The discipline of fasting is the topic in today's text, but Christ's message is that which matters most to him: a pure heart. Fasting was and is a practice used to deny oneself in order to fervently seek and draw near to the Lord, and to glorify God. However, in this passage, we learn that the Pharisees would often draw attention to themselves while fasting, ultimately glorifying self and stealing the glory from God. Similarly, when we serve or work in his name and do this with a self-centred attitude or motivation, the Lord sees this hypocrisy and rejects it. Conversely, he also recognizes the pure motivation of genuine heart which seeks to glorify him above all else. God rejects what is false, but blesses what is real!
Many people consider the quality of "meekness" to be a sign of weakness in a person and therefore, undesirable. Christ once again turns a...
God sent His Son to redeem His people who were currently slaves to the law. Through Jesus we have been adopted as sons -...
Prayer is adoration, confession, thanksgiving and supplication, and as we read Paul's letter to the Philippians, we are reminded that there is simply nothing...