Helping the Poor I. Introduction A. Let us consider a difficult issue B. God has blessed all of us with many things 1. We have our basic needs met (Matthew 6:21-34) 2. We have each other (Galatians 6:1-2, 10) 3. Many of us also have family and other forms of support C. There are many, however, who have not been so blessed 1. Many live without some of the basic needs available 2. Many have little or no family support, and have no one to turn to D. This is nothing new 1. Poverty has been around for as long as mankind 2. There have always been and always will be poor people (Matthew 26:11) 3. Even in our rich society and a "war on poverty," the difficulty remains E. God has not been silent about the poor 1. The Bible makes it quite clear that Christians should take responsibility for helping the poor 2. Galatians 2:10, Galatians 6:10 F. A subject that we don't often talk about, but one worthy of reflection G. Let us see what the Bible says about helping the poor II. Aiding the Poor: A Continual Need A. God has been concerned about the poor throughout time B. He commanded Israel to consider the poor 1. Deuteronomy 24:17-22 2. Commandment to leave parts of the field, vineyard, trees with their produce for the benefit of sojourners and the poor 3. Israel charged to remember their plight in Egypt and be compassionate! C. The Jubilee concept 1. Leviticus 25:10-17 2. Israel was to observe a jubilee every 50 years, when debts would be forgiven, debt slaves redeemed, and property returned D. Constant message of the prophets 1. Isaiah 1:16-17: need to end oppression, plead the cause of the dispossessed 2. Isaiah 3:14-15 3. Isaiah 10:1-2 4. Ezekiel 16:49 5. Amos 2:6-7 6. Amos 8:4-7 E. Even in the old covenant, God was quite concerned with the welfare of the poor, and expected those whom He blessed to provide for others F. Aiding the poor a part of Jesus' mission 1. Luke 4:18 (quotation of Isaiah 61:1) 2. Matthew 11:5 3. Matthew 19:21: charge to the rich young ruler G. Assisting the poor part of the Apostles' purposes 1. Galatians 2:10 2. Galatians 6:10 H. There is no question: God expects us to aid the poor (James 1:27) III. Assisting the Poor A. But what does it mean to help the poor? B. Should we create organizations and entrust the responsibility to a group? 1. The mindset of too many 2. The cause of the institutional separation 50-60 years ago 3. Nowhere in the NT do we see organizations set up to assist the poor 4. The NT provides no charge for the church to be burdened with the responsibility of assisting non-saints C. Nonetheless, individuals have been charged to assist the poor! D. We can assist the poor with financial resources 1. The natural consideration: we can give money to assist those in need 2. On many occasions, that is exactly what is needed to truly help the person 3. Many, at some points, need a little help with bills, food, utilities, etc. 4. Unfortunately, continual financial assistance leads to dependency and learned helplessness on the part of many 5. While we should be concerned about dependency, such should not keep us from helping the needy! E. We can assist the poor with our time, energy, and knowledge (James 1:27) 1. Poverty is not just a problem at which we should throw money 2. Sometimes people just need an advocate with the government or legal system 3. Many times people just need someone to listen to them and guide them F. How do we look at those in poverty? 1. Do we consider ourselves better than them because we have more resources? 2. While few will consciously admit to this, how do you act? 3. What would happen if a homeless man came in here right now? 4. What if he just wanted to associate with Christians and become one? 5. Would you accept him as a brother? Welcome him into your home? 6. How much of the difficulty is our own judgmentalism (Matthew 7:1-5)? 7. Consider James 2:1-9 G. In reality, we can gain from the poor as much if not more than what we give 1. James 1:9-10 2. If we take the time to not just "stoop down" to give handouts to the poor, but really work with them, we may just come away richer for the experience 3. It will not likely be in terms of "things," but we can learn plenty from their experiences, difficulties, and wisdom 4. We can learn to appreciate what we have, and find the blessings that others share H. Are we willing to truly help the poor-- or will we just do nothing, or give out some handouts to soothe the conscience? IV. Prejudices Against Assisting the Poor A. Since the Bible is so clear about the need to help the poor, why is so little often done? B. Too often we hold to prejudices that hinder us from doing God's will C. Prejudice #1: Poor people choose to be poor 1. This prejudice derives from an idealistic view of America 2. This view accepts the ideal of the country, that with hard work people can make something of themselves 3. If someone is poor, therefore, they haven't tried hard enough or don't want to work 4. While it is sadly true that some people do choose to not work and do what they should, such does not mean that all poor people want to be in that condition 5. We should be open to reality: conditions do exist in society that lead to many people being poor despite a desire to work D. Prejudice #2: Poor people are lazy, do not want to work, and 1 Timothy 5:8 applies 1. Sadly, there are some who are lazy and do not want to work 2. But surely that does not describe all poor people! 3. Some want to work but cannot find work 4. Some lack the education to get ahead, and the resources with which to get the education 5. We must also remember that 1 Timothy 5:8 was written to Christians and should certainly be true of the Christian... 6. ...but even then, there were many opportunities when brethren provided assistance to others in need (Romans 15:26) 7. Attitudes are often hard to judge, and we should not make blanket statements! E. Prejudice #3: In America, no one is really poor 1. It is believed that since there are some governmental programs that make sure that no one is without food, that America really does not have poor people 2. After all, they're better off here than in parts of Asia or Africa 3. While it may be true that everyone in America is at least a little better off than in other countries, such does not mean that there are no poor people! 4. There are plenty of people whom we could aid in many ways for their benefit and ours! F. Prejudice #4: It's the government's responsibility 1. The government runs all kinds of programs to assist the poor 2. Should we not just let the government handle it? 3. It should be noted that the government began assisting the poor because people in America weren't doing it enough! 4. If we all acted as God would have us to act, would welfare and other programs even be necessary? 5. Even if the government assists people, so should we (Galatians 2:10, 6:10) G. Prejudice #5: I don't have anything to give 1. Unfortunately, too many of us live self-absorbed lives 2. It's a sad thing how much debt we're all in and how stretched we are 3. In reality, however, we do have things to give! 4. Consider Mark 12:41-44 5. Even if you do not have money, do you have unused items that you could give? 6. Even if you lack things, do you not have time and energy that you could provide? H. Prejudice #6: I don't want to 1. Too often this gets right to the heart of the matter 2. We too often don't really want to get our hands dirty! 3. Poor people may have messy lives and messy problems 4. It's easier to live apart and forget about them, right? 5. James 4:17 I. We need to break down these walls of prejudice and get back to helping the poor! V. Conclusion A. By all accounts, the early church was a haven for the poor and dispossessed in society 1. Consider James 2:1-9 2. Christianity was often sneered at as a gimmick for the poorest in society B. Somewhere along the line we've misdirected some of our priorities! 1. The poor are not often among us 2. We only see some when they have some financial need C. Let us consider what God has said today 1. Are we eager to help the poor? 2. Are we willing to try to find ways to assist the poor and dispossessed? 3. Are we up for the challenge, or will we just stay in our own sheltered lives? D. Let us be eager to remember the poor, and thus glorify God E. Invitation/songbook