I remember a few years ago, not long after Sal and I had been married, we had the opportunity
to go on a holiday.
It was pre-kids, so it was one of the ones that was actually a holiday.
And we got to go up to the Gold Coast with some friends, so we worked our way up the
coast, stayed up there for a few nights.
But the highlight was, me and my friend, as a surprise for our wives, got tickets to Dream
World for New Year's Eve, which was fantastic because it meant there wasn't any kids running
around Dream World.
There was just adults in one of two categories, either those who had wasted money on the Dream
World ticket and were getting drunk, or people like us who had bought the ticket to go and
use rides all day.
So there's a bunch of young adults running around Dream World going on all the rides, which was
a fantastic night.
But I remember it being a moment of clarity for my wife on exactly who I was as her husband.
There's one particular ride at Dream World called The Claw.
Now, to give you just a rough idea of what The Claw is, it's a circle of seats with a big long pole
coming out the top.
And basically, it goes upside down.
It spins around.
It does full loops.
It does all sorts of things.
And we were watching it as we walked through the gates.
And straight away, there was a bit of nervousness from me.
I don't mind rides.
I don't mind things that go up and down.
But I'm also quite lanky.
And so when you strap me in, I don't feel like I'm actually contained.
My arms and legs are going to go.
And it just makes me worry that I'm going to slip out of whatever harness it is they've provided.
But anyway, it was inevitable.
We went around to The Claw first and queued up for that ride.
And I'm watching.
There's some people who are smaller than me, younger than me.
There's 18-year-old girls queuing up to go on this ride, thinking this is going to be fantastic,
and cheering as they go around, and then coming off with big smiles on their face.
And at that point, my wife started to get a little bit nervous about this ride.
And I thought, fantastic.
So I began to say, look, it's OK.
We don't have to go on the ride if you don't want to.
I said, you know, it looks great, but it's OK.
I'll stay off with you.
Unfortunately, my friend's wife was like, no, no.
Come on, you guys.
You've got to come.
Sal, we'll be fine.
And she kept convincing her.
And I'm trying to play the really brave husband.
And I'm like, look, it's OK, Sal.
I don't mind staying off with you if you want.
And this conversation went on and on as we're getting closer and closer.
And then finally, Sal goes, OK, I'll go on it.
But Sam, you have to help me if I get scared.
I'm like, yeah, that won't be a problem.
That's fine.
And so we're at the front of the queue.
And the seats are emptying out.
And the attendant points to us and invites us to our seats.
We sit down.
And Sal's starting to get very nervous as the harness comes down over the shoulders and suffocates you.
Because it has to be tight.
Otherwise, you're going to end up a suburb away.
And she's starting to panic.
And I can hear her breathing quickly.
And so I'm like, it's fine, Sal.
It's going to be fine.
It's just a ride.
Don't worry.
It'll all be over really quickly.
And I'm acting as tough as I possibly can.
What happens next is, because this thing's about to do loops like this, they have to get rid of the ground.
Otherwise, you're going to hit it.
So suddenly, the ground that you've been standing on disappears.
And you're kind of dangling in these seats strapped in.
Sal starts going, oh, I'm not sure anymore.
I'm not sure anymore.
Internally, I was saying something similar.
It's fine.
It's going to be OK.
This will be great fun.
Just smile.
Enjoy it.
Open your eyes.
And then we start to swing just a little bit back and forth.
And Sal's eyes closed.
She's like, I can't look.
I can't look.
And I'm like, it's great.
It's really exciting.
It's fantastic.
Thankfully, she was next to me, so she couldn't see.
But I'm playing tough.
I'm playing tough.
And then it's getting higher and higher.
But for some reason, it always goes slow on the way up.
It's like it's building suspense or trying to punish you or something.
Until we got to the point where we were upside down and hanging.
And you know it's about to happen.
But you're thinking, is there any way I can stop it now?
And so Sal is like, eyes closed.
She's panicking.
She might have been on the border of crying.
And I'm like, it's OK.
It's OK.
And then we started to drop.
And at that point, it didn't matter what I'd said, how much I'd faked, or what I'd acted.
I squealed like a little girl.
All the way down and around.
Every swing from then on, spinning around.
And I don't know if Sal knew it was me.
But when we got off the ride at the end, there were some other kids that were like,
did you hear that girl squealing?
And there we go.
And I'd put on this amazing show of how tough I was and what a great husband I was.
But what's on the inside always comes out.
It doesn't matter how well you pretend.
It doesn't matter what a great show you put on.
If internally something different is happening, eventually it's going to show up.
