Dr Greg Bahnsen - Economic Ethics: The Poor and Charity (Part 5)

Turn with me in your Bibles this morning to 1 John 3, where we will take as our text verses 13 to 18. 1 John 3, 13, 18. This morning we come to the next section of our discussion of biblical economics, economic ethics from the perspective of God's Word. And we're going to be considering the subject of the poor and what duty we as Christians have to the poor. And to begin our consideration, let's look at 1 John 3, and I'll begin the reading at the 13th verse. Hear now the word of God. Marvel not, brethren, if the world hateth you. We know that we have passed out of death into life because we love the brethren. He that loveth not abideth in death. Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer, and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. Hereby know we love because he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoso hath the world's goods and beholdeth his brother in need, and shutteth up his compassion from him, how doth the love of God abide in him? My little children, let us not love in word, neither with the tongue, but in deed and in truth. And thus far the reading of God's word. I don't think there's anybody here this morning who won't be familiar to some extent with the humor of Bill Cosby. Cosby has recently gone to being pretty much a humorist of style more than of substance and content. But in his earlier days, when he made a habit of telling stories and making jokes of his life and his background, he was very popular, a very funny man. A lot of people identified with him and with his humor. Why is that? Well, very simply because Cosby had an uncanny ability to tap into common experiences, common feelings or fears or anxieties, common frustrations with life. And as he told the story, the stories of his own background in life, many of the hearers, if not most of his hearers, could identify with what he was saying because there was something in their own life that corresponded to it. And that was the key of Cosby's humor. He was able to talk to people and identify with their own experience. I want you to keep that in mind as we consider what the Christian obligation toward the poor is, because there's a very close analogy to that. This is not a laughing subject, however, it's not a humorous topic by any means. It's a dreadful, a desperate topic, one which is not only dreadful because of the pain and agony that is represented in the impoverished in this world, but all the more desperate because of the miserable failing of the Christian church, especially in our own affluent day, to do anything very effective to alleviate that suffering. So it's not funny. But nevertheless, the analogy with Cosby's humor is there because the way the Bible approaches our concern for the poor is to tap into our own experience. We'll return to this thought. I'd like to begin our consideration of what the Bible teaches us in our lesson about the poor, however, with a passing remark that we find in Galatians, the second chapter. This is another one of those cases where, if you do your homework, your New Testament historical background, you'll get an insight, a very important insight to the attitudes or connections of theology and history in the New Testament, which teaches us something today. Turn to Galatians 2:10. It's the tenth verse that concerns me, but let me put it in context by reading for you. But from those who were reputed to be somewhat whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me. God accepteth not man's person. They, I say, who were of repute, imparted nothing to me. Paul is arguing for his apostolic prerogatives. He said, when I went to Jerusalem, those who were reputed to be the leaders imparted nothing to me. My ministry was everything, as before I went to Jerusalem, that it was after I went to Jerusalem, verse 7. But contrariwise, when they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel of the uncircumcision, even as Peter with the gospel of the circumcision, for he that wrought for Peter unto the apostleship of circumcision, wrought for me also unto the Gentiles. And when they perceived the grace that was given unto me, James and Cephas and John, they who were reputed to be the pillars, gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship, that we should go unto the Gentiles, and they unto the circumcision before I get to verse 10 now let me put this in context. Paul is arguing for his apostolic prerogatives and authority. He says, it's true that I went up to Jerusalem, but when I went up to Jerusalem, I received nothing from the apostles that I didn't already have. In fact, it was just the opposite. They recognized in me my authority. They recognized in me the ministry to the Gentiles that God had given me. And so it turns out that the pillars of the Church extended the right hand of fellowship, a very important symbolic gesture in that day to Paul and Barnabas that they might be apostles to the Gentiles, whereas those in the Jerusalem Church would continue to minister to the Jews. And this was a convenient and a well accepted arrangement. So Paul has gone to Jerusalem. He's been recognized by the leaders of the church. The division of labor has been decided upon. He will stay with the Gentiles. They will go and continue to minister with the Jews. And then verse 10 says only they would that we should remember the poor. Which very thing I was also zealous to do do. That is, the leaders of the Jerusalem Church said, God be with