I was reading through the words of Jesus in Matthew 7:1-5 in the ESV regarding judging others when it occurred to me that this verse is almost exclusively studied regarding “judging others”. I must admit that this is the focus of the passage, and I will speak to that briefly-but the last verse in this passage brings it home in that in place of judgement, we are to help restore our brothers and sisters in Christ.

It’s a rough, torn and broken world we live in. The United States is in a new state of existence; something I am going to speak to in an upcoming entry. For today, I want to look at WHY we often judge one another instead of helping to restore them. 

Jesus says in Matthew 7:1-5 regarding Judging Others:
1 “Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. 3 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye."

To be fair to the context of this passage, this does NOT mean that one is never, in any sense or to any extent to judge another person. Verse 5 indicates that when one’s own life is spiritually healthy and pure that he should take the speck OUT OF his brother’s eye. That said, this verse makes clear that as a follower of Christ that we are not to be censorious or critical of others. 

We are (always) called to judge sin, but within the context of understanding that we too are sinners-and with the goal of helping restore our brother or sister who has sinned back to a rightful, healthy relationship with Christ. That takes a lot of moxie in today’s world because people are often unteachable, unapproachable, and arrogant. In other words, most folks today, including many Christians don’t want to be told anything they might not want to hear or may not agree with. 

That being said, I want to focus on the very last verse (v.5) which says:

“You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to TAKE the speck out of your brother's eye” (v5).

The word “TAKE” here is a VERB. Remember from elementary school that a “VERB” is an ACTION WORD not a “NOUN” which describes what ought to be done-presumably by others, namely the church. Remember, we are the church.

LIVING OUT THE VERB
“…then you will see clearly to TAKE THE SPECK OUT OF YOUR BROTHER’S EYE”. We must be right before and with God as a start point. But once we are properly in line with God’s Word and in relationship with Him, we are CALLED to HELP others find their way back, perhaps leaving a sinful thing to return to God. Again, this is an action YOU and I are to take to help others. It’s easier to stay quiet and keep to ourselves. That’s not a true friend and that’s DEFINITELY not acting biblically. It takes ENERGY and costs something. We can’t put a tithe in the box and pay the church to fix the world because we ARE the church.

SO WHY DO WE TEND TO JUDGE OTHERS and throw our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ to the judgmental heap pile? Because most of us are scared, sometimes a coward, and more often than not-too lazy to want to use the emotional, physical and spiritual capital (it will cost us) to help another person. In other words, it’s easier to either ignore the issue or dispose of them as a person rather than jump into the mud pit and help restore them.

I see this all the time in the Christian community. For example, famous author and speaker Dinesh D’Souza is one that stands out. Dinesh was in the final throws of his divorce when he took a girlfriend when he got caught with his new girlfriend before the divorce was final. While a sin, it was not handled properly, and we lost a great soldier for Christ due to two self-righteous Christian national leaders who decided to play Jesus-police instead of helping confront and restoring Dinesh. How do I know this? Because I spoke with both Dinesh and the two men who exposed Dinesh.

I spoke with the two gentleman who exposed his seeing Dinesh with the girl who he shortly there-after married and he told me his side of the story. My conclusion was that instead of approaching Dinesh to help him tweak his approach with the girlfriend, these two nationally known figures exposed him to the public with the goal of destroying his reputation-with no desire to restore him-but to take him down. What a shame. If we were to take down every pastor who sins, all of them would be taken down. The same is true of you and I.

The proper way to handle a person who is out of bounds biblically speaking is to sit with them, see if they are teachable, and lovingly and directly confront them with the goal of restoring them. At the very least, we should privately speak with them to show them their lost way and give them the chance to self-correct. In the end, the biblical mandate is for us to “…take the speck out of your brother's eye” (v5) and not beat them with the log in our own eye.

IN CLOSING I want to bring to light one simple truth which is that we often think of ourselves much higher than is truthful. This includes you, me and all of us as believers in Christ. We tend to see ourselves as saved and superior as opposed to lost and lingering toward hell. And if honest we tend to demand “justice” for others but expect mercy from God for ourselves. Please think about this passage the next time you encounter a fellow believer who needs your help to course correct. Let’s make sure that we are taking the energy to GIVE and not simply TAKE from them.

PART TWO- GOD REWARDS PRAYER-But NO Double Dipping

In the United States and countries around the world, people get ahead by double dipping. They may work two jobs, work the system to get two pensions plus social security, and in some cases, illegally and immorally take two or more wives or two husbands in marriage.

TODAY, I am going to show you through the words of Jesus himself that God doesn’t double dip when it comes to hearing and rewarding our prayers. You either claim the reward for yourself here on earth or you depend on God to reward you supernaturally. The choice is yours.

In Part One of this “REWARD” series, we looked at when God rewards us through giving to God and others. In total, there are three specific areas Jesus addressed in Matthews 6 regarding when God rewards His people and when they “have no reward” (Matthew 6:1).

Those three areas include: 1) GIVING 2) PRAYER and 3) FASTING. Now that we have already addressed “GIVING” in the last episode, today we will discuss “PRAYER”.

Whether GIVING, PRAYING or FASTING, the principle of receiving God’s reward(s) are exactly the same in that He disallows “Double Dipping”. By this I mean that God disallows for us to claim our own reward by way of taking credit on earth as well as receive God’s reward directly from Him. It’s one or the other.

In Matthew 6, Jesus lays out for us when we are eligible for God’s reward or when we forfeit receiving that reward.

In Matthew 6:6-16, Jesus addresses when God rewards us through PRAYER. To clarify, God is not a vending machine that we can mechanically plug a prayer into and pop out some sort of supernatural response. On the contrary, God answers our prayers in His time, according to His will.

In Matthew, chapter 6, Jesus makes clear that when you pray, you must not pray hypocritically like the Pharisees did. The Pharisees like to stand and pray in public before all the people as some kind of group of privileged religious leaders “seen by others” (v.5).

REWARD RECIEVED PREMATURALLY

The consequence for their doing so means,  “…THEY HAVE RECEIVED THEIR REWARD” (v.5).

In other words, Jesus makes clear that double-dipping is not allowed. You either get your own self-made rewards through attention, credit and worldly honor on earth, or you wait for God the Father to reward you in His way.

HOW THEN SHOULD WE PRAY

Jesus doesn’t leave us in the dark regarding how to pray but provides us a perfect model as to HOW we are to PRAY, saying this:

“But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret WILL REWARD YOU” (Matthew 6:6).

Let’s break this down to see exactly how we are to pray and receive God’s reward.

FIRST: We are to go into a private room where nobody will disturb us. In this way, we will not be disturbed, and we can speak freely and unhindered with God. The alternative is to pray in front of others publicly, drawing attention to ourselves. As a result, the “attention” received becomes the “reward”.

SECOND: We are to SHUT the door and pray to God in SECRET. When we go into our prayer closet, private room, or wherever we go to be in deep and intimate conversation and relationship with God, we need to do TWO things. First, SHUT the DOOR and Second, meet with God in SECRET; not with any other person(s). That said, there is a time and place for group prayer, but not when we meet with our Lord in private.

Jesus says that as a result, “And your prayer to your Father who sees in secret will reward you” (v. 6). But Jesus doesn’t stop there but goes on to give greater clarity as to how we are NOT to pray in that we are not to pray in a mechanical prefabricated fashion, saying:

“And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him” (V.7-8).

HOW NOT TO PRAY BROKEN DOWN

FIRST: When we pray, we are not to pray from a memorized script, but from the heart and mind; laying out our praises to God and our burdens, our requests and our thankfulness to Him.

SECOND: We are not to use TOO MANY WORDS. Why? Because “Your Father (God) knows what you need before you ask him” (v8). God is “Infinite” and “All Knowing”. As such he knows the past, present and future as one. Furthermore, He knows what is in our heart and mind better than we do.

THIRD: Jesus goes on to give us a MODEL PRAYER in verse 9-13. Let’s ready that prayer.

Matthew 6:9-13 (ESV) " Pray then like this: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors, And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil” (Matthew 6:9-13).

I am not going to break down in detail the components of this prayer but simply want to summarize them to say that the components are simply elements that should be present in our daily, organic prayer. The general idea of how Jesus is telling us to pray is that we should praise God, ask that His kingdom come and not our will be done. That God would provide us our daily bread, meaning the things we NEED as opposed to all the material things we want.

We are to pray daily for God’s forgiveness and that He give us the strength and wisdom to forgive others. Lastly, we are to submit our requests to God, including the request that God help us in our sinful nature to avoid TEMPTATION and deliver us from this evil world. In general, these are the key elements that we should pray organically daily.

LASTLY-DON’T BE DERAILED

Jesus closes out His counsel on prayer by being abundantly clear that we are to FORGIVE OTHERS-and that our failure to do so will not invoke God’s reward to us through prayer. Again, the focus on the loss and gain of God’s reward. This is how Jesus put it:

“FOR IF YOU FORGIVE OTHERS THEIR TRESPASSES, YOUR HEAVENLY FATHER WILL ALSO FORGIVE YOU, BUT IF YOU DO NOT FORGIVE OTHERS THEIR TRESPASSES, NEITHER WILL YOUR FATHER FORGIVE YOUR TRESPASSES” (Matthew 6:14)

Let’s keep in mind that the GREATEST REWARD is God’s forgiveness on our lives-covering our own sin.

IN CONCLUSION

God’s reward in and through prayer is very real. But we must remember that we cannot double dip and have it both ways. In other words, we cannot gain God’s reward and also self-proclaim or self-claim attention and worldly honor by our publicly praying and being outwardly religious. In other words, there is No Double Dip-Reward System with God.

