What's Your Motive?

'...do not do your charitable deeds...to be seen...' Matthew 6:1 NKJV

God measures your giving in two ways: (a) Your means; how much do you have? (b) Your motives; why are you giving? 'Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in Heaven...do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.' (Matthew 6:1-4 NKJV)

Here are two stories that illustrate the point Jesus was making.

Story one: In 1977 a couple agreed to donate the three million dollars needed to build a new children's zoo in Central Park, New York. But problems arose because the 5 cm tall plaque acknowledging their gift wasn't big enough. Plus, a couple who'd donated half a million dollars thirty years earlier to build the original zoo had a bigger plaque. It was proposed that the names of the original donors be replaced by the names of the new donors. When the park commission refused, the couple withdrew their gift. Story two: It's said that Charles Spurgeon and his wife would sell, but refused to give away the eggs their chickens laid. Even close relatives were told, 'You may have them if you pay for them.' As a result the Spurgeons were misrepresented as being greedy. Only after Mrs. Spurgeon died was the full story revealed. All the profits from the sale of the eggs went to support two elderly widows. Apparently the Spurgeons were more concerned with how God felt about their giving, than how people felt.