“Be careful NOT TO PERFORM YOUR RIGHTEOUS ACTS before men TO BE SEEN by them. If you do, you will HAVE NO REWARD from your Father in heaven….” Matthew 6: 1 BSB (Emphasis mine)
Every Kingdom has its own constitutional framework or principles that governs the lifestyle of its citizenry. In order to effectively execute these principles, there are certain protocols and procedure to follow. Without going through the right procedures, it is likely all the efforts put in place will end up in a fiasco. Likewise, when Jesus was highlighting the constitutional framework on how to live in the Kingdom, he introduced to us the procedures to the execution of those principles.
A procedure is simply an established or official way of doing something. It is the established method of accomplishing a task, usually with steps that are performed in a prescribed order. It is also the set of instructions that one needs to performs a specific task; a subroutine or function. Therefore, Kingdom procedures are the official ways or methods of performing our righteous acts as citizens of the kingdom.
The above scripture suggests that, we should be careful of how we perform our righteous acts lest all the efforts we put in, will lose their essence or significance. Most of us have tried to perform a lot of righteous acts such as almsgiving, prayer, fasting, sacrifices etc. but have never been able to receive any of the benefits or reward. All the resources and the effort we put in those acts amounted to nothing simply because, we either didn’t know the procedures or failed to comply.
Number two, where we perform the righteous acts is also a matter of concern. The location factor deals with whether we performed them openly or in secrecy.
Number three, the value of the righteous acts. This time, the value here is not determined by the quantity but the quality. It is how much love we invest and not how many things we give.
In effect, the results or the reward we receive from performing a righteous act is determined by how we chose to apply or comply with the above three procedures. Whether we do it rightly or wrongly we will still receive the reward either from God, the masses or from the self-aggrandizement.
Beloved, it is extremely important that we choose to rightly follow the procedures as we perform our righteous acts and be rewarded by our Lord, Master and King. When the Master rewards us, we will receive the public recognition and fulfillment as bonus. But if we focus on the self-aggrandizement and public recognition, the Master’s reward will elude us. Tomorrow, God willing, we will look in detail the various righteous act and their procedures. God bless us all.
PRAY WITH ME
Lord Jesus, I thank you this day for my life. From this day forward, I have resolved in my heart to rightly follow the Kingdom procedures as I perform my righteous acts. Holy Spirit, please guide me and help me to live this life of Kingdom righteousness. This I pray in the precious name of Jesus! Amen!
Author: REV. SOLOMON LUTTERODT