| Chapter 5 Return to the Original State II In section I of this subject, we examined Matthew chapter 5, in the light of the image of God, and with a view towards the restoration of that image from a two part, dichotomous being, to a Holy Spirit controlled, three part, trichotomous being. We found that the Lord was telling us that the way is much narrower to salvation, than most of the present day preachers are telling us from behind their pulpits. We still have Matthew chapters 6 and 7 coming to show us how much narrower the way truly is. Matthew 6:1-18 tells us that our actions will reflect the fact that we have submitted our will to God. In each case cited by the Lord, we see that he stresses the importance of keeping the action private between God and us. Not performing the action openly, so that other men may wonder at how spiritual and godly we are, for our own personal glory. Jesus was truly telling us to inspect our hearts to see what the real motives for our actions are. Now, let's read verses 1-18, which tell us, "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. 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. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly. 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. 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. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that 31 ________________________________________________________________________________ they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him. After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. 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. For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. 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. But thou when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; 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.". From the scripture above, we see that Jesus was telling us, that if we are saved, our will is so deeply submerged to submission unto God's will that there is no way that we can be self righteous. That is not to say that we will not speak out openly for the Lord, but if we read carefully, the Lord told us to be careful in our testimonies to His glory, that we in fact aren't doing it for our glory. Once again it becomes an inspection of our hearts and are we doing things for the right motive. It is also interesting to note that the model prayer that Jesus gave us basically summarizes what he gave us in Matthew chapter 5. Since we looked to see what Paul said in Romans to solidify what we saw in the last section, let's use the same approach here by looking at Romans 12:1 through Romans 13:14, "I BESEECH you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may 32 _______________________________________________________________________________ |
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