“But God shall shoot at them With an arrow; suddenly shall they be wounded. So they shall make their own tongue to fall upon themselves: All that see them shall flee away. And all men shall fear, and shall declare the work of God; For they shall wisely consider of his doing. The righteous shall be glad in the LORD, and shall trust in him; And all the upright in heart shall glory.”
Psalm 64:7-10 KJV,https://bible.com/bible/1/psa.64.7-10.KJV
A Life of Generosity
As Jesus was teaching people, there was a group of leaders who were not always the best role models. When these people helped others, they would boast about it and tell everybody the good deeds they did. They made sure to flaunt their good works publicly for everyone to notice them.
Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 6:3 is directly related to what these leaders were doing. Jesus says that when we give to those in need, we shouldn’t let our left hand know what our right hand is doing. Essentially, our goal in giving to others should not be recognition.
Jesus’ teaching is about the condition of our heart. If we’re giving to others for the sake of being recognized for doing good, then we’re not helping people with the right motives. This should not stop us from giving to others, but it should guide our motives for doing so.
When we help others, we should do so primarily for their benefit—not our own. This means there’s no need to broadcast it. Instead, we should have ...