Through the Bible Day by Day - Matthew 6:1 - 6:1

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Through the Bible Day by Day - Matthew 6:1 - 6:1


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This Chapter Verse Commentaries:

Secret Giving and Secret Praying

Mat 6:1-8

First we have the general proposition that righteousness, that is, one’s religious duties, should not be done for the sake of display; and that principle is then applied to alms, prayer, and fasting-the three departments into which the Jews divided personal religion.

The words take heed in Mat 6:1 are very searching! We are all likely to put better goods in the window than we have anywhere on our shelves; and to show fairer samples than we can supply in bulk. The Greek word for hypocrite means stage actor. “We are tempted to assume on Sunday a religious attire which we certainly do not wear in the home or in business.

In her account of the first Burman convert, Mrs. Judson says: “A few days ago, I was reading with him Mat 6:1-34. He was deeply impressed and solemn. ‘These words,’ said he, ‘take hold of my very heart. They make me tremble. When our people visit the pagodas, they make a great noise with trumpets. But this religion makes the mind fear God.’”