I was in church today, Ash Wednesday, and I was looking at the scripture being used, Matthew 6. I was listening to the reading of the scripture and it is a standard text for the beginning of Lent. It is about giving of alms, prayer and fasting. All of these, in the context of this chapter, are to be done in private. They are to be done in private because we should do them for the right reason. Not for the praise and admiration of people, but for the increased blessing of God in our lives. God sees what we do in secret and He will reward and bless openly. If we receive the praise of people; the reward is over and done with. God can reward much greater than any man or woman could. We have to know that!
Two key verses really hit me though and it was Matthew 6:3-4:
3But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: 4That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.
These verses are in red, in my Bible…that is important. That means that these words are coming from Jesus, Himself.
Recently, I have been seeing that God doesn’t ask us to do ANYTHING that He doesn’t already do Himself. If God asks us to walk by faith, it is because He walks by faith. If he tells us to love, it is because He loves. And in this passage of scripture He talks about giving alms (acts of charity or blessing people in need) in secret. Don’t try to let everyone know that you are being this great person by helping those less fortunate than you. Do it because you love God and love people.
When I saw these verses, I immediately thought of the Last Supper. Doesn’t seem like something that would normally pop in your head when Jesus is talking about giving to the poor, right? It does fit, though. In the book of John chapter 13, Jesus is eating the Passover with His disciples and Jesus dismisses Judas telling him,
27What you are about to do, do quickly.
Immediately Judas left the feast and went out into the night. The disciples, not knowing what was going on, asked if he was going out to give money to the poor. That struck me. How many times did Judas get up in the middle of the night because Jesus told him to go give money to someone that they had seen. It had to have been often enough for the others to notice and assume that that was what he was doing. Isn’t that amazing that even in this little detail that Christ shows us, by example, not just by word, what we are supposed to do. He tells us to give in secret because He gave in secret. He wasn’t trying to focus on people thinking He was this great person for being generous. He was more concerned with getting the message of God’s love out.
I encourage you to look into the Word. Find those little gems of truth that really make the Word come alive. Read the Word, not out of obligation. Don’t just sit down and read the Bible because you are “supposed” to. Read the Bible like a treasure hunt. In those pages are the key to living a life truly blessed. God sent His Word to reveal Himself to us. Look at what He has to say…and if He tells you to do something, just know that He never asks you to do something that He doesn’t already do Himself.
In the past year, or so, there seems to be a lot of loss going on. People seem to be losing there hope, faith, jobs and even loved ones. The effect of any one of these losses can be devastating to face. These trials come on us unexpectedly and seem to tear our lives into shambles. The pain that comes with dealing with loss is unspeakable at times, but yet we have to remember that God is in control, if we let Him be. He is our calm to the storms that threaten to tear us apart. In times of trouble, and I mean the type of trouble that grips you in the middle of the night, or hits you in the middle of the day, we have to rely on the promises that we know God has for us.
Proverbs 3: 5 says, “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.”
1 Peter 5:7 says, “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.”
These are just two of many scriptures that give us inspiration. Our own understanding, especially in times of real trouble, can fail us. When we hold onto all the cares that we have, we block the blessing that God has for us in living a peaceful life. Why worry and fear the circumstances around us, when God has the way out. All grief, sorrow, stress, fear and worry have to flea at the name above every name, Jesus! Hallelujah! Worry is a name. Stress is a name. Grief is a name. Every name has to bow to the name of Jesus! Isn’t that exciting? When you think about it, all of the things we worry and stress out about are things that are in the future. We write our own future…your future is not set! Through learning the promises of God, we can overcome any barrier of grief or stress.
Now don’t think that I am saying that this is all easy. This is a decision that you have to make. You and only you can make this decision. Am I going to believe what is trying to destroy me or am I going to believe what my Savior has laid up for me? This decision can only be made by finding yourself in the Word of God. And yes, you are in the Bible! Find yourself. Learn what you have in Christ. Find people of like mind to truly support you and lift you up in prayer as you pursue your decision to not be ruled by our circumstances, but to be ruled by the love of God.