you, Paul. You go and minister to the Gentiles. We will minister to the Jews, but don't forget the poor. Now, a little bit of background will explain to you why that was a relevant thing to say. You see, Paul's trip to Jerusalem. This is the subject of some controversy or three or four schools of thought on this subject. What trip to Jerusalem is Paul referring to here in the second chapter of Galatians? Is he referring to his trip to Jerusalem at the time of the Apostolic Council? Is he referring to a trip subsequent to that? Previous to that, what was the purpose of his trip? Well, we read elsewhere in the history, in the literature of the New Testament that Paul organized a relief offering for the suffering Christians in Jerusalem, the Jewish Church in Jerusalem. And I believe firmly that what Paul is referring to is when he carried that offering up to Jerusalem and during that particular visit was introduced to the leaders of the Jerusalem Church. And at that point his authority is recognized. He's officially recognized as the apostle to the Gentiles. And they say, but don't forget the poor. That's the very thing that brought Paul to them. You see, it's Paul's concern for the poor. And he says, which thing I was zealous to do, to be mindful of the poor. Now, how many of us are zealous to be mindful of the poor? I don't think there's anybody here. I really don't think that anybody here would deny our Christian obligation to the poor. I don't believe anybody, when given a concrete opportunity to do something which was not terribly inconvenient anyway, I don't believe anybody would hesitate to try to give a helping hand to somebody in need. But then again, I'm not sure that there are many here today, including your own preacher, who like to be mindful of those sorts of things. We do it as the obligation forces itself upon us. We do it when it fits into our schedules. We do it when we're in the mood for it, if I can put it that way. But are we mindful of the poor? Do we reflect on the condition of the poor in our society round about us? Oh, and immediately the flurry of explanations start flying by. Rationalizations they are. Or why we don't think about the poor. Well, in our day and age, in Orange county, affluent Orange county, there aren't many poor around us. You go to the right places, you stay to your shopping centers and to your neighborhoods. There are plenty of poor around us. The barrios are not far from this very church building. There are poor about us. In fact, I was just reading in the register this week, toward the beginning of the week. You may have seen it yourself. Subject having to do with the immigrants who have come to this country. Immigrants may give the wrong idea. Not necessarily foreigners, but people who are traveling from state to state looking for work. People who are living in cardboard shacks, people who live in trailers pulled at the back of their old 50s cars. And the number is incredibly higher these days than even ten years ago. Something like three times as many. No, the poor are with us. But are we mindful of them? Do we seek them out? Do we make an effort to be in contact with them? Do we contemplate their misery and pray for them? How many of you in one month's time have ever prayed in general that God would relieve the suffering of the poor in the world? I realize it's hard to be motivated to pray in general for things like that, but it's certainly a need. Paul, when he went to Jerusalem, was now going to be recognized by the leaders of the church that he might go out and do an important work for the Gentiles, so important that the whole history of Western culture is dependent on it. If Paul hadn't been the man that he was, and if Paul hadn't done the job that he did, Western culture would be different. Because the Christianization of the Gentile world, you see, is really the overarching theme of history over the last 2000 years. Paul's ministry means a great deal to us. It's very significant for us. And yet in the midst of being commissioned for that very work, Paul said, I was zealous for that little subordinate, that little P.S. they added, don't forget the poor. Paul would not forget the poor. What does the Bible tell us about the poor? Would it be helpful if we did a little review, something of a lesson on that? The Bible tells us, if you look the book of Proverbs, that the poor are despised people. Proverbs 14:20 the poor is hated even of his own neighbor. But the rich hath many friends. Boy, there's one that hits the nail right on the head, doesn't it? You haven't missed that, have you? You have a man that is affluent, you have a man that's wealthy, you have a man that's getting ahead in life, a man who has a good financial security and future ahead of him, and people are glad to associate with him, glad to be his friends, glad to take him to lunch, to be with him, to come to his house and invite him to their house to have social acquaintance with them. But the poor, people who don't dress as well as we'd like to, people who don't have anything to offer us in return. The poor are despised by their own neighbors. Proverbs 19:4, 7 adds these remarks, wealth addeth many friends, but the poor is separated from his friend. In verse seven all the brethren of the poor do hate him. How much more do his friends go far from him. He pursueth them with words, but they are gone. Well, there's something very deep and psychological about this that I hope touches your hearts this morning. You see, we don't begin to understand the suffering of the poor when we think they aren't able to go down to the market and buy a roast for their Sunday dinner. We don't begin to understand the suffering of the poor when we say they can't buy new clothes for the beginning of the new school year. Those things are sad to be true, but that doesn't begin to touch it because the poor are such that they become psychologically broken people. You see, even their friends turn from them, and when they go running after people, they call out, but nobody turns back to the poor. Nobody cares. The poor often gain a defeatist mentality about life because of the circumstances in which they find themselves. They are despised by people. People don't go out of their way for the poor. People don't listen to the poor, And the poor are taken advantage of in society. Consider what Psalm 82:3,4 tells us by way of implication. Psalm 82:3 Judge for the poor and fatherless do justice to the afflicted and destitute rescue the poor and needy, deliver them out of the hand of the wicked. This is specifically a command having to do with the treatment of the poor in society, not so much with an open hand of charity to the poor. That is there in the Bible, and we'll come to it in a moment. But here the Bible is talking about recognition of the fact that those who are poor have very little social power, very little legal protection. Let's imagine we have some fellow who's driving a 47 Ford. That's all he can do to keep it running from day to day. And he happens to get into an accident. We'll say it's an ambiguous situation as to who's to blame. But he happens to have hit the limousine of the president of IBM. I see the smiles cross your faces because you know very well what the situation is going to be here. He'll do well if he can plead his cause and get this man out of the goodness of his heart to pay attention to the need for his car to be repaired. Because if they go to court, the poor doesn't stand a chance. He cannot afford a good lawyer. He probably can't afford a lawyer at all. And with what little legal work I've been involved in, and it is very little, I have at least learned this. Lawyers are extremely expensive. Even friendly Christian lawyers who want to help me out are extremely expensive. Can you imagine what it would be when you go to a stranger and the minutes are just ticking away at $100 an hour or more? You see, the poor do not get a hearing in society. And it's not because they deserve what they've got. And it's not because they haven't got a case to be made. It's because they haven't got someone to make the case for them. And so the Bible says, plead for the poor and destitute. See to it that justice is done for them as well. And the implication of that is that God recognizes not only the psychological and financial damage that is done to the poor. He recognizes the social oppression that is their lot inherently. There are, in fact, people who sit down and plot how they can take advantage of the poor. Within the circles of my own family and marriage, we know of particular instances where people made a habit and not our relatives, our relatives got taken advantage of. People who would prey upon, for instance, money that was inherited by somebody. There are people who do that sort of thing. But my concern this morning is not so much with them low lives that they are. I'm talking about what is, without even being plotted, without being planned, the inherent oppression of the poor because they haven't got a voice in society. The poor are despised. They are broken. They are without. They are taken advantage of. Now, it must be said, although it's not the popular thing to say that often enough, poverty is a sign and can be a sign of a sinful lifestyle. A man who is a drunk, a man who is slothful, a man who has not taken care of his education or vocational training well can hardly blame society for the fact that he's come into his impoverished condition often enough. Sin leads to poverty. Proverbs 20:13. Love, not sleep, lest thou come to poverty. Open thine eyes and thou shalt be satisfied with bread. Don't lay on your bed with your eyes closed, for as long as your eyes are closed, you won't get up and work. The man who loves to sleep is a man who's going to be a poor man. Okay? So all you husbands and wives don't take this personally and go home and use it as a bludgeon with one another. But it's a general rule, isn't it, that if you don't apply yourself, you're not going to financially be taken care of. Poverty can be a sign of a sinful lifestyle. However, poverty need not be a sign of a sinful lifestyle. Can you think of the most obvious biblical example of that? The most obvious biblical example of that? You think of somebody who didn't even have a place to lay his head. Somebody who had very little in earthly holdings. Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ the himself. Obviously no sinner, but no wealthy man. Or if you want a subordinate example, maybe one that you feel closer to because he was more human than we are. At least we think that. Sometimes you think of Job. Job was a very wealthy man who became very poor overnight, losing his family, his wealth, his cattle, his health. Everything that seemed good about his life was turned against him. Is it because Job was an unrighteous man? No, it's because Job was a righteous man, ironically enough. And God was willing to prove that to Satan. Test Job and you'll see that he'll follow me even in the midst of his poverty. So poverty need not be a sign of sin or sloth or a lifestyle which is unrighteous, but it can be. The lesson I think we need to learn from those two premises is that there's really no ground for discrimination among people based on poverty. The 22nd chapter of Proverbs, verse 2 says, the rich and the poor meet together. Jehovah is the maker of them all. The rich and the poor are on a par when it comes to the important things of life, namely, they were created by God. The Bible also says the rich and the poor meet in their death. You see, both are going to die and neither will take their riches, or lack thereof, into the next world. Poverty can be a Sign of sin, a sign of testing. And for that reason, poverty cannot be used by us as a ground for discrimination. 1st Samuel 2. 7. God tells us here that whatever we have, whether it's good or bad, whether it's a lot or a little, whatever we have is due to the hand of God. And consequently we can't use what we have or what others have as a foundation for how we respond. 1st Samuel 2. 7. Jehovah maketh poor and maketh rich. He bringeth low. He also lifteth up. And so stop and think about it. God made the rich and the poor. God made the rich rich. God made the poor poor. God will be the judge in the end of the rich and the poor. At every particular point, it's a man standing before God that counts, not his particular financial statement. And so the Bible forbids discrimination. Well known passages from the law of God, Exodus 23:3 6. First of all, Exodus 23:3 says, neither shalt thou favor a poor man in his cause. Now wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute. This is obviously a misreading. We think what it should say is, and so don't favor a rich man in his cause. Because you see, if we err on the side of favoring the poor, well that's understandable given their disadvantaged condition. But the Bible says no, don't you see? They are on a par at creation. They are on a par before God throughout this life because God is what gives them or deprives them of what they have or don't. And they're on a par on the day of judgment. And so God doesn't allow us favoring the poor. He doesn't allow us judging against them and oppressing them. He doesn't allow us favoring them judging in favor of the poor just because of their lot in life. That's Exodus 23:3. Then verse 6 says, Thou shalt not wrest the justice due to thy poor in his cause. Don't favor him in his cause. Don't take it away from him in his cause. Don't wrest it away from him. In Deuteronomy. Excuse Me. In Leviticus 19:15, we read, 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 neighbor. And this is part of all of the commandments that lead up to that most famous of Old Testament commandments. In the 18th verse, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. This is part of the concrete outworking of love to your neighbor, that you do not show respect of persons, you don't favor the poor, you don't judge in favor of the poor, you don't judge against the poor or wrest justice from them. Recently I was involved in at least consultation in a legal matter within the confines of the church, not just within civil society. And when it was brought to the attention of one of the judges in the matter that perhaps the people that were being judged against would have ground for complaint if the court continued in the way that it was proceeding, the response of that judge was interesting to me. It was, we're not worried about that. These people are small change, nobody will listen to them. As though that somehow is relevant to the justice of the issue. That the judge was sure that there was no ground for the complaint. I don't happen to agree with him there. But nevertheless he was sure there was no ground for complaint. But when it was brought up that he would have to defend his position, his answer was, who has to worry about that? The people who are going to complain against him amount to nothing. A direct violation of the biblical law when it comes to this matter. You do not favor the poor, but you don't wrest justice from the poor. And even if these people are small change, interesting analogy, isn't it? Even if they are small change, their rights are important in the eyes of God. So there's no ground for discrimination based on poverty. And the Bible tells us that that God's people must be active to preserve the always threatened rights of the poor. In the 29th chapter of Proverbs, verse 7, Listen to these words. The righteous taketh knowledge of the cause of the poor. The wicked hath not understanding to know it. This is not a test that many of us are going to like. I'm not sure I would like it if you would have proposed a test to me a few weeks ago. But as a matter of fact, if somebody were to approach you and say, do you understand the needs of the poor? Do you have any knowledge of the cause that is out there, the case that needs to be made, the protections that need to be given to the poor, and if we kind of fumble with that, the Bible says that's what the wicked are like. They don't understand these things, they aren't concerned about these things. But the righteous takes knowledge of them, the righteous gets involved in them. The righteous protects the rights of the poor. Proverbs 31:9 says, Open thy mouth, judge righteously, administer justice to the poor. And Needy. Open your mouth in the cause of the needy. Don't sit back quietly. Don't be smug. As the silent majority, if you will, speak up for the poor, protect their rights. And why