Serving God Out of Love

0:00Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, Matthew 6-20. Welcome to today's encouragement from our daily bread, serving God out of love, was written by Ann Cetus and read by Oshel Trab. Matthew 6 verses 1 through 4 and 19 through 21. 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. 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.

1:01Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. Now verses 19 through 21. Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Serving God out of love, written by Ann Cetus. My Dad was a hard worker on our farm and in the factory, but he wasn't a handyman. Sometimes, when our tractor or furnace or plumber, a neighbor or friend would fix it. Dad offered to pay, even though he knew he couldn't afford as much as they deserved. But they wouldn't accept anything, they just loved to help. Thanks, he'd say, until you're better paid. I'm still not sure what he meant.

2:01Maybe he or someone else did something for them later. Believers in Jesus, who serve others because of their love for him, will one day be rewarded. Perhaps that's a form of, until you're better paid. In Matthew 6, Jesus told his followers to store up for yourselves treasures in heaven. Doing good to others may be one way to store up some of those treasures. He said we shouldn't announce it with trumpets. If we do, that's all the reward we'll get. We can be confident he sees us. The book of Hebrews reinforces this idea. God will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. We don't serve for rewards, but rather because Jesus loves us

3:01and in response, we express our love and praise for him. What a blessing it will be to hear God say, well done, good and faithful servant. Let's pray. Father, thank you for the quiet unseen acts of love that reflect your heart and bring blessing to others. Teach us to serve with humility and with joy, confident that you see every act that we do in love and will one day welcome us with well done. It's in Jesus' name we pray, amen. As you go about your day, reflect on these questions. What treasures have you stored up? What gifts has God giving you to share with others? Let's pray.