Joyful Givers

Oh, the joys of those who are kind to the poor! The LORD rescues them when they are in trouble.

Psalm 41:1

Imagine tying a promise to our care for the poor! What does that tell us about God’s heart in such matters? Even a cursory reading of Scripture tells us that God’s heart is very tender toward the poor and weak and that he charges his people to protect and care for them.

When he set up the government of his chosen people, whose role was to be the setting in which he worked out his principles, he made sure that the poor were cared for and protected. He made sure they could not be taken advantage of through exorbitant interest rates and greed by setting up the Year of Jubilee. Every fifty years, all debts were cancelled, and the economic climate was reset. What reason could there be for such a law except to protect the economically vulnerable? He instructs those with means not to gather everything they can get their hands on but instead to leave some behind for the poor (see Leviticus 19:10; 23:22).

He calls us to be on board with his agenda. He wants us, like him, to be aware of those who are weak or struggling. Is it possible that one of the reasons he gives such detailed and numerous instructions about how to treat the poor is that it protects those with resources from having their hearts overtaken by them? Is not generous giving to the poor the best inoculation against greed?

This promise tells us that when we learn to be generous to the poor, we will experience joy. He is so committed to seeing his people act compassionately toward the poor that he places reminders throughout his Word: “Those who oppress the poor insult their Maker, but helping the poor honors him” (Proverbs 14:31).

Give me a generous heart, Father. A heart that reflects your compassion for the poor. Never allow me to be owned by my possessions but instead to hold them in open hands, ready to serve you with what you entrust to me.

Social responsibility becomes an aspect not of Christian mission only, but also of Christian conversion. It is impossible to be truly converted to God without being thereby converted to our neighbour.

John R. W. Stott(1921–2011), English minister and writer