Give in Secret - March 20, 2006
“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. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” (Matthew 6:3-4) Such were Jesus’ instructions to His disciples in His Sermon on the Mount. Simply put, Jesus was saying “Give in secret!”
The most unskilled reader recognizes that Jesus was speaking in less than a literal fashion when he said, “do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.” They are both connected to the same brain and receive their orders from a common source. Literally speaking, the hand doesn’t know anything anyway; intelligence is a process of the brain and not the hand. So what is Jesus really saying here? How are we to take His instructions? Does he mean that it is inherently wrong for one person to know that another person is doing a charitable deed? Must all giving be done in absolute secrecy or else it is in vain?
Like all communication, the words of Jesus on giving must be taken in context. He was addressing the abuses of the hypocritical scribes and Pharisees whose practice it was to make an open show of their giving for the express purpose of being noticed by men (Matthew 6:1-2); they gave “to be seen of men”; that was their motive. Yet, the gifts which God approves of, are gifts that would be given if no one had seen; they come from one heart of compassion and are offered to another heart in need. Concerning those who made such fanfare over their giving and whose motives were to be seen by men, Jesus said, “They have their reward.” Implied in this and other teachings is the fact that our Heavenly Father holds out no offer of reward to those whose motives in giving are so shallow. He will reward those who give with right motives, but those whose motives are amiss will receive no reward from Him!
There is a great lesson in this text for us today. The primary message involves our motives in serving. Why are we doing what we are doing in service to God? Is it really service to God, or is it done with some other end in view? The question which we can ask ourselves is the one that is implied in what Jesus said about giving secretly. Here it is: If no one would ever know that I am giving (or serving) in some way, would I do it anyway? Those who demand recognition & public reward for their service, no matter how significant, have answered that question already. When the motive to give is right, it matters not whether any other human being on the face of the earth will ever know what we have done.
Don’t Neglect Such A Gift - March 16, 2005
To neglect is to be negligent or forgetful of something or someone. Paul, in writing to his young brother Timothy admonished him not to neglect his gift. Much debate has take place regarding what this “gift” might have been, but that really isn’t the importance of what Paul said. He was telling Timothy that he should be a slacker in NO area of his ministry; his full heart and soul was to be poured into his work so that the maximum benefit would come to his hearers. In this he was to emulate his father in the faith, Paul.
Paul and Timothy were ardent servants of Christ in and under all circumstances. Paul was more experienced than his younger son in the faith and so he could advise more fully regarding some matters, but it seems from viewing the New Testament passages concerning Timothy that he did not take a back seat to anyone when it came to zeal and dedication. He never neglected any of his gifts when it came to his service to God and the church.
To fail to use one’s talents (gifts) for the furtherance of the cause of Christ is to fail Christ. Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome, “Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.” (Romans 12.6-8) This was Paul’s message to Timothy as well, and it is still the same message for us today: Use the gifts we have been given!
This is a powerful lesson for us today. We live in an era that is unprecedented as far as the speed and ease of communication goes. Never before in the history of man have we been able to so effortlessly communicate instantaneously with almost anyone on the planet. Having this gift & ability, what a shame it would be to fail to use it for the cause of Christ. Remember, without the use of modern communication methods, Paul, Peter, John, Timothy and many, many more preached to multitudes upon multitudes. Can we do any less in view of the "gifts" which we have been given? To ask the question is to answer it!
Directing Our Steps - March 15, 2006
“I know, O LORD, that a man's life is not his own; it is not for man to direct his steps.” The way of man in this text is the way man ought to walk. Jeremiah affirms that man does not have within himself the answer to life’s most important question, namely, "What ought I to do with my life?" Man has a sense of obligation to do something with his life but he possesses no moral compass apart from outside inputs. Left to himself and minus any external advice or counsel man simply cannot find his way, or as Jeremiah affirms, “it is not for man to direct his steps.” What then are we to do? How are we to direct our steps? Where oh where will we find help regarding what we ought to do and how we ought to live our lives?
Jeremiah answers these questions for us: “Correct me, LORD, but only with justice – not in your anger, lest you reduce me to nothing.” (Jeremiah 10:24) The word “correct” in this verse could just as easily have been translated instruct or teach. Hence Jeremiah is asking God, in view of the fact that he is unable to direct his own steps, to teach or instruct Him with justice. Implied in this petition is the fact of God’s sovereignty; God is the eternal standard against which all human actions are to be judged; He is the Potter and we are but clay.
This valuable and timely lesson can be a bitter pill for us as proud and self-reliant humans to swallow. We like to think of ourselves as self-sufficient and able to stand on our own two feet. These verses in Jeremiah however, affirm that we actually need someone or something else to tell us what to do, or at least to tell us what we ought to do. Human pride says, “I can find my own way; I don’t need to ask directions!” God says, “You are lost and without my input, you cannot find your way!”
Even in the church we are not immune to this way of thinking. We can tend to try and become more successful even in godly endeavors without seeking the guidance of our Heavenly Father. And then when we fail to meet our goals, we seem stumped as to why? May we never forget that we were made in the image of God, and as Christians, we are children of God. Let’s allow our Father, who loves us dearly, to help us find our way as we journey towards home.