Matthew 6:1-4.
HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT GIVING? DO YOU ALWAYS GIVE WHEN ASKED?
WHAT BENEFITS DO YOU RECEIVE WHEN YOU GIVE TO OTHERS?
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. 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. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”
BACKGROUND
“In the Old Testament the concept of giving is significant and multifaceted. The model is God Himself who is ever giving generously of Himself and His own bounty. The land of promise, the covenants, the tablets, the Torah, the kingship, peace, power, justice, deliverance from the enemy, the phenomena of nature, provision, and sustenance are but some of the many gifts that the OT attributes to God’s own gracious giving.”
Burke, D. G. 1979–1988. “Give.” In The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Revised, edited by Geoffrey W Bromiley, 2:473. Wm. B. Eerdmans.
With God as our model, giving is a good thing.
In our previous studies we’ve noticed that Jesus talked about certain sins and how sin goes to the heart and not just our actions. Jesus talked about lust and adultery, oaths and lying, retaliation, anger to murder, and divorce.
Now Jesus takes another turn. He begins talking about good things, righteous acts, which, if not careful, can be turned into sin. He will do this with giving, prayer, fasting, saving for the future, and anxiousness. Today we deal with giving to the needy—a noble act which can be turned to sin.
As we’ve studied before, sometimes the biblical authors used certain literary devices to drive home their point. That is also true with this passage as it uses Hebrew parallelism to communicate its message. Jesus’ main point is repeated three times. Look at the structure.
Repeating something is a common way of driving home a point. Jesus uses this tactic to help his audience understand the seriousness of what he wants to communicate. Even good things can be turned to evil depending upon what’s in our hearts.
Jesus uses this form for the next three topics of giving, prayer, and fasting. “(A) a warning not to do the act to be praised by men, (B) a guarantee that those who ignore this warning will get what they want but no more, (C) instruction on how to perform the act of piety secretly, and (D) the assurance that the Father who sees in secret will reward openly.”
Carson, D. A. 1984. “Matthew.” In The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, edited by Frank E. Gaebelein, 8:163. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.
In our previous lessons we discussed that Jesus was dealing with statements in the law. But the three issues Jesus addresses now were not regulated by the law. Rather, they were practices encouraged by Jewish religious leadership. In each case Jesus shows these three things (giving, prayer, and fasting) to be good, but they can also be turned to sin.
EXAMINATION
(V.1) “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them…”
Verse 1 is an introduction to the next three topics of giving, prayer, and fasting. This is signified by the word, righteousness. All three of these were considered “righteous acts.” Then he begins talking about them specifically, starting with giving.
At first this seems to contradict something Jesus said in chapter 5. He said, “…let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works…” But there is a difference. The motive in 5:16 is to glorify God, not receive praise. Thus, there is no contradiction. We want others to see our good works so they will have a testimony of Christ through our works. But we shouldn’t seek praise for it.
An excellent example of this is mercy ministry, like Samaritan’s Purse or Strikeforce. These ministries use disaster relief to open doors to share the Gospel. They are open about their relief work so they can give the love of Christ to those in need.
(V.1) “…for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.”
This is the first time in the Gospels that we are told our righteous acts have a reward from God in heaven. Paul also talked about heavenly rewards. After talking figuratively about our rewards passing through fire Paul says, “If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward” (I Corinthians 3:14).
There are rewards of a kind in heaven. Scripture talks about a room or a house to live in. (John 14:2), heaven is a reward, scripture also talks about crowns (II Timothy 4:8). But, ultimately, we don’t know what awaits us. Paul said we have not imagined what awaits us, so great it will be (I Corinthians 2:9).
(V.2) “Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you…”
There was no practice in Jesus’ day of blowing trumpets to signify giving. However, public fasts were often proclaimed with the blowing of trumpets. The practice included public prayers and giving, drawing attention to the giver.
