Matthew 6

Summary. In Chapter 5, the Lord teaches about personal relationships. In this chapter, the Lord teaches us about our relationship with the Father and Heaven. 1) Practice our righteousness towards God, not towards people. a) Give to the poor for the sake of being seen by God, not by people. b) Pray to the Father to be seen by Him, not by people, and glorify the Father who is the Most Holy. c) Fast to be seen by the Father, not by people. d) Do work to lay up treasures in heaven, not on earth. 2) Love and serve God, not riches. 3) Do not be anxious for tomorrow; seek the kingdom of heaven first, and God will meet all our daily needs.

[1] Beware now that you do not do your righteousness before the people, to be seen by them; if now otherwise, you have no reward with your Father in the heavens.

[2] Whenever, therefore, you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, even as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets so that they may have glory from people. Truly I say to you, They have their reward.

[3] But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand does,

[4] so that your alms may be in the secret; and your Father who sees in the secret will reward you.

Comments Matthew 6:3-4 The purpose of doing something is to please the Lord, not to please somebody else, not even to please yourself.

[5] And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray standing in the synagogues, and in the corners of the streets, so that they may be seen by people. Truly I say to you, They have their reward.

Comments Matthew 6:5 When you pray, think of the purpose of the words you say. Check your heart before you pray in public. Are you bringing the need before the Lord to ask for help or to show off what you are doing? Are you saying one thing but your heart thinks something else? Are you praying for the Lord to know or for the people to know?

[6] But you, when you pray, enter into your room, and having shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Comments Matthew 6:6 “But you, when you pray, enter into your room …” Go to your room when you pray, asking for your own personal wants, not for helping. Make a difference between your wants and your needs when you pray. The needs bring them into public (church) for prayer, but personal wants should be between you and the Lord. However, for someone else’s wants or needs, bring them into the public (church) to pray so that everybody can participate in the prayer. In this way, you can avoid boasting about yourself. Because when praying and asking for one another between brothers, the Lord grants mercy. When the Lord grants mercy, the person can feel boastful, but when someone else prays as well, the boasting will subside (will be controlled).

[7] And praying do not use vain repetitions, like the Gentiles, for they think that they will be heard in their many words.

[8] Therefore, do not be like them, for your God the Father knows of what things you have need, before you ask Him.

Comments Matthew 6:7-8 There are two kinds of needs. The first need is the need to fulfill what we do not have: these are our true needs. The second need is the need to show off what we already have, but we want more: these are our wants. The true needs we can bring to the public prayer. The wants should be just between us and the Lord; they should be in secret, and we should not tell them in the open. Instead, we should just bring praises and thanks to the Lord for what we already have. Truly, this verse tells us to be content and be assured that the Lord knows what we need before we even ask, and He will provide all our needs as He sees fit.

[9] Thus then you pray: Our Father in the heavens, Hallowed be Thy name.

Comments Matthew 6:9 Our prayer must start in this way. God the Father is the most important, the most Holy. Three in One, but God the Father is the most Holy One. The Three, God the Father, God the Son (the Lord Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit cannot be separated, but God the Father comes first.

[10] Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done, as in heaven, also upon earth.

Comments Matthew 6:10 “Thy kingdom come …” Asks for the second coming of the Lord Jesus when He comes and rules on earth during the Millennial Kingdom. This second coming of the Lord Jesus to earth really is the time when the Father’s will is done on earth as it is in heaven.

[11] Give us today our daily bread.

[12] And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

[13] And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil.

Comments Matthew 6:13 “For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.”
Some manuscripts omit this part of the verse, but it should be considered as part of the original Gospel.

[14] For if you forgive people their trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you.

[15] However, if you do not forgive people their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Comments Matthew 6:15 The principle here is that if you give ten coins, you will receive ten coins.

[16] Moreover, whenever you fast, be not gloomy like the hypocrites; for they disfigure their appearances so that they might appear fasting to people. Truly I say to you, They have their reward.

Comments Matthew 6:16 The fast is a secret between you and the Lord. Do not trumpet out when you fast. Keep it secret between you and the Lord. The Lord sees in secret.

[17] However, when you fast, anoint your head, and wash your face;

[18] so that you might not appear to people fasting, but to your Father who is in secret; and your Father, who sees in secret, will restore you.

[19] Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on the earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal;

Comments Matthew 6:19 The treasures on earth are everything that you think is yours. They all are not real; they are yours for a moment, and then they are gone.

[20] however, lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroy, and where thieves do not break in nor steal;

Comments Matthew 6:20 Treasures in heaven are when you are praising and glorifying the Lord. Every word you use to glorify the Lord is your treasure in heaven. Build them up more and more. The Lord is your safe keeper. Every word the Lord hears, and keeps it for you.

[21] for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Comments Matthew 6:21 Whatever you think about, your heart is there. If you think about the Lord, your heart will be there to glorify the Lord by heart, not by mouth.

[22] The lamp of the body is the eye; if therefore your eye may be clean, your whole body will be full of light.

Comments Matthew 6:22 This verse does not talk about the physical eye but about the spiritual eye of your body. The spiritual eye gets light from prayer. If you do not stay in prayer, your spiritual eye goes into darkness.

[23] However, if your eye may be bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore, the light that is in you may be darkness, how great that darkness!

Comments Matthew 6:23 If your spiritual eye gets darkened, your spirit is lost.

[24] No one is able to serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other; or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You are not able to serve God and riches.

Comments Matthew 6:24 Riches (mammon or money) in this verse represent all the wealth you have.

[25] On account of this, I say to you, do not be anxious about your life, what you may eat, or what you may drink; nor for your body, what you may put on. Is not the life more than the food, and the body than garments?

[26] Look at the birds of the heaven, that they do not sow, nor do they reap, nor gather into barns; and your Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of much more value than they?

[27] Now which of you by being anxious can add one cubit to his age?

[28] And why are you anxious concerning garments? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they do not toil, nor do they spin;

[29] however, I say to you, that not even Solomon in all his glory was adorned like one of these.

[30] However, if God thus clothes the grass of the field, which today exists, and tomorrow is thrown into a furnace, will He not much more you, O you of little faith?

[31] Therefore do not be anxious, saying, What may we eat or what may we drink or what may we put on?

[32] For after all these things the Gentiles seek; for your Heavenly Father knows that you have need of them all.

[33] However, seek first the kingdom and its righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

[34] Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious about itself. Sufficient to the day is the trouble of it.

Comments Matthew 6:25-34 In this passage, the Lord wants us to be concerned about working and living, but not to be overly worried about these. If you do your daily work at hand, the Lord will provide the food, the clothes, and all other needs. Do not be anxious to look at what someone else has and try to have the same. Be happy for what you have and give glory to the Lord for all things.

Life and Faith Applications. 1) When we pray, we always need to glorify our Father in heaven and pray in the name of our Lord Jesus. 2) When we pray in public, we should check inside our hearts and make a difference between our wants and needs. We must pray with sincerity of heart for the Father to know, not for the sake of people to know. 3) We serve a jealous God and cannot serve God and wealth simultaneously. We must keep our hearts with the Lord Jesus and show Him all our love.