Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21; Isaiah 58:1-12; Psalm 51:1-17; 2 Corinthians 5:20b-6:10
The Bible seems to indicate that the root behind man’s sinfulness is human pride, the desire to be his own god and further to promote his independence in the face of his fellow sinners. This was apparently true with Satan’s rebellion who “wanted to be like the Most High” and in the garden when Adam and Eve were tempted to believe they could become gods by knowing good and evil. Since the fall, that evil has been transferred from our progenitor to all of mankind.
In Matthew 6, Jesus presents a rousing rebuke to the spiritual leaders of His day who proudly promoted this most sinful characteristic of man’s fall and failure. In the previous chapter, Jesus gives a sobering warning to anyone who follows the hypocrisy of the Pharisees.
20 “For I say to you that unless your righteousness far surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.
The Pharisees had replaced true acts of righteousness with acts of piety for men; a clear indication of their total misunderstanding of the law that they so proudly claimed to keep. Jesus warns, “not so fast”! In Matthew 6, Christ expands the thought of 5:20, showing how the Pharisees righteousness was deficient by exposing their hypocrisy in the matter of giving to the poor, prayer and fasting. All of these acts are supposed to be worship rendered to God, never displays of self-righteousness to gain admiration of others. Their reward is that they were seen by men, nothing more. God does not reward hypocrisy, but He does punish it. Jesus does not want His follower’s piety to bring them personal glory but to glorify the Father.
This rebuke and warning regarding hypocrisy was not just a New Testament revelation. The Old Testament prophet Isaiah in his 58 chapter, provides a similar warning to his readers regarding the proper motives for fasting. He encourages his readers to engage in fasting the way God chooses. Hypocritical fasting resulted in contentions, quarreling and pretense, excluding the possibility of genuine prayers to God. Israel was wondering why their fasting had not gotten God’s attention. They were fasting and sinning at the same time. A day of fasting does not make up or compensate for acts of injustice. Isaiah says that if the Hebrews devote themselves to a day of fasting yet fail to love, their religiosity is just a noisy gong and clanging symbol. Fasting only put them in an ugly mood. Religious observances cannot substitute for moral integrity.
The Apostle Paul expounds on this topic in his second letter to the Corinthians, chapter 6. Unlike false piety, Paul illustrates the true way to glorify God. It sure doesn’t sound like the “feel good” theology that seems to be so widely promoted even in our day.
5 in beatings, in imprisonments, in mob attacks, in labors, in sleeplessness, in hunger, 6 in purity, in knowledge, in patience, in kindness, in the Holy Spirit, in genuine love, 7 in the word of truth, and in the power of God; by the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and the left, 8 by glory and dishonor, by evil report and good report; regarded as deceivers and yet true; 9 as unknown and yet well known, as dying and yet behold, we are alive; as punished and yet not put to death, 10 as sorrowful yet always rejoicing, as poor yet making many rich, as having nothing and yet possessing all things.
Paul is describing what can be the result of true piety, which he frequently endured. This doesn’t sound much like the results the Pharisees were seeking in their counterfeit piety, seeking the reward of men. This temptation to seek the praise of men can be very sneaky and creep into our thinking sometimes unawares. We must always be alert to this devious temptation and constantly challenge our true motives, to glorify God, and not me.
Mark Packer
Elder