Welcome to week five of our message series entitled Collide! We're walking through the greatest sermon ever preached. Not my sermon, but Jesus' Sermon on the Mount.

Jesus began in chapter five with the gospel. Blessed are the spiritually bankrupt. Blessed are those who know they need God. Blessed are those who mourn their sin. Blessed are those who surrender their lives to Him. Then He told us who we are.

"You are the light of the world" (Matthew 5:14).

Jesus was strategic and purposeful as he moved from identity to activity. From that identity, Jesus went after the heart. He talked about lust, anger, and unforgiveness. We saw last week that he called us to love and pray for our enemies. But he wasn’t just looking for external behavior modification; he was seeking a genuine heart change, an inner transformation. And that is why chapter five ends with him saying:

"Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect" (Matthew 5:48).

Not fearfully keeping the rules, tiptoeing around God, but a heart that looks like the Father’s. Then moving into chapter six, Jesus shows us what that heart looks like.

"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" (Matthew 6:1).

Then He gets specific. He says,

"So when you give to the needy" (Matthew 6:2).

Not if, but when. In other words, Jesus assumes His followers are givers.

Maybe you’ve heard me talk about giving and wondered if you were doing it right. You know, "How do I bring God my first and best?” And I want to assure you that God is not a legalist. The Bible simply says,

"God loves a cheerful giver" (2 Corinthians 9:7).

So, if you bring Him your offering with a willing heart, even if you miss some details, I believe God smiles on it and blesses it because He knows your heart.

Now, with that introduction, the Bible describes three kinds of giving. The first is the tithe. The word literally means a tenth. God tells us in Scripture to bring him the first part, not the leftovers.

"Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops" (Proverbs 3:9).

You see, everything you have is a gift from God. King David asked, "Who are we that we should be able to give as generously as this?"

"Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand" (1 Chronicles 29:14).

In other words, your name may be on your paycheck, but he is the one who gave you breath, life, and the ability to earn it.

And so, when we bring back the first ten percent, it is a solid foundation to start. It is a declaration that says, “Jesus, you are first in my life.” And we bring it to the local church because Jesus is the head of his church.

The second kind of giving is offerings. This is above and beyond the tithe. There is good giving, like giving to United Way, and then there is gospel giving. And that is investing in people and ministries who are pushing back darkness and spreading the gospel. In my family, we sponsor Compassion children and support the outreaches of this church.

The third kind of giving is what Jesus refers to in this text.

“When you give to the needy" (Matthew 6:2).

And that is where you keep a little room in your budget so that when the Holy Spirit nudges you to bless someone or maybe a needy family, you are ready to obey because, as Christians, we should be the most generous people on the planet.

Then, Jesus says, when you give,

"Do not announce it with trumpets" (Matthew 6:2).

In other words, don’t stand up and announce, "Hey, everybody, I'm about to give ten dollars!"

"As the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men" (Matthew 6:2).

Now, in Jesus’ day, the offering boxes at the temple were made of metal, most likely bronze or brass. According to Jewish tradition, thirteen of them stood around the Court of the Women, also called the treasury. Each was labeled for a specific purpose, and people would carry in piles of coins and pour them in, causing the sound to echo through the courtyard.

Jesus is saying, try to do it quietly; don’t make a show of it, because when you give to the needy and do it noisily to be honored by men,

"I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full" (Matthew 6:2).

In other words, congratulations, everybody saw you, and that is all you get. But then he continues,

"But 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" (Matthew 6:3).

Of course, Jesus is exaggerating to make a point because your left hand can’t really keep secrets from your right hand. But what he is saying is to keep it so quiet that even you aren’t keeping score.

"Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you" (Matthew 6:4).

He will reward you. He sees you. The sovereign King of the universe, the one who spoke everything into existence and holds all things together, sees you and will reward you. Over and over, you will see the word reward repeated throughout this chapter because God wants to reward you, and your faithfulness in good stewardship and generosity brings practical rewards.

In other words, if you tithe and learn to live on less than you earn, you will always have enough. The problem is that in America, most people live on more than they earn, and that never works. But when you bring God what is his, you invite him into your finances, and the guilt of spending his money on yourself goes away. You are content, and you discover that you can do more with your 90% than with 100%.

The greatest reward of all is spiritual. Jesus tells us in verse twenty-one,

"For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matthew 6:21).

And so, your generosity is evidence that you know Jesus. That’s why he said,

"Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me" (Matthew 25:40).

You see, he doesn’t want your money; he wants your heart. When you give, you aren’t trying to impress anyone. You are leaning into your relationship with your Savior.

Then Jesus moves to prayer in verse five. He says,

"And when you pray" (Matthew 6:5).

In other words, it’s not a matter of whether you pray, but when, because everybody prays. Nobody is an atheist when they’ve been in a serious accident, the house is on fire, and their life is in jeopardy. The question is whether prayer is your first response or your last resort.

And so, Jesus says, 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" (Matthew 6:5).

