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 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. Matthew 6:2-4
“What sort of gift is it, beloved brethren, whose setting forth is celebrated in the sight of God? If, in a gift of the Gentiles, it seems a great and glorious thing to have proconsuls or emperors present, and the preparation and display is the greater among the givers, in order that they may please the higher classes; how much more illustrious and greater is the glory to have God and Christ as the spectators of the gift! How much more sumptuous the preparation and more liberal the expense to be set forth in that case, when the powers of heaven assemble to the spectacle, when all the angels come together: where it is not a four-horsed chariot or a consulship that is sought for the giver, but life eternal is bestowed; nor is the empty and fleeting favour of the rabble grasped at, but the perpetual reward of the kingdom of heaven is received!”
Cyprian of Carthage (190-258) in his Treatise 8. On Works and Alms, 21.
The ancient pattern related to giving included a big show in front of people. Cyprian echoes the teaching of Jesus in the heart of the Sermon on the Mount to make heaven and not humans the audience.
What sort of gifts will you give during Lent 2024? And before whom will you do this giving?
The reality then and now is that we can get lots of glory for our good deeds on earth. But that must not be our motivation. We must do them, with intentionality, seeking only the perpetual reward of the kingdom.
Today marks a “Last Call” if you want to start Lent from the beginning.
Register here to journey with GTP through Lent, starting tomorrow. To get a head start, download Lent Companion here and think about what you will fast from this Lent to make more space for Jesus.