But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,But when you do merciful deeds, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand does,But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:
9 sermons cite this verse
… If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when, key word here, you give to the needy, to the poor, 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. But when you, when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing so that your giving may be in secret. Then your father who sees what is done in secret will, can you say this with me? Will reward you. Wow. So there's a reward connected to our generosity to the needy. But what Jesus isn't saying in this sermon that he's putting a lot of energy towards the kingdom economy in is if you decide to give to the needy, here's how to do it. No, he said, when you give to the needy, here's how you do it. Not you should consider giving to the needy, and when you do, this is how you do it. …
… I wanna read the context of what he's writing together in Matthew 6, verses one through 18. We'll start with verse one here. Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward with your father in heaven. So, whenever you give to the poor, don't sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets to be applauded by people. But truly, I tell you, they have their reward. But when you give to the poor, don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing so that your giving may be in secret and your father who sees in secret will reward you. Whenever you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites because they love to pray standing in synagogues on the street corner to be seen by people. But truly I tell you, they've received their reward. But when you pray, go into your private room, shut your door, that's our word, and pray to your father who's in secret and your father who sees in secret will reward you. …
… verse 3, Matthew chapter 6, when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that, listen to verse 4, your giving may be in secret, and your Father who sees this in secret will reward you. Same thing down in verse 6, when you pray, go into your room, shut the door, and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. You get to fasting, verse 17 when you fast anoint your head wash your face that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret and your Father who sees in secret will reward you Jesus says give in secret pray in secret fast in secret why? because it's in hiddenness it's in what happens between you and the Father alone where reward is found you see this get this our hearts were made to find joy not in receiving honor from men but in experiencing hiddenness with God your heart was made to enjoy deepest intimacy and hiddenness with God, your Father. …
… from your father in heaven. 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. But when you give, get when, but when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing so that your giving may be in secret. Then your father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. And when you pray, do not like be the hypocrites for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly, I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your father who is unseen. Then your father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep babbling like the pagans, for they think they will be heard because there are many words. Do not be like them, for your father knows what you need before you ask him. …
… And then he said, when you do a charitable deed, this is almsgiving, don't sound a trumpet like the hypocrite. In fact, don't even let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. And then he addressed the third. When you fast, do not be like the hypocrites with a sad countenance and they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. They already have their reward. Here's what he was addressing. When they fasted, they tried to look miserable. They not only did it publicly, but they would put ashes or white powder on their faces so their faces looked pale and sickly. And they put on old tattered clothes and they went in public so people would go, wow, that dude is spiritual. I mean, look how ugly he is. Look how miserable he looks. He must be devoted to God. Verily, they have their reward, Jesus said. Now, let me tell you a little more about fasting. Did you know that fasting was required in the Old Testament only once a year, one day a year? …
… in his teachings to the secret life, to not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. and he exemplifies it perfectly in the gospel of Luke. Luke chapter 18, 11 through 14. He gives the story of a Pharisee at the front of a church, at the front of synagogue. It says, he stood and prayed thus with himself. God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, even as this tax collector. Look at all the good things I do. Look at the image I've attained. Look at the influence I have. I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I possess. and then there's the tax collector the the view shifts in the story to the back of the service standing afar off he would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast saying god be merciful to me a sinner i tell you this is jesus speaking this man went down to his house justified rather than the other for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled and he who humbles himself will be exalted. So when no one thanked you for the money you gave, when someone else got the promotion at your job for your hard work, when no one saw you help out that person, what is your response when it goes completely unseen? Are you more concerned with obedience or your image. See, when these things happen, we must pose the question to ourselves, …
… I assure you that's the only reward they'll get. But when you give to the poor, don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing so that you may give to the poor in secret and your father who sees what you do in secret will reward you. Now, notice he doesn't say if you give to the poor. He says, when you give to the poor, right? It's just assumed you're going to do that. Jesus assumes this. And rightly so, because the entire Hebrew Bible, or Old Testament, talks about this over and over and over again. It was an obligation. It was part of what it meant to be the people of God, is that you were giving to help people who were in need. The Hebrew word is tzedekah. Tzedekah is a word that literally came to mean almsgiving or giving to charity, giving to people who were in need. And it's based upon another root, tzedek. And tzedek is a word in the Hebrew Bible that means righteousness and or justice. …
… You have all heard this, where Jesus says, when you give alms, don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. your father sees it. When you're praying, don't let people see it. God sees it. When you're fasting, don't let people see it. God sees it. I don't know if we understand how completely revolutionary that teaching is. What is Jesus saying? Not only don't show off, what he's saying is ultimately, no matter what you do, everything that you do, God sees, he notices, and it matters to him. this was unthinkable before Jesus. This reality, that no matter what you do, big, small, hidden, visible, God sees it, he notices it, and it actually matters. And that's why he says, when you pray, don't babble like the pagans who think that because of the many words they'll be heard. Have you ever heard that phrase? When you pray, don't babble like the pagans who think that because of the many words they'll be heard. …
… Verily I say unto you, they have their reward. But thou, but when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth, that thine alms may be in secret. And thy Father which seeth in secret himself SHALL REWARD THEE OPENLY. NOW JESUS HERE IS NOT TALKING ABOUT THE GIFT THAT YOU BRING TO THE CHURCH ON SUNDAY OR THAT SOMEONE WOULD BRING TO THE, UH, SYNAGOGUE ON SATURDAY. HE'S NOT TALKING ABOUT THAT. HE'S TALKING ABOUT GIVING TO POOR PEOPLE, GIVING ALMS, GIFTS OF CHARITY. NOW HE'S NOT AGAINST THIS. HE'S NOT SAYING IT IS WRONG TO DO THIS. AS A MATTER OF FACT, IF YOU GO BACK IN CHAPTER FIVE AND LOOK IN VERSE 42, YOU'RE GOING TO SEE THAT OUR LORD HAS SAID, GIVE TO HIM THAT ASKETH THEE, AND OF HIM THAT WOULD BORROW OF THEE, TURN THOU NOT AWAY. THE LORD IS NOT AGAINST GIVING TO THE POOR. AS A MATTER OF FACT, THE BIBLE CLEARLY AND DEFINITELY SAYS THIS WE OUGHT TO DO. IN PSALM 41 VERSE 1, BLESSED IS HE THAT CONSIDERETH THE POOR. THE LORD WILL DELIVER HIM IN TIME OF TROUBLE. AND ALL OF US OUGHT TO BE LOOKING FOR POOR PEOPLE THAT WE CAN GIVE TO AND MINISTER TO. NOW IT IS NOT THE DEED THAT JESUS SAYS IS WRONG THAT THESE PHARISEES ARE DOING. …