Just a few years ago, one of the greatest athletes of our time became one of the greatest frauds of our time.
Lance Armstrong had allegedly won multiple Tour de France's, survived testicular cancer, brain cancer, and lung cancer.
Had marriages and kids.
And then now we know that what was going on inside was a man so twisted by a need to win that he was willing to cheat and compromise his character over and over again.
What is on the inside always comes out.
When your reputation, the way that people see you, and your character, the person that you are when nobody is looking, don't line up,
you can be sure that what's on the inside will always come out.
And the same is true for us as followers of Jesus.
If you're not genuine in your commitment to Jesus,
if you have a double life, one that you show to us here at church,
one that you show when people can see you,
and then a different one when you're by yourself or when you're with a different group of people,
you need to be warned,
what's on the inside will always come out.
It might be that as you arrive at church on a Sunday morning,
you feel this pressure.
From the moment you drive in the driveway,
you are concerned because you know that you're about to be surrounded by a whole bunch of really holy people.
And so instantly, you switch on that bit of you that is nicer than you are at home.
You switch on that bit of you that is more excited about the Bible
than every other point in your week.
You switch on that bit of you that is going to tell everybody else that you love Jesus the most,
that you are the most excited about Him.
But the problem is,
if what's on the inside and what's on the outside don't match up,
what's on the inside will always come out.
The message of the Sermon on the Mount,
from the Beatitudes that we looked at last week and through the rest of chapter 5,
is that from God's perspective,
what's on the inside matters most.
From God's perspective,
it's the heart that He's interested in.
And in the passage today,
He wants to strip back that outside facade that we put on
and show us what really matters.
Have a look at verse 2 with me.
He wants to challenge us about some of the displays that we put on for the wrong reasons.
So I begin at verse 1.
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.
Don't put on a show for the people around you.
And the examples,
verse 2,
When you give to the needy,
do not announce it with trumpets as the hypocrites do in the synagogues
and on the streets to be honored by men.
I tell you the truth,
they have received their reward in full.
Or verse 5,
When you pray,
do not be like the hypocrites,
for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners
to be seen by men.
I tell you the truth,
they have received their reward in full.
And verse 16,
When you fast,
do not look somber as the hypocrites do,
for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting.
I tell you the truth,
they have received their reward in full.
These are good things.
Jesus is in opening this sermon and saying,
don't pray.
He is not even saying,
don't pray in public.
What he is showing us is that even good things that he has given us,
even things that he has instructed us to do,
can become just a means by which we put on a show for everyone around us.
And the problem with that is,
is God is not fooled.
I mean,
it is almost ridiculous to think that you would take something like this
and twist it and make it a bad thing.
But by perverting what is good,
we have stumbled into the worst kind of hypocrisy.
I mean,
prayer.
To pray in a way that you are seeking to impress other people
is completely redundant.
It is almost like me never saying anything nice to my wife when we are just alone,
but in public being overly affectionate to her,
overly positive to impress the other women around.
Prayer is our opportunity to speak to God.
So to use it as some sort of performance to impress other people
completely defeats the purpose of prayer.
And so today Jesus is warning us,
don't fake your love for him.
Don't pretend because he is not fooled.
And following Jesus genuinely means living for an audience of one.
It means switching off that part of you that is nervous about what everybody else will think
or say about what you do and focusing your heart and your desire on the audience of one.
On the God who is always there.
But I guess the question we need to ask as we reflect on this passage this morning is
how can you be sure?
How can you check your heart and figure out whether or not you are actually praying to God,
giving for God,
fasting for God,
singing for God,
serving for God,
rather than so that the people here at church will notice you and be impressed?
Well,
I think the key comes in comparing your private life with your public life.
If they're different,
who are you trying to impress?
Do you read your Bible more when you're by yourself?
Or when there's people around who will see you doing it?
Do you pray more when you're by yourself?
Or when you're at your community group and the people there will know whether or not you've prayed?
Are you more excited about Jesus when you're alone and you are just reflecting on his grace to you?
Or when you're here and you know that everybody else can see what kind of a facial expression you've got?
Do you give more when it's public and everybody can see what you're doing?
Or just whenever the opportunity is there because it is just your heart to be generous?
If your public life and your private life are different,
you have to ask yourself the question,
who are you trying to impress?
Because the only one who matters is Jesus.
No one else is worth it.
That's a scary finish to each of those verses we just read out.
The end of verse 2,
If you go through the motions of being a Christian to impress people,
that's all you'll ever get out of it.
Some people think,
Oh, what a great guy he is.
How generous he is.
