Beware of practicing righteousness publicly – Dec 1st, 2019

Command: Beware of practicing righteousness

Matthew 6:1

 1Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.”

Matthew 6:1-18

Story: Proud Pharisee

Luke 18:9-14

 9And He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt: 10“Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11“The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12‘I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’ 13“But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ 14“I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Philippians 2:3-8

 3Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; 4do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. 5Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. 8Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

When meditating on the commands and stories, keep these questions in mind:

  • What do I learn about God, Jesus, and/or the Holy Spirit?
  • What do I learn about man/ people?
  • What troubles or bothers me? What does the Holy Spirit reveal to me in light of this?
  • How does the command connect to the story?
  • What is God saying to me (or what should I obey) & what am I going to do about it?
  • Do I have any fears, doubts, or resistance in keeping this command?
  • What does this command reveal about the condition of my heart – what do I really believe and what do I really want?
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