The word hypocrite means an actor, someone wearing a mask, and they prayed these loud and eloquent prayers in public. The people thought they were so holy, but the problem is that God doesn’t think so.

Or maybe you have heard someone pray and realized that they are either gossiping or preaching, or maybe both. And so, it would be like me praying, “Father, I pray for Dana, because she really needs to get her attitude right. Help her to forgive as you have forgiven, because your Word says, “If you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matthew 6:15).

We talked about that last week. Jesus said,

“You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye and then you will see clearly” (Matthew 7:5).

And so, he continues,

"I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full" (Matthew 6:5).

They got their reward, they got the applause, and that’s all they’re going to get. Then Jesus tells us in verse six,

"But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen" (Matthew 6:6).

In other words, it’s great to have a prayer spot, whether it’s a chair or a corner, but to have a place where you meet with God. That’s wonderful and important, but the bigger point he is making is that your prayer life isn’t a performance, laying out your prayer mat on the street corner or posting your quiet time on Instagram to show everybody your open Bible.

And so, when you pray, it’s a private thing; it’s just between you and the Lord. That is the heart of having a secret place.

"Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you" (Matthew 6:6).

So, what is the reward for praying? Answered prayers? Sometimes, because God answers every prayer. Sometimes he says yes, sometimes no, and sometimes not yet. But I believe the real reward is him. We get that time with him.

And so, when you pray, Jesus tells us in verse seven,

"And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words" (Matthew 6:7).

Now, it’s not that Jesus is against many words or certain words; he is against empty, vain, meaningless repetition and against repeating phrases just because we’ve heard someone else say them.

Scripture tells us:

"This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it" (Psalm 118:24).

So “God, thank you for this day” can be a beautiful prayer if you truly mean it. I love to pray the Scriptures, speaking back to God what he has said. We learn to pray by repeating what our Father has said. But at some point we have to take the training wheels off and start talking to God from the heart.

And the wonderful thing is that when we don’t know what to pray, the Holy Spirit helps us.

"The Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express" (Romans 8:26).

That means you don’t have to spend your prayer time informing God about what is happening. He knows that your rent is due Thursday before you even said anything. And so, Jesus says in verse eight,

"Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him" (Matthew 6:8).

And so, Jesus just told us not to babble, not piling up empty words, and then he says:

"This, then, is how you should pray: 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one'" (Matthew 6:9-13).

He gave us a model for prayer immediately after telling us not to keep babbling like pagans. And what have we done with it? We memorize it and recite it without thinking about a single word. Now, there is nothing wrong with praying the Lord’s Prayer, but you should slow down and think about it. You should mean what you are saying.

Let’s walk through it together. It starts with, “Our Father.”

"This, then, is how you should pray: 'Our Father in heaven'" (Matthew 6:9).

Now, for his audience, that would have been shocking because of their sense of reverence.

For example, David would say, “O Sovereign Lord” (2 Samuel 7:18).

Elijah prayed on Mount Carmel,

“O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel” (1 Kings 18:36).

Or King Solomon prayed,

“O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below” (1 Kings 8:23).

Even after the Old Testament, Jewish prayers developed set forms that are still used today, such as “Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the universe.”

But what we discover in the gospel is that Jesus calls God Father well over 150 times. And so, if you miss those first two words, you will miss the heart of prayer. Because the way you see God determines how you talk to him.

In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus used the Aramaic word Abba, the warm word a child would use for his dad.

"'Abba, Father,' he said, 'everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me" (Mark 14:36).

And so, Jesus says, “Yes, he is your dad.” But if you think of him as a judge, a God who is far off, or an angry God, you will stay distant, always apologizing, always pleading your case.

But when you know he is your Father and loves you, you can come to him as a son or daughter. And that is not just something we are allowed to claim; the Holy Spirit produces it in our hearts. The Bible says,

“You received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, 'Abba, Father'" (Romans 8:15).

And so, Jesus says, this is how you should pray: our Father in heaven, and at the same time, Jesus did not throw out the reverence of Israel’s prayers. The very next words are "hallowed be your name."

"This, then, is how you should pray: 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name'" (Matthew 6:9).

We come to God as our Father, but never as though he is common. We have the reverence of the prophets and the intimacy of a son or daughter. And so he is our Father, but he’s not our buddy.

The prophet Isaiah said it this way,

"Yet, O LORD, you are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand" (Isaiah 64:8).

In other words, he is the Creator, and we are the created. For by him, all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, and the Psalmist cried out:

"Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture" (Psalm 100:3).

Prayer begins with worship: acknowledging who God is, expressing the desire to honor him, and living in such a way that everything I do and say brings glory to his name.

Then, in verse 10, Jesus prays,

"Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:10).

And so, Jesus came and began his ministry, calling people to:

"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near" (Matthew 4:17).

And now we see that Jesus' preaching lines up with his prayer. In fact, his own prayer in the garden lines up with what he is teaching here.

"Yet not what I will, but what you will" (Mark 14:36).

