ALPHA MAAMA (A.M.)

Monite ‘Epeleli 12, 2021 

Beware of  practicing your righteousness before other people

‘Oua te mou fai pe ke hā pe ki kakai´ 

Matiu 6 (Matthew 6)

(v. 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.

(v. 1) KAE vakai, telia na‘a mou fai ho‘omou tō‘onga fakalotu ke hā ki he kakai, koe‘uhi ke nau siofia kimoutolu; he ka pehē, ‘oku ‘ikai ha‘amou totongi mei ho‘omou Tamai ‘oku ‘i Hēvani.

 

*Commentary: The NIV Study Bible*

6:1-18 Jesus gives examples of how a person's faith can be expressed in a hypocritical way, when giving to the needy (vv. 2–4), praying (w. 5–15), and fasting (vv. 16–18).

6:1 before other people. Public acts of obedience are valuable and honorable, but if they are done merely for the sake of public recognition, there will be no reward from God (cf. w. 2, 5, 16).

GOD IS . . . (KO E ‘OTUA, ‘OKU . . )

4        GOD IS INFINITE

God is great, because he is abundant in power (omnipotent) and measureless (infinite) in his understanding (omniscience).

Because God is eternal and omnipotent, nothing can limit him or be too hard for him: “Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh. Is anything too hard for me?” (Jer. 32:27). He is the eternal, independent, powerful God who determines all things. He is perfection, so that nothing extends beyond him. God's infinity consists not in “indefiniteness" or "potentiality" but in the perfection of his attributes. God is fully actualized potentiality. In other words, he cannot "become” anything; he always has and always will be what he alone is: a fully actualized being who needs nothing and possesses everything.

Affirming God's infinity implies his incomprehensibility. We can never know God as he knows himself, for the finite cannot comprehend the infinite. We possess a bounded understanding, because we are creatures. God has a boundless understanding as the infinite, eternal God. We could sooner fit the oceans of the world in a teacup than understand God. Our grasp of God compared with God's actual being is like a dim light compared with the vast radiance of the sun. We can say with certainty that what we know about God can never be full but only adequate (i.e., saving) knowledge, which can always increase.

4   KO E ‘OTUA´ ‘OKU ‘INIFINAITE (ta‘efakangatangata)

‘Oku lahi ‘a e ‘Otua, he ‘oku mahulu atu ‘a hono ivi (‘ominipoteni) pea ‘ikai fa’alaua (‘inifinaite) ‘i he ‘ilo kehekehe (‘ominisieni).

Pea koe’uhi, ‘oku lau ‘itaniti mo mafimafi ‘a e ‘Otua, ‘oku ‘ikai ha me’a te ne fakangatangata ia pe ha me’a ‘e faingata’a kiate Ia. “Sī ni, ko Sihova au, ko e ‘Otua ‘o e kakano kotoa: hono ai ha me‘a ‘e faingata‘a kiate au?” (Selemaia 32:27). Ko e ‘Otua Ia ‘o ‘itaniti, ‘oku tau’ataina mo mafimafi pea ‘oku ne pule’i ‘a e me’a kotoa pe. Ko Ia ‘a e haohaoa, pea ‘oku ‘ikai ha me’a ‘e ope atu ‘iate Ia. Ko e tu’unga ‘inifinaite ‘a e ‘Otua, ‘oku ‘ikai ke ‘uhinga pe ki he’ene “ta’efakangatangata”, ka ko e tu’unga haohaoa ‘o hono natula. Ko e ‘Otua, ‘oku a’ua’u ‘a ‘ene haohaoa. ‘E ‘ikai te ne toe hokosi pe a’usia ha tu’unga ‘e taha; ko e tu’unga kuo ne ‘i ai, mo e tu’unga ‘oku ‘i ai, ko ia kotoa pe ia: ko ha tokotaha kuo ‘osi kakato haohaoa ‘iate Ia pe, pea he ‘ikai te ne toe fiema’u ha me’a he ‘oku ne falute ‘a e me’a kotoa pe.  

Ko ‘etau fakapapau’i ‘a e tu’unga ‘inifinaite ‘o e ‘Otua, ‘oku ki ai mo hono tu’unga ta’emahakulea. ‘E ‘ikai pe te tau a’u ki ha tu’unga te tau ‘ilo kanokato ai ‘a e ‘Otuaa, ‘i hono tu’unga faka-’Otua; ‘oku ‘oku ‘ikai ke lava ‘e he tangata ‘oku ngata hono anga, ke ‘iloa ‘a e ‘Otua ta’efakangatangata. ‘Oku ngata pe ‘etau ‘ilo, he ko e me’a fakatupu pe kitautolu. Ko e ‘Otua, ‘oku ta’efakangatangata ‘a ‘ene ‘ilo, he ‘oku ‘inifinaite mo lau’itaniti ‘a ‘ene ‘afio. Ko e taukakapa ‘a e ‘ilo ki he ‘Otua, ‘e tatau mo ha’ata feinga ke lilingi ‘a ‘oseni ki ha ipu ti. Ko e kehekehe ‘o ‘etau taufaa ki he ‘Otua pea mo hono naunau, ‘e hange ko ha’atau fakatatau ha ki’i maama poipoila ki he kakaha ‘a e la’aa. ‘Oku malava pe ke tau fakapapau’i, ko ‘etau ‘ilo ki he ‘Otua, ‘e ‘ikai ‘aupito pe ke kakato ka ‘oku fakafe’unga pe mai pe pea ‘oku malava ke tupulaki.