Righteous Reward: Giving to the Poor

So it's good to see you.

I'm so glad you're here worshiping with us this morning.

If you everybody has turned with me to the Gospel

of Matthew Matthew chapter six. This morning, I'm gonna start.

A series this morning is a five part series, and

we're gonna look at just the chapter six in Matthew.

The title of the series is Righteous Rewards, and we're

gonna look at what are the rewards for living a

righteous life for the Lord. As we begin this morning,

I do something I do commonly to share with you

every year as we start as most time, as we're

starting a new year, we're getting into a new devotion,

and many times individuals are looking for what are some

good devotions, and so I like to share those with you.

This is probably one of my favorites. It's for the

Love of God by Da Carson. Da Carson as a

New Testament scholar in North America. Just a tremendous scholar,

great writer.

This book. This devotional actually comes alongside of the Bible

reading that we do together as a church.

So if you look at the app and you follow

along in the app, and there's a Bible reading plan

there and our app and this devotion has a reading

that goes along with or devotional that goes along with

one of those Bible passages.

So it's a great way.

As you're reading the Bible reading plan, you're like, I

don't really understand what this passage in Leviticus means. Da

Carson has a devotion that will come alongside and bring

those things together.

So it's a great probably my favorite. It is one

I do year after year.

I've probably done it like four or five years, maybe

six years in a row, but every year it just

it blesses my heart.

So I want to share that with you.

Something else I want to do this year with you

is share with you books and only devotional but books

that I get. You know, throughout the year, I'll get

questions about hey, pastor what does the Bible say about this?

And there's certain books that addressed certain subjects, and so

one of the questions I get many times is is

issues with mental health. And one of the great books

I read last year on depression. It's a book by

David Murray. It's a very small book and it's called

Christians Get Depressed Too.

It's probably one of the best books out there. On depression.

And so if you struggle with depression or you have

a loved one that struggles with depression, I really encourage

you to get this book.

Read it.

It helps you understand what the Bible says and how

to care for them well and so and how if

you're struggling with that yourself, how some tools for a

tip for you.

So those are two great resources for you.

In Matthew chapter six, we're starting today this series on

righteous rewards.

Now, I don't know about you. I like rewards. We

like rewards as individuals. Right, there's a reward app for.

About everything that's known to man now and like to

I like rewards myself, and I'll.

Be honest with you. I know me. I'm a penny

pincher and I will use a reward on.

An app or something to get a little extra incentible

and sometimes even to my own demise, I believe at

times that I will seek out a reward just thinking

it may help me out. Like, for instance, I have

a app through Walmart and I get a certain discount

tent sent off.

And I'll drive out of the way.

Right, just last year or a year before, we were

leaving Durham and I was going to visit my dad

and me and my sister and she has We were

driving Dad's hybrid and we were leaving Durham, and cast

is a little bit more expensive in Durham. But I

had my Murphy's app right, and I could get a

ten cent discount, and so I was.

Like, hey, let's just wait. There was no Murphy's online,

and so let's just wait. I know there's a Murphy's.

And it was somewhere like in the middle of nowhere

there was this Murphy But I knew we were going

to see it.

One day and I drove so long that the hybrid car.

Said there's no more miles left, like you're out of gas,

and we still had ten miles to the gas station.

But I said, listen, there is a reward that's coming.

And so we will we'll do. We'll go out of

the way to get a reward, to try to save

a dollar.

Right, we'll go out of the way.

Now, right, this is time for New Year's resolutions, and

so we're like, all right, let's get on this new diet,

this inter minute fasting or this what cleansing, and we'll do,

we'll do. We'll go either way do difficult things, difficult diets,

for the reward of what losing weight. Right, Well, we'll

do a lot of exercises, right, we'll get a gym

membership the planet fitness, right, and we'll do we'll sweat,

and we'll do all these different things.

For the reward of losing weight or get better health.

Right, we'll buy things from certain stores in order to

get the rewards of the discounts.

We'll go and do like extra degrees, or we'll do

we'll get higher education degrees.

In college or maybe masters or whatever it may be,

for the reward of We do things for the rewards, right,

whether educational, academically, or just in our finances we like,

or even with our health. We like the rewards of

doing something for what we might get out of Now,

let me ask you something, How about your spiritual disciplines

When you do things spiritual discipline wise? When you pray,

what do you do it for? Do you do it

for or the rewards of.

What I might get out of it?

