God and the Poor

1
God and the Poor

• A Brief Biblical Theology of Poverty

2
The Battle Over Poverty

• R. Sider, Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger
• God is on the side of the poor
• Christians ought to be on the side of the poor
• Christians ought to advocate for poor-friendly
  government policies (welfare, Social Security)
• Christians ought to be personally sacrificial in
  giving to the poor/volunteering to care for poor
• Emphasizes poverty as a corporate or
  institutional problem
• To his credit, Ron Sider practices what he
  preaches in Philadelphia

3
The Battle over Poverty

• D. Chilton, Productive Christians in an Age of
  Guilt Manipulation
• Reconstructionist
• Christians ought to be unashamedly productive,
  and thereby become rich (Gods blessing)
• The poor are poor because they are either (1)
  lazy, or (2) practice false religions
• Emphasizes poverty as an individual problem
• Wont entirely resolve this debate today!

4
Poor in the Bible

• What does God say about the poor in Scripture?
• Understand each text in redemptive-historical
  context not flat reading
• Christs coming fulfills and transforms OT
  teaching (Matthew 517-20 Luke 24)
• Flesh it out in a future, more extensive study

5
OT Teaching

• God is scandalized by poverty and wills its
  abolition (Dt. 154-5, 7-8)
• God stands up for the poor (Pr. 1323 countless
  Psalms)
• God identifies with the poor (Pr. 1917 1431)
• God blesses those who do good to the poor (Pr.
  1917 Dt. 1510)
• God despises laziness (Pr. 2433-34 many others!)

6
Riches and Blessing in OT

• Does God bless obedience with wealth? 2 streams
  of thought
• Gods blesses obedience with abundance (Dt.
  281-5) and curses disobedience with oppression
  (Dt. 2815-19)
• The righteous suffer, while the wicked prosper
  (Job Ps. 731-9) poor oppressed victims of
  injustice
• These are both true at the same time!

7
Hope for the poor in OT

• God is the hope of the poor Ps 125
• God is refuge, strength, etc for poor Is 254
• Ultimate salvation for poor, though, awaits Gods
  Servant-King, the Messiah, Is 114
• but with righteousness he shall judge the
  poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the
  earth and he shall strike the earth with the rod
  of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he
  shall kill the wicked.
• Is that your hope?

8
Poor in the NT

• In Christ the hope of the poor is fulfilled, Lk.
  418-21
• Gods concern for poor is heightened in New
  Testament (Mk 1017-22 Ja 215-16 1 Jn 317)
• Some spiritualize the concept poor in certain
  key passages, so that it means simply sinner.
  (Chilton?)
• Others materialize or politicize the concept of
  poor so that it means only the abject poor,
  paupers who are dispossessed because of political
  or economic oppression. (Sider?)
• Both sinner and pauper are aspects of poor
  in the biblical concept, but to make either the
  exclusive meaning is to obscure the biblical
  teaching.

9
Parable of the Great Banquet

• Lk. 1421 In response to the excuses of those
  invited to the banquet, the master of the house
  became angry and said to his servant, Go out
  quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and
  bring in the poor and crippled and blind and
  lame.
• Jesus point, vv. 12-14 When you give a dinner
  or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your
  brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors,
  lest they also invite you in return and you be
  repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the
  poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you
  will be blessed, because they cannot repay you.
  You will be repaid at the resurrection of the
  just.
• CHALLENGING

10
In Church, Dt 15 is fulfilled

• Dt. 154-5 But there will be no poor among you
  for the Lord will bless you in the land that the
  Lord your God is giving you for an inheritance to
  possessif only you will strictly obey the voice
  of the Lord your God, being careful to do all
  this commandment that I command you today.
• But, v. 11 For there will never cease to be poor
  in the land. Therefore I command you, You shall
  open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy
  and to the poor, in your land.
• What gives?

11
In Church, Dt 15 is fulfilled

• In the OT, Gods people did not keep covenant
• Acts 434-35 (Dt. 15 fulfilled in the Jerusalem
  church) There was not a needy person among
  them, for as many as were owners of lands or
  houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what
  was sold and laid it at the apostles feet, and
  it was distributed to each as any had need.
• What would unbelievers say to that today??

12
Caution Laziness!

• Gods concern for the poor is intensified in NT
  so is his concern for laziness in the church!
• Eph 428 Let the thief no longer steal, but
  rather let him labor, doing honest work with his
  own hands, so that he may have something to share
  with anyone in need.
• 2 Th 36-12esp. v.10 For even when we were with
  you, we would give you this command If anyone is
  not willing to work, let him not eat.
• Paul urges excommunication for the idle!

13
Why be concerned for the poor?

• Because we were poor without Christ!
• Ja 25
• 2 Co 89
• 1 Co 47
• 1 Co 126-29
• God did not save us because we deserved it!
• We ought to extend help to the poor the same
  way God extended salvation to us!