I hope your week is going well. 1st Kings chapter 9.
God appears to Solomon and reminds him how important it is for him and the Israelites to follow all the ways of the Lord so they would continue to be blessed. But God also warns them against turning away from God and following false gods, that if they did, God would reject them and Israel would be seen as a nobody.
A constant constant reminder of how us Christians have to walk in faith and in faithfulness to the Lord. There's no room for portions of this world to be mixed in with our faith walk with Christ. The battle we have with this world we must claim victory in Jesus.
Solomon gave King Hiram of Tyre 20 towns because of all the work they did to help Solomon in building the temples. But the king was not grateful for what he received because he felt the cities were good for nothing.
I'm not sure which is true: was Solomon disrespectful in how he rewarded the other king? Or was the King of Tyre disrespectful by being unappreciative for the gift of 20 cities?
I wonder about me. Am I respectful to those who help me? Do I show my appreciation for those who invest a lot of time to make this Camp run?
At the same time, when I assist someone, am I doing it for the Lord or strictly for what I can get out of it? I feel our life would be so much better if we were able to offer our assistance expecting nothing in return. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying we should make our living without a wage. The Bible does say we are worthy of our wages. I'm talking about our motives when we give someone a hand. Do you expect something in return or not? Let us do it for the Lord and trust him for our reward: whether it be a reward on Earth or in Heaven.
What is our motivation? Do we give with strings attached with the attitude of what’s in it for me? Do we want to simply be a blessing to others or do we want some kind of reward or recognition for ourselves? Do we seek rewards for what we do? If so, what kind of rewards do we seek, rewards from people in this world or rewards from God?
I’m reminded today of the wrong motivation of a rich young man that Jesus had an encounter with in Mark 10:21-22.
And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.
As I think about this rich young man who was actually poor because of choosing his stuff rather than following Jesus and as I think about those motivation questions, I also think about what Jesus said in Matthew 6:1-6.
“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. 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. 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. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”
Going further on in Matthew 6, we read more from Jesus about treasures on earth compared to treasures in heaven in verses 19-21.
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
May our motivation to serve the Lord and help others be for the right reasons with the proper attitude and a pure heart.