THE PRINCIPLES OF THE KINGDOM - PART 2 (Matthew 6)

THE PRINCIPLES OF THE KINGDOM - PART 2 (Matthew 6)

H. A. IRONSIDE

MATTHEW 6:3 - “When thou doest alms.” Nothing is more objectionable than advertised charity. It is humiliating in the extreme to the one who receives, and hurtful to the soul of him who gives. 

  There were those of the Pharisees who looked upon prayer (even as Mohammedans, Romanists, and others do now) as having a certain degree of merit in itself. Formal prayers were recited in public places, and the longer the prayer the more intense was the impression made on those who stood by. These were inclined to judge a man’s piety by the length of his devotions. Jesus warned His disciples against such an abuse of prayer. 

  Nor is it necessary to “weary the Lord with words” (Mal. 2:17). Vain repetitions, the continued repeating of meaningless or empty phrases, is expressly forbidden. How incongruous are the ejaculations of the “rosary” in the light of this scripture! We are not heard for our “much speaking.” He who knows all our needs better than we know them ourselves would have us lay them before Him in childlike simplicity, not as though He needed to be made willing to aid by our constant pleading (ver. 8). 

  In Matthew 6:9-13 we have the beautiful and suggestive outline, which is commonly called “The Lord’s Prayer.” But actually it is “the disciples’ prayer. There does not seem to be any valid reason for supposing that He meant it to be repeated frequently, or as part of a service of prayer or worship, as it is commonly used today. No mention is made of its use in the early Christian assemblies of the Book of Acts, nor is it even referred to in the Epistles. It would seem that the Lord gave it as an outline or pattern of prayer; thus suggesting the manner in which God should be addressed and the petitions we are entitled to present to Him. 

  The worldling has everything here, but will be poor for eternity. The heavenly-minded believer may be poor indeed in this world’s goods but rich toward God. 

  MATTHEW 6:25 - When Jesus said, “Take no thought,” He did not mean that His disciples should be careless or improvident. But they are forbidden to be anxious, to become distressed and perplexed as they face the future. He who has saved and cared for us thus far can be depended upon to undertake and provide for us to the end 

   The nations of the world make the pursuit of these temporal things the main object of life. We are not to imitate them in this, but rather to be concerned first of all with pleasing God, and ordering our behavior in accordance with the righteous principles of His kingdom. Jesus sums up our entire responsibility when He says, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God.” It is not, “Seek for the kingdom,” but rather, put the interests of God’s kingdom first in your life. The message is for those who are already disciples of Christ. As such, we are to fulfill its righteousness—that is, the things that are obligatory upon us as subjects of our blessed Lord. Then we may have the assurance that all needed temporal mercies will be provided.