Matthew
“Be careful not to do your good deeds in front of people, in order to be
noticed. Otherwise you have no reward
with your Father who is in heaven.
When you give to the poor, do not trumpet this before others like the
hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they will be praised by people. I tell you the truth: they have already received their reward.
When
you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is
doing,
so that your charitable giving may be in secret, and your Father who
sees what happens in secret will reward you.
“When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, because they love to stand
up and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that people can see
them. I promise you, they have already received their reward.
But you, when you pray, go indoors and close the door, and pray to your Father in private, and your Father who sees what happens in private will reward you.
And
when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, who think they will be heard because of all the words they speak.
Do not be like them, because your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.
So pray like this: ‘Our Father in heaven, may Your name be held in honor.
May Your Kingdom come. May Your will be carried out on earth as it is
in heaven.
Please give to us today the bread we need to live each day.
Forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sinned against us.
Do not bring us into temptation, but rescue us from the Evil One.’
For if you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
But if you do not forgive those who sin against you, then your
heavenly Father will not forgive your sins.
“When you fast, do not be like the hypocrites who put on gloomy faces
and make themselves look bad so it is obvious to people they are fasting. I
tell you, they have their reward in full.
But you, when you fast, wash your face and take care of your appearance,
so that people will not see that you are fasting, and your Father who sees what happens in secret will reward you.
“Do not store up wealth for yourselves on earth where moths and rust
ruin it, and where thieves break in and steal.
Instead, store up wealth for
yourselves in heaven, where moths and rust do not ruin it, and where thieves
do not break in and steal.
For wherever your wealth is stored up, that is
where your heart will be too.
“The eye is the body’s lamp. So if your eye is clear, then your whole
body will be lit up.
But if your eye is bad, then your whole body will be in
the dark. Then if the light in you is darkness, how dark is that!
“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate one and love the other, or you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve
God and money.
That is why I am telling you not to worry about your life, about what to eat, or what to drink, or what clothes to put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?
Look at the wild birds. They do
not sow or reap or store food in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds
them. Are you not worth more than they are?
And which of you by worrying can add a minute to your life?
And why are you worried about
clothes? Look at the beautiful wildflowers in the field, how they grow. They do not work hard, nor do they spin thread.
But I tell you that not even
Solomon in all his majesty was dressed like one of these flowers.
So if God decorates the grass in the fields like this, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will He not do much more for you, you people of little faith?
So do not worry, thinking, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we
drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’
All these things are what the pagans seek after, but your heavenly Father knows everything you need.
Seek His Kingdom first, and His way of being and doing right, and everything else will be given to you.
So do not worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow can worry about itself. Each day has enough problems of its own.”
Matthew