F O O T H O L D
READING
34 RIGHT ACTIONS, WRONG
MOTIVES
PRAY Help me, Father, to be
honest with myself and you, as I read your
word.
READ Matthew 618.
THINK What things do we
learn from this passage about keeping right with
God?
FOCUS All religions expect
the worshippers to carry out certain duties.
Praying, going to services,
repeating a creed, giving money ...
Jesus talks about three
religious duties that were important to
the Jews. These were giving
money to the poor (24), praying (5
15), and going without food (1618). He examines people's motives
for doing these things.
TO IMPRESS OTHERS. Jesus
knew people who made such a fuss about
giving money to the poor
that they might as well have hired a
brass band for the occasion
(2). Others liked nothing better than
to 'get alone with God',
surrounded by an admiring crowd (5)!
Still others went around
looking miserable to let people know that
they were fasting (16). Such
people got what they were after the
admiration of others. God who knows our secret motives
is not
impressed. Showingoff is
not for Christians.
FOR OUR HEAVENLY FATHER. Our
personal prayer life and the way in
which we give money (or time)
should be a secret between ourselves
and God (3,4,6). Using
religion to boost our reputation is a
certain way to damage our
relationship with God and miss out on
what he might do for us.
THE LORD'S PRAYER (913).
Jesus gives us a pattern.
1. Our prayer should begin
with worship of God (9).
2. We should pray for God's
interests, not just for what we want
(10).
3. We are to pray for our
own needs physical and spiritual (11
13).
PRAY Lord Jesus Christ, you
taught your disciples to pray. Help me to
learn to pray in a right way.
