MEMORY VERSE: ‘Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.’ Matthew 6:1.
LESSON SCRIPTURE: Matthew 6:1-8.
STUDY HELP: Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, pages 79-88.
LESSON AIM: To study Christ’s warning about hypocrisy.
‘The man who gives liberally, with a sincere motive, will not seek for the applause of men. On the contrary, he will rather avoid public notice, because, by measuring himself by the true standard, he will realise that what he does is in reality very insignificant. Yet insignificant though a deed may be in itself, and hidden from the eye of everybody, it does not escape the eye of God, and the promise is, “Thy Father which seeth in secret Himself shall reward thee openly.”’ E. J. Waggoner: Signs of the Times, August 11, 1887.
1. What warning did Jesus give about our efforts to help the poor? Matthew 6:1, first part.
NOTE: ‘The love of fame has been denominated the universal passion. It must be admitted, that it is natural to man in his fallen state, improperly and idolatrously to desire the esteem and applause of men; and more frequently than we are aware, that evil mixes with our good works, and renders unacceptable to Him that searcheth the heart, our spiritual sacrifice. But in the secret exercise of religion, we are not so liable to be under the influence of evil, or even mixed motives. Hence the solemn cautions and exhortations delivered by our blessed Lord to His hearers on the mount: “Take heed that ye do not your alms before men to be seen of them.”’ Uriah Smith: Review & Herald, April 16, 1857.
2. How will our heavenly Father regard the giving of those who desire to be seen of men? Matthew 6:1, last part.
NOTE: ‘Turning to His disciples, He cautioned them against giving merely for the honour and praise they might thus receive. The motive was wrong. If they had no higher motive than this, they would have no higher reward. He showed that those who bestow their gifts that they may receive the praise of men, will have no reward in heaven.’ Youth’s Instructor, November 3, 1898.