Has
My Giving Become a Show?
2
“Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the
hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by
others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 3 But when you
give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is
doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in
secret will reward you.
Luke
6:2-4
There
is a story about an holy man who covered himself with ashes as a sign of
humility and regularly sat on a prominent street corner of his city. When
tourists asked permission to take his picture, the mystic would rearrange his
ashes to give the best image of destitution and humility.
Today
a great deal of religion amounts to nothing more than rearranging religious “ashes”
to impress the world. Through the whole of the Sermon on the Mount Jesus is
driving the Pharisees and as we read driving us to the realization that we are
inadequate. And also the way we practice religion is also inadequate. We can’t
help ourselves. Jesus is pointing out the problem and at the same time also
giving a solution for it.
Most
of the times we do something for somebody in need and we ask them not to tell
anyone about this but inside we can’t wait till somebody brings it up so we can
say. We all fight that kind of thing. We want to let people know we gave.
Christians
are to be marked by generous charity to the poor. It is not special action. Extending
to others what God has provided for us is just the outworking of the love of
God in our hearts. It really should not be anything noteworthy. It should be
something that is the common response of compassion.
The
idea of giving became twisted in the course of time. People used to give for
their own ends and for their own glory rather than God’s. Their concern changed
from bringing honour to God to gaining the honour of their fellow beings.
When
we look in the Bible we see that God never wanted empty religious observances. God
rejected the worship of those that practice it in form but not in heart. In fact,
the first offering was rejected. In the story of Cain and Abel we see that Cain’s
offering was rejected.
Jesus
tells us that when we give it is to be from the heart. This is stressed when
Jesus says that the left hand should not know what right hand is doing. The right
hand was considered the primary hand of action and during the course of a day
it would do many things that would not involve the left. The phrase simply
means that giving should be something so normal, without special effort or
show.
Jesus
says that the only reason you should give, is to give because it please God. You
do not give anything to God, you give for God. You give out of a love of god in
your heart that encourages. Doing and giving anything for anyone is between you
and God.
How
we give is going to result in how we will be rewarded. You do it and forget it,
and God will remember it and reward it. You do it and remember it and God will
forget it and there will be no reward. The choice is ours.
This
Lenten season can we take a little time to look around who is needy and give
them from what God has blessed us with?
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