That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly, MAT 6:4.

In Chapter 14 of the Gospel of Luke the Lord Jesus deals with the pharisaical pride of self-exultation. The principle taught is that when one is bidden to a feast, it is better to take the lowest room so if they tell thee to come up higher, it shall be an honor rather than to be bidden to come to a lower place which would be a disgrace.

The principle that is taught here carries forth in LUK 14:13-14 where we find, "But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind: and thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just."

Let's look at the parallel between the principle of this teaching and the principle taught in MAT 6:1-4.

The principle taught in the first eighteen verses of Matthew 6 is the principle of Godliness. The six contrasts in MAT 5 are teaching us righteousness. Unrighteousness is any act against our fellow man, i.e., the second table of the law. In MAT 5:21-48, Jesus teaches the principle that this righteousness that excels is revealed in the motive of love from the heart; our motive of loving God above all is reflected in our relationship to our fellow man, which is the second table of the law. In Matthew 6 we are dealing with the first table of the law; that is the attitude of the heart toward God, not the attitude of the heart toward man. Godliness deals with the attitude of the heart between us and the Lord.

The Lord Jesus Christ sets forth the urgency of having a righteousness that exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees. They had a righteousness that exalted themselves so their works might be seen of men; that is ungodly. Jesus teaches us that our righteousness must exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees.

In MAT 5:20 we read, "For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven." This becomes a matter of salvation, not a matter of opinion.