Salvation, Faith Alone or Faith Plus Works - Part VII

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1 John 5:5

The one who believes Jesus is the Son of God overcomes the world.

1 John 5:11-12

God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.

1 John 5:13

John says he is writing to those who believe in the name of the Son of God so they may know that they have eternal life.

1 John 5:16

John says he is not saying to pray for the sin that leads to death.

I think John when John speaks of a sin that leads to death, he means suicide, not eternal death or hell. There is no point in praying for someone who has died. That person is in no position to lead a better life here on earth.

1 John 5:18

No one born of God continues to sin; Jesus keeps him safe.

The new creation in us does not sin. John does not mean we will never sin, but that it is no longer our true self, and sin is no longer a regular practice.

1 John 5:20

We know and are in Him who is true – even His Son Jesus Christ, who is the true God and eternal life.

2 John 1:2

The truth lives in us and will be with us forever.

2 John 1:8-9

You can lose what you have worked for and miss a full reward. Whoever runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God.

If people are drawn off track, running ahead by themselves and following their own ideas and plans without continuing in the teaching of Christ, then they will not receive as great a reward in heaven.

2 John 1:9

If someone does not abide in Christ’s teaching, he does not have God; the one who does abide has the Father and the Son.

If you go on ahead of God in your daily life, you don’t have God going with you. I don’t think this refers to eternal life.

3 John 1:11

Anyone who does what is good is from God.

John is not saying that any random person who appears – from a human perspective – to be good is a messenger from God (and therefore saved), but rather he appears to be describing how to recognize godly and ungodly people within the church. So, just before this verse he describes Diotrephes, a church-member who is acting badly, and just after this verse he describes Demetrius, who is an example of a good church-member.

Revelation 1:8

Jesus has the keys to death and Hades.

Revelation 2:5

Jesus threatens to remove the Church of Ephesus’ lampstand because it had forsaken its first love.

This is a warning to a church, a fellowship of believers, not to individuals, though, of course, that includes a warning to individuals. The point of a lampstand is to shine light on the world, so removing a lampstand seems to imply removing a church’s (or person’s) place in Christ’s service in the world; it is not necessarily a threat to exclude people from heaven.

Revelation 2:7

Jesus will give those who overcome the right to eat from the tree of life in the paradise of God.

Jesus is warning the Ephesian church that even though it had done good works and endured, even though it couldn’t tolerate the wicked, and even though had not grown weary, the church was failing because it had forsaken its first love. Apparently many people in this church just went along with the program and didn’t have a loving faith in Jesus.

Clearly, when John speaks of overcomers here, he is not speaking of those who are diligent in good works, since the Ephesians were loaded with good works and were still rebuked. But if we understand John’s use of the word “overcome” here as being the same as his use of the word in 1 John 5:4-5, then the ones who overcome are those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God. Because John is addressing an entire church, of which some members may be believers and some may be pretenders, John emphasizes that this reward is for those who believe in Jesus.

Revelation 2:10-11

Jesus promises the Smyrnans who overcome that they will not be hurt by the second death.

This letter is to an entire church, containing believers and pretenders (See note on Revelation 2:7). Jesus notes that the Smyrnan believers had endured persecution, and will endure more, but says they need fear nothing from the second death – unlike those who are persecuting them, who have much to fear. If we understand John’s use of the word “overcome” here as being the same as his use of the word in 1 John 5:4-5, then the ones who overcome are those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God.

Revelation 3:4-5

Those who have not soiled their clothes will walk with Jesus, be dressed in white, and Jesus will not erase their names from the Book of Life.

I think the Book of Life is initially a book of those who have been called to spiritual life, whether they truly received it or not. So, Israel was called to life under God in the Old Testament and Christians are those who are called to life under God in the New Testament. But, as Jesus said, many are called but few are chosen (Matthew 22:14). So, for instance, Jesus called Judas, but Judas did not believe and was ultimately removed. So, similarly, the Israelites were called out of Egypt by Moses but then the unbelieving Jews were removed during their time in the desert. In the same way those who merely call themselves believers in Christ will be weeded out of the Book of Life until the only people listed in the Book are those who are saved.

Revelation 3:11

Hold fast to what you have so no one will take your crown.

In this case the word “crown” refers to a reward that Jesus will bestow, either a reward when He comes back ultimately, or perhaps a reward on earth if He meant that he would visit the Philadelphian church sometime before the end.

Revelation 3:12

Those who overcome, Jesus will make pillars in God’s temple.

This seems to be a special reward, not necessarily related to whether one goes to heaven. It may be a reward in heaven, or, if the temple referred to here is the Body of Christ on earth, then the reward could be an earthly reward. It hearkens back to Paul’s mention (Galatians 2:9) of visiting with those who seemed to be pillars of the church (meaning the apostles).

Revelation 3:16

Jesus says to the lukewarm church of Laodicea that He will spit it out of his mouth.

Again, this is a warning to a church, not to individuals. Apparently the town of Laodicea brought its water from two sources: hot water from Heiropolis and cold water from Colosae. Hot for healing, cold for refreshing. But by the time the water was piped to Laodicea, it was lukewarm; the hot water was no longer hot and the cold water was no longer cold. The tepid waters were not really good for what they were originally intended. So, Jesus appears to be telling the church that because of its lukewarmness, it may be discarded as part of His work in this world.

Revelation 3:21

The reward for overcoming is to sit with Jesus on His throne.

This promise is directed to the lukewarm Church of Laodicea, home to many who in their prosperity had drifted in their faith, and perhaps home to many hangers-on who never believed in the first place.

Jesus tells them to turn to Him to be purified (Revelation 3:18), that he will discipline them because He loves them (Revelation 3:19) and that if they will open the door to Him He will come in and eat with them (Revelation 3:20). Overcoming, as John also writes in 1 John 5:4-5, means believing in Jesus, and to those overcomers – those who believe – he promises a special reward in heaven, to sit with Him on His throne.

Our path through life may involve rebukes, advice, disciplining, encouragement, and promises for heaven, as we can see in this passage. But, if we were His in the first place we can rest assured that while God may discipline us (Revelation 3:19), we are His forever.

Revelation 5:9

By His blood Christ purchased men for God from every tribe, language, people and nation.

Revelation 20:12-13

The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.

The critical thing to do, and that we will be judged on, is whether we believed in Jesus.

Revelation 21:7

He who overcomes will inherit these things and “I will be his God and he will be my son”.

Revelation 21:8 contrasts overcomers with those who face the second death, who are cowardly, unbelieving, vile, murderers, sexually immoral, idolaters, and liars. In other words, those who are excluded show no evidence of faith. They are, as it says, “unbelieving.” If we understand John’s use of the word “overcome” here as being the same as his use of the word in 1 John 5:4-5, then the ones who overcome are those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God.

Revelation 21:27

Nobody who does what is shameful or deceitful will ever enter the New Jerusalem, only those written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

Assuming my interpretation of Revelation 3:4-5 is correct, this means that the Book of Life, with all false believers now erased from its pages, contains only real believers, and these believers enter the New Jerusalem. Those who believe have been cleansed and do not lead shameful or deceitful lives.

Revelation 22:12

Jesus is coming to render to every man according to what he has done.

And the critical thing for us to do is to believe in Jesus. If we have believed in Jesus we will be blessed.

Revelation 22:14

Those who wash their robes are blessed. They have the right to the tree of life.

We wash our robes by believing in Jesus.

Revelation 22:18-19

The one who takes away from this book of prophecy, God will take away his part in the Tree of Life and the Holy City.

Everyone has a share in the Tree of Life and in the Holy City; to receive it he just needs to believe in Jesus. And if he does believe in Jesus, then he will not add to or take away from the book of Revelation, or any part of the Bible.

This is much like Romans 5:18, where Paul says that “one act of righteousness resulted in justification that brings life to all men.” This does not mean that “all men” are saved, but rather that everyone has life available to him, and in the same way Revelation 22:19 does not mean that a person is already in possession of his part in the Tree of Life and the Holy City, but rather that it is available to him.

Also, when John speaks of adding to or taking away from Revelation, he is not talking about a preacher focusing on just one section of the book, or a writer quoting one verse of Revelation and not quoting the rest of it, or a commentator using words not in Revelation to expound upon it. I believe this refers to someone modifying the book of Revelation and pretending that the modified creation is the original. The sin is significant; it involves no momentary weakness in the face of temptation, but rather a cold plan, and a difficult plan at that – to rewrite the book of Revelation in order to mislead people and steal a blessing of God from them (Revelation 1:3). It puts that person solidly in the camp of those who practice deceit, as mentioned in Revelation 22:15. And because this is such a coldly calculated sin, perhaps it suggests that this person has made his heart so hard that he has made the ultimate decision to turn from God. If so, then God takes away the part of the Tree of Life and the Holy City that He had – until then – set aside for him had he believed.

Election – Being Chosen by God

These verses are related but are rather an aside. I have not really examined this topic in this Bible study. This sampling of verses tell us that God has selected those who are saved, so in some mysterious way God is in charge of our salvation even though we also have a real choice in being saved, as we can see from the other verses in this study. I accept these two truths but don’t understand how they fit together. I just thank God that He understands.

Matthew 15:13

Any plant not planted by God will be pulled up by the roots.

John 15:16

The people did not choose Jesus; He chose them.

John 5:21

The Son gives life to whom He pleases.

John 6:37

Jesus says that all those the Father gives to Him will come to Him and He will never drive them away.

John 6:39

The Father’s will is that Jesus lose none of those He has given to Him, but raise them on the last day.

John 6:44

Only those the Father draws to Jesus can come to him, and Jesus will raise them on the last day.

John 6:65

Jesus says that no one can come to Him unless the Father has enabled him.

John 10:29

The Father has given Jesus his sheep and no one can take them from the Father’s hand.

John 17:2

Jesus says the Father granted Him authority over all people to give eternal life to those the Father has given Him.

John 17:6

Jesus revealed the Father to those who were the Father’s, and they obeyed Father’s word.

John 17:12

Jesus says He protected His followers and none was lost except Judas, so the Scripture would be fulfilled.

Acts 9:3-18

God says He has chosen Saul (Acts 9:15).

Acts 2:47

The Lord added to the number of those being saved.

Acts 13:48

Those appointed to eternal life believed.

Romans 1:6

Paul says the Romans were called to belong to Jesus Christ.

Romans 8:29-30

God predestined those he foreknew to be conformed to the likeness of his Son. He also called them, justified them, and glorified them.

Ephesians 1:4-5

God chose us in Him to be blameless and holy in His sight.

Ephesians 1:11

We have been predestined according to God’s plan.

Philippians 1:6

He who began a good work in us will carry it to completion in the day of Christ Jesus.

2 Thessalonians 2:13-14

Paul says God chose the Thessalonians to be saved.

2 Timothy 1:9

Paul tells Timothy that God has saved them and called them to a holy life not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace.

1 Peter 1:5

Those chosen are protected for a salvation to be revealed in the last time.  

ABC Solitaire

In trying to find a very simple card game to keep an elderly friend's mind occupied, I remembered a game that a friend taught me decades ago that he called "Reno Solitaire." However, I can find nothing online about Reno Solitaire and none of the solitaire rules I did find seemed to match it. So, I sent him an email and while I was waiting for his reply I started playing and started remembering the rules. But when he replied, the rules he sent me didn't match what I was doing.

Hmm. I think what happened is that when he taught me decades ago, I forgot the rules, then later tried to remember and instead came up with my own method, then forgot that as well, so when I remembered the game the other day I think I was actually remembering my misunderstanding of it.

However, I LIKE my misunderstanding. It is easy and quick and requires no setup. I think I'll call it ABC Solitaire because it is as easy as ABC, and because my friend's name is Addison, my name is Brad, and I'm still a bit Confused.

Advantages of ABC Solitaire:

• There is almost no preparation. You just start dealing from a shuffled deck of 52 cards.
• The rules are very simple. (Great for children or elderly people.)
• It takes very little space and can be played in cramped quarters.
• Play is quick. One pass through the deck and you're done.
• There is just enough skill involved to keep it interesting.

The object is go get the four Aces on the bottom and no other cards above them.

To start, the player lays down four cards in a row.

Wherever there are two or more cards of the same suit, the lower cards of the same suit are discarded.  (Cards rank from Two low to Ace high.) So, in this case ...

 

... the player can discard the Two of Spades since the Queen of Spades is a higher card of the same suit.

In the following rounds of play another four cards are laid down on top of the previous set and again any card or cards on top which are lower than any other top card of the same suit are discarded. So, in this case, the Six of Diamonds can be discarded because it is lower than the Ace of Diamonds.

Also, if a column of cards becomes empty, as happened when we removed the Six of Diamonds, then the player may move a top card from another column to the open position.

Notice that this move exposes the Three of Hearts on the left to the higher Four of Hearts on the right ...

... so the Three of Hearts can be discarded. And when the Three of Hearts is removed the Four of Hearts can be moved to the left column, like this ...

... and when it is moved, the Queen of spades is exposed, which means that ...

... the Eight of Spades can be removed because it is exposed to the higher Queen of Spades.

When all possible cards have been moved or removed, then the player lays down another row of four cards, and the game continues in this fashion until all cards in the deck have been played.

If, at the end, the four Aces are on the table with no cards on top, the player wins.


Now, I want to confess again that I'm still not sure how I came up with this game. I may be subconsciously remembering a game someone else invented, and if so, please point me to the information about the game in the comments below and I'll edit this post.

Praying Aloud and Praying Silently

Usually I pray silently, even in private. After all, I've always figured God knows what goes on in my head, and I still believe that.

However...

Today, for some unaccountable reason, I had the house to myself and I prayed aloud, in a normal voice, not a whisper, and my prayer time seemed so much more alive. I felt more as if I was talking to God and less as if I was talking to myself. It was also broader and more specific. I prayed about things I'd normally forget and I prayed in greater depth.

And now I find myself wondering why.

Maybe it has to do with the way God built us. Perhaps when we speak with others the part of our brain that engages with our mouths comes into play, and that part of our brain is necessary for us to sense we are really communicating, and since it is made for communication, the communication is more natural and deeper. I don't know; that's pure speculation.

However, I do know that I had a mighty good time, and felt I'd connected to God in a fresh, invigorating way, and I'd like to recommend you give it a try.

Don't Worry About Tomorrow

In studying Matthew 6 recently I was struck by Jesus' advice to not worry about tomorrow since each day has enough trouble of its own (v. 34).

Even though Jesus planned (sending disciples to prepare the Passover meal) I guess I subconsciously had the silly notion that he meant we shouldn't plan. When I realized he didn't say that it fell into place and now I'm trying to practice it. Works well. I am more relaxed.

So, each day I try - approximately - to follow this formula:

Am I worrying about anything?
  If "no," I relax.
  If "yes," I ask:
    Can I do anything about it today?
      If "yes," I do it, then I relax.
      If "no," I ask: When can I do something about it?
        If "never," then I relax.
        If a specific day, I mark my calendar or make a mental note to do it at that time, then I relax.
        If I don't know, I guesstimate and mark my calendar or make a mental note to reconsider it at that time, then I relax.

Note: When I ask if there is something I can do about it today, that includes planning. Maybe on that day all I need to do is create a plan for how I will approach the problem.

So, am I doing it perfectly? Are you kidding?!

Liberty and Morality

Imagine that you are a good politician (don't laugh) in a country filled with good people.

These good people cover their noses when they sneeze so they don't give their neighbors their colds.

Are you tempted to pass a law requiring that people cover their noses when they sneeze?

Why bother? They're already covering their noses.

Now suppose you are a good politician in a country filled with bad people, who regularly sneeze in other people's faces.

Are you tempted to pass a law requiring that people cover their noses when they sneeze?

Hmm. Maybe so.

But now, what if you are a bad politician in a country filled with bad people? Are you tempted to pass a law requiring that people cover their noses when they sneeze?

Oh yeah! And you'll make sure the major hanky manufacturers know what you are doing. They will certainly want to make suggestions about the type of hanky that is required - a higher-end hanky, of course, with germ-killing properties that their expensive new machines can manufacture but which (sadly) their smaller competitors can't afford to buy. And, of course, in recognition of your noble campaign against the common cold they will want to contribute substantially to your campaign fund. And, of course, you will send out a press release letting people know what a champion of good health you are. Oh yes! You'll vote for that law!

Parable over.

I suspect good, moral citizens can safely live with more liberty than bad citizens, who will get more laws and more restrictions, either because good politicians reluctantly feel the need to impose them or because bad politicians gladly seize the opportunity. There is a connection between personal morality and political liberty.

As someone smarter than me said,  People get the government they deserve.

An Overview of the Sermon on the Mount

This as an overview of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matthew, Chapters 5-7), not a verse-by-verse analysis. There is a lot of critical detail in this sermon that I am not touching upon. Also, parts of this article may be unclear unless you are following along in your Bible.


A Condensed Outline of the Sermon on the Mount
- A description of the Godly life (5:1-10).
- Living it out is hard but you will influence the world (5:10-16).
- In living it out aim for perfection (5:17-48), ...
- with your focus on God, not to show off for people, and God will provide (chapter 6).
- But you do need to reach out to people; do it humbly (7:1-12).
- Finally, don't just hear this, obey it! and watch out for those who would lead you astray (7:13-27).


The Godly Life ("The Beatitudes," Matthew 5:1-12)

Jesus starts his sermon with a summary of the Godly life, in a form easy to memorize, which suggests that this is exactly what we should do. In it He describes how to live and how to grow, a sequence of "blessing" steps with each step built upon the previous step, and each step a facet of the Godly life. In proceeding from step to step we do not abandon the previous steps, but build upon them. For example, we do not give up hungering and thirsting for righteousness when we begin to practice mercy.

The "Blessed are" format not only clearly sets the Beatitudes aside from the rest of the sermon, but also the format appears to echo that of the curses and blessings set forth in Deuteronomy 27 and 28, except instead of blessings and curses the Beatitudes are just blessings. Also, just as Deuteronomy 27:9 introduces its blessings and curses with, "...You have now become the people of the Lord your God," as if to suggest an initiation, perhaps in parallel fashion, the Beatitudes are an initiation into the Godly life.

So, let's examine the Beatitudes as steps:

1. The poor in spirit are those who know they are sinful, spiritually poor, who have no hope of reaching heaven on their own. They know they cannot make themselves pure. These are the people to whom heaven belongs! (5:3).

2. Having faced their sins, they mourn over their sins, but God does not let them mourn for long, and comforts them with forgiveness (5:4).

3. They become meek, humbled in contemplating their sins. They do not claim they are better than others. They know they have sinned. And just as heaven belongs to the poor in spirit, so earth belongs to the meek, to those who are humble before their fellow humans (5:5). Earth does not belong to the meek in the sense that the world caters to them (that is the opposite of meekness or humility), but it belongs to them in the sense that their influence will change the world (See verses 5:8-16), an influence in which their humble attitude will play such a large role.

4. They hunger and thirst for righteousness. They turn from sins and desire to be righteous, and if we look ahead to verses 5:10-11, we see that Jesus equates Himself with righteousness, so we may also understand this as meaning that they hunger and thirst for Jesus. (Compare 5:11 with the related passage in Luke 6:22.) And as they yearn for Jesus/righteousness, they are satisfied (5:6).

5. As they progress in righteousness - in walking with Jesus - they are merciful. They know their own weakness so they are not harsh toward the sins of other people. (5:7).

6. They increasingly desire God's purity, inwardly and outwardly, for themselves and for others. In purity they see God more clearly, for He is pure (5:8).

7. As they see God more clearly, they become peacemakers. They more clearly understand God's desire to bring peace between Himself and humanity. They imitate God, acting as His children, by reaching out to others to bring reconciliation, just as they were reconciled to God (5:9).

8. But often they are persecuted. Peacemaking is others-oriented. It is outward, somewhat public, and often different. Therefore opposition may arise. But whatever persecution may arise, they have a place in heaven (5:10).

The first seven of these beatitudes - seven often being the number of completeness - focus on the believer's character. The eighth focuses on the world's response, and it echoes - as if to contain all the Beatitudes in the same overarching blessing - the blessing of the very first beatitude, that heaven is their reward.


Live it Out to the World (5:10-16)

I include verses 5:10-12 In this section, though I also included them in the previous section, because they appear to be transition verses, belonging both to the Beatitudes and to the theme of this section, which is to live out before the world the life we have in Christ.

Notice, again, that in verse 5:11 Jesus equates himself with righteousness, echoing Luke 6:22. So, if we live for Jesus we will often face trouble, but what if we don't live for Him? What if we are salt that, instead of seasoning the world, loses its saltiness (vs. 5:13)? Well, then we are good for nothing but to be thrown out to be trampled underfoot.

Jesus gives us a choice, suffer or suffer. Suffer for Him with the joy of knowing we have a great reward in heaven (5:10-12) or suffer the degradation of being trampled underfoot by men without the joy of knowing we have done anything for Jesus and without the joy of knowing we have have gained any reward in heaven.

Those who persecute people generally pay attention to the people they persecute, but those who trample worthless salt underfoot probably don't give it a moment's thought. So, as worthless salt we lose even the dignity of being noticed. We are just thoughtlessly ground into the dust by people going about their business.

Immediately, Jesus repeats this message in a different way. Just as salt should season, so light should enlighten. Just as people see the light of a lamp, so they should see our good deeds and glorify our Father in heaven.

So, as followers of Christ we should be involved in the world, reaching out quietly, like salt, or more obviously, like the rays of a lamp, to show our good deeds.

However, a problem arises when we jump ahead to chapter 6, verse 1, which tells us to "Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them."

So, should we make sure the world sees our good deeds, or make sure the world does not see our good deeds?

Well, both. The difference between these passages is motivation. In this passage Jesus tells us to glorify God through our good deeds. In 6:1 he warns us not to do good deeds to be personally noticed and honored. We should point to God, not to ourselves.

Okay, but how does that work out practically? Here are a couple thoughts:

There is a lot to be said for giving through your church or through a Christian organization. If I give a dollar to my church or a Christian group and that dollar is spent in good deeds, I do not get any personal glory, but the church or organization is noticed. And when people notice a good deed by a church or Christian group, they probably understand that the deed is motivated by God and they may glorify our Father in heaven. But if the gift is in my name, people may simply think, 'Isn't he a nice guy!' and give no glory to God.

Of course, in some cases it is almost impossible to remain in the background. For example, a public person known for his generosity should perhaps say on occasion that his motivation is to love as Jesus loved him, thereby attempting to deflect personal aggrandizement and point people to the Father.


Keep the Law (5:17-48)

At first glance this section of the Sermon on the Mount is very discouraging, but see it through.

Matthew is writing his gospel specifically to Jews, so he focuses on elements in Jesus' ministry that are particilarly relevant to Jews, therefore he makes a point to include what Jesus said about the Jewish law. So, if Jesus' mostly-Jewish audience has heard him out so far, many of them may have begun to wonder ... "He hasn't said anything about the law. Is Jesus abandoning the law?"

So, beginning with verse 5:17, Jesus addresses that concern: "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them." He adds that anyone who breaks, or advocates breaking, the least of the laws "will be called least in the kingdom of heaven" (5:19). And, he says, unless your righteousness is greater than that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, "you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven" (5:20).

Wow! To be more observant of the law than the Pharisees? To follow the least of the laws? It seems impossible. And then, in the verses that follow, Jesus gives examples from the law, and in each case he makes keeping the law even harder!

It is not just that we shouldn't murder, it's that we shouldn't even be angry (5:21-26). It's not just that we shouldn't commit adultery, it's that we shouldn't even think it (5:27-30). It's not that we should go about divorce according to the rules, it's that we shouldn't divorce for any reason except adultery (5:31-32). It isn't that we should be truthful when we take an oath, it's that we should always be truthful (5:33-37). It isn't that we should be kind to people who treat us well, it's that we should be kind to everyone, even those who abuse us (5:38-47).

It appears that when Jesus talked about fulfilling the law, He meant to extend it to every niche and corner of our lives.

It seems impossible! Why doesn't Jesus just say that we should be perfect!?

Well, He says that too.

Look at 5:48, at the end of Jesus' list of examples. He says, "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect." And He doesn't mean for us to be perfect with just some people; he wants us to include everyone. In 5:45 Jesus says that we are to be as God is: "He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous."

So, Jesus is telling us that every bit of the law is important and we should keep it all. HOWEVER, He wants us to keep it's true meaning, which is to be perfectly righteous in every aspect of our lives, from our deepest inner attitudes to our outermost actions.

Does Jesus actually want us to live up to such an intensely pure standard?

Yes. But does He expect it? No.

Perfect righteousness should be our goal, and we should hunger and thirst for it (5:6), but Jesus realizes we will often fail.

We know this - without even looking beyond the Sermon on the Mount - because Jesus promises mercy to the merciful (5:7), and why would we need mercy if we never sin? In 5:23-24 Jesus tells us to make amends to someone we have offended before offering a gift to God, but why would we ever need to make amends if we never do anything wrong? And at the end of the Lord's Prayer (6:12-15) Jesus tells us to forgive if we want to be forgiven by God, but if He expected us to be perfect, what need would we have to be forgiven? Further along, he tells us again that if we expect mercy we need to be merciful to others (7:1-2), and again, why would we need mercy if we never sin? And finally, in 7:11, Jesus says quite clearly that he understands our evil tendencies: "If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children..."

Okay, but just because Jesus knows that we will not succeed in keeping the law, we are still failing. What hope do we have?

Our hope is that even though we fail, God is merciful, as Jesus says in 5:7, 6:12-15, and 7:1-2. If we come to God with the humble, poor-in-spirit heart Jesus says in 5:3 is basic to the Godly life, recognizing that we need Jesus to be our righteousness (5:11), and if our life exhibits evidence of His work in our lives - particularly by being merciful to others - then we can be sure that God will be merciful to us.

This, I think, is where so many of the Pharisees went wrong. The true, deep meaning of the law is that we should be perfect in every way, but they sought to limit the law to narrow situations and define the law to avoid its intent (example: Mark 7:9-13), and, I suspect, to make it easier for them to keep. Maybe if they realized that they were not keeping the law they would have been more humble, more poor in spirit. Instead, by twisting the law into a form they could keep, they became proud, looking down on others, not seeking mercy from God for themselves and not giving it to others. This is the path AWAY from God.

When Jesus said to be more righteous than the Pharisees, He didn't mean to out-Pharisee the Pharisees, but to go the opposite direction, to understand that the law calls for perfection, which should bring us to utter humility, to seek mercy and then to give it.

So, when we fail, we should remember that God is merciful and forgiving. Ask for His forgiveness, give forgiveness to others, remember that Jesus is our righteousness, so lean on Him, let Him into every area of your life, then get up and keep going.

(Note: For a discussion of law in the New Testament, see here: Are We Under the Law or Not? )

Thoughts:

Anger: In verses 5:21-26, Jesus says if you are angry with your brother you are guilty before the court (or, "subject to judgement"), if you call him "Raca" (good for nothing), you are guilty before the Sanhedrin, and if you call him a "fool" you are in danger of hell. These three sins do not seem very different from one another. Is calling someone "good for nothing" really discernably different from calling him a fool? Because the difference between these sins is so hard to detect, I think Jesus is just saying: Don't try to figure out which sins are not serious enough for hell. All sins are serious!

Oaths: In verses 5:33-37, why does Jesus list things that we should not swear by instead of just telling us to let our yes be yes and our no be no? I suspect that when He says not to swear by heaven, earth, Jerusalem or even your own head, that He means we do not control any of these; we can't require any of them to testify for us, and perhaps He means it is foolish and presumptuous to speak as if we could. This is suggested by Jesus' comment that we cannot even successfully command our hair to turn color. Incidentally, when verse 5:35 says that Jerusalem is "The city of the great king," I believe the "great king" refers to God, not David. See Psalm 48:2,8, which appears to be quoted here.

Rewards: In verse 5:46 Jesus says, "If you love those who love you, what reward will you get?" He suggests that we get a reward from God in going beyond the ordinary, and in doing things that will not be repaid by people (also, see 6:2, 4-6, 16).

Gouge Out Your Eye: In verses 5:29-30 Jesus is certainly making a dramatic point about how painfully serious He is about His followers avoiding sin, but is He really calling for people to gouge out their eye or cut off their hand? I think not, but here is my thinking, which may be a bit different from others': Gouge Out Your Eye .

Don't Worry About Tomorrow: Jesus didn't say in verse 6:34 not to plan for tomorrow, so I have recently been trying to ask myself, "What am I worrying about?" Then, if there is something, I ask myself if there is anything I can do about it today. If there is, I do it. If not, I ask myself if I might be able to do something about it later. If so, I put it on my calendar as something to do - or something to reconsider - for next Thursday (or whenever), then forget about it until then. And if I can't ever do anything about it I just try to forget it.

Live for God's Kingdom and Righteousness (Chapter 6)

Chapter 5 ends by telling us to be perfectly righteous, and Chapter 6 picks right up with what our motivation should be in doing those righteous things that Jesus wants us to do. We should do them with God as our audience, not people. We should focus on God and His kingdom and God will take care of the rest.

In verses 6:1-18 Jesus tell us that as we give, as we pray, as we fast, in all righteous acts we do, we should try not to draw attention to ourselves. We should, as 6:1 says, "Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them." If we try for people's applause, that is all the reward we will receive (6:2).

In verses 6:19-34 Jesus tells us to focus on God's kingdom and God will provide for us. Lay up treasure in heaven, not on earth; let your eye be on that treasure you are laying up in heaven; trust God to provide for food, clothing, lifespan, and for tomorrow.

Thoughts:

In Secret: In verses 6:3,6, and 18, Jesus emphasizes this phrase by repeating it, exactly, three times: "Your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you." God does not often show that He is watching our quiet acts of righteousness, but He is, and He will reward us.

Prayer: In verses 6:8-13 Jesus tells us that God already knows what we need, but then He tells us how to pray. Why should we pray at all if God already knows what we need? I think it is because of the relationship we build with God through prayer and because, while God knows what we need, He gives us the honor of participating with Him by having us ask.

Temptation: In verse 6:13, Jesus says we should ask God to not lead us into temptation, but why would God lead us into temptation? I believe Jesus is referring to His own experience (in Mt. 4:1-11) of being led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted. In that case the Father decided it was necessary for Jesus to stand up against the devil, and there may be occasions when God decides we need to withstand temptation, but as it was undoubtedly hard for Jesus, He does not want us, generally, to experience this. It is as if He is telling us to pray: "Lord, if it is possible, keep us from being tested. But not as we will, but as you will," which is essentially what Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane: "[I]f it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will." This interpretation is the same as for the rest of the Lord's Prayer. In 6:9 Jesus tells us to pray that God's name would be hallowed, but it isn't always. In verse 6:10 He tells us to pray that God's will would be done, though it isn't always, and so forth. Also, when Jesus speaks of God leading us into temptation He means that God, despite our prayers, may take us to a place where we will need to stand up against sin, but God never tries to get us to sin.

Good Eyes: In verses 6:22-23, just after telling us to store up treasure in heaven, not earth, and just before telling us that we cannot serve God and money, is what may appear to be a digression - Jesus tells us the importance of having "good eyes" so we will be filled with light. But I don't think this is a digression at all. The context is about treasure on earth versus treasure in heaven, so, with that in mind, Jesus first tells us to store up treasure in heaven, then He tells us to keep our eyes on that heavenly treasure, then He tells us we cannot serve both God and money. So, good eyes are eyes focused on heaven and the treasure we have there; bad eyes - that fill us with darkness - are eyes focused on money.


Reach Out (7:1-12) 

Though we are to serve Christ quietly, directing credit to God and not to ourselves, as Chapter 6 describes, we do need to live it out, to reach out to others. The beginning of Chapter 7 describes how.

In verses 7:1-5 Jesus tells us not to judge, but He does not mean that we are to pretend someone's problem or sin does not exist. Not at all.

We know this because after Jesus says not to judge, he tells us to judge which people - metaphorically - are "dogs" or "pigs." Also, notice that He wants us to recognize - to "judge," if you will - that a brother has a speck in his eye. We are not supposed to pretend that the speck does not exist.

So, does Jesus mean that we should not have a condemning attitude toward those who sin? Yes, that is certainly part of it. The Amplified Version gives an expanded definition of the word "judge" for these verses, and it includes "criticize and condemn." So we should not criticize and condemn. But I think what Jesus is talking about here goes beyond that. Notice that the "helpful hypocrite" in 7:4-5 is attempting to do something kind for the person with a speck in his eye, so I don't think Jesus is only condemning a critical and condemning attitude.

I believe Jesus is telling us a) that we should have a gentle heart and not be harsh and condemning, and b) that we first check our own lives and correct any sin we find there, rather than ignoring our own sin to focus on the sin of others. We are very wrong if we try - even with good intent - to help someone with a sin when we are worse sinners, and particularly if we have a worse case of the very same sin. Not only is it hypocritical to overlook the log in our eye while attempting to extract the speck from a brother's eye, but if we haven't avoided the sin, how can we guide someone else out of that sin?

All that to say that I believe that Jesus is telling us that in reaching out to the world ...

- We should have a gentle spirit.

- We should clean up our own sin before we try to help others overcome their sin.

- We should help those who are striving to be godly. The hypocrite was not condemned for wanting to help. So, when we can see clearly, Jesus does want us to help that brother remove the speck from his eye.

- In reaching out, we should give the blessing that is appropriate to the person we are with. Not everyone is interested in spiritual things. Jesus uses dogs and pigs (unclean animals) to illustrate these people. Not only is it a waste of time to throw pearls to dogs or swine, but they don't like pearls. Pearls don't taste good, and if you throw pearls at a pig you just annoy the pig.

So, we need to be good judges of the people we meet. If, on Monday morning, for example, you mention to a co-worker that you went to church on Sunday, and the co-worker expresses an interest, then perhaps you can throw out a pearl, and gauge the response. But if you get no response, or you get a negative response, perhaps you don't throw out a pearl, but instead, something the co-worker will appreciate, like a doughnut or bagel or a cup of coffee, just some simple act of kindness that the person will like. Maybe someday that person will become interested in pearls.

- Finally, in reaching out we should ask God for what we need, particularly guidance, in sharing with people. In the passage I'm getting this from (7:7-11) this interpretation may not be obvious, so let me defend it.

In these verses Jesus may seem to switch to talking about how we can ask God for what we want, and I think He also intends these verses to be understood in that sense, but in context I believe He is mostly telling us to ask God for what we need - particularly for wisdom - in sharing our pearls with others, and that God will be faithful to provide ... wisdom to see our own sins (vs. 7:3), wisdom to remove logs from our own eyes (7:4), wisdom to tell what kind of people we are dealing with (7:6), and wisdom to know what to give them (7:12).

I suggest this interpretation for two reasons:

First, in a similar passage, Luke 11:9-11, Jesus says the Father will give the Holy Spirit (our counselor and guide) to those who ask, so perhaps it is fair to believe that Jesus is suggesting that one of the main good things we will receive by our asking, seeking and knocking is the Holy Spirit and the wise guidance He gives.

Second, this passage ends with the Golden Rule (7:12), which says that we should do for others as we would have them do for us, and this makes perfect sense if verses 7:7-11 are a continuation of the discussion about giving people things that are appropriate for them, but it would seem out of place if verses 7:7-11 are primarily about asking God for things in general.

In the Golden Rule, Jesus sums up his previous points, and, in fact, the whole law: that we should treat people the way we would like to be treated. He wants us to love them and consider their desires, just as we want others to consider ours; for those who are spiritually inclined, pearls, but for those who do not want pearls, maybe that doughnut would be more appropriate.


Watch Out! (7:13-27)

In verses 7:13-27 Jesus draws the sermon to a close with warnings, like a father or mother giving a few last-minute instructions to a son about the wickedness he will encounter as he goes out into the big world.

Jesus says: Don't follow the crowd along the broad road to destruction, but enter by the narrow gate and follow the narrow path; Watch out for false prophets who talk good but act bad. And finally, the critical warning - Don't just listen to what I've been saying, but be like the wise builder and DO IT!

Materialism is Self-Refuting

It occurs to me that materialism is self-refuting.

By "materialism" I mean the concept that everything that exists is made up just of matter and energy, or matter-energy if you prefer.

Materialism does not seem to be logically possible.

Why?

Because the very concept of materialism is non-material. You can touch material but you cannot touch materialism. You cannot measure the pressure of materialism against a gauge.

And it does not help one little bit to say that materialism is simply "a description of what is," because "a description of what is" is also a non-material concept.

Some may argue that you cannot have ideas without matter and energy.

Perhaps, but that answer concedes that materialism is false, because whether non-material ideas can exist without material is not the question. I cannot exist without air, but my need for air does not prove that I am air or that I do not exist.

A Defense of Missionaries in Tahiti

I had the privilege recently to visit French Polynesia, and in preparation to go I read part of the book, Blue Latitudes, by Tony Horwitz, which spoke, in part, of the tragic early contact between Tahitians and the West.

Horwitz said Tahiti's population of 204,000 dwindled to 7,169 from western-introduced guns and diseases, including sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). I certainly agree with him; almost 200,000 Tahitians dying was tragic.

But then a little later he complains that missionaries persuaded Polynesians to give up indescriminate sexual behavior.

Huh?

Suppose, to pick a number, that just an eighth of those who died from problems introduced by westerners died from STDs. That means STDs killed about 25,000 Tahitians.

Now suppose the missionaries had somehow managed to arrive before the sailors and persuaded the people to limit their sexual encounters to marriage. That would have severely curtailed the spread of death. Many of those 25,000 would have lived.

Or, suppose the early sailors had all been a bunch of bluenosed Puritans of a type Horwitz apparently disapproves. Same result. More Polynesians would have lived.

So, Horwitz's thesis - hopefully just a result of not thinking - appears to be that 25,000 dead Tahitians is a small price to pay for preserving "free" sex.

There are things to criticize in the Christian community and in its missionary activities, but this isn't one of them. Those missionaries deserve applause, but what they get from Horowitz is jeers.

Dom Museum in Wurzburg

Visited the Dom (Cathedral) Museum in Wurzburg, Germany, recently. It is a collection of modern Christian art with a sprinkling of old Christian art.

If a non-Christian was to walk through this collection he or she could be forgiven for coming away with the idea that Christianity is about death and death and death.

Not all the old art in the museum focuses on death, but the vast majority of the modern art does.

Well, I thought, that's okay because I'm sure that just around the corner is art about the joy of the resurrection since the resurrection follows Jesus' death. But no, just more death. And for variety, perhaps not wanting to overdo depictions of Jesus' death, there were pictures of other people's deaths as well.

No pictures of Jesus healing people, or of his teaching, or of other events of his life, or of his parables, or of his victory over death. There was (if I understood it correctly) a modern picture of the annunciation and a couple of the adoration of the magi (one in which each person had a shopping bag over his head), but mostly just death.

So, how is church attendance in Germany these days? Bursting at the seams, is it? No? Maybe institutions such as the Dom Museum presenting such a distorted and ugly view of Christianity is a contributing factor.

Thoughts on What the Bible Teaches About the Poor

A few thoughts from my study of physical (not spiritual) poverty in the Bible (here):

Who are the Poor?

Roughly I would say that a biblical definition of "the poor" would be those people without personal resources and without family or friends to help. I say this because, when speaking of the poor, the Bible so frequently refers to widows, orphans and aliens (or strangers or sojourners) as examples of the poor.

For example: Exodus 22:22, Leviticus 23:22, Deuteronomy 14:28-29, Deuteronomy 24:17, Deuteronomy 24:19-21, Deuteronomy 26:12, Deuteronomy 27:19, Ruth 1:5, 1 Kings 17:9-24, 2 Kings 4:1-7, Psalm 68:5, Psalm 94:6, Psalm 146:7,9, Proverbs 15:25, Isaiah 1:17, Isaiah 1:23, Isaiah 10:1-2, Jeremiah 5:28, Jeremiah 7:6-7, Jeremiah 22:3, Ezekiel 22:7, Ezekiel 22:29, Zechariah 7:10, Malachi 3:5, Matthew 23:14, Matthew 25:35-40, Matthew 25:41-46, Mark 12:41-44, Luke 4:25-26, Luke 20:47, Luke 21:2-4, Acts 6:1-3, 1 Timothy 5:3-5, 1 Timothy 5:9-10, 1 Timothy 5:11-14, 1 Timothy 5:8-16, James 1:27.

While it is true that there may be rich widows, orphans and aliens, the idea appears to be that we should have particular compassion upon those who, when they fall upon hard times, do not have family or friends to support them. The widow (especially in Biblical times) was without a husband to support her; the orphan was without parents to support him or her; and the alien is away from his or her town or culture, friends and family, who might otherwise be counted upon for support in time of trouble.


How Do People Become Poor?

Those who argue that people's poverty is simply because of "oppression" or "injustice" are partly right, as are those who say that poverty is the fault of poor people because of their laziness or bad decisions. The Bible says that either of these explanations may be right, but that there is another reason as well - circumstances, which involve no guilt on anybody's part. Examples are famine, widowhood or becoming an orphan. So ...

- Loss of a natural support system. I mentioned widows and orphans above. Those very labels suggest the cause of poverty. A woman (especially in biblical times) whose husband has died, or a child without parents, is very likely to be poor.

- Not working (1 Thessalonians 4:11-12, 2 Thessalonians 3:12). And, more specifically: laziness (Proverbs 6:6-11, Proverbs 12:24, Proverbs 19:15, Proverbs 20:4, Proverbs 21:25-26, Proverbs 24:30-34), negligence and lack of discipline (Proverbs 10:3-5, Proverbs 13:18), chasing fantasies (Proverbs 12:11, Proverbs 28:19), being all talk (Proverbs 14:23), over-sleeping (Proverbs 20:13), heavy drinking, gluttony, drowsiness (Proverbs 23:21).

- Other causes. Foresaking God/sin (Deuteronomy 28:20-44, Proverbs 13:21, Proverbs 13:25, Isaiah 30:20, Jeremiah 8:10, Jeremiah 17:5), famine (Genesis 47:13-26, Nehemiah 5:1-13), taxes (Nehemiah 5:1-13), usury (Nehemiah 5:1-13), injustice (Proverbs 13:23, Micah 2:1-2, Micah 3:2-3), a curse (Genesis 27:39 - although it is a bit unclear to me whether this is the cause of poverty, or simply a prediction of poverty), refusing to accept advice (Proverbs 10:21).


Why Do People Stay Poor?

It appears people stay poor either because the causes for them becoming poor remain (loss of a support system, not working, etc.), or because once they become poor they are easy to bully and mistreat.

The Bible really comes down on mistreatment.

Don't oppress the poor. (Exodus 22:22, Leviticus 19:13, Proverbs 22:16, Proverbs 22:22-23, Ecclesiastes 4:1, Ecclesiastes 5:8, Jeremiah 7:6-7, Jeremiah 22:3, Ezekiel 18:7 & 16-17, Ezekiel 18:12, Ezekiel 22:7, Ezekiel 22:29, Amos 4:1, Amos 5:11-12, Amos 8:4, Zechariah 7:10, Malachi 3:5)

Do not: charge them interest (Leviticus 25:35-36, Nehemiah 5:1-13), shut your eyes to their need (Proverbs 28:27), pervert justice for the poor or deprive them of justice (Deuteronomy 24:17, Deuteronomy 27:19, Proverbs 13:23, Isaiah 10:1-2, Amos 5:11-12, Malachi 3:5), burden them with [high?] taxes (Nehemiah 5:1-13), murder them (Job 24:14, Jeremiah 2:34), mock them (Proverbs 17:5), rob them (Proverbs 22:22-23), be shocked if you see them oppressed by government officials (Ecclesiastes 5:8), ignore the widow's plea (Isaiah 1:23), plunder the poor and grind their faces (Isaiah 3:14-15), let them go hungry or thirsty (Isaiah 32:6), drive workers hard (Isaiah 58:3), hold neighbors in servitude (Jeremiah 34:15-17), deny them what you do not need (Ezekiel 34:18-21), charge them high rent (Amos 5:11-12), buy them (Amos 8:6), seize all a person's possessions (Micah 2:1-2, Micah 3:2-3), defraud the wage earner (Malachi 3:5).


Should Christians Help the Poor?

Yes!

Help them with money and other assistance. 1 Kings 18:4, 2 Kings 4:38, Psalm 112:9, Proverbs 3:27-28, Proverbs 11:24-26, Proverbs 14:20-21, Proverbs 19:17, Proverbs 28:27, Isaiah 58:10, Matthew 19:21-22, Matthew 25:35-40, Mark 10:21-22, Luke 3:11, Luke 11:40-41, Luke 12:33-34, Luke 18:22-23, Luke 19:8, John 13:29, Acts 3:2-8, Acts 11:28-30, Acts 20:33-35, Romans 15:25-27, 2 Corinthians 8:13-14, 1 Timothy 5:8, 1 Timothy 5:9-10, 1 Timothy 5:8-16, 1 Timothy 6:17-18, Titus 3:14, Hebrews 13:16, 1 John 3:17, Psalm 72:4, Psalm 72:12-14.

Other help. By nightfall, return a poor man's cloak who leaves it as security for a loan (Exodus 22:26-27, Deuteronomy 24:10-15), pay a poor worker's wages daily (Leviticus 19:13, Deuteronomy 24:10-15), include the poor in your planning (Psalm 41:1, Galatians 2:10), be concerned about the rights of the poor (Proverbs 29:7, Jeremiah 22:16), Since God Himself accepts lesser-cost offerings from the poor (Leviticus 5:7,11 and Leviticus 27:8) maybe we should give them a bit of a price break, don't be too thorough in harvesting your fields, leave some for the poor (Leviticus 19:9, Leviticus 23:22, Deuteronomy 24:19-21), the tithe every third year is partly for the poor (Deuteronomy 14:28-29, Deuteronomy 26:12), the poor may sell themselves into temporary servitude (Genesis 47:13-26, Leviticus 25:39-43), a relative should buy back the land of a poor person (Leviticus 25:25), a poor Israelite sold into servitude to a foreigner has the right to be bought back by one of his brothers (Leviticus 25:47-54), all debts and servitude is ended at the Jubilee every seven years (Leviticus 25:25, Deuteronomy 15:1-18), kings should look out for the poor (Psalm 72:4, Psalm 72:12-14, Proverbs 31:8-9), King Lemuel says that alcohol is for the poor whose life is bitter and need to forget (Proverbs 31:6-7), visit and associate with the poor (Romans 12:16, James 1:27), forgive debts (Matthew 18:23-34).


Governmental Involvement

The Bible leaves a clear place for governmental involvement in helping the poor. The main way it can help is to give them fair treatment under the law. I believe the Bible talks so much about justice for the poor not because they deserve justice and the rich do not, but because the rich have the resources to make sure they have a good lawyer, and they have money to hire a burly bodyguard if they need one, while the poor do not, and thus the poor are more easily taken advantage of. King Lemuel (Proverbs 31:8-9) says kings, who are a government officials, should speak for those who can't and defend them, and the psalmist asks the king to vindicate the afflicted and save the children of the needy (Psalm 72:4) and for the king to have compassion on the poor and rescue them from oppression (Psalm 72:12-14). So clearly it is the government's duty to provide honest and fair judgements to the poor.

But is there a role for the government to provide, for example, direct physical assistance to the poor? Well, the Old Testament rules often combine governmental and religious law, and it is true that much of the Old Testament law has been superceeded, so there is room for debate, but it appears from Joseph's experience in Egypt (Genesis 47:13-26) that God did not object to Joseph saving the people from starvation by using government resources, although in that case he was not giving away government food, but selling it.

However, in Deuteronomy 14:28-29 and Deuteronomy 26:12, the law provided that every third year the tithe will go to support the priestly class, the Levites, but also to support the widow, orphan, and alien, which terms I believe - as indicated above - are used to indicate the poor.

So, if a tithe is a tenth of a person's income and this tithe occurs every third year, this was essentially a 3.33% tax per year to support the priests and the poor. This is an interesting concept because one of the concerns many people have with governmental assistance programs is that these programs so frequently grow to become unmanageable. But if governmental assistance to needy people was limited to a fixed percentage of the nation's income - as is the case with this example - this ceases to be a big problem. If income grows, the contribution grows; if income declines, the contribution declines. And, yes, if income declines the poor would be hurt most, though everybody else would also be hurt. So, I don't mean to suggest that this fixed-percentage approach is (or was) a panacea; if it was then there would have been no need in the Bible to also tell individuals - and later the Church - to help the poor.


Dignity of the Poor

One thing that struck me about giving assistance to the poor is the lengths the Bible goes to to preserve their dignity. For example, the Bible tells farmers not to be too efficient in harvesting their crops (Leviticus 19:9, Leviticus 23:22, Deuteronomy 24:19-21), but to leave a bit here and there and around the edges and corners for the poor to gather. What strikes me about this is that the poor needed to get up and get out into the field and harvest just like the farmer's field hands. Or take the example of Elijah and the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17:9-16). Though poverty-stricken, Elijah asked her to do some work and make a sacrifice (use her flour to bake him a loaf of bread). She did and God responded by giving her plentiful flour and oil. Or, in 2 Kings 4:1-7, Elisha tells the poor widow to do some work, that is, to gather empty jars. She did that and God provided her with plenty of oil to sell and repay her debts. I certainly don't think that every act of kindness to the poor should only be in response to the poor doing something, but this formula appears frequently enough that I am inclined to think that an effort by the poor is generally an excellent idea. There is a dignity in labor.

Also, notice that when making a loan to a poor person who uses his cloak for security (Exodus 22:26-27, Deuteronomy 24:10-15), the Bible tells the lender to return the cloak by nightfall so the borrower can keep warm. That seems rather inefficient; why bother accepting the cloak as security if you're just going to hand it back in a few hours? Well, perhaps by accepting the cloak, the poor borrower is being given the dignity of being treated like the better-off borrower, except that the lender drops by near sundown and says, "Oh, hiya, Fred. Looks like it might get a little chilly tonight and I thought you might put this cloak to good use. Not doing me any good in my closet."

And finally, note how strongly James (James 2:2-6) insists on treating the poor who come to church the same as the wealthy. If you give the rich special treatment that you do not give to the poor, (vs,4) "have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives?"


How the Church Can Help the Poor

The New Testament teaches that Christians, individually and as the Church, should be generous to the poor (Matthew 5:42, Matthew 18:23-34, Matthew 5:42, Matthew 15:5, Matthew 19:21-22, Matthew 25:35-40, Matthew 25:41-46, Mark 10:21-22, Luke 3:11, Luke 11:40-41, Luke 12:33-34, Luke 14:33, Luke 18:22-23, Luke 19:8, Acts 3:2-8, Acts 20:33-35, Romans 15:25-27, 2 Corinthians 8:1-4, 2 Corinthians 8:13-14, 1 Timothy 6:17-18, Titus 3:14, Hebrews 13:16, James 2:15-16, 1 John 3:17) and that they should do so without fanfare (Matthew 6:2-4), and that they should forgive their debts (Matthew 18:23-34).

Also, Christians should not intentionally become poor themselves, so as not to be a burden (Paul says if people refuse to work they shouldn't be fed. - 2 Thessalonians 3:12).

Paul urges that primarily assistance to the poor should be provided by relatives (1 Timothy 5:3-5, 1 Timothy 5:8, 1 Timothy 5:8-16) so that the church can provide assistance to those "widows who are widows indeed." It appears this widow-assistance program was poorly organized at first and the Greek widows were being overlooked (Acts 6:1-3), but was apparently straightened out when the church appointed a team to oversee the process. To be added to the list, widows apparently had to meet stringent qualifications (1 Timothy 5:9-10): They had to be at least 60 years old, have had one husband, a reputation for good works, brought up children, shown hospitality to strangers, washed the saints feet, assisted those in distress, and devoted themselves to good works.

I doubt this list exhausted the charity of the church, but I think these were the rules for a poor widow to be continually supported.

References in the Bible to the Poor

I have in recent years been quite uncomfortable with discussions within the Christian community about poverty. The reason for this is that the discussion often seems to be so heavily weighted towards politics, and with just a patina of Christianity. I've seen this attitude from both the left and the right, and it is just not biblical.

It seems the way to determine what the Bible says about the poor and our responsibility toward them is to, well, read the Bible. So for quite a few months that's what I've been doing, reading from Genesis to Revelation and marking down every passage I believe is directly relevant to understanding poverty and what God wants us to do about it.

I hope to share some thoughts about this later, but right now, without commentary, the list, directly below, with my attempted summary of each passage. I am sure there are other passages that I have missed, and if you know of any, please let me know. But this is a starting point, and I hope that by putting these verses together so they are easy to study that it will give a broad view of what the Bible teaches about poverty and immunize people against those who pull out one or two selected verses from the Bible to try to prove their point.

Genesis 21:12-16 - Hagar is driven out and thereby made poor.
Genesis 27:39 - Isaac's curse of Essau to poverty.
Genesis 47:13-26 - During a famine the people of Egypt buy grain with money, then with their cattle, and then with their land and bodies. Joseph buys these poor people, gives them grain and requires that 20 percent of what they gain be paid to Pharoah.
Exodus 22:3 - Poor criminals can be sold into slavery.
Exodus 22:22 - Do not afflict a widow or orphan.
Exodus 22:25 - Do not charge interest to poor Israelites.
Exodus 22:26-27 - Return a cloak used by a poor neighbor as security for a loan before nightfall.
Exodus 23:3 - Do not be partial to the poor in a dispute.
Exodus 23:6 - Do not be partial against the poor in a dispute.
Leviticus 5:7,11 - Lesser-cost offerings for the poorer.
Leviticus 19:9 - Leave some of the harvest to be gleaned.
Leviticus 19:13 - Do not oppress the poor; pay a hired man daily.
Leviticus 19:15 - Show no partiality to the poor or the great.
Leviticus 23:22 - Leave the corners of fields unharvested for the poor and alien.
Leviticus 25:25 - A near relative should buy back land sold by a poor person, or (25:28), it will be returned on Jubilee.
Leviticus 25:35-36 - Help the poor; don't charge them interest.
Leviticus 25:39-43 - The poor can sell themselves to their debtors and the buyer must treat them as a hired person. They must be released at the Jubilee. (44-46 - A foreigner can be a slave for life.)
Leviticus 25:47-54 - Israelite poor has the right to be redeemed from a foreigner. He will be released on the Jubilee.
Leviticus 27:8? - If a person is too poor to pay a vow price, the priest will set the price.
Deuteronomy 14:28-29 - A tithe every third year is for food for the Levites, alien, widow and orphan.
Deuteronomy 15:1-18 - Every seven years there is a remission of debts.
Deuteronomy 24:10-15 - Don't keep the security for a poor man's loan (a cloak) overnight; pay the poor worker his wages before sunset daily.
Deuteronomy 24:17 - Do not pervert justice for the alien, orphan, or widow.
Deuteronomy 24:19-21 - Don't be too thorough in harvesting; leave some for the orphan, widow and alien.
Deuteronomy 26:12 - The third-year tithe is for the Levite, stranger, orphan and widow.
Deuteronomy 27:19 - Cursed is the one who distorts the justice due to an alien, orphan or widow.
Deuteronomy 28:20-44 - The Lord will take away good things (make people poor) if they forsake Him.
Ruth 1:5 - Women bereft when husband died.
Ruth 1:20-21 - Naomi laments her poverty.
Ruth 2:2-23 - Ruth, in her poverty, gleans in the field.
1 Samuel 2:7 - The Lord makes poor and rich.
1 Kings 17:9-24 - Elijah and the widow of Zarephath.
1 Kings 18:4 - Obediah provides the prophets with bread and water.
2 Kings 4:1-7 - Elisha provides oil for the poor widow to sell and repay her debt.
2 Kings 4:38 - Elisha provides stew for the famine-stricken sons of the prophets.
Nehemiah 5:1-13 - Famine and taxes and usury have made the people poor.
Job 5: 15-16 - Eliphaz says God rescues the poor from the hand of the mighty so the helpless have hope.
Job 20:18-19 - Zophar says the wicked cannot enjoy his riches because he has oppressed and forsaken the poor.
Job 24:9-10 - Job says evil people take from the poor.
Job 24:14 - Job says the murderer kills the poor.
Job 31:16-22 - Job defends himself by citing his kindness to the poor.
Job 34:19 - Elihu says God does not show partiality for the rich over the poor.
Job 34:27-28 - Elihu says God strikes the wicked for turning from Him and causing the poor to cry out to Him.
Psalm 34:6 - The poor man cried out and God saved him.
Psalm 37:14 - The wicked attempt to cast down the poor and afflicted.
Psalm 37:16 - The little of the righteous is better than the abundance of the wicked.
Psalm 41:1 - Blessed is the man who considers the helpless.
Psalm 49:1-2 - The psalmist calls on all to listen, rich and poor.
Psalm 68:5 - God is a father to orphans and a judge for widows.
Psalm 69:33 - The Lord hears the needy.
Psalm 70:5 - A needy man calls on the Lord.
Psalm 72:4 - May the king vindicate the afflicted, save the children of the needy and crush the oppressor.
Psalm 72:12-14 - The king will have compassion on the poor and rescue from oppression.
Psalm 82:3-4 - An appeal for God to save the afflicted, destitute, weak and needy, and deliver them from the wicked.
Psalm 94:6 - An appeal for God to save the widow, orphan and stranger.
Psalm 107:35-38 - God makes a place in the wilderness for the poor to dwell.
Psalm 107:40-41 - God blesses the needy.
Psalm 109:9-12, 15-16 - David prays for poverty for the wicked who oppressed the needy.
Psalm 109:21-22 - David asks for help since he is afflicted and needy.
Psalm 109:30-31 - God saves the needy.
Psalm 112:9 - The man who fears the Lord has given freely to the poor.
Psalm 113:7 - God raises up the poor and needy.
Psalm 132:15 - The Lord promises to satisfy the needy with bread.
Psalm 140:12 - God will uphold the cause of the afflicted and justice for the poor.
Psalm 146:7,9 - The Lord gives food to the hungry, protects strangers, fatherless and widows.
Psalm 147:6 - The Lord supports the afflicted.
Proverbs 3:27-28 - Do not withold good to those to whom it is due, such as neighbor, when you can do it.
Proverbs 6:6-11 - Laziness results in poverty.
Proverbs 6:30-31 - Nobody despises you if you steal because you are hungry, but you must pay it back sevenfold.
Proverbs 10:3-5 - Negligence results in poverty, diligence in wealth.
Proverbs 10:15 - The rich man's wealth is his fortress, the ruin of the poor is poverty.
Proverbs 10:21 - Good advice feeds many. Fools die for lack of understanding.
Proverbs 11:24-26 - Generosity [perhaps to the poor?] is rewarded. Selling what people need is blessed.
Proverbs 12:9 - Better to be well off but not esteemed, than one who honors himself but is poor.
Proverbs 12:11 - Diligence leads to wealth but the pursuit of vain things does not make sense [makes poor?]
Proverbs 12:24 - The diligent rule; the lazy will be put to forced labor.
Proverbs 13:7 - Some people pretend to be rich but are poor, and vice versa.
Proverbs 13:8 - The rich can pay a ransom, but nobody even tries to get the poor to pay a ransom.
Proverbs 13:18 - Poverty comes with lack of discipline; honor by accepting a reproof.
Proverbs 13:21 - Sin leads to poverty, righteousness to prosperity.
Proverbs 13:23 - The poor has abundant food in the ground, but injustice sweeps it away.
Proverbs 13:25 - The righteous have enough to eat, the wicked go hungry.
Proverbs 14:20-21 - The poor is hated even by his neighbor and the rich are loved, but it is sin to despise your neighbor and good to be gracious to the poor.
Proverbs 14:23 - Work leads to profit; mere talk to poverty.
Proverbs 14:31 - Oppressing the poor is an insult to God. Graciousness to the poor honors God.
Proverbs 15:6 (?) - The righteous have wealth but the wicked have trouble.
Proverbs 15:16 - Better is a little with the fear of God than treasure with turmoil.
Proverbs 15:17 - Better vegetables with love than a fattened ox with hatred.
Proverbs 15:25 - The Lord opposes the proud but protects the widow.
Proverbs 16:8 - Better is little with righteousness than much with injustice.
Proverbs 17:1 - Better a dry morsel with quietness than feasting with strife.
Proverbs 17:5 - He who mocks the poor insults their Maker.
Proverbs 18:23 - The poor plead; the rich answer roughly.
Proverbs 19:1 - Better a poor man of integrity than a fool of perverse speech.
Proverbs 19:4 - Wealth adds friends; poverty separates a poor man from his friend.
Proverbs 19:7 - A poor man's brothers hate him, and his friends avoid him.
Proverbs 19:15 - A lazy man will go hungry.
Proverbs 19:17 - Being gracious to the poor is lending to the Lord, who will repay.
Proverbs 19:22 - Better to be poor than a liar.
Proverbs 20:4 - The sluggard does not plow, so he begs at harvest-time.
Proverbs 20:13 - Sleep and grow poor; open your eyes and you will have food.
Proverbs 21:9 (?) - Better to live in a corner of a roof than in a house with a contentious woman.
Proverbs 21:13 - He who closes his ear to the cry of the poor will cry out and not be answered.
Proverbs 21:25-26 (?) - The sluggard refuses to work and craves more, but the righteous does not hold back in giving.
Proverbs 22:2 - God made both rich and poor.
Proverbs 22:7 - The rich rules the poor. The borrower is a slave to the lender.
Proverbs 22:9 - The generous gives some food to the poor and is blessed.
Proverbs 22:16 - He who oppresses the poor to increase his wealth, or who gives to the rich, will come to poverty.
Proverbs 22:22-23 - Do not rob the poor or crush the afflicted.
Proverbs 23:21 - Heavy drinking, gluttony and drowsiness will bring a man to poverty.
Proverbs 24:30-34 - The sluggard comes to poverty.
Proverbs 25:24 (?) - Better to live in a corner of a roof than in a house with a contentious woman.
Proverbs 28:3 - A poor man [alternate reading, "ruler"] who oppresses the lowly is like a driving rain that leaves no food.
Proverbs 28:6 - Better to be poor with integrity than rich and crooked.
Proverbs 28:8 - Getting rich by charging high interest gathers money for someone who will be kind to the poor.
Proverbs 28:11 - The rich think they are wise, but a poor man of understanding sees through him.
Proverbs 28:19 - Farm your land and have plenty; follow fantasies and have poverty.
Proverbs 28:27 - He who gives to the poor will never want; those who shut their eyes to the poor will have curses.
Proverbs 29:7 - The righteous are concerned about the rights of the poor.
Proverbs 29:13 - God gives light to the eyes of both the poor man and the oppressor.
Proverbs 29:14 - If a king judges the poor with righteousness, his throne will be established forever.
Proverbs 30:8-9 - Agur prays for neither poverty nor wealth lest he be in want and steal or be full and deny God.
Proverbs 31:6-7 - King Lemuel says that strong drink is for those who are perishing, whose life is bitter and in poverty.
Proverbs 31:8-9 - King Lemuel says kings should speak for those who can't, for the destitute, and should judge fairly and defend the rights of the poor.
Ecclesiastes 4:1 - The preacher sees the oppressed who have no one to comfort them. [I assume the oppressed are frequently the poor.]
Ecclesiastes 5:8 - Don't be shocked if you see the poor oppressed by government officials.
Ecclesiastes 5:12 - The poorer working man sleeps well, while the rich man with a full stomach does not.
Ecclesiastes 9:14-16 - The preacher recalls a poor but wise man who saved a city, but was forgotten. The wisdom of the poor is despised.
Isaiah 1:7 - Isaiah describes the land, cities and fields of Israel as a desolation.
Isaiah 1:17 - Defend the orphan, plead for the widow.
Isaiah 1:23 - The rulers do not defend the orphan or listen to the widow's plea.
Isaiah 3:14-15 - The elders and princes of Israel have plundered the poor and grind their faces.
Isaiah 10:1-2 - Isaiah pronounces woe on rulers who deprive the needy of justice, who take away the rights of the poor so they can take advantage of widows and orphans.
Isaiah 11:4 - A shoot from the stem of Jesse will judge the poor with righteousness.
Isaiah 14:30 - A prophesy regarding Philistia: The helpless will eat and the needy will lie down safely.
Isaiah 30:20 - The Lord tells the people of Zion that the Lord has for a time given them bread of privation and water of oppression.
Isaiah 32:6 - A fool lets the hungry go empty and withholds water from the thirsty.
Isaiah 40:20 - A poor idolator makes an idol from wood rather than gold or silver.
Isaiah 58:3 - Those who say they are seeking God at the same time drive their workers hard.
Isaiah 58:6-7 - God's fast is to loosen the chains of injustice, to let the oppressed go free, to share food, clothing and home with the poor.
Isaiah 58:10 - If you help the hungry and afflicted, you will be rewarded.
Isaiah 59:13 - Isaiah lists promoting oppression as a sin.
Jeremiah 2:34 - Israel chastised for killing the innocent poor.
Jeremiah 5:3-4 - Jeremiah defends Israel to God by saying the bad examples are the poor who don't know the way of God.
Jeremiah 5:28 - The wicked do not plead the cause of the orphan, or defend the rights of the poor.
Jeremiah 7:6-7 - God says that if the people do not oppress alien, orphan, or widow, or follow other Gods, they may remain in the land.
Jeremiah 8:10 - God promises to bring to poverty (give their wives and fields to others) to those who have rejected the Lord's word.
Jeremiah 17:5 - God curses the one who trusts in man, saying he will not see prosperity but will live in stony wastes.
Jeremiah 22:3 - Do not mistreat stranger, orphan, or widow.
Jeremiah 22:16 - It is good to plead the cause of the afflicted and needy.
Jeremiah 34:15-17 (?) - The people are condemned for promising to release their neighbors from servitude but not doing so.
Jeremiah 39:10, 40:7 - Some of the poorest people were left when the rest of the population was taken to Babylon.
Jeremiah 52:15-16 - The poor people are now taken off to Babylon, but some of the very poorest are left to work the land.
Ezekiel 16:49 - Sodom sinned by not helping the poor and needy.
Ezekiel 18:7, 16-17 - God blesses the one who (among other things) does not oppress and who gives food to the hungry and clothing to the naked.
Ezekiel 18:12 - God curses the one who (among other things) oppresses the poor and needy.
Ezekiel 22:7 - Jerusalem sinned by (among other things) oppressing alien, orphan and widow.
Ezekiel 22:29 - The people wronged the poor and needy and oppressed the sojourner.
Ezekiel 34:18-21 - The fat sheep mistreat the lean. They drink their fill but needlessly muddy the water and trample the grass for the rest.
Daniel 4:27 - Daniel urges the king to show mercy to the poor, and thereby prolong his prosperity.
Amos 2:6 - Israel sinned by selling the needy for a pair of sandals.
Amos 4:1 - Condemnation of women who oppress the poor and crush the needy.
Amos 5:11-12 - Condemnation of those who trample on [or, NASB, impose heavy rent on] the poor, and exact grain from them, and turn aside the poor at the gate [or, NIV, deprive them of justice in court].
Amos 8:4 - A condemnation of those who trample the needy and do away with the humble.
Amos 8:6 - A condemnation of those who buy the poor with silver and the needy for a pair of sandals.
Micah 2:1-2 - Woe to those who seize a man's fields, home and inheritance [i.e.- who make him poor.]
Micah 3:2-3 - Condemnation to those who strip their fellows of everything, down to skin and flesh and bones.
Zechariah 7:10 - Do not oppress widow, orphan, stranger or the poor.
Malachi 3:5 - God will judge the one who defrauds the wage earner of his wages, who oppresses the widow and orphan, who turns aside the alien [NIV, deprives the alien of justice].
Matthew 5:3 - Blessed are the poor in spirit.
Matthew 5:42 - Give to the one who asks [Perhaps the poor are more likely be in need and ask.]
Matthew 6:2-4 - Give to the poor quietly, without fanfare.
Matthew 11:5 - Jesus answers John's messengers about himself, saying (among other things) that the poor have the gospel preached to them.
Matthew 15:5 - Jesus condemns people who refuse to help their [poor?] parents by saying that anything they have that may help them is devoted to God.
Matthew 18:23-34 - Parable of two men who cannot repay their debts and the forgiveness shown and not shown.
Matthew 19:21-22 - Jesus tells a rich young man that if he wants to be complete [NIV, perfect] to sell all he has and give the money to the poor.
Matthew 23:14 - Jesus says woe to those who devour widows' homes while making long prayers.
Matthew 25:35-40 - Jesus says he will welcome the kindly, and compares their caring for the hungry, thirsty, and stranger to caring for Him.
Matthew 25:41-46 - Jesus says he will send away the unkind, comparing their lack of caring for the hungry, thirsty, stranger to not caring for Him.
Matthew 26:8-11 - The disciples say the perfume the woman poured on Jesus could be sold for the poor. Jesus defends her, saying the poor you will always have.
Mark 10:21-22 - Jesus tells the rich man to sell all he has and give it to the poor.
Mark 12:41-44 - The poor widow gave more than the rich people because she gave all she had.
Mark 14:3-7 - The disciples say the perfume the woman poured on Jesus could be sold for the poor. Jesus defends her, saying the poor you will always have.
Luke 3:11 - John says the man with two tunics should share one with the man who has none. And also with food.
Luke 4:25-26 - Jesus says there were many widows in the time of Elijah, but Elijah was only sent to one of them.
Luke 7:22 - Jesus answers John's messengers about himself, saying (among other things) that the poor have the gospel preached to them.
Luke 9:58 - Jesus says he is homeless, unlike the foxes, which have holes, and the birds, which have nests.
Luke 10:4 - Jesus tells his disciples to go out in a poor manner, with no purse, not bag, no shoes.
Luke 11:40-41 - Jesus urges Pharisees to give that which is within them to the poor.
Luke 12:33-34 - Sell your possessions and give to the poor.
Luke 14:33 - No one can be one of Jesus disciples unless he gives up all his possessions. [Become poor?]
Luke 16:19-25 - The rich man and Lazarus. The rich man received his reward on earth; Lazarus received his in Abraham's bosom.
Luke 18:22-23 - Jesus tells the rich man to sell all he has and give it to the poor.
Luke 19:8 - Zaccheus gives half of his possessions to the poor.
Luke 19:26 - The one who has will be given more; the one without will have even even the little bit he has taken away.
Luke 20:47 - Jesus condemns the scribes who devour widows' houses.
Luke 21:2-4 - The poor widow gave more than the rich people because she gave all she had.
Luke 22:35-36 - Jesus says when he sent out the disciples without purse or bag or sandals [in a poor state], that they didn't lack. But now he tells them to take along their purse and bag and sword.
John 5:5-8 - Jesus heals a sick man who has nobody to put him in the healing pool. [I assume he was poor or he would have hired someone to put him in the pool.]
John 12:4-8 - Judas objects to putting perfume on Jesus, saying it could be sold for the poor. He was not concerned for the poor but was a thief.
John 13:29 - At the last supper, the disciples thought Jesus may have asked Judas to give some money to the poor.
Acts 3:2-8 - A lame beggar asked Peter and John for money, but Peter said they had no money and healed him instead.
Acts 6:1-3 - The widows of the Greek Jews were being overlooked in the distribution of food, so Stephen and six others were selected to organize it.
Acts 11:28-30 - The prophet Agabus predicts a famine, so the people who could sent relief to the brethren in Jerusalem.
Acts 20:33-35 - Work hard to help the weak [poor?].
Romans 12:16 - Associate with the lowly [poor?]
Romans 15:25-27 - The church in Macedonia and Achaia send a contribution to help the poor saints in Jerusalem.
1 Corinthians 13:3 - If you give all your posessions to feed the poor but do not have love, it profits nothing.
2 Corinthians 8:1-4 - The poor Macedonian church begged to give, and gave beyond their ability.
2 Corinthians 8:9 - Jesus was rich but became poor that through his poverty we might become rich.
2 Corinthians 8:13-14 - Paul urges the Corinthian believers to contribute to help other believers in want, that those believers may help the Corinthians when they are in want.
Galatians 2:10 - The council in Jerusalem asks Paul to remember the poor.
1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 - Work that you may not be in need.
2 Thessalonians 3:8-9 - Paul worked for a living so as not to burden the people, and to be an example.
2 Thessalonians 3:12 - Paul says if a person won't work, neither let him eat. He condemns the undisciplined, who are acting like busybodies.
1 Timothy 5:3-5 - Honor widows who are widows indeed. But those who have families, their families need to take care of them.
1 Timothy 5:8 - Believers should provide for their own family members who are in need.
1 Timothy 5:9-10 - Widows should be put on a list (for support) if at least 60 years old, have had one husband, a reputation for good works, brought up children, shown hospitality to strangers, washed the saints feet, assisted those in distress, and devoted herself to good works.
1 Timothy 5:11-14 - Younger widows should not be put on the list (for support) because (in part) they become idle, gossips and busybodies. They should marry and raise a family.
1 Timothy 5:8-16 - A believing woman with a widow in her family should assist that widow and not let the church be burdened, so the church can help those who are widows indeed.
1 Timothy 6:17-18 - Rich people should be generous and ready to share [with those in need, I assume].
Titus 3:14 - The people should help to meet needs.
Hebrews 13:16 - God wants us to share [with those in need, I assume].
James 1:9 - The brother in a humble circumstances [poor?] should rejoice in his high position.
James 1:27 - Pure religion involves visiting widows and orphans in their distress.
James 2:2-6 - Do not treat the rich differently from the poor when they come to church.
James 2:15-16 - Blessing a brother or sister who needs food or clothing but not giving them what they need is not good.
James 5:4 - The rich have sinned by withholding the pay of their laborers.
1 John 3:17 - If you have material possessions and see a brother in need but don't help, how does God's love abide in you?
Revelation 2:9 - The church of Smyrna is in poverty, yet is rich.
Revelation 3:17 - The church of Laodicea says it is rich, but is wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked.
Revelation 13:16 - All people, including rich and poor, receive a mark on their right hand or forehead.

'Appeal to the Cat' Argumentation

I've been thinking about a little argumentation technique my wife and I have developed which I want to recommend.

I call it, "The Appeal to the Cat," and it works like this:

Let's say you and your spouse (or friend, or whomever) get in a "discussion" which is on the edge of becoming tense. It goes somethig like this ...

"Are you going to pick up your socks someday?" she says.

"I pick up my socks!" you reply.

"Really? What do you call those?"

At this point she directs your attention to socks on the floor which you cannot by any reasonable argument make out to be anybody's socks but your own.

Hmm. You know the Christian thing would just be to admit you are wrong, say "Sorry," and pick up the socks, but you are still feeling a bit feisty and are unwilling to humble yourself. So, enter the cat, Archie.

"Well," you say, "Archie told me it was okay."

"Archie!?"

"Yeah, he said the blue of the socks goes nicely with the tan color of the rug."

At this point she gets that it's a joke, and plays along.

"I don't believe Archie said that! All he ever says is 'meow.'"

"Yeah, but in cat-talk that means it's okay to leave my socks on the floor."

"Well, you need to straighten out Archie on that. And tell him the colors don't match."

Turning to the cat, you shake your finger and say, "Archie, did you hear that? No socks on the floor!"

Turning back to her as you pick up the socks, you sigh and say, "I'm always having to pick up after that cat!"

So, what could have turned into a fight ending in hard feelings becomes a joke, and the problem solved.

Will this work if you just blew $25,000 on the stock market? Uh, probably not; just for little things.

Also, you may be asking, "Does this technique also work with dogs?"

Hmm. I dunno. Give it a try.

In a Faith Denying Environment, Should I Go or Stay?

At my Bible study group recently, the topic came up of a woman who attends a spiritually dead church who had come to know Christ. Someone in our group asked if she should leave that church or stay, and everybody said she should stay.

The reasonable logic was that Christ calls us to be a witness to the world (in this instance, to her very-dead church), and not to withdraw into our own little huddle.

True, very true ...

And yet in retrospect I think that answer is inadequate. I think a proper answer depends on the person.

Are you at least standing firm in your faith in a faith-disparaging environment? Better yet, are you reaching out with the love of Christ in that environment?

If so, it is probably a great thing for you to stay. If you are an evangelist, by all means be one!

Or, do you find yourself hiding your faith and being a bit evasive if people ask about it? ("Well, yeah, sometimes I go to church on Sunday. It's kind of something my Mom expects.")

If so, are you going to change? If you can't honestly say you will change then you should probably get out. For the time being, at any rate, you need a more supportive environment. And I am not just talking about getting out of a dead church. I am talking about getting out of a job, a neighborhood, a city, or any other negative environment.

If you become a just one more worldly Christian then you become just one more reason for the world to despise Christ.

And yes, even if you get out of a destructive environment and into a good one, like my Bible study friends say, you are still called upon to reach out! But if you read the very short Third Letter of John in the New Testament you will find John says (vs 8) that those who support Christian workers are "fellow-workers with the truth." So, do your outreach by supporting a missionary, by giving to Christian relief organizations, by supporting an inner-city outreach, or just by being like Tabitha (Acts 9), who helped the poor by sewing clothes.