention

Matthew chapter 6, that's page 761 in the Pew Bible.

Matthew 6 · chapter mention

We're continuing our series in the Sermon on the Mount today.

We're going to focus in chapter 6 on verses 1 through 4,

but to get the context, I want to read all the way to verse 21, actually.

So let me pray for us, and then I will read.

Father, we ask that as we come now to your word,

your spirit would do his work to help us to see Christ

and to see how our union with him continues to cleanse us,

shape us, transform us into the kind of people

that you've created and redeemed us to be.

Would we see his beauty and his majesty and his glory

and in beholding him become more and more like him?

We pray this in Jesus' name, amen.

All right, Matthew chapter 6, 1 through 21.

Matthew 6 · chapter mention

Jesus says this,

Thus, when you give to the needy,

sound no trumpet before you as the hypocrites do

in the synagogues and in the streets,

that they may be praised by others.

Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.

But when you give to the needy,

do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,

so that your giving may be in secret,

and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites,

for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues

and at the street corners that they may be seen by others.

Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.

But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door

and pray to your Father who is in secret,

and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases

as the Gentiles do,

for they think that they will be heard for their many words.

Do not be like them,

for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

Pray then like this,

Our Father 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,

and forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

For if you forgive others their trespasses,

your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

But if you do not forgive others their trespasses,

neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

And when you fast,

do not look gloomy like the hypocrites,

for they disfigure their faces,

that their fasting may be seen by others.

Truly, I say to you,

they have received their reward.

But when you fast,

anoint your head and wash your face,

that your fasting may not be seen by others,

but by your Father who sees in secret.

And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth,

where moth and rust destroy,

and where thieves break in and steal.

But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven,

where neither moth nor rust destroys,

and where thieves do not break in and steal.

For where your treasure is,

there your heart will be also.

Well, if you're a basketball fan,

you probably know that the college basketball season

begins when?

Tomorrow.

Right?

Monday, November 4th.

Of course, if you're a UConn fan,

you have to wait till a little later in the week.

The women play their first game on Thursday.

I think they have like a scrimmage today

or some off-season game today.

But the men's team will begin their season on Wednesday.

Either way, all across the country, pretty soon,

these athletes are going to take the court

and find out what they're made of.

Now, if you're like me,

you'll watch them,

and honestly,

you'll think that they make it look so easy.

Right?

As they drive and pass and shoot,

as they bury shot after shot

from 22, 23, 24 feet away

behind the three-point line,

it all just seems natural, right?

It seems easy.

It seems like anybody could do it

when you watch them.

Until, that is,

you actually try it yourself.

Right?

Until you actually try to dribble and shoot and pass,

you realize it's not as easy as it looks.

So what is it?

How do these young women and men get so good,

so natural,

at something that quite honestly

is really, really difficult?

One word.

Practice.

Hours and hours and hours of practice.

And that's not just true of basketball, right?

Or athletics in general.

Think of the hours of intentional practice

represented by a great musician,

or a great artist,

or a great writer.

You've probably heard this statistic

popularized by Malcolm Gladwell

that it takes 10,000 hours

to become an expert in something, right?

Of course, people have taken issue

with that exact number.

But the point is well made.

The key

is deliberate

practice.

Now,

in Matthew chapter 5,

Matthew 5 · chapter mention

in chapter 5 of Matthew's gospel

that we've spent nearly all of the fall

studying so far,

Jesus has described

a way of being in the world

that does not come naturally.

He's described a way of

complete and costly faithfulness

and of utter truthfulness,

a way of being in the world

where we respond

to evil with good,

a way where

we love

not just our family

or our neighbors,

but we love

even our enemies.

So how do we become

that sort of people?

How does this

unnatural,

difficult way

that Jesus describes

become more natural,

more instinctual,

in us,

His followers?

Well,

on the one hand,

of course,

it's God's work in us

and through us

through the Holy Spirit.

The same Spirit

that causes us

to be spiritually regenerated

through faith in Jesus,

the same Spirit

that causes us

to be brought

from death

to life spiritually,

continues His work

to make us more like Jesus

throughout our life.

life.

But if you ask

any mature Christian,

any mature Christian

will tell you

that the Holy Spirit's work

doesn't happen

automatically.

It takes practice.

And that's what

this next section

of the Sermon on the Mount

is all about.

Practice.

You see,

you won't become

the person

of chapter 5

without taking up

the practices

of chapter 6

and the other practices

that are described

in the New Testament.

So,

with that in mind,

I want to consider

three things today

in light of this passage.

First,

the necessity

of these spiritual practices,

and then second,

we're going to look

at the danger of them,

and then third,

we'll look at the reward

of spiritual practices.

So,

first,

think about the necessity

of spiritual practices.

In verse 1,

Jesus talks about

practicing your righteousness,

right?

Doing things

to put it into motion,

to get it going,

to do it,

to perform it.

And of course,

right away in verse 1,

he brings up

the danger and the reward,

and we'll get to those

soon enough,

but first,

we have to see

this important point,

that Jesus is assuming

that we will be

doing these things.

He lists three

very common practices here,

giving to the poor,

praying,

and fasting.

And notice,

Jesus doesn't say

to his disciples,

if you do these things,

he says,

when,

when you do these things,

when you give,

when you pray,

when you fast.

Now,

there's a big difference,

right?

There's a big difference

if you say

to your teenager,

when you clean your room,

be sure to change

the sheets on your bed.

There's a difference

between saying that

and,

if you clean your room,

be sure to change

the sheets on your bed.

If you say,

when,

then you're assuming

they're going to clean

the room.

You're sort of telling them,

clean the room.

If you say,

if you clean your room,

then you know

that the room

will probably stay dirty

for an indefinite

period of time,

right?

So,

Jesus isn't saying here

that giving to the poor

or praying

or fasting

are optional.

We can just take them

or leave them.

No,

he's assuming

that his disciples

will indeed

do these things

when you give.

So,

this underscores

our first point.

These practices

are necessary.

We might say

that discipleship

requires

some discipline,

some structure.

as Paul will say

in 1 Timothy 4, 7,

train yourself

for godliness.

I think a lot of us

take what we might call

the Allen Iverson

approach to Christianity.

Do you remember

the infamous interview

with Allen Iverson,

right?

I'm supposed to be

the franchise player

and we're talking

about practice,

right?

Not a game,

not the game

I go out there

and die for,

but we're talking

about practice.

Do you remember

that clip?

Right?

Some of you are like,

I thought that was

from Ted Lasso.

No,

it's from Allen Iverson.

YouTube it.

Go figure it out.

Right?

You know,

but the point is this.

Some of us

take the approach

that when the moment

comes,

when it's game time,

when we're in a situation

and we need to live

the way that Jesus

calls us to live,

the way of Matthew 5,

the way of forsaking

bitterness and anger,

the way of living

with complete purity

of heart,

the way of loving

our enemies,

the way of renouncing

revenge,

the way of acting

with truthfulness

and integrity

and faithfulness,

we think that in the moment

when the game is on,

it'll just happen

automatically.

But it doesn't.

We lust and we lie

and we curse our enemies

rather than bless them.

And then,

in the aftermath,

seeing our failures,

we think,

wait,

I thought God's grace

was supposed to make me

a new person.

I thought the Holy Spirit

living inside of me

was going to make me

more like Christ

from the inside out.

and then you get discouraged.

And maybe you even

start to doubt

whether the promises

of Christianity

are even true.

Maybe this whole thing

about a new life

is just

vain,

ephemeral.

But the reality is

we've been skipping practice.

Jesus doesn't say if,

he says when.

When you give to the poor,

when you pray,

when you fast.

Have you been

practicing your righteousness

in these biblical ways?

Consider the discipline

of giving

that Jesus highlights

in verses 1 through 4.

You see,

the regular practice

of giving,

generously and sacrificially,

especially to the poor,

this practice

is something

that the Holy Spirit

uses by his grace

to shape our hearts,

to shape our habits

into Christlikeness.

How so?

Well, think of it this way.

First,

when we give,

when we give generously

and sacrificially,

especially to the poor,

we're acknowledging

in that giving

that everything

that we own

ultimately belongs to God.

When it comes

to our material possessions,

we can often think,

can't we,

that I earned this

and I can do it,

do with it

as I please, right?

This is mine.

But it's not, actually.

You and I are creatures.

Everything that we have

is a gift from our Creator.

All the gifts and talents,

all the pathways

and open doors

that we've experienced

in our life,

they're all gifts.

And the practice of giving

works that reality

into our hearts.

What you and I have

is not ours by rights.

It's in our hands

as a gift.

But it's not just a gift.

It's an undeserved gift, actually.

You see,

the truth about us as humans

is not just that we're creatures

made in the image of God.

The truth is also

that we're sinners,

that we've rebelled against God,

that we've not loved God

with all our heart, soul,

mind, and strength,

that we've not kept His Word

as we should.

Instead, we've created

and we've loved

idols of our own choosing.

So we don't deserve

God's good gifts.

We deserve the opposite, actually.

We deserve God's wrath.

But in Christ,

God doesn't give us

what we deserve.

He gives us what we don't deserve.

He gives us His grace.

Earlier in the service,

we read this from the Apostle Paul.

2 Corinthians 8-9.

Paul says,

For you know the grace

of our Lord Jesus Christ,

that though He was rich,

yet for your sake

He became poor,

so that you,

by His poverty,

might become rich.

You see,

every time we give

sacrificially,

especially to the poor,

we're reminding ourselves

of the gospel of grace.

When we give,

especially to those

who cannot repay,

right?

And we do that.

We give,

especially to those

who cannot repay,

because we've been given

an undeserved gift

that we could never repay.

So you see what's happening.

This practice of giving

is working into us

the truths of the gospel.

We're creatures

who've received everything

as a gift,

and we're sinners

who've received

grace in Christ.

And it's through

the practice of giving

that's one of the ways

that we internalize

this more and more deeply.

And you know,

if through that practice

of giving

you come to internalize

more and more

that deep reality

of the gospel,

then

when someone

asks something of you,

like Jesus mentions

in Matthew 5, 42,

right?

He says,

give to the one

who begs from you

and do not refuse

the one who would

borrow from you.

If you've already

been in the practice,

then you can step

to the free-for-line

and you can make the shot.

Now,

press a little deeper.

If through giving

your heart

has been trained

to be generous

because you see

more and more

that everything you have

is an undeserved gift,

then what about

when someone wrongs you?

The proverbial slap

on the cheek, right?

How will we respond

to offense?

Will we suddenly

grip our rights

and demand repayment,

an eye for an eye?

Or will our hearts

have the habit

already ingrained

to respond

with generosity,

even sacrificially so,

even to those

who may not deserve it

and who can't repay us

in the right way?

Is not my reputation

also a gift from God,

an undeserved gift?

Isn't that the very truth

of the gospel,

that we get a reputation

from Christ

that's not our own,

that we don't deserve?

So even to the offense,

we can respond

with generosity,

turning the other cheek,

giving something

that's undeserved.

We become the people

of chapter 5

through practice.

Now here's the hopeful thing.

Here's the hopeful thing.

Whereas,

turning the other cheek

and giving to the one

who asks us

are really hard

and they don't come naturally,

right?

This practice of giving

is actually doable.

It's not necessarily

simple or easy,

but it's doable

for those who have

the Holy Spirit.

You see,

spiritual practices

are things we can do

that the Holy Spirit

uses to shape us

into the sort of people

who can then go

and do the things

we didn't think

we could do.

So this is the first point

then,

the necessity

of spiritual practices.

And I think the question is,

are you and I,

are we practicing?

Now this leads

to the second point,

the danger

of spiritual practices.

Beware,

Jesus says in verse 1.

Beware.

There's a danger here

and the danger is this.

He says,

beware of practicing

your righteousness

before other people

in order to be seen

by them.

You see,

because of indwelling

and remaining sin

in our hearts,

we can take

a good thing

like sacrificial giving,

especially to those

in need,

and we can twist it

as a means

to exalt our own ego.

Right?

The danger

is always present

that we will become,

as Jesus says

in verse 2,

like the hypocrites.

Now the word hypocrite

originally meant

an actor,

someone who wore

a costume and a mask

and performed a part

in a drama.

And what do actors do?

Actors get on a stage

and a crowd gathers

and they perform

their role

for the purpose

of human applause.

Now just to be clear,

Jesus isn't condemning

the theatrical arts,

right?

If you're a theater major,

wonderful, right?

Go for it.

We need Christians

who are salt and light

in the world of theater.

Jesus is obviously

making a spiritual point here.

If we do engage

in our spiritual practices

like an actor

on the stage,

then that's a serious problem.

That's a serious problem.

After all,

who are the actors

when the crowd

leaves the theater

and the lights go down?

When no one is there

to see and applaud

and they take off

the costume

and they take off

the mask,

who are they?

They're their old self.

They're not the person

they were performing.

They're just

themselves.

You see,

if we do spiritual practices

in order to be seen

by others,

Jesus says,

then that's it.

You have your reward.

Your reward.

Your reward is simply

the fleeting,

empty praise of humans,

but you,

you remain

your old self.

This is why

seemingly godly Christians

and seemingly godly

Christian leaders,

even those with all

the right theology,

even those with all

the right external actions,

can sin so spectacularly.

Because for years

and years,

their spiritual practices

were done primarily

like an actor

on the stage.

They did it to be seen

by others,

to be seen as godly,

to be seen as spiritual,

to be seen as wise.

But when the crowds

go away

and the lights went down,

they took off the costume,

they took off the mask,

they took off the makeup,

and they were unchanged.

They were still

their old self.

Essentially,

they did nothing

but build up treasures

on earth

where moth and rust

destroy

and where thieves

break in and steal.

It was all done

to be seen by others.

Did you know that hypocrisy

is one of the greatest reasons

why people leave the church?

Just time and time again,

statistics show that.

It's easy to point

the finger at others,

isn't it?

What about us?

When we give,

are we blowing a trumpet

so that others see?

Of course,

it's never that obvious,

is it, right?

Jesus isn't literally saying

like there were people

when the offering plate

came around,

they were like,

boop, boop, boop, boop.

You know,

so.

And we don't do that either,

right?

You're not sort of

opening your wallet

and sort of

letting everyone see you

put it in.

You know,

it's more likely

a casual comment

dropped here or there

in a conversation

about the charity work

we did

or the cause

that we give to,

you know.

Nothing wrong

with sharing what you do.

There's nothing wrong,

as Jesus says early

in the Sermon on the Mount,

with others

seeing your good deeds

and glorifying

our Father in heaven.

But sometimes

we share those things

in order to be seen

by others,

don't we?

It's hoping,

right?

It's hoping that others

will see you

as a good person

or a generous person

or hoping that others

will see you

and know that you're

not like those other

kind of people

who are selfish

and stingy

and don't care about

economic justice

like you do,

right?

But let's push

a little deeper even.

when we give,

does our giving

make us feel

solidarity

or superiority?

Is our giving done

because we know,

we know we aren't

any better

than the ones

that we give to

and this is a way

to express

and forge

that solidarity?

Is that how we give?

Or is it done

as an act of superiority?

Well, how do you know

you're doing it

as an act of superiority?

How do you feel

when someone

doesn't say thank you?

If you give

sacrificially,

generously,

and the gift

isn't acknowledged,

no card,

no thank you,

how do you feel?

How do you feel?

How do you feel?

It's easier,

it's much easier

to be a hypocrite

than we think.

And it's much more

dangerous than we realize.

Beware,

Jesus says,

lest

our spiritual practices

like giving

be more about

bolstering our own ego

instead of humbling

and transforming

our hearts.

So what's the answer?

How do we

counteract

the actor,

the hypocrite

that's in all

of our hearts?

Jesus says this,

he says,

when you give

to the needy,

don't let your

left hand know

what your right hand

is doing

so that your giving

may be in secret.

This is something

Jesus will say

again and again

in this passage.

When you give,

when you pray,

when you fast,

do it in secret,

do it so that

no one else sees.

Give so anonymously,

so discreetly,

it's as if not even

your right hand

knows what your

left hand's doing.

What if no one

ever knew,

what if no one

ever would know

how much you gave?

That's the challenge.

That's the invitation

that Jesus puts

before us.

Give in such a way

that no one will see

and no one will know.

Then your practice

will start to become

more about

transforming your heart

and not stoking

your pride.

God.

Now this leads

on to our last point.

Again, Jesus has shown

us the necessity

of these spiritual practices

and he's pointed out

the danger of doing

them for the wrong reasons.

And third and last,

he talks about

the reward of them.

Let's pick up again

in verse 3.

He says,

But when you give

to the needy,

do not let your

left hand know

what your right hand

is doing so that

your giving may be

in secret.

And your Father,

who sees in secret,

will reward you.

When no one else

sees and no one

else knows,

Jesus says,

your heavenly Father

sees and knows.

Nothing is hidden

from him.

Nothing is secret

from him.

There's an old

catechism that we used

to do with our kids.

One of the questions

early on was,

you know,

can you see God?

And the answer was,

no,

I cannot see God,

but he always sees me.

You know,

it's great.

But what a wonderful truth

that the things we do

away from the eyes

of others

in secret,

God sees

and God knows.

You see,

when we practice

giving quietly,

anonymously,

when we don't draw

attention to ourselves,

what we're doing is

is that we're weaning

our hearts

from human praise.

We're getting off

that addiction

to human praise,

and we're training

our hearts

to desire the approval

of God alone.

We're training

our hearts

to want to please God,

not people.

And in so doing,

Jesus says,

there's a great reward.

You know,

it's interesting

that for Jesus

it's not a question

of whether or not

a human will be motivated

by a reward,

right?

It's interesting.

Both the actor,

both the hypocrite,

and the genuine disciple

in Jesus' thinking

are after a reward.

It's just a question

of which reward

do they treasure more?

Will you go after

the reward of human praise

and approval?

If so,

Jesus says,

okay,

then you'll have it.

You got what you're after.

Praise and adoration.

But does it last?

And does it satisfy?

Of course not.

But notice then,

Jesus doesn't turn around

and say,

well,

the problem is

you shouldn't do things

for a reward at all.

You should just do them

because it's the right thing

to do.

It's interesting.

Jesus is much more wise,

much wiser than that.

He knows that the human heart

always does something

for a reason,

for a goal,

for a telos,

for a reward.

Every deed is done

because the heart

treasures something.

The question is,

what do you want to treasure?

What is it you prize?

Your heavenly Father,

Jesus says,

rewards

those who give

not for the praise of people

but simply for the gaze

of God.

And what is that reward?

What is the reward

that Jesus talks about here?

Well,

I think it's safe to say

that it's certainly

not a material reward.

It's not as if Jesus

is saying that God

promises us

masses of earthly wealth

and health

if we give to the needy,

right?

Well,

if that's not it,

then what is it?

Well,

one of the rewards

that we mentioned

we've already talked about

in the first point,

right?

One of the rewards

is being forged

more and more

into genuine

Christ-like character.

The Father will make us

by the Holy Spirit

more and more like Christ,

more and more

like the sort of people

that Jesus describes

in Matthew 5.

You see,

when the actors

have no one around,

when the crowds go home

and the lights go down,

when they take off

their mask

and their costume,

who are they?

They're their old self,

right?

But for the genuine disciple,

when the crowds go home

and the lights go off,

who are they?

They're becoming

something new.

not their old self,

but their true self,

you see.

Right there,

whether people are watching

or not watching,

they're like a new tree

pushing up through the dirt

with roots that are sinking down

deeper and deeper

and their branches are spreading

and their leaves are evergreen

and they're bearing fruit

in season and out of season.

That's what's happening.

And you know,

unlike the fleeting praise

of people,

this reward,

it never fades.

This is the treasure

that doesn't rust

and doesn't decay

and that thieves

can never break in

and steal it.

It will extend

into eternity,

into the new heavens

and new earth.

In fact,

becoming your true self

in Christ,

it is that coming

new creation

right now

sprouting forth

in the present.

We're becoming partakers

of the divine nature,

as Peter says

in his second letter.

But you know,

I think there's another

sense to this reward

that Jesus talks about

and in some sense

it's much simpler

and it's much more

straightforward,

but it's no less profound.

As we look at this passage,

you know,

compare it, right?

If the reward

for the actors,

for the hypocrites,

is human praise

and approval,

if it's glory

in the eyes

of other people,

then what's the reward

of the genuine disciple?

Not the praise

or approval of humans,

but the praise

and approval of God.

The fatherly word

of assurance.

The simple smile

of God

upon his daughters

and sons,

saying,

I'm yours

and you're mine.

Well done,

good and faithful servant.

Tolkien wrote this beautiful line

in the Lord of the Rings.

He said,

the praise

of the praiseworthy

is above all rewards.

To know that God sees

and God knows

and he is pleased,

is there any greater reward?

the one who created

the stars

and the planets

and all their brilliance,

the mountains,

the seas,

the one whose glory

shines forth

with every rising sun

and every winter frost,

the God who is so

unbelievably good

and holy

and beautiful,

the God who is surrounded

in unending praise

for all eternity,

right?

This God

whom just a glimpse,

just a glimpse

of this God

would be either

total terror

for the unforgiven

or total ravishing delight

for those whose sins

have been forgiven.

That God

looks upon us

as his children in Christ

and says,

that's my son,

that's my daughter,

with them I'm well pleased.

Christ.

The praise

of the praiseworthy

is above all rewards.

The question is,

are you in Christ?

Are you in this kind

of relationship

with God

as your heavenly Father?

You see,

we've talked a lot

about practices this morning,

but the truth is

you don't become

a forgiven son

or daughter of God

through practice.

That's not how you

get into the family.

That's not what makes you

a Christian in the first place.

You can't give your way

into God's forgiveness

and you can't purchase it

or buy it

or earn it.

You can only receive it.

Go back again

to the words of Paul,

for you know the grace

of our Lord Jesus Christ,

that though he was rich,

yet for your sakes

he became poor.

Why?

So that you,

by his poverty,

could become rich.

That's the exchange

that makes someone

a Christian,

that brings them

into this saving relationship

with God

as their heavenly Father.

And when did Christ

become poor?

Well, at the cross,

when he emptied himself

and died in the place

of sinners.

When every debt of sin

that we had accrued

throughout our whole life,

Christ willingly took

upon himself.

And how does Christ

becoming poor in that way

make us rich?

Because as he takes

all of our debt,

he gives us in exchange

his righteous record,

his perfect life.

All the wealth

that he has merited

through his perfect life

is credited to us

simply through faith.

To all those

who admit

that they're spiritually

bankrupt before God

and receive Christ,

his record's credited

to you.

And you have no lack.

Friend, is that true

of you this morning?

If not,

then take Christ

by faith.

Let him take

your debts

and receive from him

that massive wealth

of his grace

and favor

and know God

as your heavenly Father.

And if that is true

of you,

if you are

in that saving relationship

with Christ,

then practice

these things.

Put them into practice

and grow in this grace

that you've been given.

Exercise it

into every area

of your life.

And Jesus promises

that as you do,

your reward

will be very great.

Let's pray together.

Father,

as we turn

to the Lord's Supper now,

we ask that you

would take these things

by your Holy Spirit

and make them real

to our hearts.

God,

help us

to take off

our masks,

heal us

of our desire

and our longing

for the praise

of people

and give us hearts

that live

for your praise

alone.

We ask this

in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.