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Turning Duty Into A Show
Matthew 6:1
"Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen
of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven."
(Matthew 6:1, KJV).
The story is told of an old Pharisee tending to business in his Jerusalem shop.
A public announcement was made (with trumpets?) about a benevolent need. The
ostentatious Pharisee tripped all over himself, pushed customers aside and
shouted: "Excuse me, I must close the shop now, to take my contribution to the
needy ones ... Excuse me ... Excuse me ... Out of my way please..." On his way
out, he picked up a huge, heavy sack, but while running down the street, he
fell, the sack opened ... and all the rocks fell out!
The Old Testament instructed the Jewish people in the duty of benevolence, and
promised a blessing on those who considered the poor (Psa. 41:1). The scribes
and Pharisees took this duty of charity and turned it into a performance,
designed to elicit the applause of men. In their infamous tampering with the
ways of God, they kept the duty but changed the motive! Their concern was not to
glorify God and help the needy. They wanted "to be seen" by men; to be praised,
exalted, and become well-known. A simple walk of obedience to God had been
replaced by a public relations style of grandiose self-righteousness; in
almsgiving, prayer and fasting. But ...
For every basic defect in the hearts of these vainglorious men, the Lord had
something incisive to say. In the above text He isn't minimizing true
benevolence. In fact, His main focus is not "charitable deeds" or "alms." He
deals with the immature motive: "to be seen..," and in convicting them He
challenges and warns us: We must not take a good work and turn it into a
performance, designed to elicit applause for ourselves! Throughout this context,
He wants His disciples to learn to do the right things for the right reasons. As
the true disciple engages in either benevolence, prayer, or fasting, there must
be purity in motive (Matt. 6:1-15). Our charitable deeds must be generated by
obligation toward God, and a merciful response to another's need; not an attempt
for recognition. And, when that is our intent (gaining recognition), we may gain
that reward but miss the higher reward of God's approval and pleasure (see v.2).
"Grand-standing" is a term coined in the political arena, but may describe what
a few "preachin' brethren" have been guilty of. I know we must proceed with
restraint when we speak of another's motivation, but sometimes there seems to be
evidence that the commotion and prating of some preachers is vain and ambitious
in cause. Jesus calls for caution ("take heed") and this should prompt
self-examination in all of us. While some
of these "grand-standers" may preach the truth and expose error, they will
answer for their attitude and motive (see Phil. 1:15,16; 1 Cor. 4:1-5).
Proclaiming or writing gospel truth was never meant to be a theatrical
performance. "Beware of doing you good deeds conspicuously to catch men's eyes,"
(Phillips).
I think there is another by-product of learning what Jesus taught in the text.
Have you ever heard someone remark, "the people in this church are just not
doing anything!" Often, there is some discouragement or complaint that "good
works" are just not being done. Yet, if benevolence and good works are practiced
in keeping with the Lord's teaching here, a lot of genuine acts of real love and
benevolence are taking place that you never see or hear about! (Note, "in
secret," and "go into your room," vss.4,6).
"Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye
have no reward of your Father which is in heaven."
And all of this reminds me of the man who called a press conference to announce
his anonymous gift to a charitable foundation! Oops...
By Warren E. Berkley
From Expository Files 4.6; June 1997
