“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.
“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. 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” (Matthew 6:1-6; all Scripture quotations are from the New American Standard Bible).

How do we worship God? Why do we serve Him? What are our motives? What do we hope to gain by following Christ? Jesus asks us these questions throughout Matthew 6, the second part of the Sermon on the Mount.

Jesus expected certain actions and habits from His followers. He said, “When you give to the poor” (v. 2), “when you pray” (v. 5), and “whenever you fast” (v. 16). For each of these, He said “when,” not “if.” He expects us to give to needy persons and to fast, just like He expects us to pray.

So, why do we give to the poor? Our primary motive for giving should be to worship God. It is possibly a more genuine form of heartfelt worship than anything we normally do in church. We often think of “worship” as that part of a church service where we sing a few songs, but the New Testament mentions music only a few times. (I cannot think of a place where Jesus mentions it.) We place great emphasis on worship in the church and forget that true worship breaks beyond the walls of the church and shines the light of God’s love to those who are outside.

This is not intended to discourage church attendance. It is impossible to read the New Testament without a church connection. Most, if not all, of its books speak either to church congregations or leaders. (Philemon might be considered the exception to this rule, but in that one, Paul bases his appeal on his authority as a church leader. Even though it might be a “personal matter,” it was intertwined with their church relationship.) However, many Christians view church attendance as the essence of their spiritual life. The church service should be something like the pit stop in an automobile race. The winner of the Indianapolis 500 is the driver who completes the laps faster than anybody else; however, if he does not pull his car in for pit-stop maintenance, he will not be able to finish the race. Likewise, we spend most of our life outside the church, and most of our opportunities to do God’s will occur at home and work or with our friends, families, and neighbors. However, without fellowship, corporate worship, teaching, and discipleship, we will fail to find and accomplish God’s will for our lives.

So, we conduct most of our worship by acting on our faith outside the church setting, and part of that worship involves giving to the needy. We do this to please God and bless the people He loves, not to look good to others. Everything we do should bring glory to God without seeking to impress friends, families, and strangers.

“Whatever you do in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father” (Colossians 3:17).

Jesus’ comments about praying in public might seem odd to us. In 2023, most Christians do not expect the approval and admiration of onlookers if we pray in public. Usually, if we pray over our meal at our restaurant, we might look around anxiously, hoping nobody is watching; we are not expecting to draw applause. Yet, even though that particular example may not seem up-to-date to us, the general principle is still the same: We give to honor God; we pray to be seen and heard by Him; we should not be concerned about what other people think about this. We seek God’s pleasure, not the admiration of others. We want Him to reward us; the rewards of others are meaningless, perhaps even dangerous, to us.

So, as we do anything in Jesus’ name, we should ask ourselves these questions:

• Will you still serve at church, or give or minister to others, even if nobody thanks or compliments you?
• Do you ever want to quit because nobody makes a big deal about your ministry?
• Do you serve so that people will think of you as a “good Christian” or as a leader in your congregation?
• Do you help others or serve without making a big deal about it? If you feel like you have to brag about or announce all of your ministries frequently, you may want to take some time to check your motives.
• Do you worship God privately as well as publicly? Do you read the Bible regularly at home or only in church? Do you ever sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs at home or while driving your car, as well as in Sunday worship services and small-group fellowship meetings?

Where do you worship and serve God? How do you worship and serve God? Why do you worship and serve Him?

Almighty God, You know our hearts. Search me, O God, and know my heart. Try me and know my thoughts. Reveal to me the hidden motives of my heart—even those attitudes that I have hidden from myself—and lead me to serve You, seeking to be rewarded by You alone. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Where do you worship and serve God? How do you worship and serve God? Why do you worship and serve Him?

Copyright © 2023 Michael E. Lynch. All rights reserved.