Those Who Oppress the Poor Insult their Maker

Of the crowds who flocked to see Jesus, the overwhelming majority were poor.  Part of the explanation is demographics.  Most people in those days were poor.  Part of the explanation is who Jesus was.  Jesus himself was poor, and Jesus was the friend of the poor.

Jesus didn’t pull his ideas about poverty out of thin air.  He stood firmly in his tradition.  The Hebrew law instructed people to be generous to the poor.  Prophets like Isaiah and Zechariah echoed the message.  The first century church continued in like manner.  They said that you can’t claim the love of God abides in you if you have material resources and see a brother or sister in need but refuse to help.  The Christian church grew because of its distinct identity.  The first century church was a friend to the poor.

Today everybody assumes that we should help the poor.  We believe that people should still eat and have a decent place to live and have access to medical care even if they have no money.  We believe that because of the influence of the church.  Christian or atheist, spiritual or secular, we all agree that we should help the poor.  We may debate whose responsibility it is, and we may debate the best policies and practices, but we all agree we should help the poor.  That is what the church has taught us.

A final thought: when we help the poor, we are making the case for God.  The most effective way to communicate the gospel of Jesus Christ is to help the needy.  The link between our evangelism and our charity is this: we are all made in the image of God.  That is our fundamental identity.  The poor, like the rest of us, are made in the image of God.  When we are generous to the poor, people see our maker in us.

In our sermon this Sunday we will look at Proverbs 14:31: “Those who oppress the poor insult their maker, but those who help the needy honor him.”