A Christian's Response to the Poor

I. God's response to the rich and poor


   A. Not biased  - Q.Whose side are you on, God, the rich or the poor? A. Neither (Josh 5:13,14)


        “‘Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly." Lev. 19:15
       " and do not show favoritism to a poor person in a lawsuit. " Ex.23:3
            "For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes." Deut. 10:17


   B. Not Neutral - ( will get involved in the plight of the poor)
      1.God  casts down the rich


          a. When they become wealthy at the expense of the poor


"Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming on you. ² Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. ³ Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days. ⁴ Look! The wages you failed to pay the workers who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. ⁵ You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter. ⁶ You have condemned and murdered the innocent one, who was not opposing you."  James 5:1-6


they have become rich and powerful
 ²⁸ and have grown fat and sleek.
Their evil deeds have no limit;
   they do not seek justice.
They do not promote the case of the fatherless;
   they do not defend the just cause of the poor.
²⁹ Should I not punish them for this?”
   declares the LORD.
“Should I not avenge myself
   on such a nation as this? Jer. 5:27-29


 ¹³ “Woe to him who builds his palace by unrighteousness,
   his upper rooms by injustice,
making his own people work for nothing,
   not paying them for their labor.
¹⁴ He says, ‘I will build myself a great palace
   with spacious upper rooms.’
So he makes large windows in it,
   panels it with cedar
   and decorates it in red.
 ¹⁵ “Does it make you a king
   to have more and more cedar?
Did not your father have food and drink?
   He did what was right and just,
   so all went well with him.
¹⁶ He defended the cause of the poor and needy,
   and so all went well.
Is that not what it means to know me?”
   declares the LORD.
¹⁷ “But your eyes and your heart
   are set only on dishonest gain,
on shedding innocent blood
   and on oppression and extortion.”
 ¹⁸ Therefore this is what the LORD says about Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah:
   “They will not mourn for him:
   ‘Alas, my brother! Alas, my sister!’
They will not mourn for him:
   ‘Alas, my master! Alas, his splendor!’
¹⁹ He will have the burial of a donkey—
   dragged away and thrown
   outside the gates of Jerusalem.” Jer. 22:13-19

He who oppresses the poor to increase his wealth
   and he who gives gifts to the rich—both come to poverty.
²² Do not exploit the poor because they are poor
   and do not crush the needy in court,
²³ for the LORD will take up their case
   and will exact life for life. Prov. 22:16,22,23


                  i) This is what happened to the Northern Kingdom and they were taken away to Assyria


 “For three sins of Israel,
   even for four, I will not relent.
They sell the innocent for silver,
   and the needy for a pair of sandals.
⁷ They trample on the heads of the poor
   as on the dust of the ground
   and deny justice to the oppressed. Amos 2:6,7
⁴ You lie on beds adorned with ivory
   and lounge on your couches.
You dine on choice lambs
   and fattened calves.
⁵ You strum away on your harps like David
   and improvise on musical instruments.
⁶ You drink wine by the bowlful
   and use the finest lotions,
   but you do not grieve over the ruin of Joseph.
⁷ Therefore you will be among the first to go into exile;
   your feasting and lounging will end. Amos 6:4-7
   “‘Jeroboam will die by the sword,
   and Israel will surely go into exile,
   away from their native land.’”
 ¹⁷ “Therefore this is what the LORD says:
   “‘Your wife will become a prostitute in the city,
   and your sons and daughters will fall by the sword.
Your land will be measured and divided up,
   and you yourself will die in a pagan country.
And Israel will surely go into exile,
   away from their native land.’” Amos 7:11,17


                          ii) This is what happened to the Southern Kingdom as they were taken off to Babylon


 ¹³ The LORD takes his place in court;
   he rises to judge the people.
¹⁴ The LORD enters into judgment
   against the elders and leaders of his people:
“It is you who have ruined my vineyard;
   the plunder from the poor is in your houses.
¹⁵ What do you mean by crushing my people
   and grinding the faces of the poor?”
            declares the Lord, the LORD Almighty.
²⁵ Your men will fall by the sword,
   your warriors in battle.  Isa 3:13-15,25
 ¹ Woe to those who make unjust laws,
   to those who issue oppressive decrees,
² to deprive the poor of their rights
   and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people,
making widows their prey
   and robbing the fatherless.
³ What will you do on the day of reckoning,
   when disaster comes from afar?
To whom will you run for help?
   Where will you leave your riches?
⁴ Nothing will remain but to cringe among the captives
   or fall among the slain. Isa. 10:1-4
At morning’s light they carry it out
   because it is in their power to do it.
² They covet fields and seize them,
   and houses, and take them.
They defraud people of their homes,
   they rob them of their inheritance.
 ³ Therefore, the LORD says:
   “I am planning disaster against this people,
   from which you cannot save yourselves.
You will no longer walk proudly,
   for it will be a time of calamity.Micah 2:2-3


