The Sermon on the Mount, Part XVIII and XIX of XL

The Sermon on the Mount, Part XVIII of XL
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TEXT: Continuing with Matthew

6: Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.

COMMENTARY: This text is, or should be, quite scary! For if the attention of people is their full reward-- and Jesus says that it is-- conceited, selfdisplaying people have no reward in "heaven," or the afterlife. These are so pathetic as to have received the "mud" of human attention, and exchanged that "dirt" for the "gold" of God's rewards for humility. Humility is very rare, almost nonexistent, among religious leaders, even as it was in the time of Jesus. But its scarcity makes it the "platinum" of real spirituality. Without humility, any claim to be "spiritual" or "enlightened" is a farcical lie! For it is one of the fruits of true wisdom.


The Sermon on the Mount, Part XIX of XL
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TEXT:

3. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your alms may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

COMMENTARY: The "Father" is always watching your life through your own eyes and mind ("in secret"). This is certainly not to increase your selfconsciousness, but in order to evaluate your actions on earth. For there is a part of your Unconscious called the "interior Judge," or "Observer" that continuously records all actions, words, and thoughts.

It is impossible to "lie" to this part of your Self, or to hide from It.
And all future destiny arises from what the Observer sees you doing in this world.

TEXT:

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 men. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.

COMMENTARY: Jesus here recognizes that ego stands against spirituality; egocentricity is a very real and perilous spiritual disease. In this teaching, Jesus confirms intercultural mysticism, which always teaches this as a matrixteaching. This is another fairly "scary" warning! For Jesus again repeats that those who pray in public have already received their "reward" from human beings-- again, exchanging "mud" for "gold." Jesus is, in effect, banning and prohibiting public prayer. So, this command of Jesus is being regularly disobeyed, in almost every church, almost every week! Prayer is never to be a spectacle, to be observed by other human beings.

Instead, prayer should be more like making Love, which no modest person would do in public. It is not shameful, but simply very private.

It is not to be shared with the "crowd." Those who misuse sacred prayer as an "opportunity" for selfdisplay are not only wrong, but they are deeply spiritually ill.
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