Keeping a secret is usually either a temporary measure so as not to spoil a surprise, or an attempt to hide something we are really ashamed of.  For Jesus however our charitable giving is to be such a spontaneous but hidden occurrence that even our left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing. 

In Jesus’ day much of the charitable giving was done with trumpet fanfares to draw it to the attention of others – that was the reward they wanted, and that is all they would get.  But for Jesus’ followers, secrecy was to be part of the key to truly loving giving.  That way God alone knows what we have done, and He will do everything justly and fairly and never leave us without His abundant blessings.  His generosity is boundless, and He loves it when we reflect that and are cheerful about our giving. 

What a contrast to the constant striving to get all that we can and the jealousy which seems to be the basis of our culture!  Jesus said “It is more blessed to give than to receive”.  What would it look like in our world if we all took that as our motto and acted on it?

Steve Wadsworth