“From His dwelling place, He looks out on all the inhabitants of the earth, He who fashions the hearts of them all, He who understands all their works.” (Psalm 33:14-15)
Every action has a cause, and in the case of humans, that means every choice we make has a reason behind it. The God who made our hearts also sees our works and understands the reasons behind them.
A life well-lived is both full of good works (see Ephesians 2:10) and righteous intention (Hebrews 4:12). If we feed the poor and seek the well-being of the oppressed, but do so to be seen as altruistic – we have our reward in full.
The best actions are done with pure motives, and that often means doing them when no one else is watching.
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. (Matthew 6:3-4)
This Week’s Reading: 2 Samuel 3-12; Psalm 33; Proverbs 2 This year, #Biblebites are looking at lessons from the history of the Old Testament. Each week reads a section of history with a Psalm to meditate on and a dash of Proverbs to dwell upon. If you would like a copy of the reading schedule, you can view it here: https://eastlandchristians.org/news-events/2024-vision