And so, we are asking God to align our lives with his will so he can use us to bring his kingdom to:

“A crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe" (Philippians 2:15).

Notice that we still have not addressed our own needs. It is only after we have honored who God is and surrendered to his kingdom that we pray,

"Give us today our daily bread" (Matthew 6:11).

Sometimes people have asked me if it is okay to ask God for things. And the answer is absolutely. He is your Father, and Jesus said,

"How much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him" (Matthew 7:11).

But this prayer is a prayer of daily dependence. Most of us already have a refrigerator full of food, so this reminds us to thank Him every day for everything He has already provided. The Bible says,

"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father" (James 1:17).

Then, in verse 12, Jesus prays,

"Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors" (Matthew 6:12).

That is a big prayer because we are asking God, “forgive me as I forgive others.” And I want you to hold onto that thought because we will see it again as we come to the table and celebrate communion this morning. And Jesus has a lot more to say about it next week.

Finally, Jesus tells us to pray,

"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one" (Matthew 6:13).

And so, prayer reminds us that we are in a battle and we need God’s help to win it. It is for that reason that Jesus' whole life was saturated with prayer. He often withdrew to lonely places to pray, in both busy and the good seasons, not just the hard ones.

When the disciples asked Jesus,

“Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1).

It was after having watched him work miracles,

“The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor” (Matthew 11:5).

But they didn’t ask him to teach them to preach or to do miracles. They asked him to teach them to pray because they realized that without this connection to the Father, everything else was pointless.

And so, if Jesus, God in the flesh, lives his life driven to prayer, why do we try to live ours with so little prayer? And here is the collision. Do we really think that our generation is more capable than Jesus?

Those first believers in the early church recognized this desperate need, and they were a praying church. The Bible says,

"They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer" (Acts 2:42).

And when they prayed, God moved powerfully. Acts chapter four says,

"After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly" (Acts 4:31).

My concern is that what was fundamental to the early church has become supplemental to the contemporary church in 2026.

And so, as we come to a close, I want to show you what happens when giving and prayer come together. In Acts chapter 10, we are introduced to a Roman soldier named Cornelius. The Bible says,

"He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly" (Acts 10:2).

One afternoon an angel appeared to him and said,

"Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God" (Acts 10:4).

In other words, God noticed, and so he sent Peter to his house to share the gospel. Cornelius had gathered his relatives and close friends, and they were all waiting when Peter arrived. He told them what had happened throughout Judea, how God anointed Jesus with the Holy Spirit and power, how he went around doing good and healing everyone, and how…

"They killed him by hanging him on a tree, but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen” (Acts 10:39-40).

While Peter was still preaching,

"While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message” (Acts 10:44).

Secret giving and secret praying led to an outpouring of God’s presence. Those who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles.

“For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God" (Acts 10:46).

That is what I want for us: that our prayers and our giving would be noticed by God and that he would pour out his presence in this place every time we gather.

Here’s the bottom line: the reward for giving and praying is God himself, and he is what we need. I want to encourage you to respond to this incredible invitation:

"Come near to God and he will come near to you" (James 4:8).

Think about how hard it is to get an appointment with important people. You might call them repeatedly, and they won’t even call you back, but the King of the universe says, “Come here.”

We don’t come and worship, giving and praying, just to check boxes. Those are ways that we draw near to him. Jesus said it like this,

"Remain in me, and I will remain in you" (John 15:4).

"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing" (John 15:5).

Our giving and prayer keep us connected to the Vine, and when we stay connected, the Holy Spirit produces in us what we could never produce on our own.

"The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control" (Galatians 5:22-23).

That is the reward, the presence of the Holy Spirit, producing fruit in us. And so, we give and pray not to perform but to turn our hearts to him because of what he has done for us.

That brings us to the Lord’s table. Remember the prayer we just walked through? “Give us today our daily bread.”

Jesus said:

"I am the bread of life" (John 6:35).

And then, we prayed, “forgive us our debts.”

On the night that Jesus was betrayed, he took the cup and said:

"This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins" (Matthew 26:28).

Every line of the Lord’s Prayer finds its answer at the cross. The bread and the cup remind us that our Father has already given us everything we need in his Son, Jesus Christ.

And so, before we eat, the Scriptures encourage us, saying:

"A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup" (1 Corinthians 11:28).

Before we come up to receive the elements, take a moment and ask the Holy Spirit to search your heart. Is there anything you need to repent of? Is there anyone you need to forgive? Have you been holding onto what belongs to God?

As we close, we are going to celebrate communion together, declaring who Jesus is. And the Bible says:

"Whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes" (1 Corinthians 11:26).

After communion, we are going to worship. This part of the service is the whole point, so I’m about to stop talking, so that you can hear what the Holy Spirit is saying to your heart. I want to encourage you to listen to him and do what he says.

We are going to pray as Jesus taught us:

"Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:10).

Graphics, notes, and commentary from LifeChurch, Ministry Pass, PC Study Bible, Preaching Library, and Sermon Central. Scripture from the New International Version unless otherwise noted.