Attitudes Toward the Poor Proverbs 22, and James 1

Tom Steed
Church of Christ
Carbondale, IL 62901
coc@intrnet.net



Thesis: The church has the responsibility to treat the poor responsibly, but
with compassion.

Aim:  To motivate others to set aside a part of their income to help the
poor; to give of themselves as occasion arises, and to help others who are
helping the poor.  To discourage anyone from mistreating the poor.

Below is the text of the Power Point slides along with my comments.  My
congregation is aware of our ongoing concern for the poor manifested in
several programs at the church.  I am trying to refute those who only want
to blame the poor for their problems and motivate those who spend everything
on themselves to share with others.

I have posted the Power Point version of the sermon at
http://www.ebibleteacher.com/steed/richpoor.ppt.  You may need either
PowerPoint, or the free PowerPoint viewer to see it. I  If you choose to
down load it, it is about 100K.  I would hope that you can view it directly
from your web browser.



Slide 1
Attitudes Toward the Poor Proverbs 22, and James 1

Comments: One night, I returned home to find a strange pair of terribly
dilapidated tennis shoes on my front porch. When I came in, I asked my wife,
Whose shoes are these?  She chuckled and told me the story of man who came
by our house in need (Our house is next to the church).  He was walking.
His shoes were terrible.  --The rest of the story was that a pair of my
tennis shoes was missing from my closet.  He wore the same size as I do and
she gave him a pair of my shoes- my best pair!  I love her because she is
compassionate!   Today's lesson will deal with our attitudes toward the
poor.  It is based in Proverbs 22 and James 1.  It deals with both attitudes
and actions; it asks us to evaluate our attitudes and our actions.  First,
lets look at the scripture background.

Slide 2
Proverbs 22:1 & 2
o "A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better
than silver or gold.   Rich and poor have this in common:  The LORD is the
Maker of them all."

Comments: Go has made the rich and the poor.  It is more valuable to have a
good reputation than to be rich.

Slide 3
Proverbs 22:7-9
  "7 The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.
8 He who sows wickedness reaps trouble, and the rod of his fury will be
destroyed.  9 A generous man will himself be blessed, for he shares his food
with the poor."                                          (NIV)

Comments: There are definite disadvantages to being poor.  The poor are
often oppressed by slumlords, high interest rates, and other oppressive
practices.  Sometimes, poverty is associated with lack of education, making
it even easier to oppress the poor.  However, the Lord is aware of all our
dealings, honorable and shady.

Slide 4
Proverbs 22:22-23
o "Do not exploit the poor because they are poor and do not crush the needy
in court,  for the LORD will take up their case and will plunder those who
plunder them."

Comments: Before any one takes advantage of the poor, he or she should
realize the God is watching all transgressions.  Matthew 25 makes it clear
that our treatment of the needy is a big criterion at the judgment.

Slide 5
James 2:1-17
Definition of the Poor:
o    Someone who is struggling to meet the minimum needs of life: Food,
clothing, health care, and shelter
o    Webster: Having little or no money, goods, or other means of support.

Comments: Sometimes it is a little hard to define who exactly we mean when
we say the poor.  Jesus assures us that, "The poor you will always have with
you."  Our congregation is economically diverse. It includes the needy as
well as the wealthy.  In a recent book that surveyed jobs, their
desirability and their compensation, as reported at ABC's website, waiters
and waitresses ranked 250 of 250 on a salary scale at $14,086.  Dishwashers
were 249th at $14,112.  In America, the way we treat those who serve us may
indicate our views toward the poor

Slide 6
Discernment
o   "Does this include everyone who makes a request for help?"
o   "Am I obligated to help everyone who squanders their opportunities or
mismanages their life?"

Comments: Most of us who have served as ministers for some time wrestle with
questions: Is everyone who calls the church and asks for help worthy or
deserving of help.  For me, it is a complex questions.  A few dollars and be
on your way is not an adequate solution for many people's problems.  Since I
answer the phone 365 days a year when I am in town, it seems that problems
multiply around holidays.  It is hard to deal with people whose lack of
planning and judgment ruins my holiday celebrations. However, Jesus was
often disturbed by the needy, and so I must also be willing to interrupt my
schedule to help others.  It takes both discernment and judgment.  Jesus
also did not help every person who had a need. We must not, however, dismiss
our obligation by blaming those who have needs.  In my judgment,  a
balanced, long term approach is the most productive.


Slide 7
True Poverty
o Third world people
o Homeless people.

Comments: Most of us would be quick to admit that the poorest in America
have it better than those in Third World Countries.  Even the poor among us
usually have food and clothes.  We must recognize that our Christian duty is
not limited to those in our neighborhood, or even our country.  As a
prosperous people we have responsibility to others who may be needy.
  Homeless people certainly qualify as poor.  As we recognize, there are
other problems other than poverty that are associated with homelessness.
Mental illness, emotional instability, substance abuse and other problems
are associated with this phenomenon.   However, this does not alleviate our
responsibility.  Even in America, remember that the minimum wage at 40 hours
for 52 weeks is only $11,752. It is not easy to live on this amount.

Slide 8
Observations
o Long life and limited resources can make a person needy.
o Poor health can make us needy.
o One family here spends  $12,000 a year on medicine.

Comments: Most of us should realize that a streak of bad luck could render
us needy.  What if your company shut down?  What if your health declined and
you could no longer work?  What if you lived on limited resources all your
life and then lived a long term, that nest egg could run out.