                                iii) This is why God caused Nebuchudnezzer to go crazy


²⁴ “This is the interpretation, Your Majesty, and this is the decree the Most High has issued against my lord the king: ²⁵ You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like the ox and be drenched with the dew of heaven.²⁷ Therefore, Your Majesty, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed. It may be that then your prosperity will continue.” Dan 7:24,25,27


                              iv) Etc.


²² “Do not take advantage of the widow or the fatherless. ²³ If you do and they cry out to me, I will certainly hear their cry. ²⁴ My anger will be aroused, and I will kill you with the sword; your wives will become widows and your children fatherless. Ex. 22:22-24

¹⁴ The wicked draw the sword
   and bend the bow
to bring down the poor and needy,
   to slay those whose ways are upright.
¹⁵ But their swords will pierce their own hearts,
   and their bows will be broken.
 ¹⁶ Better the little that the righteous have
   than the wealth of many wicked;
¹⁷ for the power of the wicked will be broken,
   but the LORD upholds the righteous. Ps. 37:14-17

May he defend the afflicted among the people
   and save the children of the needy;
   may he crush the oppressor.
 For he will deliver the needy who cry out,
   the afflicted who have no one to help.
¹³ He will take pity on the weak and the needy
   and save the needy from death.
¹⁴ He will rescue them from oppression and violence,
   for precious is their blood in his sight.Ps. 72:4,12-14

¹¹ The lowly he sets on high,
   and those who mourn are lifted to safety.
¹² He thwarts the plans of the crafty,
   so that their hands achieve no success.
¹³ He catches the wise in their craftiness,
   and the schemes of the wily are swept away.
¹⁴ Darkness comes upon them in the daytime;
   at noon they grope as in the night.
¹⁵ He saves the needy from the sword in their mouth;
   he saves them from the clutches of the powerful.
¹⁶ So the poor have hope,
   and injustice shuts its mouth. Job 5:11-16


                 b. When they neglect the poor


                    i) Rich man and Lazarus


¹⁹ “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. ²⁰ At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores ²¹ and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
   ²² “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. ²³ In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. ²⁴ So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’
   ²⁵ “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. Luke 16:19-25


                         ii) Sodom and Gomorrah


⁴⁹ “‘Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. ⁵⁰ They were haughty and did detestable things before me. Therefore I did away with them as you have seen." Ezek. 16:49,50


                        iii) Sheep and goats


   ⁴¹ “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. ⁴² For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, ⁴³ 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.’
   ⁴⁴ “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?’
   ⁴⁵ “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.’
   ⁴⁶ “Then they will go away to eternal punishment." Matt 25:41-46


                    iv)  Etc.


 ¹³ Whoever shuts their ears to the cry of the poor
   will also cry out and not be answered. Prov. 21:13

 ⁷ If anyone is poor among your fellow Israelites in any of the towns of the land the LORD your God is giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward them. ⁸ Rather, be openhanded and freely lend them whatever they need. ⁹ Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought: “The seventh year, the year for canceling debts, is near,” so that you do not show ill will toward the needy among your fellow Israelites and give them nothing. They may then appeal to the LORD against you, and you will be found guilty of sin. Deut 15:7-9

“Cursed is anyone who withholds justice from the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow.” Deut. 27:19

                   v) The Pharisees

  But give what is inside the dish to the poor, and everything will be clean for you.
   ⁴² “Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone. Luke 11:41,42


              c. When they show contempt for the poor


⁵ Whoever mocks the poor shows contempt for their Maker;
   whoever gloats over disaster will not go unpunished. Prov. 17:5

They slay the widow and the alien;
   they murder the fatherless.
⁷ They say, “The LORD does not see;
   the God of Jacob pays no heed.”
 ⁸ Take heed, you senseless ones among the people;
   you fools, when will you become wise?
⁹ Does he who implanted the ear not hear?
   Does he who formed the eye not see?
¹⁰ Does he who disciplines nations not punish?  Ps 94:6-10


