INTRODUCING THE LESSON

We have real value and usefulness to God. Yet as believers, we’re still developing into all that God intends us to be. One way this development takes place is through the practise of personal piety. Piety can be defined as those acts or devotion that help define and strengthen our relationship with God. Christ’s teachings emphasizes on three important areas of piety: giving, prayer, and fasting.

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SELFLESS GIVING

(A) Don’t Seek To lmpress (Matthew 6:1)

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QUESTION: Does Matthew 6:1 contradict Metthew 5:14-16, where Jesus tells us to let people see our deeds ? Explain.

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The Matthew 5 passage is an exhortation to let unbelievers see sincere faith in action. Jesus’ warning in 6:1 examines our motives. The verses that follow address three fundamental areas of piety: giving, prayer, and fasting. For each, Jesus challenges us to look at why we do these things. if it’s to impress others, then we have a problem with our hearts. But if we have the right motives, we will honour God and present a sincere testimony to unbelievers around us.

(B) Give-In SeCret (Matthew 6:2-4)

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QUESTION: What are some ways we might draw attention to ourselves in our giving?

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We may not blow trumpets at offering time, but we can still violate this principle. Examples might include bragging about our gifts, demanding or expecting public recognition, or making our actions public. Our motives must be humble and selfless. We’re giving: for the sake of God’s kingdom: not ourselves.

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QUESTION: How did Jesus instruct us to avoid this problem?

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In verse 3, Jesus used hyperbole to illustrate that sincere giving must be done in secret. It’s so secret that we scarcely realise what we’re doing. Yet these are the kinds of gifts that will be rewarded (verse 4).

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OUESTION: What are some ways we can give in secret?

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This can be a difficult area of piety to develop. Sincere giving calls us to sacrifice, no matter how big or small the gift actually is. Our secret gift can be as simple as buying a meal for a needy single-parent family in the church. Such an act can be just as pleasing in God’s eyes as a wealthy person’s large gift to the building fund. And, in principle, gifts can also include time and talents. Whatever the gift we will grow in our Christian walk when we adopt selfless giving as a regular practice.

PRAYER AND FORGIVENESS

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(A) Pray Sincerely (Matthew 6:5-13)

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The principles and qualities of true, sincere prayer:
Prayer is to be private (verses 5,6). Jesus was not saying that there is no place for public prayers, but that the purpose of prayer is to commune with God, not to impress peeple with our spirituality.

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QUESTION: Does Jesus’ statement concerning repetition in prayer prohibit praying for the same need more than once? Why or why not?

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Some people teach that believers are not to pray for anything more than once. They say to do so is a leak of faith. But Jesus’ teaching does not prohibit praying more than once for your needs. This would contradict His parable of the persistent widow in Luke 18:1-8. Neither did Jesus condemn Iengthiness in prayer, He spent an entire night in prayer (Luke 6:12). What Jesus condemned was an attitude of the heart, the belief that we will be heard because of the length of our prayers. When this motivates our praying, our effort misses the mark God intended for prayer.

Prayer is tender (verse 9). Prayer has an eternal perspective (verse 10). Prayer is trusting (verse 11). Prayer is penitent (verse 12). Prayer is humble (verse 13).

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QUESTION: How can we ensure that these principles always guide our prayer Iives?

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Like any area of Christian piety, prayer requires discipline. We must resist the temptation to make prayer a matter of personal pride. When God remains our focus, our prayers will always honour Him.

(B) Forgive Freely (Matthew 6:14,15)

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QUESTION: Why does God hold us to such a high standard when It comes to forgiving others?

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Forgiveness is a central part of God’s nature. Our need for it is why He sent Jesus to the Cross (Ephesians 1:7). As His people carrying His name, we must follow that example (see Matthew 18:21-35; Colossians 3:13).

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QUESTION: Why Is It so important to forgive, no matter how badly we’ve been wronged?

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Sometimes the offence against us is so serious that forgiveness seems impossible. That’s when we need to remember that no debt is as large as the one Jesus paid for our sins. In a sense, unforgiveness insults God’s grace in our own lives. That’s why the penalty is so severe (Matthew 6:15). As people saved by His incredible mercy, we must be willing to forgive freely.

FASTlNG

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(A) Keep Your Fast Private (Matthew 6: 16-18)

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Jesus instructed His followers to take extra steps to avoid letting people known of their fast. Washing and applying oil were both part of normal hygiene. God wants His people to appear ordinary and happy when they fast.

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QUESTION: How can we keep our fast private if our church calls for a corporate fast?

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Sometimes churches will call their members to fast. But even in these settings, we can avoid bringing attention to ourselves. For example remarks about what we're sacrificing or how we’re dealing with the hunger are inapproprate. In order for our fast to honour God and receive an eternal reward, it must remain private and focused on Him.

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(B) Make Fasting A Priority (Matthew 9:14,15)

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QUESTION: Why do you think Jesus’ followers refrained from fasting?

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Verse 15 uses a wedding celebration to illustrate the jubilation of having the Messiah walk the earth. Through Christ’s coming, God brought His new kingdom into the world. It was a time of rejoicing, not mourning as the Pharisees and John’s followers were doing with their fasting.

However, Jesus made it clear that the time would come when His people would fast: after He left this world and ascended into heaven. Then, the practice of fasting should continue until His return.

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QUESTION: ls fasting limited to abstaining from food?

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The idea behind fasting is to deny earthly desires to focus on spiritual realities. It could be very appropriate to have a “television fast” to devote the time one would normally spend watching TV to seek the Lord. This could apply to other activities that could be set aside for a period of time to give ourselves to communion with God. And seeking God with a pure heart is always rewarded.

IN CONCLUSION!

There are many ways of putting piety into action. The challenge is to keep the focus of our actions where they need to be: become Christlike through developing a personal relationship with the Father. If our focus drifts and we seek the recognition of others, then that is as far as our reward will go the applause of people.

We need to examine the role that acts of piety play in our lives. Are we putting each of these into practice? How regularly? How well does our piety match Jesus instructions in Matthew 6:1-18? The good news is that no matter where we are today, we can grow in our relationship with God as we practise prayer, giving, and fasting as taught by Jesus.

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^{cheers! Omonosa}