Do Good to Please God, Not Man
Matthew 6:1-4 (NKJV)
1 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.
2 Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.
3 But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.
In the past couple of weeks, my Facebook wall has been flooded with posts of people letting everyone know what they have done for the flood victims in Eastern Kentucky. It is wonderful that so many people have sacrificed their time, money, and resources to help people that have suffered life-altering tragedy, but we must never forget what the motive behind our charitable deeds should be.
Jesus told us that we should not do our charitable deeds publically, for men to see. Jesus is referring to the hypocritical Pharisees that desired the honor of others far more than they desired to glorify God. Jesus says they have their reward. We should not “sound a trumpet” to draw attention to the good deeds that we are doing for others.
When we post photos, videos, or updates about all of the good things we have done for the flood victims or of any other charitable deed we do, we are sounding a trumpet, drawing attention to ourselves, and sitting back to watch the positive “likes” and comments pour in.
Some might say, “I am doing what I’m doing with a good heart and because I care about those people.” I won’t question you about that, but let’s just try not telling anyone what we’ve done, then see how we feel. If we have no satisfaction in our actions when no one knows about it, that should indicate to us that it’s high time to re-evaluate our motives for charitable giving.
Please do what you can to help your family, friends, and neighbors that are in need. This post is not meant to discourage anyone from helping, but it is just a reminder of WHY we do good things for others. We should truly do it to help those in need and glorify God. If we make it a public spectacle on social media, Jesus makes it clear that God is NOT glorified in that. If we do our charitable deeds in secret, our Father who sees in secret will Himself reward us openly.
- Eric Bullock, Evangelist
