Generous Love

Would you consider yourself a loving person? Do you think others view you as loving? The Apostle Paul says that if we are followers of Christ we will follow His pattern of becoming poor for the sake of others. This state of intentional poverty is to be a display of love. Let's think about what it means.

Sometimes our poverty is expressed in humility as we are right in a situation and are called to respond to others in gentleness and kindness rather than pride and self-righteousness. We can show this loving poverty by serving others. Most often it is messy when we serve someone. Whether they are an elderly person needing physical assistance, an addict going through the pain of walking away from a substance or a person suffering the agony of divorce. Caring for people drives us to our knees and should give us a real sense of our spiritual poverty. And by that I mean our poverty is our great need for Christ, His strength and His help. In reality, we have nothing without Him.

There are times, though, when this poverty is financial. These are the times that Christians are to sacrifice to give money to help the poor, other Christians or those affected by disaster. Read this verse from 2 Corinthians 8:8-15 to hear Paul’s thoughts,

I say this not as a command, but to prove by the earnestness of others that your love also is genuine. 9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich. 10 And in this matter I give my judgment: this benefits you, who a year ago started not only to do this work but also to desire to do it. 11 So now finish doing it as well, so that your readiness in desiring it may be matched by your completing it out of what you have. 12 For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have. 13 For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened, but that as a matter of fairness 14 your abundance at the present time should supply their need, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fairness. 15 As it is written, “Whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack.”

An interesting phrase in those verses is found in verse 14. Paul says that, “your abundance at the present time should supply their need, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fairness.” In the economy of the Kingdom of God, we are always looking to help one another. It is not a welfare state where the rich stay rich forever and the poor stay poor forever. As we live within the Kingdom of God here on Earth we know that there will be an ebb and flow of times of abundance and times of need. Paul says that we should give when we are in a season of abundance and trust that we will receive in our time of need. The fairness is not that we all make the same income at all times. The fairness is that we are willing to share with those who are in need. We know that Paul calls Christians to work hard, so there is no precedent for anyone to be a persistent mooch. Yet, there are genuine times when people are and will be in need. Christians show their love by sharing the resources God has given them whatever those resources may be.

Now, do you consider yourself a loving person? Do you have room to love others more? May your love be proven by your generosity…in whatever form it may flow.

Relief May Not Look Like What You Think

I was listening to radio news recently as I drove home from one of our Worship Services. It was the most intense radio report I had ever heard. The reporter was deeply concerned about a group of babies that were in an orphanage. He believed they would die if aid didn’t come to them immediately. In anger he declared that there were several aid agencies and government forces that knew their specific location, but had not shown up to deliver any supplies that were desperately needed. As he talked his intensity increased and he finally said plainly, “If aid doesn’t arrive these children are going to die.” Needless to say there were numerous thoughts rushing through my mind.

In an instant I began wondering if there was anything I could do. The disaster area was thousands of miles away from me and I couldn’t get there any time soon in my car. I began to think of anyone that I might know that could do something. I couldn’t think of anyone except God that could direct aid to them. Then I had a thought that many of you might find strange. What if they die? Is that the worst thing that could happen to them? For a number of reasons I believe that infants go to Heaven when they die. I’m not going to write a theological treatise on that here, but I do believe the Bible supports the idea. What if they die? If what I believe the Bible teaches is correct, they would take their next breath in Heaven. They would have escaped the disaster and God would have provided relief to them. No, it’s not what we would think of as relief. It’s probably not what the reporter had in mind. He was begging for baby formula, clean water and diapers. Those are necessary supplies, but there is more than one type of relief that God can offer.

Make sure you understand that I don’t believe that everyone instantly goes to Heaven when they die. The Bible is very clear. Jesus says in John 14:6 that no one comes to Father except he places his faith in Jesus. People of account who don’t repent of their sins, seek Jesus’ forgiveness and follow Him will have no access to God according to the Bible. But for those that will trust and love Jesus there is great hope. In fact, there is no greater hope. The Bible says, “So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power.” (1 Corinthians 15:42-43, ESV) That sounds like relief to me.

In addition to the relief of resurrection, I believe a person’s love for Christ ought to drive them to be even more charitable. The cited passage plainly tells us of our weakness. Therefore, we ought to aid our fellow citizens of Earth with the greatest of effort. So, I hope you will give and serve generously when others are in need, but don’t forget relief comes in many ways.