II. Why does God defend the poor?


    A. His Character - when God revealed Himself, how did He do it?


         1. The Exodus - to Moses and the nation of Israel


“I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.
 ⁷ The LORD said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. ⁸ So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey. Ex.3:6-8
“Therefore, say to the Israelites: ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment. ⁷ I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God. Ex. 6:6-8
To the LORD your God belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, the earth and everything in it. ¹⁵ Yet the LORD set his affection on your ancestors and loved them, and he chose you, their descendants, above all the nations—as it is today. ¹⁶ Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and do not be stiff-necked any longer. ¹⁷ For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. ¹⁸ He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing. Deut 10:14-18


        2. The incarnation - how did Jesus introduce Himself?


¹⁶ He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, ¹⁷ and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:
   ¹⁸ “The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
   because he has anointed me
   to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
   and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
   ¹⁹ to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
 ²⁰ Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. ²¹ He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”  Luke 4:16-21


 ⁴ Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: ⁵ The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. ⁶ Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.” Matt. 11:4-6


      B. He identifies with them - when Jesus came to Earth


         1. Lived in insignificant place - "can anything good come out of Nazareth?"
         2. Born to poor parents - offered pigeons at the temple, the offering reserved for those who couldn't afford a lamb.
         3. First visitors were shepherds
         4. Was homeless in birth and through ministry
         5. Not much money - paid taxes with money a fish had swallowed
         6. Was rich in Heaven and became poor (2 Cor 8:9)
         7. He was an innocent with no power before Pilate and received distortion of justice because of it
         8. Etc.


   ¹⁷ Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the LORD,
   and he will reward them for what they have done. Prov. 19:17
Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker,
   but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.  Prov. 14:31


       C. He chooses them as special instruments


          1. The disciples


When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. Acts 4:13


            2. The early church


Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. ²⁷ But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. ²⁸ God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, ²⁹ so that no one may boast before him. 1Cor. 1:26-29


Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? James 2:5


III. God Commands us to do the same - Luke 6:40


     A. Equal justice in court


“Do not deny justice to your poor people in their lawsuits. ⁷ Have nothing to do with a false charge and do not put an innocent or honest person to death, for I will not acquit the guilty.
 ⁸ “Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds those who see and twists the words of the innocent.
 ⁹ “Do not oppress a foreigner; you yourselves know how it feels to be foreigners, because you were foreigners in Egypt. Ex 23:6-9


Endow the king with your justice, O God,
   the royal son with your righteousness.
² May he judge your people in righteousness,
   your afflicted ones with justice.
 ³ May the mountains bring prosperity to the people,
   the hills the fruit of righteousness.
⁴ May he defend the afflicted among the people
   and save the children of the needy;
   may he crush the oppressor. Ps. 72:1-4


 ⁸ Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves,
   for the rights of all who are destitute.
⁹ Speak up and judge fairly;
   defend the rights of the poor and needy. Prov. 31:8,9


     B. Protection for the powerless


 ¹⁶ Wash and make yourselves clean.
   Take your evil deeds out of my sight;
   stop doing wrong.
¹⁷ Learn to do right; seek justice.
   Defend the oppressed.
Take up the cause of the fatherless;
   plead the case of the widow Isa. 1:16,17

Defend the weak and the fatherless;
   uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed.
⁴ Rescue the weak and the needy;
   deliver them from the hand of the wicked. Ps. 82:3,4


     C. Meet their needs


 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress. James 1:27


 ¹² Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. ¹³ But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, ¹⁴ and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”Luke 14:12-14


 Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it. ³ Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering. Heb. 13:2-3


 Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”  Matt. 14:16


⁵ Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,
   only a day for people to humble themselves?
Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed
   and for lying in sackcloth and ashes?
Is that what you call a fast,
   a day acceptable to the LORD?
 ⁶ “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?
⁷ 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 them,
   and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
⁸ Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
   and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness^[a] will go before you,
   and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
⁹ Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
   you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
   “If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
   with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
¹⁰ 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 the noonday.
¹¹ 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. Isa. 58:5-11


“And who is my neighbor?”
 ³⁰ In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. ³¹ A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. ³² So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. ³³ But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. ³⁴ He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. ³⁵ The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’
   ³⁶ “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
 ³⁷ The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
   Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.” Luke 10:30-37

Give generously to them and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to. ¹¹ There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your fellow Israelites who are poor and needy in your land.  Deut. 15:10,11

²⁰ The poor are shunned even by their neighbors,
   but the rich have many friends.
 ²¹ He who despises his neighbor sins,
   but blessed is he who is kind to the needy. Prov 14:20,21

 ¹ Blessed is he who has regard for the weak;
   the LORD delivers him in times of trouble.
² The LORD will protect him and preserve his life;
   he will bless him in the land
   and not surrender him to the desire of his foes.
³ The LORD will sustain him on his sickbed
   and restore him from his bed of illness. Ps. 41:1-3

 ⁹ A generous man will himself be blessed,
   for he shares his food with the poor.  Prov. 22:9

 All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I had been eager to do all along.
    Gal.2:10

http://sermons2.redeemer.com/sites/sermons2.redeemer.com/files/sermons/RPC-Blessed_are_the_Poor.mp3    A great message about the poor from Tim Keller

The Church - A Hospital for Sinners?

