“But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice.” – Php 1: 18

It is quite impossible to make sure that everyone in a big team has the same pure motive. But what really matters is the corporate goal or result is achieved. Paul seems to suggest that as long as Christ is preached, it does not matter whether it was preached out of love or selfish ambition.

The teachers of the law and the Pharisees are a similar group who preach the Scriptures out of selfish ambition. The Lord told us to obey them and do everything they tell us, but do not do what they do for they do not practice what they preach. (Matt 23: 2-3) We ought to obey all their teachings and not hold back just because they did not teach from a sincere motive. We are obeying the truth of God not these hypocritical teachers.

Therefore Paul is not telling us to compromise and accept these hypocritical behaviors or to embrace these people with open heart. These false teachers brought immense pain to Paul and by no means was he rejoicing in their action. Paul rejoiced solely because of Christ’s name was preached and magnified, even though he knew some of them preached Christ out of the wrong motives.

God alone will judge our motives and reward us accordingly. Let us not go round and speculate to pass judgment on our team member. In the meantime just rejoice when the gospel is preached through our team. Hallelujah!

Let’s pray.

Lord, please sanctify my motive in preaching your Word and help me not to pass any judgment on the motives of my team members. In Jesus holy name I pray. Amen.

Before we go, take a look at the questionnaire below:

1. In your view, how should we address team members whose motives may be impure? How can we ensure that personal agendas do not hinder the achievement of the team’s overarching goals?

2. In Matthew 23:2–3, the Lord Jesus gives a teaching concerning the scribes and Pharisees. What insights do you draw from His words?

3. Why should we be cautious about making assumptions or judging the motives of our fellow team members? In what ways does maintaining a generous attitude toward others foster better collaboration and facilitate the pursuit of shared objectives?