By Pastor Greg
This past Christmas I was able to visit with my aunt and uncle who had come home for Christmas. As we sat around the table, my cousin Steve and I reminisced about dinners at Grandma’s house, and how the adults sat in the dining room while the grand kids sat in the kitchen. Uncle Bob and Aunt Lois were privileged to sit with the grown-ups, and so Steve and I thought this was a great opportunity to ask a question that had been burning in our minds for decades. We asked Uncle Bob just what Grandpa Burkholder said during his prayers.
In all those years, I never truly understood what my grandpa was saying while he prayed. There are some who pray so the next door neighbors can hear, but not my Grandpa Burkholder. As we sat around that table in the kitchen, Grandpa would almost mumble something that we could never quite make out. His tone would rise and fall rhythmically. At the time, we grand kids would snicker at the unusual way Grandpa prayed. But you know, as I’ve gotten older, I’m beginning to realize just how special Grandpa’s prayers really were. As funny as it seemed at the time, I now know that Grandpa was praying TO God during those many meals we shared with him, we were just privileged to listen in.
My grandfather had learned a very important lesson; a lesson which comes through walking closely with God. It is a lesson Jesus teaches on the Sermon on the Mount.
“Watch out! Don’t do your good deeds publicly, to be admired by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven. 2 When you give to someone in need, don’t do as the hypocrites do—blowing trumpets in the synagogues and streets to call attention to their acts of charity! I tell you the truth, they have received all the reward they will ever get. 3 But when you give to someone in need, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. 4 Give your gifts in private, and your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.
7 “When you pray, don’t babble on and on as people of other religions do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again. 8 Don’t be like them, for your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him! 9 Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. 10 May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today the food we need, 12 and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. 13 And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one. 14 “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. 15 But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.
16 “And when you fast, don’t make it obvious, as the hypocrites do, for they try to look miserable and disheveled so people will admire them for their fasting. I tell you the truth, that is the only reward they will ever get. 17 But when you fast, comb your hair and wash your face. 18 Then no one will notice that you are fasting, except your Father, who knows what you do in private. And your Father, who sees everything, will reward you (Matthew 6:1-18).
Jesus teaches three important lessons here. He says “Don’t show off when you help someone” (verses 1-4). “Don’t show off when you pray” (verses 5-15). And, “Don’t show off when you worship God” (verses 16-18). Now, the reason Jesus was teaching this is because some Pharisees and many Priests made religion some kind of show. These men wanted to be noticed. They wanted to be recognized for who they were and for their “deep commitment to God”. Actually, they were more committed to themselves than God.
Jesus was teaching His disciples to not follow the empty spirituality of these religious leaders. They loved to pray standing in the synagogue (Matthew 6:5). They loved the place of honor at banquets (Matthew 23:6). They loved to be greeted by their official title of Rabbi, especially where everyone could hear (Matthew 23:7). They loved to walk around in flowing robes; dressed to impress (Luke 20:46). They loved the praise of men more than praise from God (John 12:43). Jesus actually calls these men “whitewashed tombs” (Matthew 23:27). In all their desire to be approved before men, these religious leaders were nothing more than a grave that was painted white. In might have been real pleasing to look at, but inside there was still death.
The lesson Jesus is teaching here is that His followers need to be careful this does not happen to them. A follower of Jesus needs to be careful that they don’t start doing things in the church just so people will sing their praise.Don’t be deceived. This can be just as addicting as drugs or alcohol. Once you get addicted to the praise of other people, it is difficult to stop. And the sad part about all this is that no one will be able to please everyone all the time. This truth applies to both the Christian and the non-Christian. Somewhere and at some time, some person is going to be disappointed with you; either with what you do or with who you are. And a person will drive themselves crazy trying to please everyone. It’s just not going to happen. A person will battle feelings of rejection and depression. They will feel unloved simply because they were not able to get the approval they desired from the crowd or from some other person.
There is a big difference between pleasing men and pleasing God. But unfortunately we have been lured into thinking we please God in the same way we please the people around us. This is why this teaching of Jesus is so important for us. As we consider all the lessons spoken by Jesus up to this point, the temptation is to see these as a list of ways we might make God happy. If we learn to turn the other cheek, if we learn to pray for our enemies, if we learn to see others as someone of value and worth; if we do all these things then God will be pleased with us. But that assumption would be wrong. We learn to love others when we first learn the depth of God’s love for us.
My friend, if you learn nothing else from this sermon series, please learn this. When we measure our worth as an individual based upon what others think of us or say about us, this thinking will affect our relationship with God. And you can always tell when someone is living by some kind of performance standard. They feel inadequate to serve. They don’t feel qualified to pray. They worry about what people will think or say. They are crushed by the words of the critics. When people are more concerned about what people might think or say, they refuse to serve or to pray or to worship even though this is exactly what God desires from them.
Please hear this. You are valuable and precious to God, not because you earned it but because that’s how God sees you. And as you walk more closely with God you will begin to see that His love for you never waivers. His love never fails. It never gives up. It never runs out.
We’ve all run into Christians who can pray circles around us. They can whip off a prayer that will forgive sins, heal the sick, and end world hunger in 30 seconds flat! Our feeble stammering doesn't even come close. Our service to the church seems pitiful when compared to some. And in the Kingdom of God we live in the shadow of those more gifted than we are. Why should we even try? We’ll just embarrass ourselves. Yet this is not how God sees us. You see, God’s love for us is not based upon some performance standard. God loves us and accepts us even when we fail. And when you start walking more closely with God, you will begin to realize that He loves you just for trying.
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