When you pray? When you read your Bible daily, what

do you do that for? What is the rewards that

you're looking for? If you pray or if you read

your Bible. You do these other disciplines, is it for

the Lord of knowing Jesus better, or for growing in

your walk with.

Him, or that you might love him? Or do you

do it thinking that.

If I pray, maybe God will help me with my finances.

Maybe if I read my Bible, God will help me

with my marriage. I do this, and then maybe God

will do something for me. As we come into this

series this morning, righteous Rewards Jesus is teaching. He's actually

preaching what we know as the Sermon on the Mount

and then the Sermon of the Amount. Jesus is teaching on

several spiritual disciplines, and he's really addressing the subject of

what is our motivation for us doing these different things,

What is our motivation for our prayer, what is our

motivation for these other disciplines. And he's really combating the

understanding that sometimes we do things for the wrong reasons,

we do things for the wrong reward, and sometimes we

do it for the right reward.

And this morning.

He's examining one of the spiritual disciplines or what we're

going to look as as an act of righteousness, and

he's examining how we should do this he's given an

example of how we should not do this or they're

doing it for the wrong reward, and how we should

how we should practice it for the right reward.

So let's look at this passage together.

It's Matthew chapter six, and we're starting verse one and

read through verse four. Will you stand with me as

we in the reverence or reading in God's word? The

Bible says that Matthew six, starting in verse one, he says,

beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order

to be seen by them, for then you'll 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 syn of goods in

the streets, that they might be praised by others. Truly,

I say to you, they have received their reward. But

when you give, which you the need, you 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 you in secret, will reward you. Let's pray together, Father,

we thank you or for this morning, or I pray

this morning that we would examine Lord the ways that

we demonstrate our love for you, whether we do commit

acts of praying, or reading our Bible, or giving to

the poor, are fasting.

How we do these things out of our love for you.

Lord, I pray we would examine our motivation behind these things,

whether we do it for the praise from people, or

whether we do it that we might think that if

we do these things, you might provide some reward for

us for doing it fix something in our life. Lord,

may today we examine that we do it just merely

out of our love for you. So Lord, lead us

through your word today. God, I pray your word would

speak to our heart. Pray they would convict us in

ways that we have failed you, the ways that we

have the wrong motives. The Lord, we come together as

a body believer Lord, to hear from you. So Lord,

I pray that your word would speak your Holy Spirit

would convict and our eyes and our hearts will be enlightened.

To you, Lord and drawn to you. In your name,

we pray, Amen, you may be seated as you come

to this passage.

The beginning of the verse, Jesus says in verse one,

beware it's we don't really get how strong a connotation.

This word is beware.

It really is a warning, warning, warning, right, it's a flash.

This is danger. Watch out what you're doing.

That is the idea in the Greek. And this warning

is he's saying, is something for the disciples to be

on height and alert about. This is something they should

watch for.

This is something he wants them to beware of.

And what is he warning them?

He says in this passage, beware of practicing your righteousness,

beware of how you how you practice your righteous Now. So, now,

when we think of that word of righteousness, it's not

a term that we would use a lot. It's not

a term that we're familiar with. The word translated is

actually to do righteousness. It's the expression, now I understand,

think about this, listen to this. It's the expression of

doing an external act, do some type of work or

some type of act, and as an expression of one's individual.

Devotion to the Lord.

So it's the idea of I'm going to do this

merely to just simply show God that I love you, Right,

I want to do something to express.

My love and my devotion to the Lord. It's an

external thing, right, It's some type of thing. And so

and by the way.

This is something that was seen consistently throughout scripture, this

command or this idea that we should express our love

to the Lord through external acts. We see this in

Psalms on one of six three Blessed are those who

observe justice, who do righteousness at all times. In First John,

the writer says in two twenty nine, if you know

that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone

who practices righteousness.

Has been born of him.

Jesus calls his disciples not in Matthew six, but also

just in the previous chapter.

As he's starting out a sermon on the Mount.

He tells his disciples. He says these words in five

fourteen through sixteen.

You are the light of the world.

A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor

are the people of light a lamp and put under

a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light

to alden household. In the same way, let your light

shine before others say they may see your good works

and give glory to your father, who is in heaven.

So he tells this disciples. He commands Old Testament commands

that we are to have acts of practicing righteousness. Now

in Matthew six, Jesus begins examining three of these, and

there's three different he gives. Jesus gives three righteous acts

and just show you those. One is called alms giving.

