They Will Go Away Part 2
October 18th, 2005 | by Scott |Note: I make ample use of illustrations in my sermons. Due to length I have trimmed much of those.
Objections
to having the poor with us:
1. “It’s Pointless. Jesus said
they will always be around” Our main text for today.
This is all too often a response to this
passage. I believe that stems from a
fundamental misunderstanding of Jesus’ intent.
This is not an opportunity to throw up our hands in
exasperation and say that there is nothing more to do.
Instead it is a stunning statement as to the
enormity of our mission.
Look at the original verse:
Deuteronomy 15:7-11 (edited, please look it up)
The existence of poor is not due to the whims of a
capricious and malevolent God but too often it is because of our own materialism and
self-centeredness.
The disciple’s
concern here is not the poor but his own greed.
As long as we are sinful, materialistic people there
will always be poor people.
2. “They will just take advantage of us.” The
one I hear the most and the one I have been most apt to use.
This makes much sense on a human, secular
level.
But under the scrutiny of Scripture it fails to bear
itself out. Do we need to be judicious
in how we administer our limited resources? Yes.
Must we be aware of those who would make it a habit of bilking
others out of much needed assistance? Most definitely.
But that must not be our guiding thought in whether
or not we help the needy.
Too often this has become the firewall we hide
behind to justify our lack of care and concern for the needy.
If this were an adequate concern one that could be
solely justified then Jesus would not have died for a bunch of people who have
taken eternal advantage of his good grace.
Better to be used in the name of Jesus Christ that
unused for fear of sacrifice.
3. “Better to offer a hand up than a hand out.”
How in the world did this become an either/or
proposition? The ludicrous Chinese
proverb that says “Give a man a fish; you have fed him for
today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime” is a
blatant disregard of the immediate needs that the individual might have.
You can offer both. Obviously we need to prepare them to provide
for themselves but the stark reality in our world is they need immediate help.
A map to Wal-Mart would not
have enabled some people to get School Supplies yesterday.
These two ideas must not be
mutually exclusive.
4. “God helps those?” In the latest issue of Harper’s Magazine Bill Mckibben writes, “Three
quarters of Americans believe the Bible teaches that “God helps those who help
themselves.” That is, three out of four Americans believe that this
uber-American idea, a notion at the core of our current individualist politics
and culture, which was in fact uttered by Ben Franklin, actually appears in
Holy Scripture. The thing is, not only is Franklin’s wisdom not biblical; it’s
counter-biblical. Few ideas could be further from the gospel message, with its
radical summons to love of neighbor. On this essential matter, most
Americans-most American Christians-are simply wrong, as if 75 percent of
American scientists believed that Newton proved gravity causes apples to fly
up.”
5. “Its the government’s job” Our government must be involved more than they are
in abolishing poverty and need, granted. Less than one percent of our national
budget goes to developmental assistance.
But the lead must be set by people of faith for,
ultimately, it is our job.
Ronald Sider in The Scandal of the Evangelical
Conscience states that if every professed Christian in America gave 10 percent then poverty in the
world would be eliminated with 60-70 billion left over.
6. We don’t want to get dirty. This is the one reason that
we might not utter out loud but far too many of us possess.
If we get involved with the poor we will get
dirty. The poor are messy, they lead
complicated troublesome lives and if we go to them then they will drag us in.
As if they are afraid they will soil us with a grime
that we cannot wash off.
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Next, lessons we can take from this text.
4 Responses to “They Will Go Away Part 2”
By Jason Bybee on Oct 18, 2005 | Reply
I appreciate your thoughts. Do you have copies on audio CD you could send me?
By scott on Oct 18, 2005 | Reply
I have it on cassette. Man, we need to move into the 21st century here.
By Jason Bybee on Oct 18, 2005 | Reply
Can you send me a copy?
1095 Carl T. Jones
Huntsville AL 35802
You’ve mentioned some texts before that have contributed to your evolving theology / politics re: the poor. Other than Camp’s Mere Discipleship, what are a few others that you’d recommend?
By scott on Oct 18, 2005 | Reply
God’s Politics by Wallis is at the top of that list.
Some secular works factor in: Sach’s The End of Poverty foremost.
The writings of Yoder, primarily The Politics of Jesus.
Sojourners website has a lot of great stuff.
Scandal of the Evangelical Conscience by Ronald Sider. He also wrote Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger.
Performing the Faith by Haeurwas is great. His chapter on Sept. 11th is outstanding. But that is more of my political evolution than social.