March through Matthew in a Month

Matthew 6

During the season of Lent in March 2026 we are reading through the Gospel of Matthew as we follow Jesus from Bethlehem to Nazareth to Galilee to Jerusalem to Calvary to an empty tomb and by grace through faith in Christ to heaven.

Some Points to Ponder as we read Matthew 6:

1. Matthew 6 continues with Jesus’ sermon on the Mount. In this chapter Jesus focuses our faith on the important spiritual issues of prayer, piety (how we live out the Christian faith in our daily lives), our priorities (challenging us to examine what we value most--earthly or heavenly treasures) and what He says about being anxious (anxiety or worrying). Our Savior’s powerful words of both Law and Gospel hit home and address every aspect of our lives.

2. In Matthew 6 Jesus gives us His model prayer, known to us as “The Lord’s Prayer” or the “Our Father.” This perfect prayer has 7 petitions. The first 3 petitions focus on or ask for spiritual blessings, only the fourth petition asks for material/earthly blessings (“…give us this day our daily bread”), and the final 3 petitions ask for God’s deliverance from sin (“forgive us our trespasses…as we forgive…”), temptation, and evil. 

3. Note: The doxology (words of praise) or conclusion we use at the end of the Lord’s Prayer (“…for Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.”) were likely added by the early Church as the prayer was used frequently in the liturgy.

APPLYING God’s Word to our lives: As we read Matthew 6, ponder these probing, practical, personal questions:

(All of Matthew 6) -- How would I describe my Christian piety--which is the way I express and live my Christian Faith daily? Do my thoughts, words, and deeds honor God?

(Matthew 6:1-8; 16-18) -- Am I ever a hypocrite? (Let’s be honest and specific). Do I ever say or believe one thing and yet think or act differently?

(Matthew 6:1-4) -- How can I express my thanks and be generous with all the blessings God gives me to help others and support God’s Church?

(Matthew 6:5-15) -- Is prayer a high priority and frequent practice in my life?

(Matthew 6:19-24) -- What do I treasure most?  If a stranger analyzed my checking account/debit statement, my credit card statement, and/or my investment/bank statements, what would they show I value most in life based on how I spend, save and share? 

(Matthew 6:1-24) -- Am I doing X (X = praying, sharing, giving, worshipping, serving) to glorify myself or to glorify God?

(Matthew 6:25-34) -- What causes anxiety in my life? What does Jesus say and do about my anxiety and worries?

(All of Matthew 6) -- Of what behaviors, habits or things in my life do I need to repent as I desire and strive with God’s help to live a more Christ-centered, thankful and joyful life as a disciple of Jesus?   

We now read Matthew 6…    

Matthew 6 (ESV)  

Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount continues…

Giving to the Needy

Jesus says -- 6:1 “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

2 “Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

The Lord's Prayer

5 “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

7 “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 9 Pray then like this:

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.

10 Your kingdom come,

your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

11 Give us this day our daily bread,

12 and forgive us our debts,

    as we also have forgiven our debtors.

13 And lead us not into temptation,

    but deliver us from evil.

14 For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, 15 but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Fasting

16 “And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 17 But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18 that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Lay Up Treasures in Heaven

19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust[e] destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, 23 but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

24 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.

Do Not Be Anxious

25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

+Prayer+ Dear Jesus, Your words are powerful. They both convict and comfort me. Help my generosity, my prayers, my priorities, and my entire life as a Christian be in harmony with Your Word. Forgive my failures and sins. Strengthen my faith to follow and trust in You as Your chosen and beloved disciple. Give me Your joy and help me, Jesus. Amen.

Pastor Scott Schmieding

Senior Pastor

Immanuel Lutheran Church and School

115 S. Sixth Street

Saint Charles, MO 63301

636.946.2656