Reflecting on a recent series of conversation I asked myself what compels me to do and think what I do in terms of moral, “religious” and spiritual responsibility? What compels me to advocate for the lowly? The meek? Those suffering with illness and sickness? The poor? Why am I so charged with emotions, (at times annoyingly so), about the rights and needs of those in peril and distress due to the socio-economic standing? The simple answer is that it was one of the major areas of care and concern of Yeshua (Yesus Christos, Jesus) during his time on this earth and one of the subjects of his teaching and ministry. It also was and is one of the main areas of concern for God himself and is ultimately to be ours as well as offspring of the divine.
Matthew 25 may seem like my “go-to” scripture to quantify my position and doctrinal base. To those who accuse me of such I say its not just Matthew 25, rather its the whole series of scriptures spread through out the old and new testament that speak about caring for all less fortunate than yourself and the disadvantaged.
“Low you have the poor with you always” is part of a statement made by Yeshua recorded in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and John when questioned about allowing Mary to anoint his feet with spikenard. The statement, albeit brief, seems to infer that our responsibility to the poor is part of a life long mission, a constant part of our spiritual responsibility that we undertake daily. Our continual efforts towards serving the poor are not some minor, casual undertaking. They are not like an optional minor high school or college course. They are not an elective that we can take one semester and omit or pass on during the next semester, or disregard all together in the name of what WE consider to be more significant undertakings. The uplifting and care for the poor are to be a major part of our spiritual focus and mission if we are claiming to be followers of Yeshua and emissaries of the kingdom he represented, the Kingdom of Elohim, God the Father.
Lately in the west and subsequently in a lot of places where you see western “Christian” religious influence and the counter culture that opposes it, people have been calling out social justice as a “liberal agenda”. They say the care for the poor the orphan and the oppressed is part of some new aspect of liberation theology or new left-winged agenda that is a part of a larger socialist agenda (yes, folks are saying that). The problem is that the Torah and the writings that comprise the old testament (what is commonly called the Hebrew Bible) as well as the New Testament are REPLETE with the calls for justice and charity to be part of regular and daily behaviors of “Godly” people.
Perhaps people have apprehensions about term social justice and the ideas of it as put forward by more left wing and liberal thinkers who appear to be advocating and calling for more a socialist form of government and society. In my experiences sadly in a lot of Christian circles I have contact with people embrace these the anti-left, anti-socialist view points and shun any concepts they blindly perceive as “socialist”. The results being that they end up shunning ideas about the poor that are actually Biblical and in essence some of the very commands of God and Christ themselves.
Here in brief are some of the scriptures that contain God’s instruction for the Godly in regards to care for the poor:
Exodus23:11,
Leviticus 19:10,
Leviticus 19:15,
Leviticus 23:22,
Leviticus 23:35
Deuteronomy 15:4
Deuteronomy 15:7
Deuteronomy 15:11
Psalm 72:4 -13 will further shed light on God’s approach and instruction for restoring and healing the poor as well as Psalm 82:3-4. Inspiration can also be found in Psalm 109:31, where God promises to stand at the right hand of the poor and deliver him.
Proverbs 14:31
Proverbs 19:17 is a scripture quoted often by my Ethiopian Orthodox family as they seek to fulfill and live the sacraments of the church regarding the poor.
I hope these and the 169 other mentions of “The Poor” found through a simple bible search of the phrase will help one to begin to understand that care for the “The poor”, “the meek” and the homeless and other acts that fall under the umbrella of social justice ARE NOT part of some liberal, left wing or socialist agenda. I hope the concepts conveyed are not lost on the readers. Rather the instructions and guidelines around addressing the issues and needs of the poor are instructions and commands for Godly people to act out Godly treatment towards other human beings. As opposed to saying “Where is God! These people need him! FIX IT JESUS!” Why not humble yourselves and come to realize that God empowers his TRUE followers TO BE his emissaries of the Kingdom and extensions of his righteous and healing to the world. In essence God, when not directly interveing in the affairs of men, empowers his true believers to serve him by being the hand of healing and justice to the world. Yesus Christos and the Father empower us to do the lifting and when the burden is too great, he steps in to help us manage and solve the problems. If God did it all from start to finish, the believer would not have the chance to develop the Divine character and moral traits of the Yeshua. He wouldn’t develop the wisdom and spiritual muscle that comes from weathering trials and storms and overcoming spiritual boundries as we strive to represent the Father and the Kingdom of God.
The question shouldn’t always be “Where is God?” in situations where the poor experience hardship and struggle, rather it should be “Where was the Christ-Filled, divinely inspired being who claims Yeshua as Savior and Master who could have assisted with supplying the day to day needs of the poor THAT ARE HIS DAILY RESPONSIBILITIES AS A CHRISTIAN?”
Please know I AM NOT saying we replace God, rather I am saying we are called to serve God and are duty bound to perform task towards the poor, the orphan the homeless and oppressed that are to be sustained acts and behaviors that occur everyday. In essence Christ fed, helped and healed those in need everyday, why can’t we?