That would be another term for this, and it's the

idea of giving to the poor. I think want to

be clear, and I'm going to talk about this a

little bit. This is not giving to the church. This

is giving above that. This is above your tie. This

is a giving to just the poor, those are in

need around you. There's the second act of righteousness that

he mentions is praying. The third act is fasting. And

in chapter six he examines each one of these. He

talks about them, and he examines how are these disciples

giving these acts of devotions and what their motivation in

doing those. But in this passage here his warning is

not that you shouldn't do these things.

His warning is what is your motive behind this? Look

at the verse.

He says, beware of practicing your righteousness before others in

order to be seen by them. Right, He says, Listen,

I'm not telling you not the practice righteousness. My warning

is you it's how you are doing it, right? Are

you doing it for the right motivation. Are you doing it?

Are you praying? Are you giving to the needy or

giving to the poor. Are you fasting for the wrong reasons?

Are you doing it only to be seen by others?

Are you only doing it for the praise from people?

Right early in our marriage, Brandy and I I remember

wanting to do something for Brandy to kind of show

her my love for her. And you know, you've never

heard of a book called The Five Love Language by

Gary Chapman, and you know, one of those acts of service,

and I thought, you know, there is nothing more than Brandy.

Love's is a clean house.

And so I was awful work that day, and I said,

you know what, I'm going to clean this house. She's

not home, and she's going to walk in the door,

and she's going to see the lines in the carpet, right,

She's going to smell pine sal throughout the house. She's

gonna walk in the bathroom and see how clean the

toll it is. And even that I left the clean,

that stuff still in there. You know, I scrubbed it,

but it's still into you know, still in the water.

So she sees I actually did it. And when she

walks in and she sees those lines in the carpet

when she sees that it's been dusted, and hey, if.

I dust, it's really really an act of love.

And she's going to see all that, and she's gonna, wow,

you're the greatest husband.

There's no husband like you.

She's gonna say, there's no husband who can who can

put lines in the carpet like you. And and I

was so excited. I you know, this was something y'all

too cheap for flowers. This is something I could really

express my love for her. This is something it was

gonna hit. Mean, it was just going to be like

a million dollars, right, And.

I'll never forget. We were young, we were early in

our marriage.

And again this is why I thought her love language is.

I was wrong.

She walked in the door, put her stuff down, started

doing something.

And I was like, carpet, you smell anything different, honey?

You know?

And you know nothing, nothing, nothing, nothing, didn't get anything.

But here I tell you that story because I did it.

I thought I was doing out of act of love.

But I'll be honest with you, I got angry. I

got frustrated.

Why because she didn't give me praise, she didn't tell

me how good I was, how great a husband I was.

And then it really hit me, what was I really

doing it as an act of love or was I

really doing it to hear how good I was or

to get something in return from it? And I say

that to say, That's what Jesus is saying in this passage.

He's calling you to There are times where you it

is very important as a believer to express your love

to the Lord, to do something to.

Express your love for the Lord.

But what is wrong is when you do it only

to get something in return for it. That the only

really reason why you do this is that someone might

praise you and say, oh, you're such a godly young man,

Oh you're such a godly young girl, or oh man,

or I'm gonna do it.

God, I'm going to do this.

Act because if I do it, then God, maybe you'll

fix my marriage. Or God, I'll do this only if

maybe because you'll help me with my finances, or God

you'll help me in my health, or God, I'll do

this and hoping that I will get something in.

Return for it.

Jesus says, beware of practicing your righteouses before other people

in order to be seen by them, for you will

have no reward from your father is in heaven.

This passage of scripture.

He's calling us, and I ask you today, what are

acts that you do for the Lord that simply simply

demonstrate your love for him.

Nothing. You don't want anything in return? God, I do

this just because I love you. I don't want praise

from others.

I don't want some type of reward. I only do

this because I love you Lord. Let's look at the

passage and as we continue reading, Jesus discuss the first

of these three acts, and he really hones in today.

And what I want to hold in today is.

Really the focus of giving to the poor. Look at

what the passage says, and this again, I think it's

very important for us to hear this. Jesus identifies giving

to the poor as a way that we express our

love for him.

It's very important for us to hear that this is

not giving to the church. This is giving to the poor.

And listen what Jesus says.

In verse two about this. Thus, when you give to

the needy, stop there. You know that's what Jesus says.

He doesn't say if you give to the needy, he says,

when you give to the needy, he expects his disciples

if they're true followers of Him that at faithfully in

their life, are consistently in their life, one of the

ways they're going to express their love to the Lord

is by giving to those in need around them. I'm

going to be totally honest with you, This passage is

really messed with me because I in my life, how

am I doing this? Yes, I give faithfully to the church.

That's part of something that I believe that the Lord

has called me to do. And how have I've looked

for ways to give to those in need around me?

Too often?

I say, well, you know, God helps those who helps himself.

You know, if they would just get out there and

get a job, or they would do this or do that,

then maybe I'd help them. But it's not what passage

says here. Passage just calls us to give to those

in need around us.

Period.

That really convicted me of how how as I set

my every dollar budget, how do I make room for

giving to those in need around me? And how I

do it not for a praise of others, but just

simply God. I want to do this to show my love.

To you.

In this passage, he says, when and it's really hit

me for me, when have I been faithful to give

to those in need?

To show my love for the Lord? He says in

this passage, I notice as we look at this, by

the way, as you just look at.

The concept of giving to the needy, it's not something

that just Jesus told in Matthew six. Is something that's

actually consistent through all of scripture. By the way, it's

very important as we understand how to understand what God

wants for us, as we understand the Bible, that we

don't take like principles out of like one passage of scripture.

It's important that we see a theological concept that's consistent.

Of all of scripture. And so that's why I share.

This with you, is that this was a consistent concept

throughout all of Scripture. Deuteronomy fifteen, God commanded the Jews

his people to care for the poor in their community,

and do it on the fifteen eleven, for.

There will never cease to be poor in the land.

Therefore, I command you, this is God commanding his people Israel.

You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to

the needy, to the poor in your land. In Leviticus

nineteen and the Vitical Law, he gave provisions for how

they care for the poor in the land. Jesus commanded

to give to the poor in chapter five, and Matthew

in forty two says, give to the one who bets

from you, do not refuse the one who borrows from you.

In Matthew ten forty two, he says, whoever gives to

one of these little ones even a cup of cold water,

because he's my disciple, truly I said he he will

by no means lose his reward.

You know.

In the Bible Jesus command but he even goes so

far as to identify who are true believers in the

end based upon their acts of devotion. Listen, works don't

save you. We understand that, right. Jesus saves us. It's

not the good things that we do. But there are things,

if we are saved, that will do to show our

love and devotion to the Lord.

You understand that.

Jesus says in Matthew twenty five that in the end,

when Jesus comes, he's going to separate.

You remember this passage the sheep and the goats. You

remember that, and In that passage, it says, Jesus will

then say to the sheep, what.

For I was hungry and you fade fed me. I

was without closing. You clothe me right? And then the

passes says that they will say to Jesus, but Jesus,

when did we do these things?

And he says, when you've done it to the least

of these, right, you did it to me.

Jesus, listen, talk regularly on the command for us to

give to those in need around us. It's an identifier

that we are true children of God. It is to

be for us, is to be an act of our devotion,

simply just to show God we love him.

So in this passage he says, give give to the needy.

Now, the next thing he does in this passage as

he's teaching on the righteous act. And I would say

that this is a righteous act. This is an act

of devotion for Jesus, this act of giving to the poor.

So Jesus is teaching on the righteous act of giving

to the poor. He then gives like the giving for

the wrong reward, and he says that we can give

to the poor and those in need around us for

the wrong reward, and then he gives an example of

giving it.

For the right reard.

And so let's just walk through these two examples and

how Jesus compares these to one another. He says in

verse two, thus, when you give to the needy, sound

no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the

synagods in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly,

I say to you, they have received their reward. Stop there,

that's the first one, giving to the rapport for their

wrong reward. He says, when you give to the poor,

he says, sound no trumpet. Now, we don't know exactly

what this is. In the New Testament times, there wasn't

any clear picture that we see that in the syn

of God that would actually blow a trumpet when they

took up an offering for the poor, or there was

a trumpet blown in the streets when somebody would give something.

We don't know exactly what he's referring to as an example.

Some believe he's just talking about a literal like blowing

your trumpet. Some say it's a metaphorical in that don't

toot your own horn kind of idea. The best guess

is that he's saying that some would maybe be loud,

look look at what I'm doing. They're doing something to

receive praise for what they do.

He describes them. He says, don't do this, don't toot

your on horn if you will before you give, as

the hypocrites do. He calls their attention to the bad example.

Of this, and he identifies them as what we call hypocrites.

Now scripture, hypocrites are consistently seeing. Jesus talks about the

hypocrites in many different times. Hypocrite in the Greek is

actually the term for an actor in the New Testament.

