“Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” (Matthew 6:1-4)
To God, the motive is just as important as the action. It is important to ask ourselves why we do the things we do for Him. To bring glory and honor to God -- to obey Him -- because of the needs of others -- those are all good motives. To receive acclaim -- to earn His favor -- to make us feel good -- those are all motives that are less than right.
God spoke through Isaiah to say, “I am the LORD; that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols.” (Isaiah 42:8) The glory for everything we do belongs not to us, but to our heavenly Father. It is His work in us that accomplishes what we do.
Giving to those in need is a God-honoring thing to do. Be sure you’re doing it for Him and for them, though, and not for yourself.
His, by Grace,
Steve
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