# 17. 2017 Dev. Mt. 6:3-4. Read verses 1-4. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God by memorizing selected passages of Scripture. Further, to view the passage in context and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living with family, friends and others. All passages are taken from the NIV.
Matthew 6:3-4a
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.
Jesus’ sermon on the mount in the Gospel of Matthew goes on for three chapters, 5,6,7. Today we move to chapter 6 :1-4 and Jesus moves from loving your enemies to giving to the needy. Chapter 6 begins the third section of Jesus’ sermon. The Beatitudes is the introduction to the Kingdom of Jesus that include the gifts of the Kingdom (blessings). In the second section are the ethical expectations of the Kingdom, ending at the end of Ch. 5. Ch.6 begins the comparison of Jewish legalism and the ways of the world to the Kingdom.
Giving to the needy is assumed here, Jesus expects his followers to help the disadvantaged. Giving with compassion is part of the image of God in us. Both believers and unbelievers are compassionate but what Jesus is talking about here is the way we help others.
This section begins with a warning: “be careful how you practice righteousness”. One would think that righteousness is self qualifying. That would be true if our motivations are neutral; if our motivation is only to practice righteousness with no thought about the perception of others about us.
Along with a warning to be careful Jesus includes what can only be interpreted as a negative promise; “you will have no reward from your Father in heaven”. Apparently, as we see today, some people at that time made big announcements when giving to the poor. Jesus tells us that drawing attention to ourselves when giving to others is not righteousness but unrighteousness.
Therefore, Jesus says: “do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing”. Give in secret and God will reward you but those who seek the praise of men have their reward already. I think that Jesus is warning us because it is a very subtle issue in our lives; often, we are upset because we get very little recognition for the good we do as followers of Jesus. We have work to do in this area and we thank God for the power of the Holy Spirit to keep us moving closer to Jesus. Praise God!
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