Matthew 6:1-4 “Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. OTHERWISE YOU HAVE NO REWARD FROM YOUR FATHER IN HEAVEN.
Why is understanding what Jesus taught about giving very crucial? This is important because an understanding of the teachings of Jesus concerning the subject of giving reveals many truths.
2 of the key things that is revealed are:
THE ABUSE OF THE MESSAGE OF GIVING BY SOME IN THE BODY OF CHRIST AND
THE REVOLT AGAINST THE SUBJECT OF GIVING BY MANY BELIEVERS AS A RESPONSE TO THE ABUSE.
Today we commence our study on what Jesus taught about giving from Matthew 6:1-4, which I believe is mostly being ignored in the body of Christ. For example, for some churches or believers, the names of people who give during what is known as “special offering” or “fund raising”, must be mentioned in public. Many have argued that the reason for this is to acknowledge those who have given and to encourage others to give. However, this only goes to make those who are not able to give feel bad, while giving human praise to those who have given, hence denying them from their true reward.
In Matthew 6:1-4, Jesus warns us to
“TAKE HEED THAT YOU DO NOT DO YOUR CHARITABLE DEEDS BEFORE MEN, TO BE SEEN BY THEM. OTHERWISE YOU HAVE NO REWARD FROM YOUR FATHER IN HEAVEN”
This single statement of Jesus means so much to me. “TAKE HEED” implies that you can easily fall prey to giving to gain the recognition of people if you do not put in effort into guarding against it.
Jesus created humans and He knows the motives of humans. He knows that the heart of humans can easily be carried away by the desire to be seen by me. Jesus warns that any giving with the intention to be recognised by men will have no reward at all from God the Father.
The righteous of all can easily fall prey to giving as a show. Therefore be very careful when giving. Always check the condition of your heart when giving.
Here are a few very important applications
Honestly examine your motives each time you give. Ask yourself the following questions:
Why am I giving?
What really is my motive for giving?
Deep down within me am I giving to be recognised by men? Is there anything in me that desires to be noticed by men when giving? Do I get angry when people do not notice me giving?
If your motive is to be seen by men, you will have no reward from God in heaven. Anything you do to please men is called hypocrisy.
Here are few summary and key lessons from this verse
Any giving done with the motive of been recognised by people has no reward from God the Father
There is a reward for giving which comes from God the Father.
God sees in secret but He rewards you openly.
“Take heed” means it is so easy to fall prey to this trap.
So what should you do? Always examine your motive for your giving. Examine your motive all the time. If you find out that there is something in you that wants men to see that you are giving, stop your giving until you have totally corrected everything.
Do not waste your giving.
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