We now know what God’s attitude is toward the poor/needy/afflicted. Is this the way the rest of the world views the poor? What does the world have to say about the poor? Interestingly, the Bible addresses this.
Prov 14:20 ____________________________________________
Prov 17:5 _____________________________________________
Prov 19:4 _____________________________________________
Prov 19:7 _____________________________________________
Prov 22:7 _____________________________________________
Not quite the same as the Lord’s attitude is it. How would you characterize the world’s attitude? ___________________________________________
We know what the world thinks and the Lord’s attitude. Where does that leave us believers, the Church? How should we deal with the poor? Take a look at these passages:
Lev 19:9-10 ___________________________________________
Lev 23:22 _____________________________________________
Lev 25:35-37 __________________________________________
Lev 25:39-40 __________________________________________
Deut 15:8-11 __________________________________________
Deut 24:14-15 _________________________________________
Prov 14:21 ____________________________________________
Prov 14:31 ____________________________________________
Prov 19:17 ____________________________________________
Prov 21:13 ____________________________________________
Prov 22:9 _____________________________________________
Ps 69:33 ______________________________________________
Ex 23:2-6 _____________________________________________
Is 11:4 ________________________________________________
Acts 3:6 ______________________________________________
Acts 5:1-6 _____________________________________________
Acts 4:33-35 ___________________________________________
Luke 4:18 _____________________________________________
Luke 10:33-37 _________________________________________
Ezek 16:49-50 _________________________________________
Ex 23:10-11 ___________________________________________
It is obvious that government programs and spending have not cured the problem of poverty. Actually I’m not sure we should describe it as a problem when the Lord considers it to be a common circumstance of everyday life for a select group of people. In any event, God does have a solution to the “problem” if we can call it that.
First of all, He has told US how we can contribute to the solution. If we will follow His instructions, it will go a long, long way, if not all the way toward a solution.
However, He has a safety net of His own, FOR His own, just in case.
- Gen 22:14 _____________________________________________
- Matt 6:23-34 ___________________________________________
- Ps 37:25 ______________________________________________
- Heb 13:5-6 ____________________________________________
- Phil 4:19 ______________________________________________
- 2 Sam 12:7-8 __________________________________________
- 1 Tim 6:17-19 ________________________________________
======================================================================
WORLDS ATTITUDE TOWARD THE POOR
Prov 14:20 The poor is hated even by his neighbor, But those who love the rich are many. NAS
Prov 17:5 He who mocks the poor reproaches his Maker; He who rejoices at calamity will not go unpunished. NAS
Prov 19:4 Wealth adds many friends, But a poor man is separated from his friend. NAS
Prov 19:7 All the brothers of a poor man hate him; How much more do his friends go far from him! He pursues them with words, but they are gone. NAS
Prov 22:7 The rich rules over the poor, And the borrower becomes the lender’s slave. NAS
======================================================================
WHAT SHOULD WE DO ABOUT THE POOR?
Lev 19:9-10 ‘Now when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very corners of your field, neither shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest. ‘Nor shall you glean your vineyard, nor shall you gather the fallen fruit of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the needy and for the stranger. I am the LORD your God. NAS
Lev 23:22 ‘When you reap the harvest of your land, moreover, you shall not reap to the very corners of your field, nor gather the gleaning of your harvest; you are to leave them for the needy and the alien. I am the LORD your God.’ ” NAS
Lev 25:35-37 ‘Now in case a countryman of yours becomes poor and his means with regard to you falter, then you are to sustain him, like a stranger or a sojourner, that he may live with you. ‘Do not take usurious interest from him, but revere your God, that your countryman may live with you. ‘You shall not give him your silver at interest, nor your food for gain. NAS
Lev 25:39-40 ‘And if a countryman of yours becomes so poor with regard to you that he sells himself to you, you shall not subject him to a slave’s service. 40’He shall be with you as a hired man, as if he were a sojourner; he shall serve with you until the year of jubilee. NAS
Deut 15:11For the poor will never cease to be in the land; therefore I command you, saying, ‘You shall freely open your hand to your brother, to your needy and poor in your land.’ NAS
Deut 24:14-15 “You shall not oppress a hired servant who is poor and needy, whether he is one of your countrymen or one of your aliens who is in your land in your towns. You shall give him his wages on his day before the sun sets, for he is poor and sets his heart on it; so that he may not cry against you to the LORD and it become sin in you. NAS
Prov 14:21 He who despises his neighbor sins, But happy is he who is gracious to the poor. NAS
Prov 14:31 He who oppresses the poor reproaches his Maker, But he who is gracious to the needy honors Him. NAS
Prov 19:17 He who is gracious to a poor man lends to the LORD, And He will repay him for his good deed. NAS
Ps 69:33 For the LORD hears the needy, And does not despise His who are prisoners. NAS
Prov 21:13 He who shuts his ear to the cry of the poor Will also cry himself and not be answered. NAS
Prov 22:9 He who is generous will be blessed, For he gives some of his food to the poor. NAS
Deut 15:8-11 but you shall freely open your hand to him, and shall generously lend him sufficient for his need in whatever he lacks. Beware, lest there is a base thought in your heart, saying, ‘The seventh year, the year of remission, is near,’ and your eye is hostile toward your poor brother, and you give him nothing; then he may cry to the LORD against you, and it will be a sin in you. You shall generously give to him, and your heart shall not be grieved when you give to him, because for this thing the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in all your undertakings. For the poor will never cease to be in the land; therefore I command you, saying, ‘You shall freely open your hand to your brother, to your needy and poor in your land.’ NAS
Lev 19:15 ‘You shall do no injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor nor defer to the great, but you are to judge your neighbor fairly. NAS
Ex 23:2-6 You shall not follow a multitude in doing evil, nor shall you testify in a dispute so as to turn aside after a multitude in order to pervert justice; nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his dispute. “If you meet your enemy’s ox or his donkey wandering away, you shall surely return it to him. If you see the donkey of one who hates you lying helpless under its load, you shall refrain from leaving it to him, you shall surely release it with him. You shall not pervert the justice due to your needy brother in his dispute. NAS
Isa 11:4 But with righteousness He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked. NAS
Deut 15:7-8 “If there is a poor man with you, one of your brothers, in any of your towns in your land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart, nor close your hand from your poor brother; but you shall freely open your hand to him, and shall generously lend him sufficient for his need in whatever he lacks. NAS
Acts 4:33-35 And with great power the apostles were giving witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all. For there was not a needy person among them, for all who were owners of land or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds of the sales, and lay them at the apostles’ feet; and they would be distributed to each, as any had need. NAS
Acts 5:1-6 But a certain man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, and kept back some of the price for himself, with his wife’s full knowledge, and bringing a portion of it, he laid it at the apostles’ feet. But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back some of the price of the land? “While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men, but to God.” And as he heard these words, Ananias fell down and breathed his last; and great fear came upon all who heard of it. And the young men arose and covered him up, and after carrying him out, they buried him. NAS
Luke 10:33-37 “But a certain Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him; and when he saw him, he felt compassion, and came to him, and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them; and he put him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. “And on the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and said, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I return, I will repay you.’ “Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the robbers’ hands?” And he said, “The one who showed mercy toward him.” And Jesus said to him, “Go and do the same.” NAS
Luke 4:18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, And recovery of sight to the blind, NAS
Ezek 16:49-50 “Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had arrogance, abundant food, and careless ease, but she did not help the poor and needy. “Thus they were haughty and committed abominations before Me. Therefore I removed them when I saw it. NAS
Acts 3:6 But Peter said, “I do not possess silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene– walk!” NAS
Ex 23:10-11 “And you shall sow your land for six years and gather in its yield, but on the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, so that the needy of your people may eat; and whatever they leave the beast of the field may eat. You are to do the same with your vineyard and your olive grove. NAS
======================================================================
GOD’S SAFETY NET
Gen 22:14 And Abraham called the name of that place The LORD Will Provide, as it is said to this day, “In the mount of the LORD it will be provided.” NAS
Matt 6:23-34 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. “For this reason I say to you, do not be anxious for your life, as to what you shall eat, or what you shall drink; nor for your body, as to what you shall put on. Is not life more than food, and the body than clothing? “Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? “And which of you by being anxious can add a single cubit to his life’s span? “And why are you anxious about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory did not clothe himself like one of these. “But if God so arrays the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more do so for you, O men of little faith? “Do not be anxious then, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘With what shall we clothe ourselves?’ “For all these things the Gentiles eagerly seek; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you. “Therefore do not be anxious for tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. NAS
Ps 37:25 I have been young, and now I am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Or his descendants begging bread. NAS
Heb 13:5-6 Let your character be free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,” so that we confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What shall man do to me?” NAS
Phil 4:19 And my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. NAS
2 Sam 12:7-8 Nathan then said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the LORD God of Israel, ‘It is I who anointed you king over Israel and it is I who delivered you from the hand of Saul. ‘I also gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your care, and I gave you the house of Israel and Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have added to you many more things like these! NAS
1 Tim 6:17-19 Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed. NAS