Motive

Most people have been in a situation where they were uncertain of their reason(s) for doing something or been involved with someone or a group of people but their motive was unclear. There have been different times in my life that I look back on and realize that people were involved with me due to unclear motives and while this happens to most everyone, it’s something that Christ warns us about.

Personally, for me, as I read scripture I try to pick up on things that maybe others do not because I love how Christ teaches His children. Many times, He uses simple stories with bigger meanings including elements to illustrate His point and when we read the book of Mark particular chapters two and three, we truly learn the importance of someone’s motives, or reasons, for doing what they do. In other words, understand the people around you and why they are around you.

The book of Mark is a very active book and we see a lot going on including Christ and His many healings and miracles. There are times when He grows angry because of what the people are doing or not doing while other times, He is amazed at what He sees but we are told to not be afraid to see what we see: “For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them” (Matthew 13:15).

Different times within scripture we see Christ growing concern about the number of people that were gathering around Him and not because He could not help them but instead, about the reason they were around Him. People were coming from far off to see Christ and experience what He could do and rightfully so but there is a big underlining issue here and that’s the real motive of the people: were they truly there for Christ and His message or were there only because of the healing: “For he had healed many; insomuch that they pressed upon him for to touch him, as many as had plagues. And unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, saying, Thou art the Son of God. And he straitly charged them that they should not make him known” (Mark 3:10-12).

Scripture tells us again and again that we know someone by the things that they do and from the things that they say but we must be careful because there is a lot of deception as people do and say many things that mislead us. However, scripture is clear that good trees do not bear bad fruit and bad trees do not bear good fruit so if someone is spreading deception, this person will be found out: “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap” (Galatians 6:7). Furthermore, we know that the tongue is one of the most powerful weapons that man has and if it’s used in the wrong way then it can cause a lot of harm which is why we must be careful with what we say but also, with who we let know our business and information as everything eventually catches up to itself regardless if the motive is pure or impure: “He that walketh uprightly walketh surely: but he that perverteth his ways shall be known” (Proverbs 10:9).