Covert Ops Briefing

“But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly”

“But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.”

"But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly."

(Matthew 6:3-18)

The bible exhorts us to be bold in our faith in many ways. We are supposed to be not ashamed of the gospel, and to courageously declare the kingdom of God. We are called to be faithful witnesses in our confession of His name. To be open about our love for God. To live righteously before God not only in our private lives, but also in our public lives.

Yet, Jesus instructs us to play it low key when it comes to 3 things – charity, prayer, and fasting. In each of those deeds, He teaches us to do it in secret, so that “your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.” Why is Jesus telling us to be so secretive in those 3 practices?

Jesus always has a thing against a false sense of holiness. We see how He always comes down hard on the religious leaders because of their “holier than thou” attitude. In Jesus' eyes, real piety should not be seen by man. A truly pious person never feels the need to prove his piety before man. Instead, he hides from being portrayed as a pious man, because he realizes that his own unworthiness is not worth any public recognition. Such humility and awareness of one’s own fallen state can only be found in the life of a truly pious person. In fact, a truly pious person resents being called pious! Paradoxical, but this is the attitude that is displayed by a real man of God.

Those 3 areas of Christian discipline are the easiest ways to draw the public’s attention towards a person’s piety. Yes, we can be public in our works of charity, prayer and fasting and still be sincerely genuine at the same time. Well and true. But Jesus, who always champions the higher standard, puts us to a test. If we are truly sincere and genuine in those 3 areas of Christian discipline, then let us do it in secret! Because if we are indeed sincerely genuine, it will be of no difference to us whether or not people see what we do. The effectiveness of those 3 acts is not affected or dependent on the number of eyes who sees it.

In certain areas of our lives, the Lord compels us to be public about it. But in some other areas, the Lord challenges us to use covert operations tactics.