How caring he is.
How encouraging he is.
But then they'll see someone else and be excited about their generosity and encouragement.
If all you want is to impress people,
you'll probably do it.
But is it really worth it?
The Christian life is one that demands whole-of-life commitment.
Last week we looked at the Beatitudes
and that God has flipped around everything that is success.
Is it worth giving up all the things that the world is telling you matter
if you're just doing it to impress people?
The only one who really matters is the audience of one.
Your Creator.
Your God.
And He is always with you.
The psalmist in Psalm 139 asked the question,
Where could I go to hide from God?
If I go up to the heavens, He is there.
If I go down to the depths, He is there.
If I hide in the darkness, even darkness is light to Him.
God is everywhere.
If you are different when you are alone
compared to when you are among your church family
or among Christian brothers and sisters,
I ask you the question,
Who are you trying to impress?
Do you need to realize that God is there
even when the doors are closed and you are by yourself?
Or do you need to ask yourself the question,
Am I distracted by something less important?
By someone less worthy?
Imagine living your life as a Christian
and convincing everyone you know that you are genuine,
that you are the real deal,
that you are serious,
except for the one person who matters.
It's like being pulled over by the police
with a carload of friends for speeding.
And you work really hard to convince everyone in the car
that you weren't actually speeding,
that there's been some sort of mistake.
Even if everybody in the car believes you,
if the policeman doesn't,
you're still going to get a fine.
There are some really scary words in chapter 7,
and let me read for you from verse 21.
Verse 21.
Not everyone who says to me,
Lord, Lord,
will enter the kingdom of heaven,
but only he who does the will of my Father
who is in heaven.
Many will say to me on that day,
Lord, Lord,
did we not prophesy in your name,
and in your name drive out demons
and perform many miracles?
Then I will tell them plainly,
I never knew you.
Away from me, you evildoers.
Can you imagine spending your whole life
convincing everyone around you
that you love Jesus?
Convincing everyone around you
that you're a Christian.
Maybe even starting to convince yourself.
But missing out on the one person who matters.
The God who made you,
who loves you,
who sent his son for you,
and who will ultimately decide
whether or not you spend eternity
in heaven with him
or separated from him.
There's an interesting little word in here
which I think we can't just skip past.
I was having a conversation
with Mike Casson about this last week.
We are challenged about the inferior reward
that we might be seeking
if we're trying to perform
for the people around us.
But there's the promise of another reward.
Have a look in verse 3 and 4.
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.
Then your father,
who sees what is done in secret,
will reward you.
Or in verse 6,
When you pray,
go into your room,
close the door,
and pray to your father who is unseen.
Then your father,
who sees what is done in secret,
will reward you.
Or in verse 17,
When you fast,
put oil on your head
and wash your face
so that it will not be obvious
to men that you are fasting,
but only to your father,
who is unseen.
And your father,
who sees what is done in secret,
will reward you.
It sounds like we're just trading
a dodgy reward
for a better reward.
It sounds like we're getting paid
for our commitment to Jesus.
But what exactly is this reward?
It's not the same thing
as putting on a show
and then getting praise for it.
It's not that we give to the needy
and then turn to God
and say,
OK, what do I get?
It's not that we pray in private
and then we turn to God
and say,
OK, what am I getting?
What's the benefit?
There is a fantastic C.S. Lewis quote
which helps us understand
the nature of gifts.
The proper rewards
are not simply tacked on
to the activity
for which they are given,
but are the activity itself
in consummation.
What he's getting at there
is that when we give
with a heart
that seeks to honour God,
when we give that a heart
that is generous
because God has been
generous to us
and because we are grateful
for all He has provided,
giving itself is a reward.
When we are distracted
by what may come,
what people may think of us,
we lose the benefit.
When we pray
out of dependence on God
and out of love for Him,
the chance to speak
to our Creator,
the chance to speak
to the Almighty God
is the reward
and there is no greater reward.
The reward that Jesus speaks about
here in this sermon
is that the acts of righteousness
are no longer a burden,
are no longer a show
that we must put on,
are no longer hoops
that we must jump through,
but they are a labour of love.
They are things that bless
and feed us
as we seek to love
and serve our Holy God.
If you want to be genuine
in your acts of righteousness,
genuine in your life
as a Christian,
you must live
for the audience of one.
You must close your eyes
to the pressure
and distraction
of the people around you
and check your heart.
Why am I doing this?
Secondly,
how can you make sure
you're genuine?
Let your reputation
overflow from your character.
Let what is outside
be the result
of what is inside.