I checked over 25 commentaries on this point. Only one tells of a small horn the Pharisees would carry on their belts. They would stop in a street and blow the horn so the poor in that area would know to come to them to receive a gift of money.
HOW CAN GIVING BE TURNED INTO A SIN? ISN’T GENEROSITY BY NATURE, SELFLESS?
Public giving was a common practice, even in the church as we see in the book of Acts. Everyone knew that Barnabas had sold land and gave the sum to the church. But he didn’t do it to gain attention. Ananias and Sapphira lied about how much they were giving and died for it. They not only sought the praise of others, they robbed God of his glory.
When we lived in Mongolia I visited a church with some visiting American friends. When the time came for giving of tithes and offerings, the pastor had everyone hold up their gift in the air and wave it around proclaiming their giving. Needless to say, we were very uncomfortable with that.
Jesus didn’t say, “If you give to the needy.” He said, “When you give to the needy.” He assumes his people will give.
(V.2) “…as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others.”
The term hypocrites denotes an actor who puts on a mask to play a part. He is one thing on the outside and another on the inside. The masks had exaggerated facial features so that people at a distance could recognize the emotions represented. So too, announcing one’s giving is putting on an exaggerated mask.
(V.2) “Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.”
Giving was considered to be one of the highest acts that the Jews performed. So, to hear that an act of giving may receive no reward was shocking. Motive is everything.
The word for receiving literally means to receive a receipt for something, paid in full. The praise of onlookers is all you get. Paid in full. They receive nothing else from God.
(V.3) “But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing…”
This is simply a way of saying to give in secret, privately.
(V.4) “…so that your giving may be in secret…”
No one really needs to know what you give. Let me offer a missionary’s perspective on this.
As a self-supported missionary I am responsible for raising all of my own financial support. We raise our salary, medical benefits, and some of our ministry expenses and ongoing education. But we don’t go around flaunting what we raise to others. If so, we would lose our reward and the Lord might hold back some blessing. Keeping what people give a secret honors their giving and the relationship. So it is also on the giver’s side. In this way we live in thankfulness and give God glory for what he has done for us.
(V.4) “…And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”
Did you notice the progression? First it was no reward. Then it was a temporal reward from peers. Then it was a reward from God.
I’m a big believer in the idea that my greatest reward is in my relationship with God. God told Abraham, “I am your great and exceeding reward.” I want the relationship above all else. But, at the same time, the Bible reveals that our giving and service to God brings us heavenly rewards. We don’t know what those rewards are, but they are there. We should be careful about this. Our focus should be on relationship not reward. But the Bible doesn’t discourage us from anticipating spiritual rewards.
INTERPRETATION
What is Jesus’ big idea in this passage? Don’t show off. Religious piety isn’t meant to be flaunted for others to see. We should practice our faith with humility, even in our giving.
Everyone wants to receive praise from others. Our reputation is important to us. We want to build a name for ourselves. But if we are seeking out that praise, then we may be crossing the line into ostentation and taking what belongs to God and giving it to ourselves.
Contrary to giving which seeks praise, biblical giving should have the following characteristics:
- Giving should be an act of love
- Giving should be an act of faith
- Giving should follow the example of Jesus
True giving doesn’t seek its own benefit, but the benefit of others.
Giving should also stretch our faith. From time to time we should stretch our budget to give sacrificially when the opportunity arises.
Jesus is the ultimate example of giving. He not only gives spiritual gifts through the Holy Spirit, but he gave his life for our sin.
APPLICATION
Is giving a part of your lifestyle? If not, then consider giving toward ministry to help spread the Gospel. Make your giving:
- Intentional
- Planned
- Spontaneous
Intentional means to give on purpose, looking for opportunities to give that benefits others.
Planned means to set a budget for giving—how much, how often, and when.
Spontaneous giving is to give to meet a need of the moment as it might arise.
To follow Jesus’ command, keep your giving between you, who and what you give to, and the Lord. Giving can be an enjoyable, faith-filled venture. But it doesn’t have to be public.