should we do that? Why should we get involved? Why should we be inconvenienced? I wish I could think of some very subtle point to give you here. Some really complicated theological answers, some, if you will, refined philosophical rationale. But none of it will do as good as what the Bible says. You ought to do it because of love, because you love, because you're loving people. Loving people care for the poor. Love for others entails a willingness to be impoverished for their sakes. You want to know how much you love somebody? Ask how much you'd give up for them. Second Corinthians 8, 9 is a verse that I hope will be memorized by you. It wouldn't be a bad one to start every day with. Others would do well, too. But I want you to think about this. Second Corinthians 8, 9. Paul says, for ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor. That ye, through his poverty might become rich. Oh, the wonders, the wisdom of God. Here's Jesus, rich, with divine prerogatives, having everything heart or mind could desire. And for your sakes he became poor. Paul says. He gave up everything. He gave up his dignity, he gave up his convenience, he gave up his comforts, he gave up his life. For your sakes he became poor, so that you, through his poverty, might become rich. You say, well, that's a grand theological theme, as long as we're preaching salvation. But you see, Paul says this in the midst of 2 Corinthians 8, the best known chapter of the Bible, having to do with king care of one church for another. Paul is commending the Corinthians for their liberality toward the Jerusalem saints who are living in the midst of a famine. And he says, and you know how Jesus himself was rich and became poor so that you might become rich? No, it works itself out very concretely. Love must be concrete. Can you forget that passage in James? James says, and what if a brother or sister comes into your congregation and is naked? Probably that means in their undergarments is another way of taking the Greek. But even if you want to forget the sexual connotations of it, if they're naked, if they're in their underclothes and they come into church and you walk over to them afterwards and say, hey, brother, hey, sister, we love you, boy, go out and put some clothes on. We sure hope you are comforted it. And James says, what profit is that? What good is that? That's what I call free love. Really. Free love doesn't cost a thing. And most people, their capacity for free love, not in the sexual sense, but in this sense here, it's just unlimited. We're all really good givers when it comes to handing out well wishes. Hey, I hope it goes nicely for you. I hope you get ahead. I hope you can put on some clothes. I sure hope you can feel your stomach. We can go on and on and on. Well, I go through the phone book right now and just go name by name. I hope this person gets ahead. It doesn't cost me a thing. James says, that isn't faith, that isn't genuine love. Genuine love is. What does our Bible passage tell us this morning? First John 3:18. One John 3:18. My little children, let us not love in word, neither with the tongue. It says, forget this mouth love. We don't need any of that. Let us rather love in word, not in word. Let us love in truth. And indeed, look at that English word indeed. You see, that's run together. That's exactly what it means to do something actually. Really, indeed, in concrete outworking. Don't love just by saying, hey, I hope things go well. Love by doing something for people. Love concretely. That's the way Jesus loved. Jesus didn't love by staying up in heaven and saying, I hope you all get saved someday. Jesus came and gave his life for people. He was willing to become impoverished because he loved. Now God loves and cares for the disadvantaged in this world. Some of the most tender parts of scripture have to do with the expression of God's concern for the afflicted. Afflicted and the impoverished, the disadvantaged. Psalm 68:10. Thou, O God, didst prepare of thy goodness for the poor. Or Psalm 102:17. He hath regarded the prayer of the destitute, and hath not despised their prayer. God listens to the prayer of those who have no money. He prepares from his goodness to meet their needs. Psalm 109:31. For he will stand at the right hand of the needy to save him from them that judge his soul. Boy, that's got to be a comfort. Wouldn't you like that to be said of you and your cause? God stands right at your right hand. The Lord of heaven and earth stands right by your side to defend you. God cares for the destitute. God hears their prayers. He comes and he stands at their side he prepares of his goodness for them. Psalm 146:7. Who executeth justice for the oppressed, who giveth food to the hungry, Jehovah looseth the prisoners. What do we learn from this? That God cares for the poor and needy. But Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount that we're to be perfect even as our Heavenly Father is perfect. And if this is the way God's holy perfection is demonstrated, then how can God's people be anything less than those who stand at the side of the needy, who hear their cries, who satisfy their needs? In fact, the Bible tells us that if we do that, God will honor us. I mean, your inclination might be in fact, there are some really silly things being said in the Christian world these days about the poor. Because if you go this far in your biblical analysis, some people say, oh well, isn't it great to be poor? Let's all get poor now. Let's all give away our money