If people look at you
and ask questions
about your commitment to God,
ask questions
about your obedience,
the answer is not
to convince those people
that you're actually committed
and you're actually obedient.
And that's good news.
That's actually a weight lifted.
You don't have to put on a show.
Instead,
Jesus calls you to focus
on what's inside,
to focus on your heart,
to focus on a love for Him.
That is good news
because no matter
how hard you try,
you will never be good enough
to convince
even the people around you,
let alone God,
if your heart
is not in love with Him.
Jesus says,
let your public worship,
let the person that you are
when people are around
be the overflow
of your private worship.
Let the person that you are
when other Christian brothers
and sisters see you
in your community group
here at church,
even when you're out shopping
or spending time with family,
let that person
be who you are in private,
overflowing.
Let the way that you read
God's word by yourself
be the way that you read
God's word here at church.
Work on the inside
and the outside will follow
because what is on the inside
always comes out.
Let your heart
drive your hands and feet.
There is an oppressive version
of following Jesus.
It's the version where
you get told everything
that you are doing wrong
and try and fix it all.
You get told that
you're not encouraging enough
and so you spend the next week
trying really hard
to be encouraging.
You get told that
you're not praying enough
so you put in a disciplined
regime of prayer
where you get up at 6am
every day to pray for an hour.
You get told that
you're not serving enough
so you fill every waking moment
with service.
That is an oppressive version
of following Jesus
where you just get burden
after burden.
But Jesus is saying here
in his Sermon on the Mount
what he is calling us to
is to love him.
And then that love
will overflow in service.
It will overflow in prayer.
Not so that people see
but because there is
no greater joy
than talking to the God
who loved us enough
to send his son
to die for us.
It is the love for him
that overflows in generosity
because we have been shown
generosity.
Following Jesus
is between you
and him.
The opinion of nobody else
matters
when it comes to you
standing before God
in that final day.
And so even when
no one is watching
especially
when no one is watching
Jesus is still there
right by your side.
If you wish to live a life
of genuine devotion to God
the instruction in this passage is
let your reputation
overflow from your character.
Work on the inside.
Work on your love for him
when no one else is watching
and that will shape
the person that you are
when people are watching.
But there is a bit of a tension here.
If you remember
last week we read
in verse 16 of chapter 5
let your light shine before men
that they may see your good deeds
and praise your Father in heaven.
So just one chapter ago
we are told to be public
and obvious
in our love for Jesus
so that God gets glory.
Now we have been told
to give privately
pray privately
and fast subtly.
How do we hold
those two things together?
Again another really helpful quote
that I have read
during this week.
Basically
show
when you are tempted
to hide
and hide
when you are tempted
to show.
The issue isn't
whether or not you pray
in public or private.
The issue isn't
whether people know
whether you give
or what you are giving
or not giving.
The issue isn't
whether people are aware
that you are fasting
or not fasting.
The issue is your heart.
The issue is the motivation.
If you are tempted
to be private
because you don't want
people to know
that you are following Jesus
then the message
of chapter 5
is let your light shine.
If you are tempted
to show everybody
so that they think
you are impressive
and holy
then the message is
go into your room
shut the door
and do it before
your heavenly father alone.
Before the audience
of one.
If you want
to be genuine
close your eyes
to the people
around you
and live
for your heavenly father
alone.
He is not asking
for mere actions
or words.
He demands
your heart
and nothing less.
Reputation
is just what people
think of you
but if you want
to be real with God
then what matters
is your character.
What matters
is the person
that you are
when nobody's looking
because what's
on the inside
will always
come out.
Let me pray for us.
Father God
we want to acknowledge
that it is so easy
to take good things
that you have
given us
and then use them
as a means
of self-promotion.
We want to
confess that
we do feel
the pressure
of being good
or being better
when we're around
people.
We do feel
the pressure
of living up
to the expectations
of others
but God
thank you
for reminding us
that you are
the only one
who matters.
thank you
for loving us
even when we
didn't deserve it.
Thank you
that how much
we pray
or give
or fast
in no way
affects
your willingness
to love
and forgive us.
God
lift the burden
of trying
to be good enough
from our shoulders
and replace it
with the joy
of loving you
because you
first loved us.
Father
help us
to be people
who feel safe
to be honest
when we're struggling
to share
our failures
so that together
we might grow
in our love
for you.
Father
please shape us
in the quiet
times
in our alone
times
to be so
consumed
with passion
for you
so overwhelmed
with love
for you
that it
overflows
into the people
we are in public.
Thank you
for your spirit
that has begun
and will complete
this work
in us.
In Jesus' name
Amen.