Sermon Discussion Guide: 11/17/24
Sermon Recap
Text: Matthew 6:1-18
Big Idea: Your righteousness has everything to do with your heart.
Summary: As Jesus continues His sermon, He does not begin a new thought in chapter 6, rather, He carries on with His previous point. In chapter 5, Jesus showed how good works were to bring His Father glory, and His disciples’ righteousness was to be greater than the scribes and Pharisees. Then, He proceeds to show how avoiding sin is deeper than avoiding certain behaviors, it’s about the thoughts and desires of the heart. Now, in chapter 6, Jesus is making the same point on the positive side—your good deeds are only good when they flow from a right motivation of the heart. Jesus then uses three of the most common acts of religion in 1st-century Judaism—giving to the needs, prayers, and fasting—to make the same recurring point: if you are doing your righteous deeds for the praise of others, then their praise will be your reward. However, if you do your good works for the glory of God and from relationship with Him, then He who sees your heart will reward you.
Discussion Questions:
1. How have you seen good works talked about alongside ideas like legalism and self-justification?
2. In an evangelical context which magnifies that grace is a free gift of God, how do we rightly understand the role of good works in the Christian life?
3. How do you navigate living with good deeds that are seen and bring God glory (5:16) with doing your good works in secret as Jesus describes in chapter 6?
4. In what ways are you most tempted to want acknowledgement and praise from people for the things you do? (Be open and transparent)
5. What have you found to be the most helpful antidote to combatting the temptation to take the praise for your own glory?
6. How do you balance receiving encouragement and appreciation in a right way without allowing it to become a point of taking the praise due to God?
7. With the holiday season coming up, in what ways do you most anticipate that you may struggle with serving purely for the good of others and the glory of God? (Again, be open!)
Text: Matthew 6:1-18
Big Idea: Your righteousness has everything to do with your heart.
Summary: As Jesus continues His sermon, He does not begin a new thought in chapter 6, rather, He carries on with His previous point. In chapter 5, Jesus showed how good works were to bring His Father glory, and His disciples’ righteousness was to be greater than the scribes and Pharisees. Then, He proceeds to show how avoiding sin is deeper than avoiding certain behaviors, it’s about the thoughts and desires of the heart. Now, in chapter 6, Jesus is making the same point on the positive side—your good deeds are only good when they flow from a right motivation of the heart. Jesus then uses three of the most common acts of religion in 1st-century Judaism—giving to the needs, prayers, and fasting—to make the same recurring point: if you are doing your righteous deeds for the praise of others, then their praise will be your reward. However, if you do your good works for the glory of God and from relationship with Him, then He who sees your heart will reward you.
Discussion Questions:
1. How have you seen good works talked about alongside ideas like legalism and self-justification?
2. In an evangelical context which magnifies that grace is a free gift of God, how do we rightly understand the role of good works in the Christian life?
3. How do you navigate living with good deeds that are seen and bring God glory (5:16) with doing your good works in secret as Jesus describes in chapter 6?
4. In what ways are you most tempted to want acknowledgement and praise from people for the things you do? (Be open and transparent)
5. What have you found to be the most helpful antidote to combatting the temptation to take the praise for your own glory?
6. How do you balance receiving encouragement and appreciation in a right way without allowing it to become a point of taking the praise due to God?
7. With the holiday season coming up, in what ways do you most anticipate that you may struggle with serving purely for the good of others and the glory of God? (Again, be open!)
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