(Mat 6:1) Beware of practicing your righteousness
before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no
reward from your Father who is in heaven.
(Mat 6:2) Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
The Pharisees would give to the needy to
purposely be seen by others in the streets. Giving to be seen, with strings
attached, or to gain influence are all wrong motives. When we are seen, when we
pull on those strings, and when we leverage by our giving, we have already
received our reward in full; but we are not rewarded for this kind of giving by God the Father. The giving is not condemned, only the motive. We are to let our
light shine before men (Mt 5:16), not parade our piety to be seen by men. The
Father, who is all-knowing, will reward the unseen giver, but the seen giver is
paid in full already. <><
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