Matthew 6:1. Church offerings and alms giving must not be motivated by pride or the desire for recognition. God desires for you to acknowledge Him first. If you give alms for earthly recognition or hopes of rewards, you are not putting God first in your life. You are putting yourself above God in your alms giving and church offerings. Giving alms freely without any intention of earthly reward or recognition demonstrates to God that you do put Him first in your life. God values your money and time as preciously as you do. When you are willing to give up your precious things in order to have a loving relationship with God, God is well pleased (Matthew 6:1-4, “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. 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. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.”)

MATTHEW 6 BIBLE SCRIPTURE Matthew 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."

Acts 9:34. Christians should be known for their good works and alms giving just as Jesus is known for his good works. Our Christian reputation should not be motivated by pride, but our good works should illuminate to a sinful world God’s truth and goodness. Doing a good work is one of the best ways to get a sinner’s attention and to demonstrate that there is a more joyous way to live (Acts 9:36, “Now there was at Joppa a certain disciple named Tabitha, which by interpretation is called Dorcas: this woman was full of good works and almsdeeds which she did”).

ACTS 9 BIBLE SCRIPTURE Acts 9:36, “Now there was at Joppa a certain disciple named Tabitha, which by interpretation is called Dorcas: this woman was full of good works and almsdeeds which she did.”)

Acts 10:2. It is so easy for us to get caught up in our day-to-day activities and forget God. This is not how God desires for us to live. He desires us to acknowledge Him in all things. This can be done through prayer and meditation, but it is also done through our alms giving. By sacrificing something we hold valuable such as our money or our time, we are acknowledging that God is first in our lives. Being holy means being set aside for God. We become set aside for God and maintain a continue relationship with Him by such activities as prayer, good works, alms giving, worship, and being loving toward our fellow man. These activities bring us closer to God and acknowledge Him as the only true and loving God (Acts 10:2-4, “A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway. He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius. And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, What is it, Lord? And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God”).

BIBLE SCRIPTURE Acts 10:2, "A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway".