A question on blessings

[CleansedSpirit]

It says in the Bible that when you, say, give to the poor, that He will reward you.
So is it wrong to do something good, or charitable, for the sole reason of gaining a reward from God?

[JudgeNot]

No.

As a christian my life is based on doing believing in Him so that by His grace I may "selfishly"(?) claim the reward that God has promised.

[Forrest]

It says in the Bible that when you, say, give to the poor, that He will reward you.
So is it wrong to do something good, or charitable, for the sole reason of gaining a reward from God?

        CleansedSpirit:
     Where does the Bible say that?

[jenn]

well, i don't know if that is wrong . All i remember Him saying not to give grudgely but to give joyfully.

[CleansedSpirit]

 "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." Matt. 6:1

"Knowing that of the Lord ye shall recieve the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ." Colossians 3:24

"Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we recieve a full reward." 1John 1:8

"And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be." Revelation 22:12

I'm sorry, I should have mentioned that I meant heavenly rewards for our deeds...
Like, is it all right to do the good deeds and charitable things, etc, for the sole purpose of gaining the heavenly rewards?

(Although, when you look at that last verse, and some others, it implys that those who live unGodly lifestyles shall reap THEIR reward of punishment...)

And, then again, if we SHOULDN'T do our deeds and etc for the sole purpose of gaining God's reward, why were we told about it in the Bible?
(Or am I getting a differant meaning out of those verses?)

[sincereheart]

It says in the Bible that when you, say, give to the poor, that He will reward you.
So is it wrong to do something good, or charitable, for the sole reason of gaining a reward from God?

You can start off doing it because it's the right thing to do. If you feel pangs of selfishness or whatever, turn it over to God to let go of that. Before long, you will do those things and will find yourself thanking God for providing you with enough to share. I think the problem would be if you never get past the idea of filling up a rewards sheet.    

[Gracey]

Like, is it all right to do the good deeds and charitable things, etc, for the sole purpose of gaining the heavenly rewards?

I believe if that is the only reason for doing these good deeds, then we are only doing these things to benefit ourselves. All things are to be done unto His glory.

Mar 9:41  For whoever shall give you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, truly I say to you, He shall not lose his reward.

When we do good deeds we should be doing it for God, not for ourselves:

Col 3:23  And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men;
Col 3:24  knowing that from the Lord you shall receive the reward of the inheritance. For you serve the Lord Christ.

Yes, we do store up our treasures in heaven, but I believe when we do "good deeds" we are to do for others what we would do for Christ if He were there. The focus should not be on our reward, but on His glory.

Mat 5:16  Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in Heaven.

Gracey