Like it or not, we live in a world of the haves and the have nots.
I hate to sound or come off callous or even pessimistic, but this has been the human condition since the beginning of human civilization. As much as we want to rid ourselves of this scourge, it lingers. Try as we may, poverty - and all of its aspects such as homelessness, disease, pestilence, are here to stay.
More than anything else, I'm trying to paint a realistic picture of what we're facing, why we're facing it and how we can fight it.
What I want to speak against is the idea from the "Christian left" that fighting poverty is best seen through the lens of "social justice".
Poverty is NOT just a financial problem - although that's what many progressives, liberals and those otherwise on the left will attempt to paint it as. Poverty - and its solutions - is a matter of the heart. And God has called the believer to this fight.
Understanding the facets of poverty
Poverty is more than financial or material. Poverty is not just hunger, homelessness and disease. Poverty must also be addressed in terms of education, morality and Godliness. Unless we deal with ALL of the facets of poverty, and I mean all of them, you will not only continue to have poverty, you will exacerbate the problem.
Going a step further in understanding poverty, we also have to understand that poverty very typically is, was and will be man-made. Sometimes it is self inflicted through wrong choices and their invariable consequences (for example compulsive gambling or an addiction to drugs or alcohol or poor stewardship of ones resources) that we especially see in modern Western culture.
In many Third World countries, man-made poverty is brought about many times through totalitarian governments that actually want the populace to remain poor and enslaved. In these places, you will notice a lack of schools and churches where people can not only be educated and trained, but have their spirits built-up, reinforced and promoted. The communist, socialist and progressive understands that in order to maintain your (the ruling elites or class) "power", an underclass of poverty must also be maintained. Worst of all, this underclass is continually being told that they "need" the government to "take care of them". Individualism and individuality in every form is frowned upon (and often punished). The collective and the society in general is what matters.
When you have a populace that is illiterate and unable to ask questions, you are better able to control them. When you have a literate populace, they can become unmanageable, and yes even dangerous to the ruling class that wishes to maintain their own power.
Tied with "wealth" and literacy is liberty. Do people live with the rights to worship as their soul desires? Do they have the liberty to travel in search of recreation or for better employment or job opportunities determined by the individual and not the "state" or someone else? Does liberty exist to enable the individual to seek individual success which fosters a personal desire to then voluntarily aid their fellow man? Keep in mind that Jesus never forced anyone to do anything. Ever. And He still doesn't.
This is what Jesus taught. Jesus always focused on the individual. It's not that the corporate body or society didn't matter, but as God of all, He knew that empowering individuals to go and do what is right would change society. Each of us comes to His Cross alone. We come naked and condemned and poor; actually destitute would be a better word. We are each destitute in our sin and transgressions against a perfectly holy God. We don't come as a family or a culture, we come to Him as an individual. God wants all of His creation saved, but we will do it individually, not corporately. We are each responsible for our own sins. And when it comes to the individual, there's also individual responsibility.
Two last comments before we get too far off the path. First, like morality, you can't legislate (through government) the end of poverty. When you legislate, you simply add more middlemen to oversee the problem leaving less resources for those who truly need them. Twentieth century philanthropist and industrialist Henry Ford put it this way,
"As long as we look to legislation to cure poverty or to abolish special privilege, we are going to see poverty spread and special privilege grow."
When you search to find or try to create Utopia in human effort, you will always end up, as we've seen throughout history, with dystopia instead.
Secondly, telling people the truth about their condition (especially those who may be milking the system) and how they have the power to change it is necessary. Dr. Thomas Sowell, well known black author and economist puts it this way, "When you want to help people, you tell them the truth. When you want to help yourself, you tell them what they want to hear." Helping yourself only creates an underclass of dependents and leads to a an ever lowering of human dignity.
Now, let's return to the conversation at hand.
Poverty
This is the one area of "social justice" that the Christian left raises that I would venture to participate or partner with - at least to a point. As we've already mentioned, poverty is everywhere. And poverty occurs for a variety of reasons, both natural and man made. Poverty is not only a destroyer of individual persons, but it is also a destroyer of society and culture. For decades, and even centuries, there have been calls to rid our planet of this scourge via many avenues and by many well meaning people. Sometimes inroads are made, but that is not the norm.
When we think of poverty, I believe most of us think of the homeless and hungry and needy. Keep in mind that all of these terms are relatively relative. The "poor" of the United States of America is a wealthy person - comparatively speaking - when measured against the poor of Asia or Africa. Most of America's "poor" have access to cell phones, health care, food, housing, cable TV and air conditioning. So much for "poverty in America". Loosely paraphrasing the singer Bono of U2 fame, poverty is determined by a person's latitude. He's right; that's a proper observation. The "wealthy" of the world tend to live outside of the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. The poor are concentrated within those global markers; that's where the poorest countries of the world are located.
Contrast our Western perceptions with what the "poor" of those same areas of the globe believe about poverty. Our church recently sent two groups of teens and adults to minister in Haiti over a two week period. One of our group had the chance to meet and speak with an elderly woman who lived in what we would consider "poverty". Although this woman had no air conditioning or running water and barely a roof over her head, she believed she was "rich". She understood that poverty is not simply a lack of material possessions or worldly comforts or even certain food. As a child of God, saved by the blood of Christ, and heir to God's everlasting Kingdom, she knew beyond shadow of doubt that God had provided her with absolutely everything that she NEEDED for this life and in the life to come, she would enjoy ALL of what God brings to His universe. This woman is wealthy beyond measure; and she knows it.
God's reminders
Now that we have a partial understanding of at least where the poor are, let's briefly look at how God has required us to care for them. In the Old Testament, God was very specific as to how to treat them. God often reminded the Israelites that they were once poor and enslaved themselves (remembering where we came from is always important; for example 2 Kings 17:35-37). Poverty and enslavement are almost always joined at the hip. Enslavement to anything - a person, a government or culture, an addiction - will result in poverty. The Israelites were once freely living in the land of Canaan until a terrible famine swept across the region which caused them to move as a family to Egypt. In Egypt they initially prospered and grew in number, but for Divine Reasons, God brought the full wrath of Pharaoh upon them and enslaved them. Over a period of 400 years they went from a family respected by Pharaoh, to a people group despised by him and the rest of Egyptian society. They went from living in the palace (literally) with privilege to living in dirt and need.
In time the Hebrew people went from recognizing God's Hand of mercy and supply to asking where He was in their lives. Did God have a purpose for their poverty? Yes, to eventually deliver them and make them an even greater people, but for the time being (eternally actually) He was sovereign over their lives. In time God would rescue them and bring them out of bondage into His Promised Land. And on their way out, they would take the gold and material wealth that had otherwise been kept from them. But that wealth was not just for them, it was to be used by God in the setting up of His Tabernacle. Centuries later, God would use the gold and treasures acquired by Saul and then David to build a Temple "worthy" of His majesty.
But they still had to remember where they came from.
As they exited the land of Egypt and entered the Promised Land and eventually overtook it, some people acquired wealth and some (many more) didn't. The land was properly divided among the Israelites by family using the Urim and Thumin that God Himself used in giving answers. Everyone had what they needed as deemed by God. So then why did some become and remain poor? The Bible doesn't answer that question. But yet there were poor folks. Some were fellow Israelites, others were foreigners or conquered peoples that were subservient to the Hebrews. The fact remains that there were poor Israelites.
So how were the people of God supposed to treat and minister to the poor? Were they to provide handouts willy-nilly or was there some modicum of personal responsibility involved? Did the poor have to "do something to get something" in order to live or was their stuff merely handed to them?
One way of providing for the poor was to not completely harvest the fields, vineyards and orchards. The landowners and their workers were to purposely leave grain, grapes and fruit for the poor to be able to come and harvest themselves. They would be able to take what their hands and baskets could carry without fee or recompense. We read in the great book of Leviticus (a book that most of us unfortunately avoid):
"When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am the Lord your God." Leviticus 19:9-10.
God further states in the same chapter: "When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the Lord your God." Leviticus 19:33-34, this is the reminder of Whose they were (are).
How we are to imitate God
One of my favorite stories of God's providing for the poor, widowed and orphaned is found in the Old Testament Book of Ruth. Ruth is not only a beautiful story of God's redemption, but it is also a picture of His provision for the poor living among us and how we are to treat them. If you're not familiar with the story, here's a thumbnail sketch of it:
There was a famine in the land in the time before Israel had a king. The man Elimelek, his wife and two sons left their home in Bethlehem in Judah in search of provision (job, food, etc). They ended up in the land of Moab, pretty far from God's Promised Land. In time the two sons married Moabite women, one was named Orpah, the other Ruth. Neither woman had any children and in time Elimelek and his sons would die leaving his wife Naomi and her daughters in law as widows to fend for themselves (not a good position to be in in those days). Naomi would choose to return to her hometown of Bethlehem. Ruth would follow, Orpah would remain in Moab.
Aside from the clothes on their backs, these women had nothing. Absolutely nothing. As a quick aside, often times God does His best work when we reach this state of having nothing and no where to turn to. Anyway, according the account, they returned just in time for the barley harvest. What coincidence! What timing! Keep in mind that at that time, barley was the "poor man's" grain when compared to wheat. The barley crop needed to be harvested. Naomi may have been "too old" but Ruth wasn't. Her job was to go into the fields and help in the harvest. Her pay ostensibly would be to receive some of the grain both as payment for her work, but then also to be able to return to the fields afterward and further glean the leftovers. In other words, the women had to work to receive their food and sustenance. And God had greater plans...we read in Chapter 2 of Ruth:
"Now Naomi had a relative on her husband’s side, a man of standing from the clan of Elimelek, whose name was Boaz.
"And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, 'Let me go to the fields and pick up the leftover grain behind anyone in whose eyes I find favor.'
"Naomi said to her, 'Go ahead, my daughter.' So she went out, entered a field and began to glean behind the harvesters. As it turned out, she was working in a field belonging to Boaz, who was from the clan of Elimelek. (see what I mean about coincidences?).
"Just then Boaz arrived from Bethlehem and greeted the harvesters, 'The Lord be with you!' 'The Lord bless you!' they answered.
"Boaz asked the overseer of his harvesters, 'Who does that young woman belong to?' (in other words, he's asking if Ruth is betrothed or married) The overseer replied, 'She is the Moabite who came back from Moab with Naomi. She said, ‘Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves behind the harvesters.’ She came into the field and has remained here from morning till now, except for a short rest in the shelter (Ruth was a hard and diligent worker).
"So
Boaz said to Ruth, 'My daughter, listen to me. Don’t go and glean in
another field and don’t go away from here. Stay here with the women who
work for me. Watch
the field where the men are harvesting, and follow along after the
women. I have told the men not to lay a hand on you. And whenever you
are thirsty, go and get a drink from the water jars the men have
filled.' Ruth 2:1-9. Notice that Boaz not only had compassion for Ruth, but he also recognized and was willing to protect and uphold her dignity. God is always concerned about the dignity of the individual because we are created to be image bearers of Him.
To make a long story short, not only does Boaz like Ruth, he ends up redeeming her and her family's territory, they get married and have children. In time there would be a grandson whose name would be Jesse. Jesse would have sons and the youngest would be named David, and David would become Israel's (and one of mankind's) greatest king.
God had a plan for poverty and seemingly bad circumstances. God uses our poverty stricken circumstances for His purposes, most of which we don't know or understand at the moment. Our job is to be like the wealthy Boaz: be a good steward, look for opportunities to serve and minister to others, pray about them and then watch what God does when we not only open our purses and wallets, but also open our hearts out of desire rather than compunction or selfishness.
The Guilt and Fairness Factor
In the New Testament, we read of Jesus speaking to the wealthy young ruler about inheriting eternal life. Jesus tells him: “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” Matthew 19:21. Jesus gave the young man a choice: follow Him or stay with his wealth. Jesus did not "make" the young man give up his wealth and possessions, He gave him a choice. God gives us a choice of what to do with the possessions He has provided to us. We are to act according to our convictions, not out of compulsion whether Divine (although God has blessed us with free will) or human (the human idea of "fairness").
The idea of "Fairness" is typically a guilt-producing and humiliating experience perpetrated by people who may have admirable motives but may not have the financial or social wherewithal to make a difference. Or so they think. "Fairness" has resulted in further suffering. How does taking something from someone just because they have more (because they've worked hard and earned it) and then giving that stuff to someone who doesn't have it and is unwilling to put themselves out in order to acquire or achieve it make that "fair"? The spokespeople of the "Christian left" tell us that we "phony Christians" aren't living up to the Biblical (out of context) standard to be "our brother's keeper." (commentator Ed Schultz of MSNBC made this comment on August 18, 2013). "Am I my brother's keeper?" by the way was uttered by Cain in his answer to God after he killed his brother Able in history's first recorded, premeditated, coldblooded murder (see Genesis 4:8-10). This is the only instance these words are found in the entire text of Holy Scripture. Context is important.
When it comes to ultimate "fairness", many believe that God Himself is not fair because, for example, not everyone will enter Heaven at their death or that He has blessed some and not others or all. God's ways are not our ways. God is ultimately fair because this is HIS universe operating under His rules and His sovereignty. God is the one who has determined what is right and wrong, good and evil. God's standard is perfect holiness and He knows that no one, not one single person can attain that standard. It's impossible. That's why He sent Jesus to live, suffer and die for each of us and that by merely believing in that finished work we can attain eternal life. God's way is a very narrow way with no wiggle room.
This may sound cold or harsh, but there are some "poor" causes that I will not give to. I will not donate. I will not participate. Why should I (or you for that matter) provide "assistance" to a person or cause that only seeks to milk me of the provisions God has provided while at the same time exhibits little or no improvement in the situation? A helping hand is one thing; perpetual feel-good provision is wasting resources. God has provided me plenty, but it is my responsibility to be a good steward of those provisions. If I am a poor steward, God is not going to look kindly on my stewardship (read up on the Parable of Wise Steward, Luke 16:1-14 and the Parable of the Talents, Matthew 25:14-30).
Even Jesus knew that the main reason why people came to see Him was in order to get a free meal out of it. He said to the crowds, "Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill." The rest of what Jesus says in John 6:26-59 is not only true of our human nature, but reveals our depravity, especially in the later verses of that passage. Jesus would always tend to the persons physical needs (hunger, physical healing, blindness, illness, disease, even death), but He was ultimately concerned in the person's spiritual well-being. It was the person's eternal health that He was most interested in. Why do you think He would often say, "he who has ears to hear, let him hear"? Jesus (God) is looking for a change of heart and a true turning to faith and forgiveness of sin.
The great apostle Paul, speaking to the Thessalonian church put it this way in regards to caring for the "poor", and please read the entire passage because we need to see the full context:
"For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone’s food without paying for it. On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you. We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help, but in order to offer ourselves as a model for you to imitate. For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: 'The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.'
"We hear that some among you are idle and disruptive. They are not busy; they are busybodies. Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn [emphasis mine] the food they eat. And as for you, brothers and sisters, never tire of doing what is good [what we believers should be doing].
"Take special note of anyone who does not obey our instruction in this letter. Do not associate with them, in order that they may feel ashamed [emphasis mine]. Yet do not regard them as an enemy, but warn them as you would a fellow believer." 2 Thessalonians 3:7-14.
A lazy person who is taking advantage of the kind-heartedness of others should be ashamed of themselves and their lifestyle because they are in turn stealing from someone who is truly needy.
What WOULD Jesus do?
According to Jesus, are we to give to the poor? Yes. We give to the poor out of love and self-sacrifice, but by the same token, we are to use the talents and materials that God provided us with as individuals. As always, God calls us to a balanced life where He is the fulcrum. Let me provide several personal and hopefully practical examples that will help you understand my thought process.
My day job is as a small business owner. I enjoy my job. I enjoy the products and services that we sell which provide good value to many people locally and across the country. I have truly enjoyed making long-term friends and acquaintances with customers, staff and vendors alike. From time to time when there is a downturn in business, I ask God if I should change jobs or sell the business and move somewhere else. For the foreseeable future, His answer has been and looks as if it will continue to be "no, I have you right where I want you".
God has called me to a ministry right where I am. He's given me a ministry to hire and train and pay young people who after a few years go on to do bigger and better things in there lives. My job is to serve them as hopefully a good role model of what a Christian in business looks like. God gives me the opportunity to teach them how to treat others well regardless of who the customer is and how to think. Have I failed? Oh, yes! But God still uses me. Fighting poverty includes providing jobs. I can do that. I may not be able to give away thousands or millions of dollars to feed the multitudes, but I can teach someone how to have and hold a job so that they can feed themselves.
So what about the guy walking around a parking lot or standing at an intersection looking for a few bucks because he's out of work and needs to buy formula for his child? What do I do? I quickly pray about it. I have no reason to trust or not trust what that person is claiming is true. Is there an extra five dollars in my pocket that I might otherwise spend on coffee or a soda? Perhaps. But if I look the person in the eye and God gives me prodding to give, I give; or I don't.
Only God knows my heart and motivations and the heart and motivations of the person looking to be helped. That's all that I can do. Although we are living in very difficult financial times, we still have to be discerning. We are still called to be good stewards of what God has provided us with. And I can still help those looking for a little help up. More often than not, I give.
How many times have you seen a person either riding a bicycle or pulling a shopping cart and it's full of empty bottles being taken for recycling? How about giving THAT person your bags of bottles and cans? I don't know about you, but doing the whole recycling thing is not how I want to spend my time. But here's a person who is willing to work - even doing something really menial like going through trash dumpsters - to provide for him or herself. That person deserves a lot of credit. That person has dignity that is worth preserving. Our donation of cans and bottles may not seem like much monetarily, but to support the person's work ethic is worth more.
And we should also mention donating clothing and furniture to Goodwill or the Salvation Army. Most of us have a few too many things that we haven't used or touched in over a year that someone else could use or maybe resell to provide for their well being. At Christmas time I encourage my kids who come shopping with me to place that loose change in the kettle. A lot of loose change adds up.
Perhaps you have nothing extra material to give. But what about your time? Can you teach? Do you enjoy reading? Are you blessed with money handling or managerial skills? As we mentioned earlier, poverty is not just about finances. Poverty often stems from illiteracy or a poor spirit. God wants us to minister holistically to the entire person. Jesus said that the poor in spirit are actually blessed (because they realize their abject need) and will inherit the Kingdom of God (Matthew 5:3).
Indeed, mininstering to the poor is a hallmark of the Christian. The Apostle Paul knew this well from the very start of his ministry. As he was leaving the Council of Jerusalem and was commmissioned as the apostle to the Gentiles he was reminded by the leadership to "remember the poor." No problem. Paul would later write to the Galatian church:
"All they asked was that we [Paul, Silas and their companions] should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I had been eager to do all along." Galatians 2:10.
Paul was "eager" to minister to the poor. Ministering to the poor helps to set them free to be the people God has called them to be (and us as well). He knew his calling in the Gospel. We are to do the same.
How will we be judged?
As we've already discussed, we are to care for the poor, the needy, the orphaned, the widow. As human beings we are to do it out of common charity, but as Christians, we are called to care for these folks out of love. Here's what Jesus taught:
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’“He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” Matthew 25:31-46.
In one of His final acts of service and care to His disciples before He was crucified (His final act of service to all of us as His own sacrifice paid the eternal price for our sins), Jesus washes their feet (see John 13:3-17). Even little things matter in caring for people. In the same way, we are to immitate Him. Not one of us is too great to ignore the needs of others.
Whatever we do, we do for Jesus and in His Name. Are you a sheep destined for a reward of eternal life in heaven or are you one of the goats destined for the consequences of callous disregard for others and eternal punishment? Regardless of our actions, we will be judged.
The true bottom line
A final point I want to make in dealing with the poor and poverty is this: Jesus was very specific about what really and truly matters in this life. What really and truly matters in this life is a relationship with Jesus. Here's the passage which puts Jesus' words and sentiment in its correct context; may we understand and heed what He says:
"While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.
"Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, 'Why this waste of perfume? It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages and the money given to the poor.' And they rebuked her harshly.
"'Leave
her alone,' said Jesus. 'Why are you bothering her? She has done a
beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. [emphasis mine] But you will not always have me. She did what she could.'" Mark 14:3-8.
Yes, that nard could have been sold and its proceeds used to help the poor, but having a loving relationship with Jesus FIRST allows you to take another flask of pure nard, sell it and if you choose and are lead by God, give the money to the poor and needy. God's Spirit will cause you to do what is right for you, your possessions and your circumstances. It is a matter of the heart and being properly tuned in to God's plans and purposes for your life.
Mother Teresa put it this way about our individual call to giving and helping those in need: "It's not how much we give, but much love we put into giving." Hopefully I'm paraphasing this wonderful saint correctly when I understand that to mean that my giving is to be free and out of a sense of love toward my fellow man and in worship to God for sharing His provision.
Doing good is not what gains us entry to eternal life. Feeding the hungry, housing the homeless, educating the illiterate, clothing the naked, comforting and treating the sick, ministering to the widow and the orphan and those in prison are not tickets to Heaven. But when done with a Christ centered, loving and contrite heart rather than of duty or guilt or compulsion, these good works are fruits of a changed and transformed life. Here's something to think about:
“Sometimes I would like to ask God why He allows poverty, suffering, and injustice when He could do something about it. But I’m afraid He would ask me the same question.” – Anonymous
But let's give God the last word:
"This is what the Lord says:
'Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong boast of their strength
or the rich boast of their riches,
but let the one who boasts boast about this:
that they have the understanding to know me,
that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness,
justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,' declares the Lord." Jeremiah 9:23-24.
