Upside Down - Impact over Impress: Living with Genuine Love
Have you ever stopped to think about how often you have wanted to win other people's approval?
If you have ever been interviewed for a job, you wanted to IMPRESS the potential employer. You wanted their approval. If you have applied to a university, you want their approval. If you have ever proposed to your spouse, you wanted their approval. You want approval for car loans, house mortgages, credit cards…
We may say that you don’t seek the approval of others, but in our culture, we most certainly do.
For instance…I like Country music. I like songs about fighting, cussing, drinking, cheating, trucks, love, and family. You have heard what happens when you play Country music backwards, right? You get your job back, your dog back, and your wife back.
The thing about Country music is that sometimes the lyrics I love the most are about sinful things. I could listen to Brantley Gilbert all the way from my house to Beach Church with the top down on my little beetle, but as soon as I begin pulling onto the church campus, I will change the station to Lauren Daigle.
Why do I do that? Because I want to impress other people. Can you relate to my hypocrisy? Are there things you do to win the approval of other people? And just like I change the station to impress people, the Pharisees had their own ways of looking religious for the applause of others…
In Matthew 6, Jesus criticized the Pharisees and the religious leaders for doing things to win the approval of others.
Matthew 6:1-4 (NLT2)
“Watch out! Don’t do your good deeds publicly, to be admired by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven. 2 When you give to someone in need, don’t do as the hypocrites do—blowing trumpets in the synagogues and streets to call attention to their acts of charity! I tell you the truth, they have received all the reward they will ever get. 3 But when you give to someone in need, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. 4 Give your gifts in private, and your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.
We have a church that loves to serve on mission locally. We partner with Habitat for Humanity to build homes for families. We partner with Meals on Wheels. Twice a year, we go on mission trips to serve the Mayan people. We have amazing volunteer leadership teams at our church…and we celebrate that.
Many of our amazing Beach Church families love to serve God and others, but in light of this passage, when we serve others, we need to remember that…
Serving others does not include receipts
Jesus is addressing the motivation many people have when serving…“To be admired by others…” This motivation can be seen when we watch sports on TV. A player will make a spectacular shot, or an amazing adrenaline surging dunk to take the lead…and how do they act?
They raise their hands, beckon the crowd to give them praise, and smile and spin around in awe of themselves. Can you imagine if we did that when we serve? Man, did you see the way I set up those chairs? They need a wheelbarrow to get all the cans of food I brought in for Meals on Wheels…
You might say you would never raise your hands to celebrate your generosity or good deeds…
But…
Have you ever pointed out to your spouse that you did the dishes? I have.
Have you ever fished for a compliment when you did something nice for somebody? I have.
Do you have a bible in a prominent spot in your home for others to see when they visit, but you seldom ever read it?
See, if the heart check in motives comes back with red flags…If you care too much about what other people think of you…If you really want people to recognize you for all the great things you have done…
Remember…
God has never asked you to impress others
In conversation with others, if you brag about going to church, daily devotions, or how you have it all figured out when it comes to applying God’s word to your life…
Just. Stop. Repent. God does not want you to do good deeds to impress other people. God wants you to serve, but he wants you to serve with pure motives.
I cannot find one passage of scripture in my bible where God asks his people to impress others by their good works. In fact, we see just the opposite.
Philippians 2:3A (NLT2)
Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others.
Following Jesus does not enter us into a competition with one another. It does not matter how much you give, where you have gone, or whose hand you have shaken. If you try to impress others by living out your faith as a follower of Jesus, their admiration is your REWARD.
Their recognition is your Blue-Ribbon Award…
And, in my own life, I learned a long time ago that my desire for my good deeds is often fueled by my own stubborn insecurity that flares up from time to time.
So, since we want to receive recognition that will last an eternity…Since we believe that by faith God will reward our good deeds done in secret, let’s keep our mouths closed.
Let’s be okay if we feel overlooked. Because we are not living to impress other people. That doesn’t mean we stop serving, giving, or being kind to others.
The truth is…
God has asked you to impact others
Jesus is not teaching us that our faith in him should remain private. He is not teaching us that we ought not do GOOD things. The faith of a follower of Jesus OUGHT to be visible.
Several election cycles ago, a candidate for the office of the President was asked about his faith in God. Voters wanted to know what he believed. He responded, “I think faith is a private matter.” But faith is not a private matter. If you are a follower of Jesus…
By that I mean, you believe that you are a sinner and separated from God because of your sin. You believe that Jesus paid the price for your sin on the cross. You believe Jesus died, rose from the dead, ascended into heaven, and one day will return…And because you believe, you have surrendered your life to God, repented of your sin, and trusted Jesus as your Savior…
Then God desires that we prove to the world that we have faith by doing good works.
Jesus said:
Matthew 5:16 (NLT2)
In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.
People are supposed to see your good works – but not because you DRAW attention to them.
Your good works will impact the world if you don’t try to impress other people with them. People may even surrender their lives to Jesus because they see something in you that is clearly upside down from the rest of the world.
And, that something…is genuine love.
John 13:35 (NLT2)
Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.
The good works that people see, if they are done IN LOVE, will lead them to praise our Heavenly Father – and that means – our kindness will lead people to a life-changing relationship with Jesus. People in Myrtle Beach and the Grand Strand will be CHANGED on the inside because they see our good works done through real love for others. That’s how we turn the world upside down.
I always hear positive comments about the good works that so many people do at Beach Church. They see how we love our neighbors and are involved with Habitat for Humanity home builds. They see how we love our community by giving out water bottles at events with no strings attached. They see the lines of cars at Food Distribution to feed hungry families…
They know about Beach Buddies. They hear about how we are caring for foster families…and we make an impact on them, because YOU are doing these things without a prideful spirit. You are showing love, uncomfortable grace, and genuine kindness…and the church keeps leading people to a life-changing relationship with Jesus.
And we do not do those things because we feel obligated to…or seek a reward. We are not even doing those things because we are trying to grow the church. We serve our community simply because we LOVE our community…
Paul wrote:
1 Corinthians 13:3 (NLT2)
If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.
We gain nothing by doing things without love. It doesn’t matter what we sacrifice. It doesn’t matter how much we give…If we do it without love, we gain zero.
Impact others through life-changing love
If your motivation in serving, giving, and following Jesus is because you love others, you are going to make an incredible impact and receive a great reward from God. But if the motivation behind serving is to impress others, receive appreciation and gratitude, or demonstrate to others how wonderful I am…I gain nothing.
Now, how can you make an impact on others?
Here are a few ways you can begin to apply this message:
If you want to learn more about serving on one of the ministry teams inside the church, open up the Beach Church App, click “connect,” then select “Serving opportunities” and complete the interest form.
If you want to serve in our community, join a LifeGroup. We ask our life groups to serve in the Grand Strand twice yearly. It may be with Habitat for Humanity, Food Distribution, Homeless Shelters, or another way.
And, the next time you serve inside your home, don’t point it out. Do it with a heart full of love. Developing that as a habit in your personal life will help you develop it as a habit in your public life.
If today’s message has blessed you, apply it, invite a friend, and I will see you next week.