Do The Right Thing, For The Right Reason

Good Morning!! Jesus ate with tax collectors, and sinners. He forgave adulterers, and promised paradise to the thief on the cross,...yet He was hard on hypocrites. He scolded them for blowing their own horn when they put their gift in the offering plate, and for contorting their faces to make sure everyone knew they were fasting. He condemned them for praying conspicuously, whenever they could find an audience,...not to be heard by God,...but to be noticed by people.

So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.—Matthew 6:2 (NIV)

The Just for Today credo of Alcoholics Anonymous is a long list of simple things to do, just for today. One item on the list reads, "Just for today I will do somebody a good turn and not get found out; if anybody knows of it, it will not count." When we do good deeds just to be noticed,...that’s not so much a bad thing,...as it is a sad thing. It’s a sign we have forgotten about the Father who, Jesus said, "sees in secret."

Why settle for public recognition,...when we could have God's approval?

Holy Spirit of God, move us from all forms of hypocrisy. Amen.

"We honor God best, when we call Him Father,...and live like His Son."