Virtue Signaling and Secret Giving

Look at how great I am! I am one of the good ones! The spirit of “virtue signalling” is as old as unrighteousness. This is gross. Jesus expects that we will regularly practice the spiritual discipline of giving. When we do, we receive rewards from the best “reward” giver ever. Let us be purposefully, constantly, secretly generous.

Acting!

To be, or not to be, that is the question:

Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer

The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,

Or to take arms against a sea of troubles

And by opposing end them. To die—to sleep,

… and scene!

Now, for a moment there you thought I was Hamlet, Prince of Denmark… aka Simba.

Shakespeare, author of Hamlet, wrote in a different play

All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

Do you think that’s true? That we are all just kind of faking it to one degree or another?

Maybe sometimes?

Is there something substantive? Something real?

I’ll tell you this:

I love acting, I love the theater, all of that is super fun… but I wouldn’t be here today if I didn’t think there was something real. Profoundly and deeply real.

I could have called this sermon: “Jesus hates actors!”

Recap

We have this great righteousness in Jesus. If He says you are in the Kingdom, you are in! And you have His righteousness becoming real, fruitful in your life, changing the way you actually live and think and feel.

But there’s a caution here. Even a “danger” in that righteousness.

Jesus’ last command of Matthew 5: Be Perfect.

Jesus’ very next command, his first command of Matthew 6: Be Careful.

Be Careful

Matthew 6:1 ESV

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

Note, picking up on our sermon last week, righteousness is something you practice. You do it, you carry it out, you do it.

But there’s an apparent danger here Jesus is warning his disciples about. Beware!

It is a circumstance and a motivation.

“Before other people” is life on the stage. Where other people can see you

And...

“in order” or “for the purpose of” being seen by them.

This is all about the heart, it is all about the motivation for why you are doing what you are doing.

This is actually going to apply to many if not all of the coming spiritual disciplines. But the first one is a doozy.

Matthew 6:2 ESV

“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.

Oh, those hypocrites! That’s a Greek word that comes straight through to English… but the Greek word just means “actors.”

I could have called this sermon “Jesus Hates Actors.”

And this has come to mean someone who publicly professes or teaches something but does not observe it in private.

And maybe there’s a little of that, especially in the next chapter… but that isn’t really what Jesus is saying. This is one who does something good for human applause.

What an incredible picture he paints.

“Doo doo do doo!” Everyone look! I am about to give to this poor poor person.

And maybe this is hyperbole… we kind of hope it is. Surely no one would announce their giving so loudly, so obnoxiously.

Go look up “homeless” on youtube and find a million of these videos.

Or look up “Mr. Beast”, that’s some of the kids favorite. Giving away a house or a car for Halloween… but then posting that on youtube for 100+ Million Views.

“Doo doo do doo!”

Or this is actual advice from a Non profit fund raising site. Prominently post all the names, and different levels of names, to indicate how much they gave. This motivates folks to give more, and they get the joy, bragging rights, whatever… everyone knows they gave!

And we’ve all seen it. “Doo doo do doo!”

Note, Jesus isn’t saying this is evil or profoundly wrong. He says “Beware...” or “be careful!” Your only reward is whatever acclaim you got in the eyes of others.

Mr. Beast’s only reward is the 100 million views and advertising revenue… and I think he’s okay with that.

Instead...

Matthew 6:3 ESV

But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,

Great and famous physical metaphor.

Not literally possible, outside of some very tricky lobotomy work.

But it is a measure of how secret to keep it, the opposite extreme of blowing trumpets, even YOU don’t know how much you’re giving!

I’ve heard of folks grabbing in the pocket blindly on purpose so as not to know how much they gave.

Matthew 6:4 ESV

so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Rewards

Are there rewards? Yes. Absolutely.

Jesus doesn’t actually say “don’t ever be righteous before other people.”

What he really says is “IF you do it for the approval of others, that is the only reward you get. The Father will give you nothing!”

