¨And whoever gives one of these Little ones only a cup of cold water to drink because he is a disciple, I tell you truly, he will by no means lose his reward.¨ Matthew 10:42 (Reference Bible)
What wonderful insight into the great heart of the Lord, He gives us here in the final verses of Matthew 10. He cuts far past the superficial and meaningless actions and goes direct to the reasons for doing things.
In verses 41 and 42 Jesus shows us that our reward is tied to a pure intention. He assures us that for the genuine gesture with the correct motive will hold for us a fine reward. It also tears away the value of any act done for lesser or superficial motives. If we do something we know we should do for some gain of our own, what value can that hold with our Lord?
But when we are looking for the divine in all things, and we recognize it there, then our response to the situation brings the promised reward.
So when we give a glass of water to a child because it is hot outside, this right and good. But when we give the child a drink because it is expected of us or we think someone else will see the act and appreciate our generosity, then we shouldn´t expect our Lord´s approval. On the other hand, when we see a child and our heart goes out to it because it is one of the precious lambs of God, then our small act of kindness will be rewarded by our Father because the motives were pure.
You see, in one act the direction and intentions were towards our selves. But in the other act, our intentions were in honoring God. On top of that, we recognized the same sentiment in our heart that our Lord feels in compassion for the lambs of His fold. The love Jesus feels inside was somehow working within us to bring aid to His loved ones, was at work in our heart as well.
This also sheds light on the difference of justification by faith and that of works. Faith throws us back on Jesus Christ in a way that we recognize our inadequacy and require Jesus at work inside of us. Then as we look to Jesus, His power and His love work through us towards His goals and honor the Father in the process.
But attempting to do something good in the hopes of pleasing the Lord, this goes in the complete opposite direction. This is grounded in self. The intentions are not lifting up God in any form; in fact they are directed at lifting up ourselves. It follows that no matter how good the act, it can never bring the desired blessing as it does not honor God in the end.
So let us pray for the Holy Spirit to direct us again to our Savior. Show us please, where we allow wrong motives to creep in and spoil our reward. Help us to start honoring the Lord in all that we do, because our motives are firmly grounded in Him. Let us reject any temptation to do anything for us but seek to have His heart in us and glorify His name in all things.
We will need to exchange our heart and ask to be filled by His nature. We will love and care for those around us not because we want to be good or seek reward, but because He is loving His children through us. When we are so directed towards Him, reward will be the last thing on our mind and somehow within the grace of God, only then will it be assured to us.
Be glorified at all times dear Lord. Please wipe away any trace of directing our interests towards ourselves. But rather let us look away to You. Empty us in such a way that Your nature may fill us and move us in compassion towards your creation. May we embody that love and carry out your acts of love and kindness with no other thought than to lift You higher.
We ask this in Your name, knowing that to accomplish this we must choose you over us in all things. Let my nature cease to exist while Yours is permitted to live in and move me to do all things according to Your will and to bring glory to Your name.
Amen
Scott W
Searching For Christ 
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