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Pleasing to the Father Matthew 6:1-18

How well do you understand ?

“If you want to judge how well a person understands Christianity, find out how much he makes of the thought of being ’s child, and having God as his Father. If this is not the thought that prompts and controls his and and his whole outlook on life, it means that he does not understand Christianity very well at all. For everything that taught, everything that makes the new, and better than the Old, everything that is distinctively Christian as opposed to merely Jewish, is summed up in the knowledge of the Fatherhood of God. “Father” is the Christian name for God.” – J. I. Packer (Evangelical Magazine 7, pp. 19-20)

Understanding the Triune Nature of God

To call God Father also takes us to the heart of the Christian understanding of God as Triune— Father, , and .

The biblical teaching on the embodies four essential affirmations: 1. There is one and only one true and living God. 2. God eternally exists in three persons—God the Father, , and God the Holy Spirit. 3. These three persons are completely equal in attributes, each with the same divine nature. 4. While each person is fully and completely God, the persons are not identical.

The differences among Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are found in the way they relate to one another and the role each plays in accomplishing their unified purpose.

This truth about God can be seen throughout the , but comes to its fullest expression in and through the ministry of . At Jesus’ in :13-17, the Spirit of God descends upon Jesus and a voice speaks from the clouds, saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” In Matthew 28:19, the ’s mission of making disciples includes baptizing believers in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In Ephesians 1:3-14, God the Father plans our salvation in past, God the Son accomplished our salvation through His death and resurrection, and God the Spirit applying this redemptive work to our hearts.

“They are not three roles played by one person (that is modalism), nor are they three in a cluster (that is ); the one God (“he”) is also, and equally, “they,” and “they” are always together and always cooperating, with the Father initiating, the Son complying, and the Spirit executing the will of both, which is his will also.” – J. I. Packer

We worship one God in the Trinity and the Trinity in unity; we distinguish among the persons, but we do not divide the substance. … The entire three persons are co-eternal and co-equal with one another, so that … we worship complete unity in Trinity and Trinity in Unity. – Athanasian (c. 500 AD)

What about poor earthly fathers?

However, I also realize to see God as Father can be hard for some. The character of God provides the best foundation for understanding fatherhood—fathers should be gentle and compassion, protectors, providers, loving, patient and yet consistent in discipline, faithful to instruct and exhort to walk in truth and wisdom. If you are like me, this was not your experience. For some there are wounds we still bear when it comes to our earthly fathers. Let me encourage you today to measure your earthly father by the of God as our heavenly Father, not the other way around.

My earthly father was deeply flawed—didn’t take responsibility of me until I was four—three years with my biological mother, 1 year in foster care, when on to be twice married & twice divorced. My senior year I came home from work one night to the news of my dad and stepmom getting a divorce. I went out to my car opened up my Bible and began to read. I came to this verse:

For my father and my mother have forsaken me, but the will take me in. - Psalm 27:10

God as Father in Matthew 6:1-18

In these 18 verses, we see God called “Father” 9 different times (6:1, 4, 6, 8, 9, 14, 15, 18). Compares this with the 3 times “Father” is used in all of chapter 5 (5:16, 45, 48). Knowing God as Father is evident throughout the on the Mount, but it is especially highlighted in our passage today.

“Often called the charter of God’s kingdom, this sermon could equally well be described as the royal family code, for the thought of the disciple’s sonship to God is basic to all the main issues of Christian obedience with which the Sermon deals.” – J. I. Packer

So far in the , we have seen that:

- We are to glorify our heavenly Father through our witness in the world as salt and light (5:14-16) - We are to imitate our heavenly Father in showing generous and gracious love over personal retaliation and animosity (5:38-48) - We are to please our heavenly Father through living wholly devoted to Him (6:1-18)

Being spiritually devout does not make one a Christian. You can go to church, be morally upright, give generously, pray regularly, and even practice some form of fasting, and not be a Christian. So, what is a Christian? A Christian is someone who at some point in their life turned from their sin and put their trust in Jesus Christ, believing that his death on the cross for our sins and His resurrection from the dead was sufficient for and eternal life. Anyone who has experienced this cannot stay the same. God changes us from the inside out and we begin to live our lives devoted to God.

As a Christian, one of our greatest desires to live in a manner that is pleasing to the Father. This is exactly what our passage is going to talk about today.

How can we live in a manner that is pleasing to God the Father?

Matthew 6:1-18 shows us that when it comes to pleasing the Father motive matters. Why you do what you do is as important as what you do.

