Overarching theme of the Sermon on the Mount thus far:
Why do we do what we do? What are the motivations of our hearts behind the righteous acts that we do.
Matthew 6:14-15 NKJV (14) “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. (15) But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Matthew 6:14-15 MSG (14) “In prayer there is a connection between what God does and what you do. You can’t get forgiveness from God, for instance, without also forgiving others. (15) If you refuse to do your part, you cut yourself off from God’s part.
Matthew 6:16-18 NKJV (16) “Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. (17) But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, (18) so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.
- Notice Jesus said in this chapter, “when you give, when you pray and when you fast…” He did not use the word “if.”
- The exciting part of this is that when we fast before God with the right heart motivation and not to be seen of men, Jesus has promised that God would reward us openly.
Matthew 6:19-21 NKJV (19) “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; (20) but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. (21) For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Matthew 6:19-21 AMPC (19) Do not gather and heap up and store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust and worm consume and destroy, and where thieves break through and steal. (20) But gather and heap up and store for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust nor worm consume and destroy, and where thieves do not break through and steal; (21) For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
- Jesus never says that it is wrong to lay up treasures here on the earth.
- In the Greek, the word for “treasures” is thesaurus and could be translated “deposits”.
- Jesus says do not gather and heap up treasures FOR YOURSELF, where moth and rust and destroy…
- The actual Greek is referring to “hording up” for yourselves.
- The Bible is not against savings and preparing for the future. Proverbs teaches us this:
Proverbs 13:22 NKJV (22) A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, But the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous.
- Again, Jesus is addressing the motivations of the heart. WHY are you gathering up wealth? What is the reason for it. You certainly cannot take it with you when you die.
- Lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven (IN SECRET), in the spiritual realm.
- Jesus is instructing us to redistribute resource in the earth to build and establish the Kingdom of God. When you do this, you are establishing the Kingdom here in the earth, and God promises when we do this, God will make sure in eternity, we have more, which lasts for eternity.
Matthew 6:22-23 NKJV (22) “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. (23) But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!
- Light enters the heart through the eye of your soul.
Matthew 6:22-23 TPT (22) “The eyes of your spirit allow revelation-light to enter into your being. If your heart is unclouded, the light floods in! (23) But if your eyes are focused on money, the light cannot penetrate and darkness takes its place. How profound will be the darkness within you if the light of truth cannot enter!
- Jesus is telling us to have singleness of purpose and not let the vision for our lives to become “cloudy” by focusing on wealth and earthly possessions.
- Singleness of purpose on the Kingdom of Heaven no matter what level of financial prosperity you are on, with much or with little.
- James tells us that a double-minded man is unstable in all of his ways. He is trying to think two ways at the same time. (James 1:8)
- He is trying to think about how I can build my wealth for myself and then when giving time comes, he tries to think about the Kingdom of God.
Proverbs 28:22 NKJV (22) A man with an evil eye hastens after riches, And does not consider that poverty will come upon him.
Proverbs 23:4-5 NKJV (4) Do not overwork to be rich; Because of your own understanding, cease! (5) Will you set your eyes on that which is not? For riches certainly make themselves wings; They fly away like an eagle toward heaven.
Matthew 6:24 NKJV (24) “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
- On one side is God and on the other is the pursuit of wealth.
- Mammon is a reference to a Chaldean god that people worshiped believing it would make them wealthy.
Matthew 6:24 TPT (24) “How could you worship two gods at the same time? You will have to hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You can’t worship the true God while enslaved to the god of money!”
- Jesus wants to be our Master and He wants money to work for us as our slave.
- When money says one thing and God says another, we always listen to God and tell money to get back to work.
Matthew 6:25 NKJV (25) “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?
- Money becomes your master when you begin to worry where it is going to come from. Then you are tempted to horde and squeeze it for everything.
- You can be broke and poor and still have a love of money. (1 Timothy 6:10)
- Think about the future and plan in wisdom as God does but HE DOES NOT WORRY ABOUT IT.
Matthew 6:26-34 NKJV (26) Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? (27) Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? (28) “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; (29) and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. (30) Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? (31) “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ (32) For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. (33) But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. (34) Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
- Birds and flowers have never once worried about what was going on in the world economically as they don’t care about those things.
- God takes care of them. Surely, He loves and cares for us more than the birds and flowers.
Matthew 6:25-34 TPT (25) “This is why I tell you to never be worried about your life, for all that you need will be provided, such as food, water, clothing—everything your body needs. Isn’t there more to your life than a meal? Isn’t your body more than clothing? (26) “Look at all the birds—do you think they worry about their existence? They don’t plant or reap or store up food, yet your heavenly Father provides them each with food. Aren’t you much more valuable to your Father than they? (27) So, which one of you by worrying could add anything to your life? (28) “And why would you worry about your clothing? Look at all the beautiful flowers of the field. They don’t work or toil, (29) and yet not even Solomon in all his splendor was robed in beauty more than one of these! (30) So if God has clothed the meadow with hay, which is here for such a short time and then dried up and burned, won’t he provide for you the clothes you need—even though you live with such little faith? (31) “So then, forsake your worries! Why would you say, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ (32) For that is what the unbelievers chase after. Doesn’t your heavenly Father already know the things your bodies require? (33) “So above all, constantly chase after the realm of God’s kingdom and the righteousness that proceeds from him. Then all these less important things will be given to you abundantly. (34) Refuse to worry about tomorrow, but deal with each challenge that comes your way, one day at a time. Tomorrow will take care of itself.”
Matthew 7:1-5 NKJV (1) “Judge not, that you be not judged. (2) For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. (3) And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? (4) Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? (5) Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
Speck = splinter
Plank = large beam or telephone pole
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- Jesus is addressing believers judging other believers.
- In God’s mind, when we judge someone else, that critical, judgmental attitude is worse that whatever we are judging the other person for.
- Judging is rendering a verdict as in a court of law.
- A critical attitude is rooted in pride.
- This is the same text that Luke 6:38 comes from. When we sow, the spiritual law says that we will receive back MORE than what we have sown.
Luke 6:37-38 NKJV (37) “Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. (38) Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”
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- Did you know that in the natural, the law of seedtime and harvest works for corn, beans, etc. but also works for marijuana, poppy (heroin), etc. The same law produces harvests from the GOOD or BAD seeds sown.
- In other words, when we judge others, we can expect MORE judgment and criticism than we have sown.
Matthew 7:4-5 NKJV (4) Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? (5) Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
Hypocrite – one who speaks behind a mask (dramatic term)
Ephesians 4:32 NKJV (32) And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
1 Peter 3:8 NKJV (8) Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous;
Galatians 6:1 NKJV (1) Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted.