6:1-4 What is the lesson for Christians here?
6:1-4 What is the lesson for Christians here? Christians are warned here against making their charitable gifts or deeds of piety public knowledge. If the motive behind any gift or good deed is merely public acclamation then that will be the only reward the Christians involved will receive. But if done with true humility they will be openly rewarded by God. This does not mean that every charitable gift or good deed done by Christians has to be anonymous, but that Christians must not blatantly draw attention to what they do (cp Psa 112:9 with Lk 14:11-14; Ro 12:8). See also comments on Lk 14:7-11 and Lk 14:12-14.
By praying we are acknowledging our need of the things we ask for and our dependence on God to provide them. We need to pray for our needs to be met (cp Php 4:6-7with Jas 4:2). To ensure the disciples knew how to pray properly in Mt 6, Jesus then gave them a model prayer (cp Mt 6:9-13). This is commonly called “The Lord’s Prayer”. It is also found in Luke’s gospel (cp Lk 11:1-4). After teaching the disciples here how to pray, Jesus then told the parable of the friend at midnight to assure them of the certainty of their prayers being answered (cp Lk 11:5-10). Although it was midnight the man in the parable got what he asked for because he boldly and unashamedly went to his friend, knocked on his door, and asked for it. There was never any doubt in his mind that he would get what he asked for. Jesus assures us in Mt 9-10 that we can do the same with God. All we have to do is expect God to respond as the householder in the parable responded.
The word importunity in V8 means shamelessness, boldness, impudence, audacity. It does not mean persistence as many in the church think – that we have to keep praying the same prayer – asking for the same thing – until God gives it. Its simple meaning is that as the man who shamelessly dared to ask his friend at midnight to meet his needs, and got what he asked for, so too believers who shamelessly through prayer ask, seek, and knock, will also get what they ask for from God (cp Mt 7:7-11; 21:17-22; with Mk 11:12-14, 20-24; Jn 14:12-14; 15:7; 2Cor 1:19-20; Php 4:6-7; 1Jn 3:16-22; 5:14-15). God’s word is His will, and if we abide in Him and His word abides in us, we will never ask for anything outside of His will. On this basis believers can always pray, confidently believing that they will receive from God that which they pray for without having to continuously ask Him for it. (See also comments on Mt 21:17-22, Lk 11:5-10, Jn 14:12-14, 15:7, 2 Cor 1:19-20, 1 Jn 3:19-22, 5:14-15).
Now let us study more closely the model prayer Jesus gave to the disciples, and see what it teaches (cp Mt 6:9-10). In V9 here we learn that all our prayers should be directed to God the Father – not to Jesus, nor the Holy Spirit (cp Jn 16:23-24). Up until His death on the cross the disciples had all their needs met by Jesus, but after the cross they were to pray to the Father, and whatever they asked of Him in Jesus’ name, He would give them (cp Jn 15:7-8, 16). In Mt 6:10 we learn that we are to also pray for the second advent of Christ and the setting up of God’s eternal kingdom in the earth (cp Lk 17:20, 18:8). Lk 18:1-8 is called the parable of the unjust judge and the persistent widow. It too, like the parable of the friend at midnight, is used by many in the church to teach that when we bring a petition before God we should persist in praying for it like the widow persisted with the judge until God answers us, like the judge eventually answered the widow. But that is not correct. If it were, then we are putting a just and Holy God in the same category as an unjust and unholy judge. The parable does not compare the two, it contrasts them.
Furthermore, this is not about prayer in general, but intercessory prayer – prayer pertaining to Christ’s Second Advent and the coming kingdom. It is a call to believers to persevere in prayer against the works of the devil until Christ comes again and sets up God’s eternal kingdom. The widow’s adversary in the lawsuit before the judge in the parable, is the equivalent of our adversary, the devil, in the earth. The parable teaches us that we are not to be passive spectators in God’s kingdom, but that we are to persist in faith and persevere in prayer for God’s will to be done on earth in spite of continued opposition and rejection, which is what the unjust judge portrays in the parable (see also comments on Lk 18:1-8).