               As far as I can tell by "googling", this quote is attributed to the great theologian Abigail Van Buren of "Dear Abby" fame. I was first introduced to it 10 - 15 years ago when our church was looking for a pastor and a candidate used this quote as the theme of his message. He wasn't hired but everyone loved the concept (except me) and today that church uses it as their advertising slogan. On a personal note, my 82 year old mother-in-law, who attends that church, hates the slogan and doesn't even want to go back, mainly I believe because at some level she puts hospitals in the same category as nursing homes, a place where healthy 82 year olds don't want to go. Since I am a doctor and actually like going to the hospital I object to it too but for different reasons.
             I understand the concept and what it is trying to say, which is good. How many of us have answered skeptic's objections that the church is full of sinners or hypocrites by saying, "where else would you want them?" And as we are witnessing we have answered those who say, "I need to clean up my act before I come to church" by saying something to the effect of "that is where we learn how to clean up our acts" or something pithy like "everyone here is a beggar just looking for bread" or "if you are perfect you don't need to come here because you will ruin us." But somehow all this has led to the concept that the church is a "hospital for sinners". The picture I get with this is "Come to our church and we give grace. No matter how much you mess-up (because "sin" is narrow minded) during the week come here and get forgiven, restored, built back up in a non judgmental atmosphere to face the temptations of the world on Monday morning. You can list the Bible characters on one hand who didn't make mistakes (sins) and Jesus is a faithful high priest and went through the same temptations as you and I and understands. If we were perfect it wouldn't be called grace."
                  The problem with those truths (and I agree that is all true) is that the picture I get of the church in the Bible is something less defeated. I see a church that the gates of hell can't stand against(Matt. 16:18). I see a church where liars were struck dead(Acts 5:5,10). I see a church which was instructed to kick sinners out of it(1 Cor.5). I see a church where people were afraid to join(Acts 5:13). I see a church that served as a "hospital" for people that got beat down(Acts 28:15) and up(Acts 4 & 5) from boldly taking the gospel to a hostile unbelieving world. This is the church I see in the Bible.
                  So what are some better analogies?
                  How about The Church - A MASH unit for Saints. This would obviously incorporate the idea that we are in a war and as we are on the front lines we will get attacked. We will lose friends, be mocked, excluded, discouraged, lose jobs, (wow, we Western Christians have it rough) but when we come to church we are surrounded by others who have had the same things happen to them and we don't, like Elijah, feel like we are the only ones and get discouraged. We get prayed over, ministered to by the Holy Spirit, patched up and sent back into battle again.
                 How about The Church - A Boot Camp for Saints. Well, where does the idea of attracting sinners and grace fit in, you might ask. How about here. First of all, when we are born again we no longer have the identity of "sinners" - we are now "saints", so the whole "hospital for sinners" implies the church's identity is found in unbelievers which  is flawed. But yet the fact remains we are sinful and need sanctification. Isn't that what an army boot camp does; it takes the raw "newbie" and turns him (her) into a soldier ready to fight the battle. Rather than coddling to his(her) weaknesses and saying, "that's Ok, we are all weak" they receive intensive training exposing and removing of weaknesses so that the recruit becomes ready to stand against the foe.
Using the whole "coddling" and military theme reminds me of a commercial;

                 At this point I would be remiss in this day and age of atrocities to mankind done in the name of faith, not to quote Paul who says that our foe is not our fellow man. In fact they are POWs to the real foe, the Devil.

"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." Eph. 6:12

 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. ⁴ The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. 2Cor.10:3,4

 And John talked about overcoming our foe, Satan, with the blood of Christ and our testimony(Rev 12:10,11) even if it means going as sheep before wolves and being killed, not killing, as we take a stand for Christ.

             So take your choice playground or battlefield but I think the Biblical model is battlefield    and like this video clip, you have to choose one or the other because the two don't mix. (if you have any better analogies feel free to post them in comments)  

Addendum: I saw this video and it kind of speaks to what I am saying: