There is a difference between acting with purpose— meaning there are righteous outcomes predicated on current outcomes, and acting for magnification of the self.
It cannot be asserted that to undertake an action that cannot be deemed to have any consequences in future resides in realm of rationality.
Sowing (actions) and reaping (consequences) are eternal principles set up by God Himself.
If actions must have consequences, and if sons of God are to eschew actions, which produce evil consequences, it necessarily must be the case that sons of God expect their actions to produce good consequences.
Can it then be rational for sons of God to eschew participation in the good consequences of their decisions to do what is right and good, not only for themselves, but also for their fellow man?
It is The Father who has promised us rewards, not ourselves (Revelation 22:12). To not expect to be rewarded for our obedience then is to abdicate faith in Jesus Christ.
But we do what is right because it is right to do, then receive promise of reward by faith. It is not then that we are not to have the reward in view, but that our primary motivation ought to be Love for God; Love for our very own selves; and Love for others.
Absent some personal challenges, few, if any of us, receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. It was only in midst of a personal disappointment at age of 18 that I was able to hear the voice of Jesus speaking to me in my spirit.
Jesus knows this, is not put off by the fact that our motives for coming to Him can be complicated and messy. In this respect, the original 12 disciples were not any different.
What differentiates those who genuinely love God from those who focus only on rewards is the following: When challenges come that are predicated on opposition to faith in Jesus Christ, those who are only about rewards abandon the way of love, begin to practice selfishness, self aggrandizement, and mistreatment of others.
Purity is an outcome of Faith in Jesus Christ, because The Father knows we come to Him impure (1 John 1:9).
On another note, while it is true that we serve the Lord Jesus Christ, it further is true that we are sons of God. We need to focus more on our sonship, than on our service. If we truly are sons, our service always is acceptable to God. If we waver in our sonship, there is not any amount of service to God that can fix our deviation from sonship. It is wise then to focus primarily on our sonship, as opposed to our service. Jesus Himself taught this principle (Like 10:18–20).
Behold what manner of love The Father has bestowed upon us, that we should called children of God…(1 John 3:1).
For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the spirit of sonship. When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ it is the Spirit Himself bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God (Romans 8:15–16).
