Life Meets Doctrine

Proverbs 14:20: The poor is disliked even by his neighbor, but the rich has many friends. It certainly seems like this is true, especially in general terms. no one likes to see a poor person on the street; they would rather turn away from such a sight. the poor is disliked. but even when you get close to the people who are close to the poor – their neighbors – you find that even their neighboors don’t like them. and their neighbors are also usually poor, whether they be a geographic neighbor or a social-class neighbor or someone intersecting with the poor on a consistent basis (like children in school). even the poor’s neighbors don’t like the poor. the poor hate the poor. they feel like they can’t trust each other even though each other is all they’ve got. of course, on the other hand, the rich has many friends. everyone wants to be nice to the people withy lots of money and possessions. this passage especially deals with my attitude towards the poor: i want to like the poor.

Proverbs 14:21: whoever despises his neighbor is a sinner, but blessed is he who is generous to the poor. the proverb writer is calling for a change in the way things are as he described them in the other verse. even though in general the poor is disliked by his neighbor, you better not be that neighbor who dislikes the poor. despising your neighbor – whether he be rich or poor, even though i think a poor neighbor is mainly in view here – is a sin. it is not allowed! and to motivate us to care for our neighbor we are given the promise that those who are generous to the poor are blessed. it doesn’t say that lots of money comes to those who are generous. it says that those who are generous to the poor are already blessed. that is who they are. the blessed ones give. this means there can be people who have money who are not blessed. how do we know if they are not blessed? by observing that they don’t give to the poor. if they were blessed they would give to the poor. clearly, blessing refers to so much more than possessions. it is a state of being, an attitude of the heart. this passage deals with how i handle my attitude toward the poor: i want to be generous to the poor.

Proverbs 14:31: whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is generous to the needy honors him. now we see that our relations with the poor is actually our relations with the Maker of the universe. Jesus definitely echoes this in Matthew 25:34-40. i must be so careful in my thoughts towards the poor and interactions with the poor. when i oppress them i am insulting Jesus. naturally, this seems so disconnected. surely Jesus wouldn’t line himself up with the poor, right? it is totally against my habits, my normal way of thinking, my culture. but the writer of the proverb is clear: oppressing a poor man = insulting God; giving to a poor man = honoring God. this passage deals with why i should be generous to the poor: i want to be generous to the poor because i want to honor God.

Jesus is asked this question twice (and maybe other times, too). i am fascinated by Jesus’ response. in Luke 10, Jesus answers the question with the story of the Samaritan helping the beaten man on the road between Jerusalem and Jericho – an example of social mercy. in Mark 10, Jesus answers the question with the command to sell everything and give it to the poor – another example of social mercy. honestly, i find it troubling and startling that when eternal life is talked about social mercy is this close to the heart of Jesus. his immediate responses to two different people asking the same question both have to do with social mercy. oh my, how i fall short on taking hold of eternal life if social mercy is truly as essential of an element as Jesus makes it out to be. Jesus, help me! teach me, too, what i must do to inherit eternal life.

i have been amazed lately how God repeatedly brings poverty to my attention. here are just a few ways he has done this:
* began praying for Omaha, NE, which led to discovering Open Door Mission
* Matt Chandler mentions international mercy ministry in a sermon
* Mark Driscoll mentions poverty and riches in a sermon
* Jase Wilson mentions extravagant giving in a time of financial crisis, referring to the story of the widow’s mite
* i read through A Framework for Understanding Poverty by Ruby K. Payne, which is mainly for educators but has lots of insights on understanding people in the lower class in America.
* i read through Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger by Ronald J. Sider, which mainly deals with international poverty and hunger but has great sections of biblical understanding God’s heart for the poor
* i have a talk with Pastor Dominic from Kenya who deals with orphans, poverty, and hunger on a daily basis; it is the world he lives in
* i have a talk with the Reed family from Mozambique who also deals with orphans, poverty, and hunger on a daily basis; it is the world they live in
* i talk with Ben Wong a former pastor in Hong Kong who re-planted a church targeting the lower class in Hong Kong; we talk a lot about “simple church”; Ben has a great insight into unreach people groups and why they remain unreached. he says it might be because most of them are either (1) poor or (2) muslims or both. no one wants to be poor or persecuted so a lot of us end up not going to unreached people groups.
* in an intern meeting we watch a NOOMA dvd where Rob Bell talks about wealth and poverty; it is entitled “rich”
* i pick up a book that had been on the shelf for a long time and the next chapter to read is marked as “the discipline of social mercy”