and bring ourselves down to the level of supposed to be helping. Very hard to help people when you give up the advantage that you have so you can pull them up. But nevertheless, some of the silly things being said suggest we should all be poor because God cares for the poor. But that isn't all the Bible says. The Bible also says God cares for those who care for the poor. God loves the wealthy who turn a helping hand toward the poor and a listening ear and a loving heart. Listen to Psalm 41:1. Blessed is he that considereth the poor. Jehovah will deliver him in the day of evil. The man who thinks about the poor, who takes care of his needs. God will deliver that man. He doesn't have to worry that he's putting himself in a bad position because he's put out his money to help the poor. God will turn around and make it good to him. Psalm 109:16. Because he remembered not to show kindness, but persecuteth the poor and needy man, and the broken in heart to slay them. This is God's vengeance upon those who don't care for the poor, who don't remember to help them out. Proverbs 14:21 Again, consider this promise from. He that despiseth his neighbor sinneth but he that hath pity on the poor, happy is he. God sees through the blessedness of those who care for those who are less fortunate than themselves. And then Proverbs 19:17 he that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto Jehovah and his good deed. Will he pay him again ever Think about that. When you went out of your way to extend money to somebody who was in need, you were extending that money to God. Those who lend to the poor lend to Jehovah, and God will reward that kind of action. Care for the poor is in fact taken as care for the Lord himself. In Matthew 25, when Jesus on the day of judgment will say to some, enter into the kingdom which has been prepared from the foundation of the world. And he will say, they are to enjoy this reward because when he was in prison, they visited him, and when he was thirsty, they gave him a drink of water, and when he hungered, they fed him. And then the righteous will say, as Jesus continues the exposition, the righteous will say, when did we come to you in prison? When did we give you a cup of cold water? When did we feed you when you were hungry? We don't remember that. And Jesus will say, inasmuch as you've done it unto any of the least of these my brothers, you've done it to me. When you lend to the first poor, you lend to God. When you feed the poor, you are doing good and blessing God contra wise. If you don't care for these things, if this very subject bores you, if your heart is just turned off to the whole idea, then you don't care very much for God. Care for the poor is not only care for the Lord himself, but care for the disadvantaged is finally the mark of genuine religion. We can talk a lot of theology, we can talk a lot about ethical matters. We can come down to the bottom line and have all the right answers. And yet James tells us in the first chapter of his epistle at verse 27, it all comes down to pure religion. And undefiled before our God and Father is is to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world. Pure religion is not found in writing good theology. Pure religion is not found in being able to argue for all of the tenets of your dogma. Pure religion is found in that having known the truth, you live the truth. And living the truth means at the very first. Since this is the essence of pure religion, it cannot be something you pick up. It's a peripheral matter icing on the cake down the line. But at the very beginning it means to care for the afflicted. And in a moment we'll see why. Well, you begin to see the point. The poor are despised. They're taking advantage of in society. They're psychologically broken people. They might be poor because of a sinful lifestyle, they might be poor because they're being tested by God. We have no right to discriminate. We shouldn't think one way or another. We must be active to preserve the threatened rights of the poor. We should, in love be willing to be impoverished for the sake of others. And our love must be concrete, not simply in word. We must care for the disadvantaged because God cares for the disadvantaged and care. And if we care for them, God will care for us. It's not only a mark of caring for God, but it's a mark of true religion that we look out for the poor. And how does the Bible say we should do that? In what ways can we care for the poor? I must be very brief here. The Bible says we should care for the poor, first of all by not discriminating against them. Don't hesitate to invite them to your house because they don't add any social prestige to you or they can't return the favor. Don't hesitate to defend the poor even though it's going to bring you a blackened name in your society. One of the greatest things we could do for the poor is just to live up to that obligation right there. Secondly, our care for the poor should mean that we don't discriminate against aliens, against immigrants. If we cared for the poor, especially the poor of this world, we wouldn't be so jingoistic, so patriotic allegedly as to say we're going to close our borders to those who are in need. People who for the most part, by the way, as a matter of fact, come up and take jobs which no self respecting American is willing to take anyway. But even if they didn't, even if they entered in and competed with us in the jobs that we wanted, it is not right for us to close the free marketplace because