At times they would wear a mask and they would

perform on a show, and it's the idea of someone

who personally is one way, but they're acting as if

there are something else.

And he's saying that there are those in the community who.

Are hypocrites, who are giving, and they're giving just to

show or to act as if.

They're right with the Lord.

Now, if you can imagine, this is an act of expression, right,

this is a way of acting out.

Expressing our love for the Lord.

And he's saying there's many who are acting like they

really love the Lord, but inwardly their heart is far

from God. They're acting is if they really love the

Lord and they want people to see they're giving to

the poor that they might receive the praise that they.

Love the Lord.

Oh you're such a godly man, or you're such a

godly woman. But the reality is what's really on their

heart is their hearts are far from God. The idea is,

for many of this hypocrite was someone who acted good

but inwardly was evil. There's several different forms hypocrites and

some hypocrits. And what most believe Jesus is talking about

here is someone has really deceived themselves. They're deceiving themselves

in thinking that they really do love the Lord. The

reality is they really are only doing it for the

praise of people. They say they look look at me,

look at what I've done. They're only doing it that

people might praise them. In October we went to Central Europe.

We were ministering some Curtis refugees there, these cursed refugees

or Muslims. They're unreached people, limited access to the Gospel.

They're living in a village outside of the city that

we're working in. They live next to the dump. They

actually take the trash and the junk from the dump

to make their houses.

They survive really daily by begging.

They actually the parents forced the kids from probably four

to five up to bag every day in the streets.

They actually give them an allowance and explain them that

they have to get a certain amount for every day

to support the family. If they don't, the children are punished.

There's a ministry that's in this city.

That they are and.

They feed these children daily and that's for some kids.

We think, we don't really know this for sure. This

may be the only meal they get, so they feed

them daily. They also do some education. So when we went,

we went there for the goal of feeding these children

and sharing.

The gospel with them.

And so one thing that we thought of when we

got there is these families, not all these children's needs,

but these families really need some help, some care. So

we decided that we would do these food bags. And

so we went to the grocery store and it was

like a mad dash, like a grocery store shopping TV

show of all of us, the team going through the

different lanes get different things with all our different buggies.

But we would get them just as staples.

Like We got them rice and sugar, cooking, old potatoes, onions, carrots,

tea different things. We got this whole bag of food

and we took this to the village and we gave

this to the moms. You know, we kind of went

throughout the week and surely they you know, they did

say thank you and different things, and and and that

man a lot. But I remember, I think it was

our last day, one of the Kurdish refugee mothers was

talking to I think our translator or maybe another team member,

I can't remember, but she was expressing to her, to

the individual, her thanks, how much you really appreciated the food,

how she really appreciated the clothes.

We brought them some clothes.

And to be honest with you, you know, when you do

something you, as I've said from the very beginning, sometimes

we really want to see that it's there is something

behind it. They really appreciate it, they really are thankful

or grateful.

And I remember hearing her.

Express how much she really appreciated our team.

How she was really bagging.

She was like our please please come back, don't forget us,

please come back.

And I remember finding some.

Like, you know, reward in that and I'd tell you

that story because in my heart and in our heart,

many times when we do things like I was giving

you the illustration about Brandy, we really do it for

maybe the thanks that we're going to get, or maybe

the praise that we're going to get, or maybe the

expression of appreciation that we might get. In the reality

is Jesus is saying, listen, you should not do it.

Listen hear me for your praise or that someone might

thank you, or someone might express their appreciation to you.

You really should do it simply for me, just simply

because you love me.

That's it. When you get no.

Thanks or no demonstration of appreciation, you simply do it

for me.

I want you to look at a passage with me.

In Matthew five sixteenths passage I read earlier, Jesus says,

in the same way, listen to this, Listen to this important,

in the same way, let your light shine before others.

Listen to this, so they may see your good works

and give you glory. That's not what it says, does it.

That's many times what we do, and that's many times

what he says. The hypocrites do it. They give that

they might get glory. Jesus says, may we what may

they see your good works and give glory to the

Father who is in heaven. You know what our goal

should be when we give and care for the needy

in our in our community. You know what our goal

should be when we care for the need of those

and unreached places like Central Europe or Wahaca, Mexico, or

wherever we go, whether it's Bethesda, Durham, North Carolina.

To the ends of the earth.

We should really do it simply because we love the Lord.

And secondly we should do it listen that he might

get the glory from it. You know what mine does

should have been for the lady in Central Europe, that

she might see our good works.