This is what Jesus means in Lk 18:1 when He says that men ought always to pray and not faint. He wants believers to pray the kingdom in and not give up, even though His second coming may not be immediate. That is why He questions whether the Christians then remaining when He does come back will still be faithfully pressing in for the things of the kingdom and persevering in prayer, as portrayed by the widow in the parable, or will they have given up hope and lost their faith. Jesus then contrasts the unwilling and uncaring judge’s tardiness in vindicating the widow, to God’s willingness and readiness to vindicate His children. When Jesus comes back God will vindicate His righteous cause and therewith the cause of His children, but they must trust Him and not lose heart in the meantime. They must here and now continue faithfully in the work He has assigned to them (cp Mt 6:11).
This teaches us that we are to totally rely on God’s providence each day for both our spiritual and physical sustenance. We learn from this also that a Christian’s way of life has to be without the desire for more than that which will satisfy their everyday needs (cp He 13:5-6). Christians do not have to set aside reserves for their family’s future needs as some teach. This is totally unscriptural, and in fact contradicts what both Jesus and Paul teach (cp Mt 6:19-21, 24-34; Lk 12:16-34; 1Ti 6:6-8). This is not teaching though, that Christians are prohibited from owning a family home and providing the necessities of life for their family (cp Pr 13:11; 21:20; Ec 5:18-20; 1Ti 5:8 (See also comments on Lk 12:16-21, 2Cor 12:14 and 1Ti 6:6-10)). Christians are obliged to work to provide for their families but we should only work to meet our everyday needs, not to accumulate wealth (cp Mt 6:12).
Here we petition God to forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. If we are unwilling to forgive those who trespass against us, neither will God forgive our trespasses. Forgiveness is the key to answered prayer. God’s forgiveness of our trespasses is conditional upon our forgiveness of those who trespass against us (cp Mt 18:23-35).
This is called the parable of the unmerciful servant. It is only found here and was spoken by Jesus in response to Peter’s question concerning forgiveness in Mt 6:21-22(cp Mt 6:21-22). What Jesus is teaching us here is that forgiveness must be a constant attitude with believers. When Jesus told Peter that he had to forgive someone who sinned against him 490 times Jesus was simply underlining the fact that believers cannot ever afford not to forgive others, irrespective of how many times they sin against them. We are to forgive others as God has forgiven us (cp Psa 103:10-12; Mt 6:14-15). Forgiving also means forgetting (cp He 8:12). We are to behave toward others as God behaves towards us. If we claim to be His then we must have His disposition to forgive, even our enemies (cp Mt 5:7; Lk 6:35-36).
Forgiveness is a matter of life or death for believers. If we do not forgive others neither will God forgive us. Jesus teaches us in the parable of the unmerciful servant that the forgiveness of God, though freely given to repentant sinners, nevertheless remains conditional according to their willingness to forgive others (cp Mk 11:25-26). The judgement the king pronounced on the unforgiving servant in the parable of the unmerciful servant is the equivalent of eternal damnation upon unforgiving believers, because just as the servant could never repay his debt to the king, believers can never repay their debt to God. Forgiveness is a kingdom principle, and it is incumbent upon Christians to live out this principle in their Christian life. Christians have had all their sins forgiven by God, so they must forgive others in return. See also comments on Mt 18:23-35 (cp Mt 6:13).