The world is run by the prince of darkness (Satan) who rewards double dipping-but not God. In the United States and countries around the world, people often and sinfully get ahead by double dipping.

Today, we looked at the words of Jesus himself to understand the fact that God doesn’t allow us to double dip. In other words, we cannot trick God into giving us His reward if we have already taken that reward on earth through our own means. It simply doesn’t work that way.

Obtaining God’s reward starts with a proper understanding and implementation of the spiritual discipline of “PRAYER” as laid out by Jesus in Matthew, chapter 6. You either claim the reward for yourself on earth or you depend on God to reward you supernaturally in His way and in His time. The choice is yours.

WHEN GOD REWARDS OUR GIVING
It has often been debated as to IF and WHEN God rewards us for our good deeds. In the Bible, Jesus discusses three pharisaic practices of piety that all us can fall into if not careful and the consequence of handling those practices rightly or uprightly. They include: 1) GIVING 2) PRAYER and 3) FASTING. Today, we are going to look at the first of these, which is “GIVING” and I will show you where and when God rewards us-and when He doesn’t. Let’s get started.

In the Book of Matthew, chapter 6, Jesus tells His followers how they (and we today) are to “Practice living out the Kingdom Life” which ultimately results in our receiving a REWARD from God our Father as opposed to other human beings. It's all about doing things God's way as opposed to our own way.

When we fail to keep God’s ways and carnally follow our own, we end up worshipping or drawing attention to ourselves. As a result, we receive an ARTIFICIAL REWARD in place of the authentic reward from the Father. This, then, is the beginning of a three part series covering the subject of God’s Rewards in relation to GIVING, PRAYER and FASTING. Today, we are going to address the FIRST, which addresses GIVING-how we are to give and the rewards given to us by God the Father.

REWARDS FLOW FROM A GIVING HEART
Jumping right in, Jesus opens Matthew, chapter six, speaking about practicing our righteousness or righteous acts “before other people” (v.1). Why would one act righteously in front of others, you might ask? The answer is “ …in order to be seen by them” (v.1). It wasn't too long ago when giving was something done modestly and in private-and to do so publicly was rare outside of political figures. Today, sadly, it's considered the "right" thing for everyone to self-promote themselves above others.

GOD'S WAY-THE RIGHT WAY TO GIVE
Jesus goes on in verse two to speak to the PROPER way to give so that we are to avoid our good deed(s) being seen by others in verse 2, saying: “Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others.” In other words, there is a real consequence for or taking God's praise as our own. 

THE CONSEQUENCE: Jesus goes onto explain the consequence of letting others deliberately know that you have given to others in verse one, saying: “…for then you will have NO REWARD from your Father who is in heaven.” WHY would God NOT REWARD a good deed? Because, as Jesus explains in verse 2, we are not to be like the religious leaders who were hypocrites in that they did what they did in terms of giving for personal attention, as opposed to giving praise, honor and credit to God. 

Better yet, WHY would anyone take the credit for what God has given them to begin with? The ANSWER IS: “…that they may be praised by others” (v.2). In our carnal nature, we want to be known by others for our generosity in giving to others. By parading this openly or simply making our good deeds known among others, we put OURSELVES in a positive light among others within the Christian community. It might even put us in a positive light within the secular community depending on what the good deed is or what the giving opportunity. For example, if we help a person in the inner city and tell everyone what we did, even non-Christians might praise us for doing such a thing in the name of charity, social justice or works that are faith related.

END RESULT
Jesus makes abundantly clear in verse 2 that such giving negates the Father's reward, saying: “Truly, I say to you, they HAVE RECEIVED their reward.”

When we make our good deeds and generosity seen before others, our reward ends up being given to us carnally. This is as opposed to our true reward if given by God. Carnally means we are seeking adoration or fake glory through the praise of other human beings. As a result, we forfeit the reward(s) of God our Father. We can’t have both. If someone happens to find out about our good deeds or act of giving by some way other than our own, we should not entertain discussing it, but change the subject and move on. By donig so, we will gain God’s reward in that it is God and not ourselves who provides and gives all good things; we are simply a steward of them.

Jesus goes onto say in verse 3, “But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And our Father who sees in secret WILL REWARD YOU” (v.4).  This is WHEN God dispenses His reward. 

The bottom line is that when we give of ourselves, as best as we can, we are not to make it known to others. Letting others know “THAT WE GAVE," and "HOW MUCH” or “WHEN” we give of ourselves gains us credit before others, especially within the church. As such, our reward is given to us through  the acknowledgement and praise of others. According to God, a truly selfless heart gives unconditionally and is kept between the giver and the receiving party of the gift.

By being humble and giving selflessly in the NAME of our Lord Jesus Christ, we give all honor, glory and credit to God who owns and gives it all to us as stewards of His blessings and resources. And when we do that, we invite the blessings and reward(s) of God the Father upon us. This is when God blesses us for GIVING to others. To GOD be ALL the Glory. Have Peace in the New Year.