“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.” Matthew 6:1

“Humility is the mother of all virtues; purity, charity and obedience. It is in being humble that our love becomes real, devoted and ardent. If you are humble nothing will touch you, neither praise nor disgrace, because you know what you are. If you are blamed you will not be discouraged. If they call you a saint you will not put yourself on a pedestal.” Mother Teresa

Teresa of Calcutta, born Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu and commonly known as Mother Teresa, was an ethnic Albanian, Indian Roman Catholic nun. As I read about this famous figure of the 20th Century, in spite of some controversies regarding her wavering faith through the years, one trait has stood out as rock-solid in her life: Teresa of Calcutta was humble.

She founded several orphanages, food banks and dedicated her life to reach those who were hungry for food and love. I grew up watching her pop up in the news quite often: A small-framed, frail-looking lady with sad eyes and a wide smile. The spotlight followed her, but she never seemed to care about being in it. She loved Jesus and wanted to be His light to the hurting, whether people clapped in approval or not.

As I ponder about Mother Teresa’s ministry and the humility in which she gave, I am challenged to search my own motives when it comes to serving. Why do I do what I do? Whether standing in the choir loft on Sunday mornings or speaking to women in conferences and retreats; whether giving to missions or sending a card to a hurting friend, I need to remember to keep my heart in check for signs of pride. Jesus’ words in Matthew 6 remind me to give and serve for the right reasons: out of love for God and our fellowmen. Period.

Heart religion.

According to Jesus, religion is worth nothing until it becomes heart religion. That concept was often a focal point of His teachings during His three-year ministry.

Heart religion says that more important than the outward expressions of faith, is the condition of one’s heart. During the famous Sermon of the Mount, Jesus took sins such as adultery and murder to a new level, explaining that these are heart sins: If one hates his neighbor, he commits murder. If one looks at a woman (or man) lustfully, he or she commits adultery (Matthew 5). But as much as we must watch to keep our hearts from stumbling by avoiding these “heart sins,” the Lord warns us in these verses about another dangerous enemy of true worship – hypocrisy.

He calls it the “leaven of the Pharisees” in Luke 12:1.

When it came to the condition of the Pharisees’ hearts when it came to worship and service, Jesus told it like it was. Several times did He call them hypocrites. In order to receive the applause and approval of men, these leaders would chose to “give alms” in the synagogues and in the streets, where there was a greater number of spectators to applaud them.

And because Jesus knew the true reason behind their “service,” He made it clear: That sort of religion is rubbish to God. Three times in the sixth chapter of Matthew Jesus said that when the Pharisees served or worshiped for the wrong reasons, “They had received their reward in full.”

The Antidote

“Though the LORD is on high, he looks upon the lowly, but the proud he knows from afar.” Psalm 138:6

Something happened not long ago on a Sunday morning that grieved my heart. As I watched the situation unfold, God opened my spiritual eyes to realize how easy it is to be deceived by Satan while serving.

“Many people serve Me for the pleasure of being seen.” I heard the words in my spirit.

I’ll be honest. My first reaction was to jump right in and judge the person. “We should be here to serve God, not our pride!” my heart cried out. “Shame, shame!”

But then, God put His Holy mirror in front of my face, and I bowed my head, convicted.

Really, let’s be honest. Who has never done it? Who has never felt pride in receiving the applause of this world? I believe we all have at some point in time, even while serving God. That is human nature. It feels good to be loved and admired.

But we must keep our hearts in check and aware that pride is a trap that Satan uses to make our service ineffective and without a holy purpose.

If we give in to the slightest prideful thought in regards to our service in the Kingdom, Satan will snare us into thinking that the results of our ministry are due to your “amazing” talents and abilities. And before we know it, God will turn His face and favor away from our ministry. Because the truth is:

[bctt tweet=”We may reap the benefits of what we do for Christ; and we certainly will receive rewards for what we do in His Name. But the glory? Oh, the glory, my friend, belongs to Him and Him alone!” username=”PatHolbrook”]

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[bctt tweet=”LINKUP PARTY is open to Christian Bloggers! Today, a reflection on serving the Kingdom of God… for the Wrong reasons. JOIN US?” username=”PatHolbrook”]