Donny's back in the Sermon on the Mount this morning with a question that's going to make some of us a little uncomfortable: who are you trying to impress?
The sermon is called "Can You See Me?" and it comes out of Matthew 6:1-4, where Jesus talks about acts of righteousness — giving, praying, fasting. The kind of stuff that looks really good when other people are watching. And that's exactly the problem.
"Be careful not to do your acts of righteousness before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven."
Donny walks through the series so far — kingdom heart, godly character, salt and light, sins of the heart, loving our enemies. All of that has been about what's going on inside of us. Now Jesus is turning to what we do with it. And the first thing He says is: check your motive.
There's a tension in here that's easy to trip over. In Matthew 5:16, Jesus says "let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." Then in Matthew 6:1, He says don't do your acts of righteousness before men to be seen by them. So which is it?
Donny will make the case that it's not a contradiction. It's about the intent of the heart. Are you shining your light so people see God? Or so people see you?
He takes us to Acts 4, where the early church is sharing everything. Nobody claimed their stuff was their own. Barnabas sold a field and laid the money at the apostles' feet. It's a beautiful picture. Then Acts 5 — Ananias and Sapphira. They sold property too. But they kept some of the money and lied about it. Same action, completely different heart. And it cost them everything.
Donny brings in Dallas Willard, the Christian philosopher who spent 47 years teaching at USC. Willard pointed out that Jesus is the only person in the New Testament who uses the word "hypocrite" — seventeen times. The word originally meant actor in classical Greek. Someone performing for an audience. And Jesus was the one who turned it into a moral category. Because He cared more about what was happening inside people than what they were putting on display.
That leads to the uncomfortable slide: "I pray. I give. I volunteer. I teach. I'm a ____." And then the next one: "I try to influence. I try to control. I seek approval. I give for a reason."
Most of us can see ourselves in both lists. That's the point.
Donny will close with this: your gift should be for an audience of one. God. Not the people sitting next to you. Not your social media. Not even your own sense of being a good person. When your motive is to serve God, you grow spiritually, God is honored, and others are helped. In that order.
Matthew 6:1-4 · Matthew 5:16 · Matthew 23:5-7, 12 · Acts 4:32-37 · Acts 5:1-11 · 1 Corinthians 4:1-5
