Jesus’ sermon is pointing believers toward a way of living that prioritizes being over looking and the beatitudes over being comfortable. His perspective produces a kind of life that culminates in Matthew 6:25, “be anxious for nothing”. It is this quality of life that humans resonate with and our current culture wars against.

Matthew 6 probes the motives of the human heart. Are its actions staged to be seen, or do they come from a genuine inner source? Jesus uses prayer, giving, and fasting to evaluate our spiritual life and then turns to money for our public life.

Prayer – what subject has more intrigue and difficulty? Jesus in Matthew 6 gives a model of prayer that a child understands and scholars can study. Before His model prayer, Jesus instructs us to not pray to impress people or think we need to work to get our Heavenly Father’s attention. Instead He knows what we need before we ask. Jesus’ model prayer is worship of God then our wishlist of bread, forgiveness and protection.

Jesus has taught there are six evils that interfere with the kingdom (anger, lust, divorce, lying, vengeance, and hatred). Now, Jesus goes inside the believer to demonstrate that good works like giving, praying, and fasting done for the wrong reasons are even more dangerous.

In Matthew 5, Jesus makes six statements clarifying the Kingdom. In this week's teaching, He makes the hardest of all requests; He tells His followers to love their neighbors and their enemies. He defines love as praying, greeting, and doing good like their heavenly Father.