Giving to the Glory of God

Intro

Giving to the Glory of God

joke old man cane

sermon on the mount

jesus talks about giving

It is obvious that the religous people were boasting about what they were doing for God and how much they were giving to the temple or to people in need

they were doing it for all the wrong reasons.

sometimes we do the same.

today we will look at what Jesus teaches about giving to the poor and how to give like a child of the kingdom of God

Motive is a reason for doing something.

? Why are you doing whatever it is that your doing?

What is your motive for working?

To take care of your family

?What is your motive for coming to church?

Should be to worship God.

brings us to our first point

Keep an eye on your Motives

In Matthew Chapter 6 Jesus comes in with a stern warning against your motive in giving

Matthew 6:1 (NKJV)

“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.

Teach- Do not do righteous deeds to be seen by man

Teach- consequence-loose your reward

We see the warning of Jesus to the multitudes and we need to place ourselves there.

Imagine you are on the hillside near the sea of Gallilee and you hear these words of Jesus

are you going to heed his warning.

We all are predisposed to this fleshly desire.

Dont get it twisted, it feels good to the flesh to be recognized by men.

Have you ever been complimented — ego boost

Im in sales - report your numbers- everyone is talking about you

self centered

but it takes an even more sinister turn when you want people to see how good you are.

and you start to brag about the charitable things you do.

One of the biggest problems is that a person who does this is trying to impress man and not God.

Galatians 1:10 ESV

For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.

Teach - Paul was writing to the Galatians about the gospel and said his mission was not to please man but to be approved by God.

The heart must always be geared twoards Gods approval and not mans.

Therefore we must keep an eye on our motives

Is our motive to be seen by men or to please our father in heaven.

Now that we addressed our motives in the general sense lets dig deeper into the implications of doing righteous acts to be seen by men.

Be Genuine in your giving

Matthew 6:2 (NKJV)

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.

Teach - Charitable deed = different greek word than in verse 2 zeros in on giving.

trumpet- boasting- draws attention

Hypocrite- pretender, put on a show - word literally means an actor.

like someone who speaks out against global warming and the rides in a private jet.

just like the hypocritical giver their motive was not pure in heart.

Jesus is addressing the hypocritical religious man.

our churches are full of them accross the country.

Jesus is going to adress three types during these next few weeks

but lets stay focused on the hypocritical giver.

The Hypocritical giver is not genuine.

doing a good thing - ruined by wrong motive

its like giving your wife flowers and then asking her if you can go out with the guys

its sneaky and not genuine

This person misses the whole point that giving is an act of worship

genuine children of God give out of love for their father in heaven and out of love for men.

Isaiah puts the motives for giving well in

Isaiah 58:7 NKJV

Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, And that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out; When you see the naked, that you cover him, And not hide yourself from your own flesh?

The man of God is eager to give to the needy.

likewise he is eager to give to the household of God.

His heart is genuine to the purposes of the Lord.

on the other hand- The religious hypocrite has no motive other than recieving glory from man.

and this is his reward.

His reward is a pat on the back

and good standing before man.

but wouldnt you prefer a good standing before God?

Be the humble giver

I am convinced through my walk with Christ that the most admirable attribute of any christian is that persons humility.

every person I look up to as a mentor holds this character trait in a robust way.

This trait n people is what reminds me most of Jesus.

I dont know who needs to hear this but

JESUS lives inside of you if you are born again.

When he reigns in our life we can display this attribute in our giving.

He says in verse 3-4

The New King James Version (Chapter 6)

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.

TEACH- Left and right hand

dont allow yourself means to brag

God is working in you a humble heart

When the world tells you to be proud of your giving.

Christ tells you to forget that you have even given anything.

robust giving is par for the course for christians.

God is calling you to do your giving in secret

“Keep the thing so secret that even you yourself are hardly aware that you are doing anything at all praiseworthy. Let God be present, and you will have enough of an audience.” (Spurgeon)

Its not that God does not want anyone to see your good works,

for we are to let our good works be as salt and light

But God is concerned, as always with the heart.

Jeremiah 17:10 NKJV

I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give every man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his doings.

in verse 4 - Jesus points to the fact that when your giving is done in secret, with the right heart...

God will reward you openly

HOW HARD IS IT TO LEAD A HUMBLE LIFESTYLE

it is the opposite character trait that we so naturally possess

but we are no longer natural men

we are spiritual men and women.

and people who are living in the spirit can lead in humility

even to giving with a humble heart.

Outro

It is hard to lead a life to the Glory of God when we are so predispositioned to look out for ourselves.

As John the baptist said,

He must increase and I must decrease.

So What is your motive in your giving to the needy?

Are you even concerned with giving to the needy?

What is your motive in anything that you do.

Whatever it is it needs to be to the glory of God.

Not to man.

Its time to reflect on your life with Christ.

Are you genuine with Him?

Im preaching to myself right now.

Lord help us to be more genuine with you.

May all that we do be done to your glory.

Help us to be humble in our giving knowing that all we have is yours anyways.

May we not be hypocrites anymore

and may we turn our hearts to you to aim to please you and no one else

lets pray.