Jesus teaches that giving, prayer, and fasting should honor God rather than gain admiration from others. So much of what we do now is documented somewhere – whether it’s on a blog, a text message, in an Instagram story, or a Facebook post. Funny how none of that was on the radar back when Jesus spoke these words…But I dare say they are more relevant now than ever. Matthew 6:1 confirms Jesus’ view on our motives, “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.”
Of course, showing someone what you’ve been able to do in a service project or praying for a group of friends aloud is not bad in any means, but what really matters here is our motive. Are we using lofty words to appear closer to God, or are we documenting service projects to let people know how “giving” we are? Who are we really trying to glorify? If our aim is to hear a “good job” from people, well, that’ll be the only one we hear. So if you have the thought (as I know we all feel from time to time) that if you don’t post it, it won’t really matter, remember this, “…then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” (Matthew 6:6)
Photo Credit: ©Unsplash/Susanna Marsiglia
