only we would get together and say enough is enough, and use our money together to help the poor and needy and to further God's kingdom on this earth, we would have a great revival on our hands!
So what should we do as Christians who worship God in spirit and truth? Let's look at what the bible says about helping the poor and needy.
Exodus 22:25 ...'If thou lend money to any of my people that is poor by thee, thou shalt not be to him as an usurer, neither shalt thou lay upon him usury.' ... One of the early laws that God gave was that His people should not lend money to the poor and charge interest on it. Don't forget, God's law is a law of love, so we should be willing to give money to those in need without wanting more back. But this law is exalted even further in the New Testament.
Matthew 5:42 ...'Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.'
Acts 20:35 ...'I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.'
As true Christians worshipping God in spirit and truth, we should be looking to help anyone in need, without thinking of what we can get out of it. Our money belongs to God, and we are just looking after it for Him, so we should be looking to use it wisely and giving it to the poor who really need it.
Exodus 23:3 ...'Neither shalt thou countenance a poor man in his cause.' ... This means that we should not side with a poor and needy man in any dispute. Just because one person in a dispute may be poor, we still need to show fairness to both parties, and not show favoritism, which this next verse confirms ...Leviticus 19:15 ...'Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty: but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbour.' ... Everything we do should be done righteously before God. Yes, we need to help the poor, but do not take sides with them in judgment, just because they are poor. Judge righteously.
Leviticus 23:22 ...'And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not make clean riddance of the corners of thy field when thou reapest, neither shalt thou gather any gleaning of thy harvest: thou shalt leave them unto the poor, and to the stranger: I am the LORD your God.' ... God has compassion on the poor, and we should too!
One thing people do these days is to make excuses as to why they don't help the poor and needy. Take for example beggars on the street. So many Christians walk by these people without a thought. And the main excuse today seems to be, "well, I couldn't be certain that he was actually poor, or whether he was just trying to make some money." Are you going to stand before Jesus and give this excuse? Who are we to judge a beggars motives? Even if that person wasn't a real beggar who was in need, Jesus knows our hearts. If we walk by making excuses, Jesus will know that we have not shown love, but if we willingly give out of love, even if that beggar isn't what he seems, then Jesus will see that we didn't judge that person and gave out of love for Him. We need to stop making excuses and start following our Lord and Saviour.
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