Be Careful
“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
Today, I want to focus on two words. Be careful.
I reckon one of the great themes of modern life, fuelled by technology and capitalism, is a subtle encouragement toward thoughtlessness. Let me connect a few dots.
Example one - streaming services. Netflix and others have figured out there is a type of movie/show that makes money. It doesn’t have any deep themes. Just well-known actors, some action or comedy. It’s thoughtless entertainment. And people are loving it.
Example two - music. So much of music used to be about poetry to music. Now, lyrics and their themes are often simplistic and repetitive.
Example three - socials. The algorithms aren’t built to get you to think for yourself. Instead, they create algorithms that soothe you and keep bringing you back by reinforcing what you already think about yourself, life and everything else.
Here’s the point. Jesus says be careful. He is calling us to personal reflection. In this case, about how we practice our righteousness. He urges His people to be thoughtful. To be willing to go deep and consider how they live their lives. To explore their hearts and minds - in the desire to honour God authentically.
For Today:
Do you think about your life very often? About why you do things or don’t do things? Why/why not?
Is there one area in your life where you are doing things to be seen by others?
How could you regularly practice self-reflection?
Pray:
Praise the Father that He knows our hearts and minds.
Give thanks for Jesus who did nothing from selfishness.
Ask God for His Holy Spirit to help you and others be careful in everything we do.