Motivation
Our motives matter because God cares primarily about who we are becoming, not what we are achieving.
Read Time: 7 minutes
What is our motivation in our walk to God’s kingdom? Motivation can be defined as the reason or reasons one has for acting or behaving in a certain way. Psychologists agree that motivation can be split into two broad categories: intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
Intrinsic motivation involves engaging in a behavior because it is personally rewarding. You are performing an activity for its own sake, rather than the desire for some external reward. The behavior itself is its own reward.
Extrinsic motivation occurs when one is moved to perform a behavior or engage in an activity to earn a reward or avoid punishment. In this case, you do something, not because you enjoy it or because you find it satisfying, but to get something in return or avoid something unpleasant.
I’d like us to consider if our motivation matters to our Heavenly Father
As an example, consider the reasons you might have for participating in a sport. If you are intrinsically motivated, you would participate because you enjoy the sport and the activity. If you are extrinsically motivated, you might be participating for a medal or for the approval of your peers.
Motivation is what drives people to build, work, eat, sleep and do just about anything else under the sun. I’d like us to consider if our motivation matters to our Heavenly Father and to further discuss intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
I believe our motivation does matter to God. Our intentions matter because God cares primarily about who we are becoming, and then what we are achieving. If we believe that God cares simply about our outcomes, then we will all fall short of the glory of God. Here are two passages which demonstrate that our motives matter to God:
How much time do we spend considering our motives? Do we focus our energy simply on what needs to get done and the action involved? We can do a lot of actions and exhibit behaviors that are Christ-like, but what is our reason for doing those actions? Is it love, concern, compassion? Or are we driven by pride and the desire for man’s approval? Are we stirred up by our internal desires, or are we motivated by the desires of God?
As an example of why motivation matters, consider the well-known parable of the good Samaritan in Luke 10:
Consider the Samaritan’s purpose here—was he motivated intrinsically or extrinsically? I think it’s easy to see he was motivated intrinsically. Notice verse 33 states he had pity, and verse 34 mentions he bandaged and poured oil and wine on the man. In verse 35 we are told he paid for the man to stay at the inn.
Our motives determine what we do, who we are, and who we will become.
The Samaritan was not motivated to perform these acts for a reward, and he did not receive one. He also did not do it to avoid punishment, as all the other passers-by were not punished. Verse 37 tells us that the Samaritan behaved this way because he had mercy on the man. He committed this act because of his intrinsic desire to help the man, and his desire to live up to God’s values.
We need to not only try to practice right behavior in our lives but to also be of the right spirit and heart. Our motives determine what we do, who we are, and who we will become. The primary difference between the two types of motivation is that extrinsic motivation arises from outside of the individual while intrinsic motivation arises from within.
Researchers have also found that the two types can differ in how effective they are at driving behavior. In one study, children who were rewarded for playing with a toy in which they had expressed an interest became less captivated with it after being externally rewarded.
It was found that extrinsic motivation and rewards can be used to induce people to acquire new skills or knowledge. However, once these early skills and knowledge have been learned, it is found people may then become more intrinsically motivated to pursue the activity.
I think this applies to our walk to God’s Kingdom and our ambition to live a life like Christ’s. When we are initially converted, we may be motivated by possible rewards. These rewards may still encourage us when we are feeling spiritually low. But ultimately, I think God wants us to be intrinsically motivated in our walk to His kingdom.
God wants us to behave and act in a certain way because we value those behaviors and actions, not just because we believe it is the right thing in God’s eyes and we will get rewarded. We will often hear that our aim in life is to be in the Kingdom of God, but maybe we should be asking ourselves “what is motivating us to get there?”
It can be very easy for us to choose to follow Jesus because we think there is a reward waiting for us. However, in the process, we might forget what our true motives should be regarding the Kingdom. Consider this passage:
Our charge in life is not to tick the boxes and list what we have done. Rather, it is to love from a pure heart and to live in faith. If we are only motivated by a reward and are committed to just itemizing our accomplishments, are we living a life in love for God, or a love for ourselves?
Our charge in life is to love from a pure heart and to live in faith.
When we are thinking about the motivation behind our actions and behaviors, there needs to be a distinction between pleasing man and pleasing God. For example:
We should not be doing things and behaving in ways to please our community, but to please our Father in heaven. Jesus taught this in the Sermon on the Mount:
Unfortunately, we are of a carnal mind, and we have a selfish nature. If at times we are solely looking for a reward, then let’s look to our Father in heaven, not to those around us. Let’s try to be motivated to live a life pleasing to God, loving His values. If it is a reward we seek, we will find no greater a gift than the Kingdom of God.
If we wish to receive that gift, then let’s work heartily. Let’s serve our Lord Jesus Christ and try to live more closely to the example he left for us. That’s who we should be motivated by—the man we come to remember at the Breaking of Bread. He lived a life of perfect love, obedience and faith and provided us the perfect example to follow.
Jesus was not driven by his own desires, or by the desires of man, but by the desires of his Father. Christ has shown us the way. To summarize Jesus’ many characteristics and those that God desires, Paul’s description of the fruit of the Spirit explains in more beautiful words than I can, how we should aim to walk.
Notice the contrast between “works” and “fruit.” The fruit of the Spirit springs from what is in our hearts, not just the external acts we do. This is how we should be walking in our path to God’s Kingdom. We should be motivated to live a life more like Christ, not only because of the sacrifice he made on our behalf but also because we love him, our Father in heaven and His divine values.
When we break bread, Paul exhorts us to examine ourselves. In doing so, let’s reflect not only on our actions in comparison to Christ’s but also on our motives. Let our motives be love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and selfcontrol in all that we do.
Alex Harper
Vernon, BC