*Matthew 6:1-18
Jesus teaches that giving to the needy, praying, and fasting should be done with sincerity to avoid hypocrisy.
- Charitable Giving:
- Jesus advises against performing acts of charity for public recognition, emphasizing the importance of sincerity.
- He suggests giving discreetly, so as not to seek praise from others but to please God.
- Those who give in secret will be rewarded openly by God.
- Prayer:
- Jesus cautions against praying ostentatiously in public to gain admiration.
- Instead, he encourages private prayer in one’s inner room, where God sees in secret and rewards openly.
- He provides the disciples with a model prayer, known as the Lord’s Prayer, outlining its structure and key elements.
- Emphasizes forgiveness in prayer, stating that if one forgives others, they will be forgiven by God.
- Fasting:
- Jesus advises against making a show of fasting to appear pious before others.
- He recommends maintaining a cheerful demeanor while fasting, not revealing one’s fasting to gain sympathy or recognition.
- Fasting should be done with a sincere heart, seeking God’s approval rather than human praise.
6:1 Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.
6:2 Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
6:3 But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: 6:4 That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.
6:5 And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
6:6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
6:7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.
6:8 Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.
6:9 After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
6:10 Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
6:11 Give us this day our daily bread.
6:12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
6:13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
6:14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: 6:15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
6:16 Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
6:17 But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; 6:18 That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.