these people aren't of the right color or nationality. That is discrimination of the worst sort. And it's happening every day here in the state of California. And I'll bet not once have you uttered a peep against it. And if you have, we certainly aren't saying nearly enough. Care for the poor means paying our tithes so often. Maybe when I preached my sermon about tithes and taxes, you thought I was preaching that simply because the church is concerned for its programs and paying the salary of the minister. That's why. Because people suspect that it's always embarrassing to preach on it. But you know, you pay your tithes not just to take care of the minister and the programs of the church. You pay your tithes because that's the way the church extends help to the poor. That's what the deacons are supposed to be all about. In Acts, the sixth chapter, we see the development of the office of deacon. It's because there was a need for somebody to dole out the money to the widows. The first demand for church office we see in the book of Acts, apart from the apostles, was a demand to see to the care of the poor. That's why you pay your tithes. Because in the church there are those like the deacons who are going to see to its distribution. And then of course there are the well known gleaning laws of the Old Testament. As much as I'm in favor of efficiency, the Bible says, don't be too efficient when it comes to gathering things for yourself. A man who makes sure that he gathers in his wheat right out to the very corner of his field, doesn't let one plant go untouched by his harvesting, is a very greedy man. The Bible says, hey, cut the corner here, leave the corner so that if there's anybody in your community who doesn't have enough, he can come and take from what is really, you know, the minor part of your field. After all, just as you turn the corner in your harvesting, allow him to glean your field. You say, why doesn't apply to us. I don't have any fields today. Well, the principle applies to you. That principle that says, boy, I'm going to hang on to everything and make sure that everything I earn gets spent for me. And why I don't leave anything behind for anybody else to enjoy. Now it's been suggested by one well known ethicist in the Christian community that the gleaning laws today apply to things like goodwill. Taking things which we no longer have a use for and turning them over to goodwill. I think that's true enough, but not nearly true enough. That is, it's true that we should support goodwill and these sorts of things because they do help the poor. But you see, gleaning wasn't a matter of taking the wheat that fell off your table. And you say, I don't want that anymore. Kick it over here to the goodwill. It's not a matter of taking old clothes and beat up furniture that you don't want in your house anymore. Gleaning meant leaving the good stuff right there in the corner of the field for them to come and have. And that's the kind of heart we have to have for the poor as well. Lending is another thing you can do for the poor. And when you lend to the poor, don't plan to make any money off it. Why would you make money off of people who don't have any money? When you lend to the poor, the Bible says you must do it when without interest. And if you do charge interest to an impoverished brother, you'll go to hell. There's no two ways about it. The Bible says that God will judge the unrighteousness of anybody who does such a wicked and deplorable unmerciful thing as to lend upon interest to those who are in need. By the way, the Bible also says you shouldn't be borrowing when you're not in need. And so when it comes to your own purse style, stay out of debt. And if you're in debt, it ought to be interest free. And then, of course, the Bible provides for slavery. Very hard subject to cover in just a moment's time because of our past prejudices. But when the Bible speaks of slavery, it's not talking about the south in the early 1800s. It's not talking about conditions that have been ballyhooed and propagandized as the reason for slavery, say the war between the States here in our own country. Slavery was a blessed institution as the Bible envisioned it. It was a way, if you will, a man becoming an apprentice to another man, a man who was an insolvent debtor having his debts taken care of at the cost of offering six years of labor to another person. And by the way, did you know this, that when the slaves went free after six years in the seventh or sabbatical year, the master who, who had after all, paid their debts and trained them in a trade, that master was to send them out with plenty of oxen and money and clothing. To translate into modern terms, that man was to set him up in business to get him established so that now that he has given him the six years, he won't have to be a slave again. That far beats the welfare system that we have in our country today. And so the Bible says you must care for the poor. And the Bible gives you some concrete ways of doing it. Who should you do it for? Do we help unbelievers or only believers? And the answer to that question can be found in the book of Galatians 6, 10, where Paul lays down the general rule very clearly. And he says, as we have opportunity, let us work that which is good toward all men and especially toward them that are of the household of faith. Paul says, if you have money that you can contribute to others, lend to others, if you Have a way of helping people. You better make sure the household of faith is taken care of first. You look first of all to your own house, your own family. Then you look to your own congregation and then to your own presbytery, the regional church, your own denomination, and to Christians in general. You look at those who are closest to you in the faith. And then of course, if we find that every need has been met as far as we know, then we don't keep it for ourselves. He says, no, do good to all men, but especially to the household of faith. And so our liberality should be shown even to our unbelieving neighbors. We help them by offering them a cup of cold water in Jesus name. And it must be in Jesus name, so they know that it's an expression of the graciousness of God to them through us who have been saved by the grace of God. What is the means by which we help the poor? Well, if we take the story of the Good Samaritan as a model for us, which Jesus obviously intended it to be be, it's a private matter, an individual matter, a matter of our own initiative, where we see a need and we go over and we meet it. And so we take care of local concerns, what is visible to us. First of all, we take care of it by our own initiative, not by going to others saying, hey, go help that guy over there. And then I think a very good point is made that we help those who are in any way less fortunate than ourselves. And so what happens is, if there are many economic strata in our society, the man who is at level four helps the man who's at level three. The man at level three is not free of any obligation. He turns and he helps those who are at level two and so on and so on. Everyone is going to be able to find somebody who less fortunate than themselves. And we should be looking for that, taking care of things privately. Why do I emphasize this? I emphasize the private help toward the poor because in our day and age, it's thought that this is the job of the state. And I hope in just a few moments time I can dismiss that idea as in fact inherently contradictory to the word of God. We're talking about charity here, the expression of glory, grace, the expression of a good deed towards somebody that that person cannot demand of us. A gracious act, a charitable, loving act. Does the state help people in that way? Does the state offer help charitably, graciously? No, the state does not help anybody that way. The state helps Mr. A by going to Mr. B. And saying, you must give us money that we can Turn over to Mr. A. Oh, and by the way, there's going to be, of course, a little bit of that has to be taken off the top for our bookkeeping purposes. See, when the state handles money, then the state has to be paid for its services, right? And you might be appalled if you were to know the statistic as to how much money that is designated for welfare and actually goes to the bureaucratic needs of people who are living off the welfare system, even though they're not the beneficiaries of it directly. No, the state does not give charity. The state with the power of the sword comes and taxes people and coerces them to give money. And there's nothing, nothing at all commendable about that, nothing morally commendable in that process. In fact, it's reprehensible because it's theft. It's taking from another man something that he doesn't want to give, perhaps, and then offering that to a man that the state considers in need rather than, as in the case of the Good Samaritan, the individual freely, graciously, charitably giving to somebody that he perceives and believes to be in need of it. Now, the state ought not to be practicing charity because charity isn't charity. When a sword is held over your head, the state taxes us with the sword held high to give money to the alleged poor. Well, then I guess that means there's no ethical duty to the poor, right? I mean, it's charity. It has to be free. Think about God's grace. God's grace is free. God doesn't have to save anybody. And if we're going to show grace to the poor, we don't have to do it or it's not charity. Isn't that what you're saying when you argue against the state doing it? Because the state coerces us to do what is supposed to be a free act, a charitable act, some people might easily draw the conclusion, well, then there's no obligation to help the poor. That's just if I want to do it. And that brings us back to our text from with this morning in my concluding observation about Bill Cosby. The reason Bill Cosby was such a good humorist is because he is able to tap into people's experience. They could run along with him, if you will, because they felt what he was saying. John tells us in the third chapter of his first epistle at verse 17, but whoever has the world's goods and beholds his brother in need and shuts up his compassion from him. How does the love of God abide in him? John says, if I come to you and I say, hey, here's somebody in need and you've got what it takes to help them, and if you don't feel any compulsion to go out and help that person, could it be that you've experienced the love of God? Those who know the grace of God, the free grace of God God are now under an absolute moral obligation to demonstrate that they've experienced that grace. And that means that, paradoxical as it may seem, they are under obligation to be gracious people, lest they demonstrate that they haven't experienced this at all. It's not a laughing subject. Certainly true that John comes to you very much like Bill Cosby used to come as a humorist, and he says, you know what I'm talking about. You were poor once.