A Household of Love

 A Household of Love

In the book of Leviticus we read,

" ‘When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest.  

Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the LORD your God." Leviticus 19: 9,10.

In the book of James we read,

"What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food.    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? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead." James 2:14-17.

In the Talmud we read,

“Rabbi Akiba was asked by a Roman general, "Why does your God who loves the needy not provide for their support Himself?"  He answered, "God the Father of both the rich and poor, wants the one to help the other so as to make the world a household of love." The Talmud.

Do you do what you can to help the poor and those less fortunate in your community?

I know most of us don’t have thousands of dollars lying around that we can give to the poor. But we all have something we can give. Even if it’s just giving some spare change to a homeless person begging on the street corner. Other ways to give is by donating to a reputable charity. OR, by getting involved by volunteering with a local food bank or other groups that minister to the less fortunate.

If you’re not already, consider volunteering or giving (even if it’s just a few dollars) to a program that is helping the poor. Actions that will show that you are contributing to make the world around you “a household of love”.

Please think about it.

Showing Pity

  Showing pity

The apostle John writes,

"This is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another.... 

"If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?  

Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth." 1John 3:11,17,18.

If you consider yourself a believer in Christ Jesus and have what you need for a comfortable life. Do you show pity on those who do not? 

In the book of Proverbs we have this warning, 

"Whoever closes his ear to the cry of the poor 

will himself call out and not be answered." 

                                                                       Proverbs 21:13.

So when you see someone on the street in need. OR know of someone who has a roof over their head but lacks the finances to get enough food, do you do what you can to help them?

Please think about it.

A Biblical Issue

 A Biblical issue

In the book of Leviticus we read,

" ‘When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest.  

Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the LORD your God." Leviticus 19: 9,10.

God cares for the poor. There are I am told over 2000 verses in the bible that deal with the poor.

Here long before there was such a thing as government welfare God decreed that those who owned farms were not to pick up fruit that had fallen on the ground or even go over their vineyard a second time. They were to leave the fruit for the poor and aliens in their midst.

The American evangelist Tony Campolo makes a good point when he states,

"These issues are biblical issues: to care for the sick, to feed the hungry, to stand up for the oppressed. I contend that if the evangelical community became more biblical, everything would change." Tony Campolo.

Thus my question to you. If you are a Christian are you doing what you can to help the poor? 

Please think about it.

To the Rich

To the Rich
The Apostle Paul writing to Timothy states,
“Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.  
Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.  
In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. 1Timothy 6:17-19.
What Paul is saying here is what Jesus talked about when he said,
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  
But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.  
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:19-21.
Jesus also told this parable,
“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day.  
At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores  and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. 
“The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried.  
In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side.  
So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’ 
“But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony.  
And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’ 
“He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father’s house,  
for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’ 
“Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’ 
“ ‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ 
“He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’ ” Luke 16:19-31
As I’ve said in the past having wealth is not wrong. It’s what we do with it and the priority we place on it. As Christians with wealth we as Paul states should “be rich in good deeds. To be generous and willing to share”.
Christianity is all about our relationship to God and fellow man. The Talmud while not considered a Christian book tells a story that like many things in Jewish thought lines up with Christian belief. It states,
“Rabbi Akiba was asked by a Roman general, “Why does your God who loves the needy not provide for their support Himself?”  He answered, “God the Father of both the rich and poor, wants the one to help the other so as to make the world a household of love.” The Talmud.
This is true. We as Christians need to realize this.
Whenever I read 1Timothy 6:17-19 and Matthew 6:19-21 I remember a very special woman.
When I first met her she lived in a rented rundown farm house well outside of town.  Money was tight but there were chickens, and a vegetable garden that supplemented her and her husbands meagre income.
What impressed me about this woman was that no matter who showed up at her door announced or not, there was always room at the table. She never turned anyone away.
On holidays Christmas, New Years, Thanksgiving, as many as twenty to thirty family and others sat around the table and no one went hungry.
She was an example to me that no matter how little we have we can help others. I was the guest at her house many, many times over the years and she taught me a lot. That lady became my mother in law.
She eventually moved out of that farm house and into an apartment in the home of one of her daughters where she enjoyed a far better life materially.
Yet still, especially during the holidays there were as many as thirty squeezed in enjoying good food and fellowship.
This lady was not wealthy, not well educated, not a great theologian, or orator. She was a simple woman, with a simple faith, doing what she could for God. Which is what we all should be doing, wealthy or not.
Please think about it.