Confused, Help Me Out Please

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Ok, I was reading Mathew on the way to work, and I came across the following verses, which seem in contradiction. Basically what I am wondering is...Am I supposed to hide my good deeds, or shine as an example?

Here they are:

Mathew Chapter 3

15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.

16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

--

Mathew Chapter 6

1 Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.

2 Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

3 But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:

4 That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.

5 And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.

8 Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.

9 After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

11 Give us this day our daily bread.

12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:

15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

16 Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

17 But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face;

18 That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.
 

Blackhawk

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matthew 3 is speakng about influencing others in a godly way. it is about letting others see God in your life and then God uses that to reach others.

matt. 6 is speaking about your intent when doing these works. Do you do it for men and for them to think that you are cool or do you do them because you want to help others and most importantly because you want to obey God. If you do it for men then your reward is here on earth but if you do it for God then your reward is in heaven. Does this make sense?

So they are speaking about different things.
 
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Originally posted by AnnaRS1003
Right. When you do something, it is to glorify God, not you. So if you're doing it for Him, you shouldn't go around boasting about it. But you should be known as a "light" so that others will see Christ in you.

Yeah, but as long as I'm not boasting, I can still tell them as an example?

In other words, its all in my intent, correct?
 
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Here's something that helps me to understand this;

"From whom ar we to hide the visibility of our discipleship? Certainly not from other men, for we are told to let them see our light. We are to hide it FROM OURSELVES." "We must be unaware of our own righteousness, and see it only in so far as we look to Jesus; then it will seem not extraordinary, but quite ordinary and natural." (my paraphrase of Dietrich Bonhoeffer)
The Christian is a light unto the world, not because of any quality of his own, but only because he follows Christ and looks solely to him. But precisely because the Christian life is of its very nature extraordinary, it is at the same time ordinary, natural, and hidden. If not, it is not the Christian life at all, it is not obedience to the will of Jesus Christ.
 
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Eph 2:8-10
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
(KJV)

You see how we are Christ's workmanship "unto good works"
This is to say it is Christ in us that performs the good works and not ourselves or else we could boast. Telling about how God works in our lives is giveing the glory to God and letting the person know that we are humble and usable by God. This is one way God gets known to other people. Keep on keepin on. You are a helping the cause of Christ........God bless
 
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E-beth

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The verses you quoted originally are a warning not to be like the Pharisees who lived during Jesus' day. They would make sure everyone knew what they did for the church and prayed aloud on the street corners so everyone could see how pious they were.

I think we are supposed to show Jesus in all we do, not just because we talk about it, but just by our general attitude. Like, have you ever noticed someone who just radiates Christ? Yeah, they might put an envelope in the offering plate and teach Sunday School and pass out tracts at work. But they do it quietly, without applause or any special attention.
 
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LouisBooth

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Its all about why you do things. Do you do it for the glory of God (right way) or glory of men (wrong way). If you do a good deed to get a pat on the back or a good job, then you're doing it all wrong. Its the right thing at the right time with the right motive. Have to have all three or it don't work.
 
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The Scriptures tell us to live so as to bring honor to God. We are to let Christ live through us. Probably the best representation of that is how we show our love to people we meet or work with. It's not how much we give or how much we know; it's how we present Christ while doing these things. If we understand that we can do no good apart from God, then we'll remember to be more humble as we obey Him.
 
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To put it simple - do the things for the Lord without saying it out or letting others know about it.

It will naturally be felt by the people surrounding you without you taking/boosting about it. People even the none believers can sense it out of you.

That is what it means by being a salt and the light of the world without the show off part.

Testimonies - My preacher wife is now in her early thirty. But in her company, she is the most successful one among all her colleagues (male counterparts), promoted two times in six years and going to be again in the near future.... The boss favors her very much plus the clients too, not because she is a person who talk the sweet talk or good at taking care of the heart of the boss but because she upholds the Word of God strongly in her workplace. She never ashamed of being a Christian and the people around her can sense that she is a woman of God and they trusted her very much.....

No need to tell, through your deeds, your action, people knows whether you are good or bad without you saying it.

God's concept is also the same :)
 
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