Secret Prayers
Journal Entry // June 3, 2023 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. (ESV) Matthew 6:6 The contrast and remedy to hypocritical praying that Jesus provides in this passage is the same as his instruction on giving. Our heart motivations and reasons behind our actions are of vital importance. The hypocrite cares more about the applause received from his performance whereas the humble and faithful are focused on their relationship with Jesus. This is why Jesus…
Hypocritical Prayers
Journal Entry // May 29, 2023 “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. (ESV) Matthew 6:5 We must not be like the hypocrites. This is the continued theme of Jesus in this section of the sermon. Jesus is following up his instruction about humble giving by moving us into the inner motivation of prayer. You would think that prayer in and of itself would…
Secret Giving
Journal Entry // May 28, 2023 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. (ESV) Matthew 6:3–4 Jesus is here continuing his thought on giving to the needy. Having just explained that we should not announce our giving to bring acclaim or praise to ourselves and therefore receive our reward as the hypocrite does, Jesus tells us that we should give to the poor in secret and thus receive our…
Hypocritical Giving
Journal Entry // May 21, 2023 “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. (ESV) Matthew 6:2 This section of the Sermon on the Mount is setting our focus on the dangers of hypocritical faith or a faith lived before other people to receive their applause and commendation instead of God’s approval alone. The first thing to notice in the passage is that Jesus expects his disciples to…
Pursuing Perfection
Journal Entry // May 18, 2023 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (ESV) Matthew 5:48 Jesus ends this section of the sermon where he is teaching us a proper understanding of what it means for Him to be the fulfillment of the Law by telling us we must therefore be perfect. We must be perfect just like our heavenly Father is perfect. For this is the aim of pursuing Christ with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength. We are to live a life in conformity to Scripture and Scripture is the outworking of God’s…
Encountering Others
Journal Entry // May 15, 2023 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? (ESV) Matthew 5:46–47 In this passage, Jesus expands on his call for his disciples to love their enemies. He does this by setting before them two case studies. Two situations where the disciples, like us, want to stay in their comfort zone and areas of safety. Jesus points to our…
Rain of Love
Journal Entry // May 14, 2023 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. (ESV) Matthew 5:43–45 This is the last of the “You have heard that it was said,” passages in Matthew 5. It is important to note that this…
The Cheek of Love
Journal Entry // May 7, 2023 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. (ESV) Matthew 5:38–39 In this passage, Jesus is bringing our attention to the idea of retaliation. As with most of these warnings, Jesus is speaking directly to the people of the culture and time of his visitation. It would be an easy matter to take this verse out…
Character Building
Journal Entry // May 6, 2023 “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let what you say be simply…
Cultivating Marriage
Journal Entry // May 3, 2023 “It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery. (ESV) Matthew 5:31–32 Jesus continues his discourse on helping us better understand and interpret the laws and commandments that have been given by God for our good and the good of others. Here Jesus interprets the common practice of the day (and today) of a simple divorce without…
Ruthless Intentions
Journal Entry // April 30, 2023 If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell. (ESV) Matthew 5:29–30 As Jesus continues his teaching on correctly interpreting the Law, he emphasizes his points by way of practical application. In dealing…
Lustful Intent
Journal Entry // April 29, 2023 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. (ESV) Matthew 5:27–28 As Jesus helped us understand that he has come not to abolish the Law but to fulfill it, so too does he now take the time to correctly interpret some points of the Law and teach us to better understand the spirit of the law and not just the letter of the law. He has…
Merciful Reconciliation
Journal Entry // April 9, 2023 Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison. [26] Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny. (ESV) Matthew 5:25-26 Jesus is now ending this section on anger with a real-world example of how important and prudent reconciliation is in our relationships. Jesus is commending the person who understands the necessity of reconciliation before it is too…
Prioritize Reconciliation
Journal Entry // April 6, 2023 So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, [24] leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. (ESV) Matthew 5:23-24 Once again Jesus is demonstrating the importance of dealing with sin that has captured and ensnared us. Here he tells us that reconciliation with the one we have wronged is more important than the gift we are offering to God. Truly, in order for us to have an…
Murderous Anger
Journal Entry // April 5, 2023 You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’[22] But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. (ESV) Matthew 5:21-22 Jesus has now confirmed that the Law and the Prophets are not being done away with, but still have a vital and important role in the life…
Exceeding Righteousness
Journal Entry // April 2, 2023 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. (ESV) Matthew 5:20 In summation of this section on the fulfillment and accomplishment of the Law, Jesus brings us to a perplexing statement. Having just told us that we are not to relax on any point of the Law, be it great or small, he now informs us that our righteousness should exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees. They were the models and pillars of what righteousness looked like. They were…
Faulty Relaxation
Journal Entry // April 1, 2023 Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. (ESV) Matthew 5:19 Jesus, having spoken about the continued importance and permanence of the fulfilled Law and the Prophets, now extends this importance from theoretical to practical. All of the Law has been fulfilled in Jesus and it will surely not pass away until Jesus ushers in the New Heavens and the…
Until All is Accomplished
Journal Entry // March 29, 2023 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. (ESV) Matthew 5:18 Just as Jesus previously stated that he had come to fulfill the Law and not abolish it, he then says that the Law will be present and active until it is all accomplished. This accomplishment of the Law is its actual complete fulfillment in Jesus. When will the Law be accomplished? When Christ returns and ushers in a new heaven and a new earth.…
Fulfillment Embodied
Journal Entry // March 25, 2023 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. (ESV) Matthew 5:17 Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets. Whenever we wonder why the Old Testament is important, Jesus fulfilled it. Whenever we question the importance of the Law in our everyday life, Jesus fulfilled it. Whenever we suggest that we simply follow Jesus by walking in love, then we must remember that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets. If…
Conduit of Praise
Journal Entry // March 22, 2023 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. (ESV) Matthew 5:16 Jesus has now reached the conclusion of his salt and light analogy and brings us to the point and purpose of living life in God’s design. We are to live life in such a way that we are active and engaging the people in the community around us. Shining our light by living a life of humble dependence upon Jesus. This humble dependent…
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