It seems incongruous that here we are to petition God not to lead us into temptation when scriptures elsewhere teach that God tempts no man (cp Jas 1:13). Opinions are divided among bible scholars as to what exactly Jesus means in Mt 6:13. One thing is certain: He does not mean that we are to ask God not to allow us to be tempted, when again, elsewhere in scripture we are told to count it all joy when we are tempted (cp Jas 1:2-4, 12; 1Pe 1:6-9). Jesus allowed Himself to be tempted (cpMt 4:1; Mk 1:12-13). God promises that no Christian will ever be tempted above that which they can endure, but that with the temptation He will also make a way of escape (cp 1Cor 10:13). Temptation here means a state of trial in which God brings His children through adversity and affliction in order to encourage and prove their faith and confidence in Him (cp 2Pe 2:9). In light of this, and the second part of the petition in Mt 6:13, “… but deliver us from evil”, it seems more likely that Jesus means that we are to pray that we would not be led into such temptations as would destroy our faith, but for God to deliver us from them. Amen! (See also comments on Mt 4:1-11, 1Cor 10:13, Jas 1:2-4
To fast means to voluntarily abstain from eating food for a certain period of time. Fasting was an Old Testament practice but Jesus did not stress it for New Testament Christians, although He sanctioned it (cp Mt 9:14-17). Jesus told a parable of old and new cloth and wineskins in Mt 6:16-17 here in response to questioning by John the baptist’s disciples in Mt 6:14-15 as to why Jesus’ disciples did not follow the Old Testament religious practice of fasting. In His response Jesus includes fasting as part of the old Judaistic religious system which kept people under its law in bondage to sin. Jesus’ dynamic new teaching was not compatible with the teaching of the Law under the Old Covenant. His reference to new cloth and new wine was a way of saying the He did not come as a reformer to patch up an old worn-out religious system, but to replace it completely with a dynamic new teaching.
This is not teaching against fasting by New Testament Christians. Fasting was observed by the first century church (cp Acts 13:1-3; 14:21-23). But other than this, there is little to say about fasting in the New Testament. The only other fastings recorded are what Paul describes as part of his sufferings for Christ (cp 2Cor 6:5; 11:27). These fastings refer to lack of food, not voluntary abstinence from food. The object of fasting in the Old Testament was to humble the soul before God (cp Psa 35:13); to crucify the appetite and deny it in order to enhance prayer, and to receive from God (cp 2Sam 12:15-17; Ezra 8:21-23). Fasting by voluntary abstinence from food is not obligatory upon New Testament Christians. Jesus sanctions it in Mt 6:16-18, but does not commend it. But there is a fast chosen by God that is obligatory upon New Testament Christians, and they must always be ready to do it (cp Isa 58:6-8 with Mt 28:19-20; Mk 16:15-18). See also comments on Mt 9:14-15, 9:16-17.
Mammon refers to earthly riches – material possessions and wealth (cp Mt 6:19-34). Jesus teaches us here that Christians cannot allow the acquisition of material possessions and wealth to become their life-goal because it will eventually estrange them from God. Christians must ever be alert to the danger of being seduced from their allegiance to God by the allurements of riches and material possessions. We must guard against any preoccupation at all with material things lest they become more important to us than the things of God (cp Mt 13:3-9, 18-23). This is called the parable of the sower. It perfectly describes what the end is for Christians serving mammon – caught up in the pursuit of wealth. The teaching in the parable centres on the different soils, which represents those who receive God’s word, and how they respond to it. The term deceitfulness of riches in Mt 6:22 means that wealth gives a false impression – a false sense of security – whether by appearance, statement or influence. Choke, in the same verse means figuratively to overpower. What this teaches is that the false sense of security emanating from material possessions and wealth overpowers the word of God in Christians and prevents them bearing fruit for the kingdom. They have been seduced by their wealth from continuing in God’s service. Paul also teaches this (cp 1Ti 6:9-10).
Erred here also means seduced. Those who coveted after wealth erred from the faith. They were seduced by their wealth away from God. Paul’s perspective on wealth is the same as Jesus’. He teaches that the pursuit of wealth debases the mind, destroys Godly traits, and makes Christians selfish, proud, and avaricious, which all lead to destruction and perdition. Perdition refers to the state after death wherein exclusion from salvation is a realized fact, wherein man, instead of becoming what he might have been in God, is lost and ruined forever. This is a warning for those inside the church, not those outside it – for believers, not unbelievers. Perdition here is the final destiny of Christians who determine to be rich. This is a grim warning to Christians against focusing upon earthly riches and serving mammon in this life, as opposed to serving God and storing up treasure for ourselves in heaven that will guarantee our eternal security in the next life (cp Lk 12:13-15). The word abundance here means more than is needed, surplus to needs. See also comments on Mt 19:23-26; Lk 12:13-15; 12:16-21; 1Ti 6:6-10,