If you oppress the poor you show contempt for your Maker. But if you are kind
to the needy you honor God. ~Proverbs 14:31
If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. ~James 1:26-27
Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe him or her, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then your light will break forth like the dawn, your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and He will say: “Hear am I.” If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like noonday. The Lord will guide you always; He will satisfy your needs in a sun scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. ~Isaiah 58:6-11
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, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” ~Matthew 25:37-40
Isn’t it interesting that God would take our service, or lack thereof, so personally? A few days ago, we raised the possibility of entertaining angels. What if you were serving Jesus Himself? “If you oppress the poor you show contempt for your maker. But if you are kind to the needy you honor God.” Does it change the picture at all if Jesus becomes the face of the poor?
I know, it’s may be tempting at times to think, “But, Jesus wouldn’t behave the way some of the poor do today. Aren’t we also called to be wise and discerning? What about those who appear to be scamming, or taking advantage of the system? Would Jesus do that? There is no doubt about it: ministry to those in need can be very challenging today. It’s hard to know when the lines of ministry end and enabling begins. We want to be good stewards and we want to be truly helpful.
I don’t think anyone enjoys the feeling of being taken advantage of. However, let’s consider Jesus. Do you really believe that out of those 5,000 men, plus women and children that he fed with the five loaves and two fish, that none of them had thought to bring anything to eat? Yet, Jesus fed them all. How many of them would be in the crowd sometime later to cry, “CRUCIFY!” on the day of the Lord’s sacrifice? Jesus would have known, if there were any there, who they would be. Yet, just as He washed Judas’ feet, He fed them anyway.
How many of those Jesus healed, chose not to believe and follow Him? We know that at least nine lepers didn’t. Yes, there is wisdom and stewardship, but there is also obedience and grace. If Jesus gave because He is Jesus, meaning, because He can, doesn’t it stand to reason that we can do the same? He is in us. He is our true supply line, not our budget or our grocery list.
I wonder how even this country would change if Christians really gave as they could and churches, in response then did the same. What resources are truly available to us that, in fear we are hording rather than distributing? If God gave it once, He can certainly do it again, and again, and again!
What did God tell Malachi when He actually accused His people of robbing Him? “Will a man rob God? Yet you rob Me. But, you ask, “How do we rob You?” “In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse—the whole nation of you—because you are robbing Me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test Me in this,” says the Lord almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit,” says the Lord almighty. (Malachi 3:7B-11)
When we eagerly give it away for Him, no strings attached, He is saying, “There’s plenty more where that came from! Do you trust me?” This is what true fasting for God looks like. When we obey: “then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like noonday. The Lord will guide you always; He will satisfy your needs in a sun scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.”
Yet, Christian financial experts contend that congregations often make the mistake of handling finances, and other resources, the way members handle personal resources. In our personal lives, we save for retirement because, someday, we will retire. Our income will be limited, and our physical abilities will also decrease. So, we have to have a stockpile of money that will last after we can’t produce income.
But a congregation should always be thinking of a future beyond today and a growth of ministry beyond our limited abilities today. The resources of a ministry do not need to go into a “retirement” account because the Church will never retire, even if the individual members do. The Church needs to invest in making disciples so the next generation can continue the work.
It’s okay to have a small reserve. It’s okay to raise funds for a certain Kingdom project. But we need to be about the business of blessing and growing, not hording or holding back out of fear. If the Lord blessed once, He can do it again when He sees us being faithful and honoring Him with what we have already been given. It’s not our place to judge those with whom we share.
See each person in the food line this Friday as Jesus behind the wheel. See those in need as bearing the image of Christ. “The king will reply, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” You could be seeing correctly.
Prayer: O Lord, You are my Good shepherd and I lack no good thing. You meet all my needs and bless me so much that I can be a blessing to others! Thank You for making me generous! May I share with joy and gladness! In Jesus’ name, amen.
Song: He Giveth More Grace
If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. ~James 1:26-27
Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe him or her, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then your light will break forth like the dawn, your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and He will say: “Hear am I.” If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like noonday. The Lord will guide you always; He will satisfy your needs in a sun scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. ~Isaiah 58:6-11
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, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” ~Matthew 25:37-40
Isn’t it interesting that God would take our service, or lack thereof, so personally? A few days ago, we raised the possibility of entertaining angels. What if you were serving Jesus Himself? “If you oppress the poor you show contempt for your maker. But if you are kind to the needy you honor God.” Does it change the picture at all if Jesus becomes the face of the poor?
I know, it’s may be tempting at times to think, “But, Jesus wouldn’t behave the way some of the poor do today. Aren’t we also called to be wise and discerning? What about those who appear to be scamming, or taking advantage of the system? Would Jesus do that? There is no doubt about it: ministry to those in need can be very challenging today. It’s hard to know when the lines of ministry end and enabling begins. We want to be good stewards and we want to be truly helpful.
I don’t think anyone enjoys the feeling of being taken advantage of. However, let’s consider Jesus. Do you really believe that out of those 5,000 men, plus women and children that he fed with the five loaves and two fish, that none of them had thought to bring anything to eat? Yet, Jesus fed them all. How many of them would be in the crowd sometime later to cry, “CRUCIFY!” on the day of the Lord’s sacrifice? Jesus would have known, if there were any there, who they would be. Yet, just as He washed Judas’ feet, He fed them anyway.
How many of those Jesus healed, chose not to believe and follow Him? We know that at least nine lepers didn’t. Yes, there is wisdom and stewardship, but there is also obedience and grace. If Jesus gave because He is Jesus, meaning, because He can, doesn’t it stand to reason that we can do the same? He is in us. He is our true supply line, not our budget or our grocery list.
I wonder how even this country would change if Christians really gave as they could and churches, in response then did the same. What resources are truly available to us that, in fear we are hording rather than distributing? If God gave it once, He can certainly do it again, and again, and again!
What did God tell Malachi when He actually accused His people of robbing Him? “Will a man rob God? Yet you rob Me. But, you ask, “How do we rob You?” “In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse—the whole nation of you—because you are robbing Me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test Me in this,” says the Lord almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit,” says the Lord almighty. (Malachi 3:7B-11)
When we eagerly give it away for Him, no strings attached, He is saying, “There’s plenty more where that came from! Do you trust me?” This is what true fasting for God looks like. When we obey: “then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like noonday. The Lord will guide you always; He will satisfy your needs in a sun scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.”
Yet, Christian financial experts contend that congregations often make the mistake of handling finances, and other resources, the way members handle personal resources. In our personal lives, we save for retirement because, someday, we will retire. Our income will be limited, and our physical abilities will also decrease. So, we have to have a stockpile of money that will last after we can’t produce income.
But a congregation should always be thinking of a future beyond today and a growth of ministry beyond our limited abilities today. The resources of a ministry do not need to go into a “retirement” account because the Church will never retire, even if the individual members do. The Church needs to invest in making disciples so the next generation can continue the work.
It’s okay to have a small reserve. It’s okay to raise funds for a certain Kingdom project. But we need to be about the business of blessing and growing, not hording or holding back out of fear. If the Lord blessed once, He can do it again when He sees us being faithful and honoring Him with what we have already been given. It’s not our place to judge those with whom we share.
See each person in the food line this Friday as Jesus behind the wheel. See those in need as bearing the image of Christ. “The king will reply, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” You could be seeing correctly.
Prayer: O Lord, You are my Good shepherd and I lack no good thing. You meet all my needs and bless me so much that I can be a blessing to others! Thank You for making me generous! May I share with joy and gladness! In Jesus’ name, amen.
Song: He Giveth More Grace
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