Doing Good Works

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Matthew 6:1-4
Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.

So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Matthew 5:14-16
You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

I was wondering if there was a contradiction here. On one hand we are asked to do good works for everyone to see so that they may praise God. On the other hand we are told to do it in secret so that God can reward us. So what should be the right thing to do?
 
julianp24 said:
Matthew 6:1-4
Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.

So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Matthew 5:14-16
You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

I was wondering if there was a contradiction here. On one hand we are asked to do good works for everyone to see so that they may praise God. On the other hand we are told to do it in secret so that God can reward us. So what should be the right thing to do?
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I don’t think so, I think it contrasts doing good works in order to be seen, or to get that warm fuzzy feeling inside, ultimately for our own ends, with simply getting on with christian works of charity because we see Christ in the other person. The intention of our good works being loving God and loving neighbour and living that out unashamedly.
 
This can seem contradictory, but of course they are not.
The key lies in why you do a good work openly.

Note in each passage where the “Praise” is being directed. Seeking praise for ourselves as seen in the Mt 6:1-4 passage is bad. Seeking praise for God as in the Mt 5:14-16 is good.

A good work is a good work because it comes from love (Mt 22:36-40) and is not connected with a need for any personal gain.

Peace
James
 
Something else that I heard recently may apply. Alms, defined as food or money given to receive the poor, should be done in secret in order to protect the privacy of the person who is in need.

Good works in general, on the other hand, need to be seen. Jesus said that one can know the tree by its fruit, but if the fruit is invisible, how can one determine whether the tree is good or bad?
 
DaveBj said:
Something else that I heard recently may apply. Alms, defined as food or money given to receive the poor, should be done in secret in order to protect the privacy of the person who is in need.

Good works in general, on the other hand, need to be seen. Jesus said that one can know the tree by its fruit, but if the fruit is invisible, how can one determine whether the tree is good or bad?
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Even if the fruit is invisible, God will know him by heart and what he/she has done to help others.
 
I think in doing volunteer work for any non-profit organizations and being seen is okay. In being seen you can promote others to volunteer.

OTOH, I have seen a post on FB about a charity act they performed, That appeared to be they were looking for a pat on the back. It was the manner in which they gave the details in what they had done.

Here was the scenario Man was holding sign saying that he would work for food. FB poster told how they went and bought $100 worth of groceries for the man. Then their door car door broke while doing good deed. Of course, they got all kind of comments saying that no good deeds goes unpunished. Others chimed in on what they contributed. I think these type of donations should be done quietly.

IMO, it is okay to be seen, but don’t boast about good deeds. That takes away the specialty of it. Do it out of love for your neighbor, and for no other reason. Do it as you were doing it for Jesus. Do it, as you are doing it for your own family.
 
It is about who the person wants to glorify by their deeds, God or themselves. Pride is a battle for many people, everyone wants to feel appreciated and looked up to. But we have to ask ourselves whenever we do any good work, do we do the same thing whether others know or not? Are we willing to “save the day” and let others feel the blessing without anyone knowing that it was us? Those who always seek to get God the glory in their works but happen to be noticed from time to time is on the right track. But those who do a good deed and then brag about it or make sure that they were noticed has gained a pat on the back but lost the real value of the reward which is from God.
 
julianp24 said:
Matthew 6:1-4
Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.

So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Matthew 5:14-16
You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

I was wondering if there was a contradiction here. On one hand we are asked to do good works for everyone to see so that they may praise God. On the other hand we are told to do it in secret so that God can reward us. So what should be the right thing to do?
Click to expand...
To add to the conversation a little. This actually highlights the difference between the Old and New Covenants. In the Old, mans “righteousness” was a matter of his own efforts. And, by those efforts, we learn that man cannot be justified or made right; man cannot live up to or fulfill the Law. In the NC our righteousness comes from God and is acquired only by humility and love. The bottom line is that authentic righteousness, from which good works naturally flow, is realized only to the extent that man is in communion with God.
 
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