Hi everybody,
Well, here is my meditation for the day. I was thinking about these verses in Matthew on my way home from work, and how hard it was to follow them when I was in Babylon, and how much easier it is now. There was always this temptation to say, "Hey, look what I've done" - of course, always sounding spiritual, "The Lord led me to do this, so He gets all the glory". But Scripture says, "let not your left hand know what your right hand is doing", meaning no one has to know about it except you and the Lord, and you don't even need to think about it anymore. How many ministries out there flaunt their good works? How can they not when they are in the public eye? I am happy to know that no one on this forum or anywhere needs to know anything I may or may not do and I can dwindle into obscurity just fine. Jesus taught about prayer the same way. I can go into my prayer closet and no one knows except me and the Lord, I don't have to worry about going to some prayer meeting somewhere and making a show of a long winded prayer, just so somehow I can participate so I don't feel inferior. It's exciting to not feel those pressures anymore. When you think about the commandments of Christ, the organized church is just plain incompatible.
Little Joe
Matthew 6
1Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.
2Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
3But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:
4That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.
5And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
6But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.