THE BANE OF IMPURE MOTIVES!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

TUESDAY DECEMBER 19, 2023.

SUBJECT: THE BANE OF IMPURE MOTIVES!

Memory verse: "But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments.” (Matthew 23 vs 5.)

READ: Matthew 6 vs 1 - 6, 17 - 18: 

6:1: “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.

6:2: 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. 

6:3: But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 

6:4: that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly. 

6:5: And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.

6:6: But you when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

6:17: But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face,

6:18: so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret  place, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

INTIMATION:

Motive is something—incentive, purpose, intention—that causes a person to act. Therefore, a pure motive is devoid of any form of selfishness. When we pray, when we fast, and when we give, the Bible says that we must be pure in our motives. If you do any of these things being self-centered other than being God-centered, then your motive is impure. God abhors anything that we do that takes Him out of the first place in our lives. 

For instance, when you do something for the sake of being seen by others, your motive is impure, and Jesus said that being seen by others is our only reward. If, however, we do what we do in obedience to God—putting God and His desires first—then our motive is pure, devoid of any selfishness, and God will reward us. Obedience to God is key to receiving from Him: “If they obey and serve Him, they shall spend their days in prosperity and their years in pleasures” (Job 36 vs 11).

Therefore, believers should avoid doing their deeds of righteousness in order to receive recognition of men. If they do, then they have received their rewards. Believers let their light shine, but not for the purpose of drawing attention to themselves. Believers should give in a manner by which they do not intentionally seek the praise of men. Their giving should be as private as possible in order that one’s motives for giving be kept pure. The hypocrites do good, but their hearts are far from God. 

It’s easier to do what’s right when we gain recognition and praise. To be sure our motives are not selfish, we should do our good deeds quietly or in secret, with no thought of reward. Jesus says we should check our motives in three areas: generosity, prayer, and fasting. These acts should not be self-centered but God-centered, done not to make us look good but to make God look good. 

Impure motive Jesus calls ‘hypocrisy.’ The term hypocrisy, as used in the Scripture, describes the acts of people doing good for appearances only—not out of compassion or other good motives. Their actions may be good, but their motives are questionable—empty and self-serving. These empty and self-serving acts, wanting to boost their ego, are their rewards. But God will reward those who are sincere in their faith, obeying and serving Him sincerely.

Our relationship with God is personal, hence Jesus requiring us to be private in our dealings. When He says not to let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, He is teaching us actions in pure motives. It is easy to give with mixed motives, like doing something for someone if it will benefit us in return, or doing things for selfish ambitions, like public recognition and applaud. Jesus teaches that believers should avoid all forms of scheming, but rather our actions must be in response to God’s love, and obedience to Him.

Some people really don’t care about holiness, as demanded by God, but likes looking holy, or be seen as holy in order to receive people’s admiration and praise. Such people like public prayers where they speak on top of their voices and gyrate as if under the power of the Holy Spirit, just for public recognition. The essence of prayer is not public style, but private communication with God. There is a place for public prayer (corporate prayer), but to pray only where others will notice you indicates that your real audience is not God, but rather self-recognition, which is an impure motive.

Some may conclude that Jesus’ directions about private prayer calls into question all public prayers. That is an obvious misunderstanding of His teaching. The Gospels recorded Jesus praying both privately (Matthew 14 vs 23) and publicly (Matthew 14 vs 18 - 19). Jesus did not condemn public prayer, but praying in order to be seen of men. 

Jesus was only drawing attention to the motives behind actions. The point really wasn’t a choice between public and private prayer, but between heartfelt and hypocritical prayer. When asked to pray in public, focus on addressing God, not on how you are coming across to others. Believers should pray often in a quiet environment in order to express their innermost feelings to the Father. 

Fasting should not be in order to draw attention to one’s performance of religious rites. Fasting is to be directed toward the inner self in order to focus one’s mind on God. By concentrating on the inner spiritual part of man, believers should give no outward indication of their fasting. The purpose of fasting is to inwardly humble oneself before God in order to proclaim one’s dependence on the work of God in his or her life. In humbling ourselves before God, we manifest our dependence on God in order to plead for His work in our lives.

Prayer: Abba Father, give me the grace to be pure in my motives in all I do, especially in my prayers, that I may please You in my supplication, and o eschew compromises of any form in my life, that I may not to be a friend to the world, and an enemy to You, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!