ASH WEDNESDAY
Old Testament Joel 2:12–19
Psalm Psalm 51:1–13 (14–19)
Epistle 2 Corinthians 5:20b–6:10
Gospel Matthew 6:1–6, 16–21
GOSPEL
Matthew 6:1–6, 16–21
6 “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.
2 “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. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
5 “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. 6 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.
16 “And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 17 But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18 that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust5 destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Our Father, Who art in Heaven ... Hallowed by Thy Name
Grace Mercy and
Peace
Dear Brothers and
sisters how are we to practice our faith? This is the question that is being
asked not only by believing Christians, but also by the media, the government,
and nonbelievers. This is being asked because the beliefs of Christians have
the potential to affect other people, in ways that they may not want to, and
there are those that are offended by such an idea. They do not want to be told
what they can or cannot do, and they do not want their rights trampled on by
anyone else. And above all else, they do not want to have someone else’s faith
waived in their faces. Questions like, should a politician’s religion matter,
or is it ok to pray in the public square have been hotly debated in public
opinion and by political junkies. The question really boils down to how can I
be in the world, and not of the world?
Jesus, in the Sermon
on the Mount, begins to discuss this very issue. How are we to practice our
faith? He warns against the misusing of faith, as an attention seeker, or
grandstanding, because this does not benefit you with God, instead it is only
man that is being pleased. Instead God comes to you in the quiet places, so
that we may receive the gifts that he has laid out for us. For we do not serve
God for earthly gain, but instead it is because we are merely doing what he has
taught us to do.
Christ gives us
three great examples of how we are to practice our faith, and live in
righteousness. Give to the needy, praying, and fasting are all great practices
for Christians to practice. In our church giving to the needy is a common
occurrence, giving to Christian friendliness, helping with mission dinners, and
if that is not enough, whenever there is perception of someone needing help
this congregation pours out its blessings upon that person. Prayer is common as
well, lifting up prayers for those who are struggling, those who need healing,
and those who need peace and comfort. Yes the first two examples are common
occurrences. I will admit fasting probably is not as common as the other two
examples. And when the bible speaks about fasting, it is not dieting, because
weight loss is not the goal. No, fasting in the religious sense is about giving
up something for the body to help us focus on the things above. This focus is
part of the reason why for many generations, the church saw fasting as a beneficial
act for Lent, the penitential season, because the act of restriction can be a
physical aspect to our introspection of our earthly lives. That is what giving
something up for lent is really all about, giving up something that we depend
upon to prove that God is greater than those things.
So we have three
examples of practices to live out our faith. Now that we have a what, now do we
have a where? At first glance, it looks as if Jesus is telling us that the
practice of our faith is meant to be done in a locked room with the light off,
so that no one may ever see us do anything related to our righteousness. It may
appear that the practicing of our faith is meant to be done only within the
confines of our own homes and that we should keep our practice of the faith a
secret. And in one sense, this is exactly what he is telling us to do. “when
you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the
synagogues and in the streets “ 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,” and “And then you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for
they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others.” Instead
may it be in secret, “And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”
Jesus is fairly clear, don’t do these things for the public limelight, because
God can see when you do these things even if you are in private.
But the focus isn’t
even really about where you do it, rather how and what motivation you have to
do these things. “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people
in order to be seen by them, for then you
will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.(Matthew 6:1 ESV)” And he
gives examples of living out the practice of the faith in the context of giving
to the needy, prayer, and fasting. Christ is not telling his listeners do not
do these things, nor is he even truly saying to do them in a locked room,
instead he is saying don’t do these things for the sake of being seen by
others. Christ is telling his listeners, be cautious, because if you are doing
the things of your faith in the public square in order to be seen, then you
have already received the reward that you have been hoping for notoriety, don’t
expect anything else.
Should we pray in
the public square and should it matter how faithful a politician is in his
religion? Yes and no. Because we as Christians cannot help but pray for the
whole world and for the faithfulness of politicians according to the word of
God, but our motivation must be considered. If the emphasis is upon how we can
be seen, then we should not. Even giving to the church can be dangerous, if our
desire is to show how faithful we are to our fellow human beings. That’s part
of the reason we don’t name our churches after the biggest donor in the
building fund, because the focus must be upon God and his holy and perfect
work, not upon our limited and sinful works. But it does not mean that our
actions are never seen in the public realm, just that they and not to draw
attention to ourselves, but to our father who is in heaven.
It is in the middle
of our reading that we have Matthew’s account of the giving of the Lord’s
Prayer. The reading for ash Wednesday does not include it, but it tells us how
we can pray to the father who gives us everything.
7 “And when you
pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they
will be heard for their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father
knows what you need before you ask him. 9 pray then like this:
“Our Father in
heaven,
Hallowed be your
name.1
10 your
kingdom come,
Your will be done, 2
On earth as it is in
heaven.
11 give us
this day our daily bread, 3
12 and forgive
us our debts,
As we also have
forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us
not into temptation,
But deliver us from
evil.4
14 for if you
forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you,
15 but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your
Father forgive your trespasses.
It is in the
introduction and the first petition that we see the positive end how to live
out our faith. And everyone who has gone through confirmation knows the joy
that Luther found in this prayer.
With the introduction: Our Father who art in
heaven. What does this mean?
With these words God
tenderly invites us to believe that He is our true Father and that we are His
true children, so that with all boldness and confidence we may ask Him as dear
children ask their dear father. That is exactly how we are to pray, bold and
confident that the Father will care for us. That is why Jesus is saying don’t
pray for public visibility, because you are missing the point.
And the first
petition is like the intro, Hallowed be Thy name. What does this mean? God’s
name is certainly holy in itself, but we pray in this petition that it may be
kept holy among us also. How is God’s name kept holy? It isn’t kept holy by
proclaiming, hey look at all the wonderful things I have done, come praise me.
Instead God’s name is kept holy when the Word of God is taught in its truth and
purity, and we, as the children of God, also lead holy lives according to it.
Help us to do this, dear Father in heaven! But anyone who teaches or lives
contrary to God’s Word profanes the name of God among us. Protect us from this,
heavenly Father!
And our heavenly
father has done many and abundant things for us. He sent us a savior to come
down who gave perfectly of himself. He healed the sick, gave food to the
hungry, prayed to his father who is in heaven, and fasted in the wilderness to
prepare for his earthly ministry. He did all these things not to his own glory,
for in many of these cases he specifically told those who were involved “don’t
say anything about what you have seen or what I have done.” Instead he did all
these things for the glory of his father in heaven, and for the salvation of a
people who could not do it for themselves, us. And he would face the ultimate
of public trials in which the sins of the whole world were placed upon the
shoulders of the only sinless man. He laid aside all things earthly, so that he
could prepare a place for us where no moth or rust could destroy in heaven with
his Holy Heavenly father.
How then do we live
out our faith? It is with fasting, prayer, and giving to the poor. We do these
things not because we grow in our sanctification because of them, or so that
other people can see what great things we can do, but because of the Father’s infinite
and abundant blessings through his Son who died on the cross for our sins, and
gives us life eternal with him. AMEN
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