Your Father who sees what is done will reward you.

Matthew 6:1-24 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

“Take care not to practice your righteousness in the sight of people, to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.

² “So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, so that they will be praised by people. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. ³ But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, ⁴ so that your charitable giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

⁵ “And when you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they will be seen by people. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. ⁶ But as for you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door, and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

⁷ “And when you are praying, do not use thoughtless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard because of their many words. ⁸ So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.

⁹ “Pray, then, in this way:

‘Our Father, who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
¹⁰ Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹ Give us this day our daily bread. ¹² And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. ¹³ And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil.’

¹⁴ For if you forgive other people for their offenses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵ But if you do not forgive other people, then your Father will not forgive your offenses.

¹⁶ “Now whenever you fast, do not make a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they distort their faces so that they will be noticed by people when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. ¹⁷ But as for you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, ¹⁸ so that your fasting will not be noticed by people but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

¹⁹ “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰ But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; ²¹ for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

²² “The eye is the lamp of the body; so then, if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. ²³ But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. So if the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

²⁴ “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.

What Jesus says in today’s text is fairly well captured in the single verse of Matthew 6:33: Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided to you.  He says: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also… No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” It is not only concerning wealth and financial matters that we are to put the kingdom first though. It is in everything that we do!

Jesus says: “Take care not to practice your righteousness in the sight of people, to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven. So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, so that they will be praised by people. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your charitable giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.” People can usually tell whether another person is truly generous and charitable or if instead they give for notoriety or influence, but God judges the heart. He knows our motivation behind what we do and give. If we apply the same principle to giving that we do in saving, what we give should also benefit and build up treasure in the kingdom of heaven. We cannot give to unrighteous causes if we seek first the kingdom and righteousness. Even more, those who give to gain influence or power, to manipulate or control others, may receive their reward here on earth, but they will answer for their service to money in the age to come.

In Matthew 22:37-40 Jesus says: “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ Upon these two commandments hang the whole Law and the Prophets.”  It is vital though that we understand that we must do the first before we can do the second. 1 John 4:19 says: We love, because He first loved us.  Our love for God and our love for others comes from our response to God’s love for us. In our love for others then, we must also seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. We cannot show our love for others by embracing, tolerating or accepting unrighteousness. All that Jesus said we should do in today’s text is to be done with the kingdom in mind. It is to be done in the eyes of the Father and not for the approval of people. Remember though in Matthew 5:14-19, Jesus did tell us how we should live in the sight of people:  “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Your light must shine before people in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. Do not presume that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter shall pass from the Law, until all is accomplished! Therefore, whoever nullifies one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”

Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.  Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors.  And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.