In today’s Gospel Jesus continues his teaching on “greater righteousness” that he called for at the beginning of the section with these words:
“I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” (5:20)
In today’s Gospel he makes explicit this greater righteousness:
“But take care not to perform righteous deeds in order that people may see them; otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father.” (6:1)
The “righteous deeds” that he focuses on are almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. The key is not to perform these deeds for “show.” Later in this Gospel Jesus will accuse some of the Pharisees of performing righteous deeds for show:
“The scribes and the Pharisees have taken their seat on the chair of Moses. Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you, but do not follow their example. For they preach but they do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens hard to carry and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they will not lift a finger to move them. All their works are performed to be seen.” (Matthew 23:2-5)
Jesus teaches that religious people, be they Pharisees or Christians, need to strive for sincerity and humility in their righteous deeds. The righteous deeds of almsgiving, prayer, and fasting are all important and good pious practices that should call us to renewal and repentance. We recognize our hunger for God, and we hear the “cry of the poor” through fasting. Fasting calls forth our generosity in almsgiving. Our prayer, especially, the Our Father, brings about our renewal as we pray that God’s “will be done.”
Today’s Gospel is probably familiar to us as the Gospel proclaimed on Ash Wednesday. This day calls us to recognize God’s presence in our midst and turn to God:
“After John had been arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: ‘This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.’” (Mark 1:14-15).
Jesus proclaims to us the good news that God is next to us and invites us to turn to him and to renew our lives. This renewed encounter with our loving Father calls us to perform loving or righteous deeds.
Image: “Lao People Giving Alms to Monks” by International Rivers is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.