Ulterior Motive

About 9 months ago, I asked God to give me wisdom as I examined my motives. The conclusions I came up with is too long of a list for me to give here. To really sum it up, I had my hands in too many cookie jars. I was overwhelmed with commitments and responsibilities. I was doing the right things for the wrong reasons. My motives, though genuine and caring, weren’t properly aligned.

Every action we participate in is fueled by motives. But when motives become misaligned, there are major problems that can occur. When there is a mixture of good actions with wrong motives, we call that having an ulterior motive.

In Matthew 20:20-24 we are introduced to Salome. Salome’s name means clothing, and clothing can be used to conceal. Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 7:15, as He issued a warning to be on the lookout for wolves in sheep’s clothing.

In the 20th verse, "Then came the mother of Zebedee’s children with her sons, worshipping him, and desiring a certain thing of him." Though she came worshipping, it also seems to suggest that worship was not her pure motive. We are told that she came with something else on her mind, on her heart, something she wanted Jesus to do.

So she, along with her sons, came to Jesus with a plan, a scheme, with an ulterior motive. Part of this being another word that usually falls into motives called, “manipulation”. That is always at the root of any actions produced by ulterior motives. Businesses do it; Church’s do it; Husbands do it, wives do it, and children do it. They seek to secretively sway the circumstances in a position that will be favorable for them.

God doesn’t do it though, he looks at the heart. He doesn’t look at the clothing, but He sees beyond the facade, and into your motives! Worship does move God, but it does not manipulate God! Yet, you would be shocked to know how many people involve themselves in Spiritual activities for the wrong reasons.

So we see here, a woman with her sons, coming in what should be a sacred act of worship, but they come with a plan, a scheme, and another desire. They’re not coming because they want to give honor to Jesus. They’re coming to get something from Jesus! There are many people today who come to the Lord for the wrong reason!

That’s one reason why some people don’t last. Because they came to the Lord "with an understanding" that God would do what they want Him to do. And when that didn’t happen, they quit! You see, when people do something for the wrong reason, they won’t do it for long!

Jesus wasn’t ignorant of Salome’s intentions; Jesus was disheartened, because the motive wasn’t right. She was doing the right thing, but for the wrong reason. I can hear Him say, "What do you want when you act like that?" Because that’s what it was - it was an act!

She came scheming, saying, "You like worship? Okay, I will give you worship. And in return, hook my boys up!" And Jesus told her, "You don’t even know what you’re talking about!" One of the things she wanted was to bypass the process involved in attaining the next level. People do it all the time.

"I’ll go to church, and God can get me a job." "I’ll pay my tithes, and God can get me out of debt." But worship, or any other spiritual act, is not a shortcut for processes. You can’t worship your way out of debt if you’re coming to God with a scheme; a plan, or with an ulterior motive.

Many people want to lay out stipulations to God, based on what they have given up to serve Him. They want Him to know what they walked away from to be with Him. But no one has given up as much to get with God, as God has given up getting with you! He gave His Son!

You put at risk the very thing you want God to do, plus everything else He could do on your behalf. If you’ve been bargaining, scheming, coming to God to see what He can do for you, you may need to examine your motives.