I want to draw out two main points from this passage. Verse 1 is the sermon in summary from. Jesus then applies this truth to the three key practices of the Jewish —giving, praying, and fasting (6:2-18). In each section, Jesus follows a similar pattern.

1. We please the Father when we fight against seeking the attention and approval of others in our spiritual devotion – 6:1, 2, 5, 16

He begins with this warning, “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them.” (6:1) “Beware” – Pay close attention, make sure you that you don’t do this. This is a serious warning. It should be heeded by every follower of Christ.

Do you see where he addresses the issue of motive? Don’t practice your righteousness—this is righteous living, spiritual devotion—before others in order to be seen by them. Spiritual devotion motived by garnering attention and approval of others.

It is surprisingly challenging to keep our good deeds to ourselves.

Throughout this passage, Jesus calls seeking attention and approval from others “hypocrisy.” Originally, a “hypocrite” was an actor who wore a mask in a Greek or Roman play. The actors performed on stage to the approval and delight of their audience. “Hypocrite” today often means someone who doesn’t practice what they preach. Here; however, it is being used to describe appearing one way but being something else in reality. It is the inversion of priorities—longing for the outward approval of others, we neglect the inward devotion to God. If we are to please the Father, we must fight against this tendency and temptation towards seeking the attention and the approval of others.

Listen to Isaiah 29:13, as God describes Israel as

“people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment taught by men.”

Their outward spiritual practice was not marked by an inward spiritual devotion. Hypocrisy – “the cruel combination of publicly motivated actions that are out of sync with our inner realities and the self-deceit that masks that reality from the person doing the deeds.” (McKnight)

So, the hypocrite is motivated by the attention and approval of others… - Verse 2 – “sound the trumpet before you…in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others.” - Verse 5 – “they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners that they may be seen by others.” - Verse 16 – “they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others.”

What the outcome of all this?

[Clapping]

3x – in relation to giving, praying, and fasting – Jesus says, “Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.” (6:2, 5, 16)

The word used for “have received” was a technical term for a financial transaction in Greek at this time…‘provide a receipt for a sum paid in full.

How do you know you’re seeking the approval of man in your spiritual devotion… - Grumbling or complaining when your actions/service aren’t noticed - Envy and jealousy when others are noticed/given credit - Entitlement based upon how much you’ve helped, given, or served

We need to get rid of the self-calculating nature of our spiritual devotion. If I do this, what will that person think of me? What will it get me? Who will be watching? Who will see? Will I get this person’s attention? If I do this, then I won’t have to do that? Will they like it/heart it? It cuts both ways though. Sometimes we aren’t so much seeking the attention, but we simply live out our faith through the lens of what other people think of us. If I don’t help with this, then what will people think of me? I better answer a question or I won’t seem engaged enough? I should serve because they expect me to? The Christian life should not be defined by self- congratulation and self-calculation, it should be marked by self-sacrifice and self-forgetfulness.

2. We please the Father when our spiritual devotion is sincere and we rest in the promise of His reward – 6:1, 3, 6-15, 17-18

In relation to each spiritual practice—giving, praying, and fasting—Jesus commends secrecy. - Verse 3 – “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.” - Verse 6 – “But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret.” - Verse 17 – “But when you fast, anoint your head and was your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others, but by your Father who is in secret.”

Is Jesus calling us to a reclusive faith shrouded in secrecy? Doesn’t he say in 5:16 to practice your good deeds, your righteousness, before others? He does indeed, but we do so, “so that they may see your good works and give to your Father who is in .” It is motivated by the spiritual good of others—that our lives might lead to others glorify God. In our passage, Jesus is pushing against the motive that our lives might lead others to applaud us. I think the pressing issue is the sincerity of our spiritual devotion. Jesus shows us that secrecy safeguards sincerity. He desires that our spiritual devotion being wholly focused on God. When it comes to your spiritual life…what you are in private is who you truly are. Let me say it again, what you are in private is who you truly are. When there are no other eyes on you, how do you live? What does your Christianity look like? Do you give? Do you pray? Do you fast? Do you really trust God in the trial? Do you worship Him even as you wrestle and walk through trials, challenges, and sorrow? Is He enough?

Let your spiritual devotion be sincere, not pretentious.

Let me also suggest that sincerity in your spiritual devotion will also require discipline. In your giving, to give sincerely without your left hand knowing what your right hand is doing, requires some planning and preparation. Praying and fasting, as Jesus commends in our passage, requires that we are disciplined. We must actually make time to pray—going in our room, shutting the door, and praying. We have to plan when and how we are going to fast so as to not walk around moping all day. Are you making room in your life you devote yourself to God sincerely?

How to Give Generously Intentionally Voluntarily Eagerly

How to Pray While we cannot dive into verse 7-15 in detail, they do show us that sincere and disciplined character that should take in our life. When we come to God in prayer, we do not need to impress Him. We are not earning His approval or having to work to get His attention. We have the privilege of coming to Him. When we do Jesus’ say, come like a child to the Father. No babbling to impress Him, but instead He says pray like this… Notice He doesn’t say pray this prayer repeatedly. While there is nothing wrong with memorizing and reciting ’s Prayer, Jesus’ point is to provide a pattern:

Start with your heavenly Father - His glory - His kingdom - His will Share your concerns with your heavenly Father - Our needs - Our sins - Our temptations

Praise: Worship God for who He is. Repent: Confess your sin to God and acknowledge your need for Jesus. Ask: Intercede for specific needs in your life and others’ lives. Yield: Surrender your life to following Jesus wherever and however He leads you.

How to Fast Focus on God. Abstain from food. Substitute the time with prayer and study. Taste and see that God is good.

The word that comes to my mind when I read Jesus’ teaching in these verses is earnest. It means “serious in intention, purpose, or effort; sincerely zealous.” My prayer is that God’s makes us earnest . Sincerely zealous in our spiritual devotion.

We fight seeking the approval of others by being sincere, wholly focused on God, in our spiritual devotion. But He also holds out to us a promise for this kind of sincere spiritual devotion.

- Verse 4 – “And you Father who sees in secret will reward you.” - Verse 6 – “And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” - Verse 18 – “And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”

As we live the Christian life—giving, praying, fasting, [serving, sharing, enduring]—we can rest in the promise of God’s reward.

Notice what this doesn’t say… - It doesn’t say give in secret, and God will reward you with even greater wealth in this life. - It doesn’t say pray in secret, sincerely enough, with enough faith, and God will grant all your requests. - It doesn’t say fast genuinely enough and God will show you more favor.

True spiritual devotion is not a transaction with God. I do this, God will give me this. True spiritual devotion is communion with God. He sees…He rewards according to His own will. He sees…God knows when you restrain yourself, when you give sacrificially, when you pray earnestly, when you fast because long for more of Him, he knows when you go out of your way to serve or when it’s a sacrifice to do so, he knows when you care for that person…He sees. What a gift that our Father sees…and He rewards.

It doesn’t say what the reward is. It seems like that is the point. Whatever the Father gives us is enough reward. However, I think C. S. Lewis was right when he said:

The proper rewards are not simply tacked on to the activity for which they are given, but are the activity itself in consummation.

What does that look like for giving, praying, and fasting… - The proper reward for giving is seeing a real need met and knowing that God is our ultimate provider. - The proper reward for praying is having communed with our heavenly Father, knowing that He hears and answers our prayers. - The proper reward for fasting is knowing and being satisfied more deeply in as a our Savior and sustainer. The common thread in all these things is that our giving, praying, and fasting are done in the presence of God. Whatever form our rewards take it must certainly not be less than enjoying the presence of God.

“Christianity is not in the end mercenary and it is not an ethic of disinterestedness. Instead, it is a relationship with God, it is delight in God that motivates. The reward is not the point; the reward is God and relation with God. Our motivation, if we are to hold our a reward, is to know God and to gaze at God in God’s presence.” – Scot McKnight

My daughter loves to get dressed up—pretty dresses, headbands, lip gloss, fancy shoes—when she does the thing that is often on the forefront of her mind is, “I want to go show daddy!” So, on a Sunday, she will run into this place and make a be-line for me. When she gets to me, she will twirl, smile, and twirl again. She’ll say, “Look at me daddy, do you like my dress!” She has done all of this to get her father’s approval. On my good days, I will stop what I’m doing and just delight in her…”Amelia, you are so beautiful. Daddy loves you!” However, on my not so good day, I won’t notice what is happening, I’ll be too busy to stop and delight. I won’t recognize that she has done all of this just to get my attention. Do you know God is never like that. He is never too busy for His children. He never fails to notice our spiritual devotion. Therefore, we must let our spiritual devotion be sincere and rest in the promise of His reward. He always sees…and He always delights.