By contrast, if you do it in secret, the Father will reward you. That’s super clear.

You’ve heard “giving is its own reward.” Okay, but that isn’t where Jesus lands.

Are these direct rewards?

It shapes your soul.

It teaches you compassion.

It creates a culture in which people care for one another. On another day, that’s me that needs $20. I’d rather live in a world where folks share generously and freely.

The culture of hospitality, for example.

Or are these more indirect. God bringing apparently unrelated blessings because of the generosity you’ve shown.

The real rewards are the friends we made along the way.

Or a mix. God knowing he can trust you to bless others when he blesses you… so He blesses you more, and that drives you to bless others more...

How about all of the above? Jesus doesn’t specify, doesn’t limit God the Father in any way. God isn’t a vending machine you can push a button and he gives Doritos. He is not a magical force you can manipulate through shamanistic giving.

He is a loving heavenly Father who knows exactly how to bless you. How to grow you.

And in fact, that moment where you encountered so-and-so in need was a divine opportunity, a divine appointment.

“And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”

In Debt to God

I love this model for giving.

Everything $ the bank gives me… I have to give that back. And not just that, actually, I have to give it back with interest.

Everything I have, God has given me. The more I hold to myself, that’s just feeding my debt. The more I give away, that’s paying down my debt. So the more I give, the more I actually have, and the more I keep, the less I actually have.

Maybe that’s confusing, but I like it.

This leads to radical generosity. It isn’t “he who dies with the most toys, wins...” but the opposite. Who can give the most? Who can bless the most!?

Especially if there’s any sense in which I can trade cash for rewards from God.

Woah!!! That sounds terrible! Again, you don’t get to prescribe the rewards… God isn’t a vending machine, this is not shamanism.

But I am interested in rewards from God. I want the kind of prizes God gives out. This is church, so let’s call them “blessings.”

What opportunities do we have to practice “secret giving?”

Flying a Sign

How about when you encounter this friend at the stoplight over here at 120th and I-25. That’s not too hypothetical is it?

I think this is the closest to the scenario Jesus. The poor have always been with us… and we know that has been, or will be, or could be us on another day. Someone in need of a bit of help.

And you have a decision to make in that moment.

Jesus doesn’t talk about “discernment” here. He doesn’t go into whether they are going to be spend it on drugs or food, or whether there are programs you could give to that might be more effective in addressing deeper causes of poverty.

It just isn’t what he’s about here. He does have the expectation that “giving to the poor” is going to be a regular part of your life. It isn’t “if” you do. It is “when” you do.

So, always, listen to the leading of the Spirit. And when and where he leads, slip that cash out the window. “God Bless, Jesus loves you...” and oh, hurry, the light changed…

And then tell no one. Keep it secret. And your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

Neighbors and Friends

Your brother asks to borrow some grocery money, just until payday.

Your neighbor is having trouble making their mortgage payment.

Your friend has a “new business plan that people are really excited about.”

Do those count?

Again, Jesus isn’t short-cutting the process of discernment here. He doesn’t say “always give” or “give them a stern talk about personal finance” first.

Are they poor? In need in some way?

Are you going to give in every circumstance? Probably not. Just as Jesus didn’t heal everyone he passed, or everyone in Israel, or everyone in the world… right time and place.

But giving to the poor will be a regular part of your life. And when you do so… keep it secret.

And your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you!

Tithes and Offerings

Does this count?

Sneak it into the box in the back, give online through the website… there is one person who knows how much you gave… and it isn’t me.

Only the treasurer knows if you gave, how much you gave. We go to great lengths to keep that as “secret” as we can.

And then, together as a church, we listen to the Holy Spirit on how best to serve Him, how best to love on our community with that money.

Audience of One

Come, let us practice our righteousness together.

Let us be purposefully, constantly, secretly generous.

Ultimately it is all about the heart.

Let us do it all for the audience of one.

Let go of what anyone or everyone else thinks of you. It isn’t about them.

What does your Creator think? What does He see?