Slide 9
Wrong Attitudes Toward the Poor
o Take advantage of them.
o Look down on them.
o Blame them.
o Coddle them?  - No
o Help them? - Yes

Comments: Proverbs tells us that we must not abuse the poor.  We should not
look down upon them or blame them totally for their own problems.  We should
not allow them to cheat us or be given a handout continually, but should
require that they learn some responsibility. This does not excuse us for a
failure to help and even give to the point of being taken advantage of.

Slide 10
Work To Eat
o 2 Thessalonians 3:10 "If a man will not work, he shall not eat."
o Lev 23:22 By gleaning in the fields, even the poor had to go out and pick
up what was left.

Comments: The Bible teaches a responsibility. In Lev. 23:22, people were
instructed to leave the edges of their field for the poor.  We must share
some of our production with those who need it.  On the other hand, a person
who can must be willing to work.  Even the gleanings required that the
person go out into the field and pick up the food that was left.

Slide 11
Right Attitudes Toward the Poor.
o Love and help them-Jesus did!
o Treat them as human equals with dignity and respect.
o Leave some of our prosperity to them: "Leave the corners of the field."

Comments: Some of the correct attitudes teach us that we must treat each and
every person with respect.  Even if we do not help others, we can treat them
with dignity.  Every person has an obligation to share with others.  Now
let's look at some way we can mistreat the poor..

Slide 12
How Can We Treat The Poor Properly?

Slide 13
Don't Oppress The Poor:
o Be honest in your dealings.

Comments: Any dealing that cheats or oppresses the poor is wrong.  A
Christian should not be a slumlord or an extortionist.

Slide 14
Daily Interactions.
o Treat every person with dignity.
Comments:  Every person, from the phone solicitor on up should be treated
with respect.  We do not have to buy, nor listen to the spiel,  but
hopefully, we can learn to say no graciously.

Slide 15
Our Priorities.
o  Share with others.

Comments: If we spend all our resources on ourselves, fancy car, leather
furniture, you name it, we can whine and say we have nothing left.  If fact,
we should designate a part of our resources to help others before we spend
it all on ourselves.
Perhaps you heard the story of the little boy who went into the café.  "How
much is a hot fudge Sunday?"  "Fifty cents," came the reply.  How much is
plain ice cream?  "Forty cents."   "I'll have the plain ice cream," he said.
When the waitress cleaned the table she found that the boy had left a
ten-cent tip.  He curbed his wants in order to share with others.

Slide 16
Working for Justice
o Fair Laws and Programs.
o Balance giving help and getting them to help themselves.

Comments: Those who are talented in these areas should work for just laws.
These laws should balance training and giving.

Slide 17
Help People Help Themselves
o "Teach Them to Fish."

Comments: Perhaps the best way to help others is to provide them with
education and training.  My wife works with a program that helps people
learn job skills in order to obtain jobs.  It is better to teach them to be
responsible and dependable and to help them with skills so that they can
support themselves.  Then business and industry must pay a fair wage.

Slide 18
Teaching Some of the Cardinal Virtues of Christianity in General.
o Accountability.
o Self-control.
o Dependability.
o Deferred gratification
o Honesty.
o Hard work.

Comments:  The virtues of Christianity can help us to be productive people.
Bad judgment and instant gratification can lead to poverty.   We can
sympathize with people who use their charge cards for instant pleasure and
end up paying a fortune in interest, but the problem is often of their own
doing. Donald McGavran, who studied missiology extensively observed a
concept called "Redemption and Lift".  McGavran observed that people's
economic condition often improved when they adopted Christian attributes.
(Understanding Church Growth, Eerdsmans, Grand Rapids. 1980)This concept can
actually be negative in growth in missions according to McGavran because it
separates the Christians from the population in general.  The point is as
Christians improve in character, they may grow economically.

Slide 19
Sharing With the Needy.
o Missions.
o Give Away Day.
o Good Samaritan House.
o The Pantry.
o Individual Actions.

Comments: There are many opportunities to help others.  Find one that is
appropriate for you and get involved. Help your congregation as they help
others.  In our congregation, we have, "Give Away Day,"   It is like a giant
yard sale, but everything is free.  We send invitations to area social
service agencies and invite them to come in.  There are many other
opportunities to help others in our community.

Slide 20
Sharing
o "At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was
known as the Italian Regiment.  2 He and all his family were devout and
God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God
regularly." Acts 10

Slide 21
Sharing
o "3 One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly
saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, "Cornelius!"   4 Cornelius
stared at him in fear. "What is it, Lord?" he asked.  The angel answered,
"Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering
before God."

Comments: God took notice of Cornelius' generous attitudes and practices.
He will notice ours as well.

Slide 22
Conclusion:
o The Story of the King and the Beggar

Comments: This story came off PRCL. I deleted the original post, but this is
the essence). The King asked for people to come to his palace to choose his
successor.  As a candidate came to visit the King dressed in his fancy
clothes and with fine foods for the king. On his way, the candidate met a
beggar who was cold and hungry.   The candidate gave his food and clothes to
the beggar.  When he got to the throne room dressed in ragged clothes,
imagine his surprise when the man on the throne was wearing his clothes.  "I
knew you would be nice to the King, I had to find out if you would be good
to the subjects," said the King.  One day we will meet our King.