WP 106: Justice for the Poor

The Westside Podcast—featuring Randy Frazee

Concern for the poor is woven throughout the entirety of the biblical narrative. It is absolutely unavoidable from the Old testament to the New. OT Lev 19:10 And you shall not strip your vineyard bare, neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard. You shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner: I am the Lord your God. Deuteronomy 15:7 “If among you, one of your brothers should become poor, in any of your towns within your land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart or shut your hand against your poor brother, 8 but you shall open your hand to him and lend him sufficient for his need, whatever it may be. … 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.’ Deut 27:19 “Cursed is anyone who withholds justice from the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow.” Then all the people shall say, “Amen!” Exodus 22:21 “You shall not wrong a foreigner or oppress him, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. 22 You shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child. Prov 14:31 Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God. Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter . . . ? Isaiah 58:6 -7 What does Jesus have to say? Luke 11:37 When Jesus had finished speaking, a Pharisee invited him to eat with him; so he went in and reclined at the table. 38 But the Pharisee was surprised when he noticed that Jesus did not first wash before the meal. 39 Then the Lord said to him, “Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. 40 You foolish people! Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also? 41 But now as for what is inside you—be generous to the poor, and everything will be clean for you. 42 “Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone. Luke 14:12 Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. 13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, … Matthew 11:4-5 Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. In the parable of the persistent widow from Luke 18 :1Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’ 4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’” 6 And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” Parable of the Sheep and Goats Matthew 25:34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ Luke 12:32 “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Some conclusions: The great eighteenth-century hymn-writer and ex- slave trader John Newton marveled at the far-reaching implications of these words. “One would almost think that Luke 14:12-14 was not considered part of God’s word,” he wrote, “nor has any part of Jesus’s teaching been more neglected by his own people. I do not think it is unlawful to entertain our friends; but if these words do not teach us that it is in some respects our duty to give a preference to the poor, I am at a loss to understand them.” What is Jesus’s point, then, in these exhortations? 1. It must be at least this—that his believers should not see any of their money as their own, and they should be profoundly involved with and generous to the poor. 2. Justification and Justice are inextricably connected. Jesus brother James writes: James 1:27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 2:14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? 15 Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. 18 But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. …26 As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead. We are saved by faith alone. But not by faith that remains alone. Justification will lead to justice - fruit of the regenerate soul in Christ. Justice will lead to justification - as the church reflects the heart of Jesus for the poor the world will observe this consistency and integrity and in turn people will turn to Jesus.
So what can I do? 2 pronged approach: Serve in my neighborhood: You surgical ability to see and meet needs that a larger group cannot. Individual, family, small (A2) group… Serve with my church: There is a power and synergy unmatched when the church unifies with the heart of Jesus. Here are a few things one church is doing. Westside Service statistics 2020: Provided 4273 Professional Counseling sessions - Up 21% Supported 155 people through 41 Care Groups (Lifelines) Led 6 Food Drives, 350,000 Meals, 800 volunteers & 100 students Gave Covid food relief & ovens in South Africa, Thailand, Laos WFC 8 Blood Drives, 395 donors, potential of 1227 lives saved Supported 650 children, 19 One-Life sites, 4 countries, 814 sponsors Supported 1387 overseas house-churches, 329 new churches! Initiated 44 overseas community development Micro-finance projects Partnerships: Avenue of Life, Hillcrest Housing, Mission House, etc. Partnered to assist 1500 homeless families to obtain housing Opened AOL Youth House housing 12 teen girls Supported Christ The Victor Church inside & outside Lansing Prison Encouraged 750 Foster/Adoptive parents through our RE:Conference Supplied Christmas gifts to 400 foster-families, 300 workers, 150 GH 44 Foster/Adopted Children now supported by Westside A2 Groups Additional Resources: Find out more and get involved here! Book - Generous Justice by Tim Keller Book - Progress:10 Reasons to Look Forward to the Future by Johan Norberg Film and Research on American Poverty - America Lost by Christopher Rufu Submit Q&A Questions and episode suggestions here. Watch the YouTube video here!