And say God, thank you, Thank.

You Lord for who you are and how you provide

for me. He gives an example of giving to the

poor for the wrong reward. The wrong reward is that

we might get the praise or that we might get

something in return. Now Jesus gives the second example, and

that's giving to the poor for the right reward. Listen

what he says. But when you give to the needy again,

but when you give it's an expectation that we're going

to do this. Don't let your left hand know what

your right hand is doing, so that might be in secret.

Your father, who sees in secret, will reward you on

the opposite. You see this, The hypocrites were in the

city and they were blowing the horn so all the

attention would come to them, that people might see what

they have done, right, that they might receive the praise. Oh,

you're such a godly man or such a godly woman,

or wow, yes's amazing what you've done.

And turn the other example. Jesus says, this is how

you should do it.

Give for the right reward, and when you give for

the right reard, given away that your right hand.

Doesn't know what your left hand is doing.

Right, You could just use the imagery if you took

some money out of your back pocket and then you

put it in your left hand, and you switched it

over to your right hand, and you don't even know

what's in what hand. That's the imagery that even the

giver doesn't know what he's done or how much he's given.

Or in this passage sat he goes from where everybody

knows or everybody is called to know or they've a

trumpet's blown, so everybody in the around Couldhere to the

opposite that even the giver doesn't know. And he says,

here give in such a way that you don't even

know what you're doing, that you're not what you're giving.

Why the passage says in verse four said that you're

giving may be in secret, so it's just between you

and the Lord, not between.

You and everyone else. That you might get their appraise

or you might get reward, just you and the Lord.

And listen to the passage of scripture.

And your father, who sees in secret, will reward you, says.

Don't let your left hand know your right hand know

whether left hand is given or vice versa.

What because you're doing it only because you love the Lord,

not for praise or.

Not for some type of reward.

What is your reward Jesus?

Because I love you Lord.

And doing this is just I want to show my

love for you and Lord by expressing my love for you,

You you are of my reward, not their reward from

anyone else or anything I might get in return.

Lord, I only want you.

I ask you today as we close, when you give,

who do you give for? Do you give it for

your reward. You give to the needy? Are you given

to the needy? Are you caring for those in their

need around you? I challenge you to think about or

some people maybe in this church that.

You know of, that have some needs.

Are you caring for those in need? Maybe there's some

people at your work, you know we're struggling right now.

Maybe it's just simply providing a meal for them, cooking something, taking.

It to their house.

Maybe it is some needs in the community. I tell

you there's some great ministries in our community. Durham Rescue

Mission is one the great ministries in our community that's

caring for those in need and the homeless community and

our that's a great place that you can give to.

Pss Prade Support Services is another place. Do you know

most women aboard because of finances. It's a great way

you can give to them. They are helping support ladies

who are keeping their children. That's Compassionate International is a

ministry that's caring for those in need all across our world.

There's another group that we work with called Anziamani that

cares for the orphans in Tanzania. There's so many different places,

but think and pray about how can I, God, how

can I do this, and how can I do this

simply because I love you, not for praise or not

for something in return, But God, I want to be

a part of giving to the needs around me, to

demonstrate to you my love for you. Not that any

any one may know it, but Scripture says the Lord

knows what you do in secret and listen. That means

whether you're giving and whether you're not giving, and that

he might see what you're giving and how you're doing

it over love for him, and that you your reward

would be a right relationship with him.

Would you pray with me, Lord, we love you God.

I thank you for the challenge that you give us

to examine our motivations, our motives of why we do

things for you and how we express our love.

To you. Lord. I pray that we would Lord, practice

giving to those in need.

Lord, we would spend time in prayer, we would spend

time in fasting before we look at in the weeks

to come, and we would do it simply because we

love you, Lord, and we want.

To express to you our love.

Lord.

I pray that you.

Would lead us some today may need to think about

how they could commit to.

Being more a part.

Of caring for the needs around them. Some need to

pray about who are in need and looking for ways

to be a part of that.

Lord, I pray hear of you lead them. I pray

you they would do that, and do it out of

an act of devotion. Lord.

I pray for someone here today that doesn't know you

as Lord and Savior.

And God. The Bible tells us that Lord, you gave.

Your only son for them, and I pray they would

be those today would believe in what you've done for

them on the cross, that you can came and lived

and died on the cross for them. I pray there

be those who would find a right relationship with you

today or lead us in this time of invitation.

In your name, we.

Pray Jesus pained and all to Him.