1 Corinthians 16:1-9 Now about the collection for God’s people: Do what I told the Galatian churches to do. On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made. Then, when I arrive, I will give letters of introduction to the men you approve and send them with your gift to Jerusalem. If it seems advisable for me to go also, they will accompany me. After I go through Macedonia, I will come to you — for I will be going through Macedonia. Perhaps I will stay with you awhile, or even spend the winter, so that you can help me on my journey, wherever I go. I do not want to see you now and make only a passing visit; I hope to spend some time with you, if the Lord permits. But I will stay on at Ephesus until Pentecost, because a great door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many who oppose me.
As Paul finishes this letter to the Corinthians, he encourages them to save up money according to their income to send to Jerusalem for the care of the poor. The Christians in Jerusalem experienced difficult and dangerous times because of their faith in Jesus the Messiah. Along with verbal and physical persecution came the loss of their means to support themselves. Ostracism from the Jewish society represented a trying experience for anyone who claimed the name of Jesus. The Jewish governing elite had killed Jesus to get rid of him permanently; however, to their amazement, his followers continued to propagate Christ's message that all who believe in him would have eternal life. Because of the adverse consequences for Christians in Jerusalem, Paul tells the churches to save up money to help the believers there and to make plans for trusted men to carry the money to Jerusalem. In these Gentile churches, Paul implemented a centuries-old method of helping the poor. The Jewish people saw Yahweh, the God of the Old Testament, as concerned with the poor. In fact, one could judge his own standing with God by what he did for the poor and for the disenfranchised such as the immigrants.
He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God. (Proverb 14:31) A generous and cheerful giver portrayed God's nature within the Jewish culture. When instructing the Israelites, God emphasized careful concern for the poor.
If there is a poor man among your brothers in any of the towns of the land that the LORD your God is giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward your poor brother. Rather be openhanded and freely lend him whatever he needs. Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought: “The seventh year, the year for canceling debts, is near,” so that you do not show ill will toward your needy brother and give him nothing. He may then appeal to the LORD against you, and you will be found guilty of sin. Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to. There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land. (Deuteronomy 15:7-11) If God demanded this kind of treatment of the poor under the constrictions of the law, how much more should we Christians who are free in Christ reveal God's love and generosity to the poor and the disenfranchised among us.
We who are baptized with the Holy Spirit should have ears that are sensitive to the voice of God. Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. (Acts 1:4-5) We who are saved have the Holy Spirit within us, but do we have ears sensitized to his voice? Are we hearing what God is saying to us about the poor? When Jesus was questioned about whether He was the Christ, He responded: “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The miracles I do in my Father’s name speak for me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” (John 10:25-30) Jesus emphatically said, My sheep listen to my voice. We are to hear that He cares for those who have needs, who lack food, sanitation, housing. He tells the rich young man to sell all he has and give it to the poor. He praises the poor widow for her faith in giving all. He tells us to invite the poor to banquets, gatherings. He tells us not to store up our wealth for ourselves. In Proverbs 14:31, we read: Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death. Who are the righteous? Those who hear the voice of God and follow his royal commands: Love God with all your heart, soul, mind, strength, and equally as important: love your neighbor as yourself. John said, they will know us by our love. When we abandon the less fortunate, we are abandoning love. When we look down on others because they are not as hard working or as astute in their living choices as we are, we must be careful not to demean God's involvement in our lives. Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins. (James 4:13-17) What good are you to do in your lives? Live as close as you can to God's image. Be his caretaker and caregiver to others when no one else is around. Love people, for they were made in his image. Hear the voice of God: listen and obey.
Paul encouraged the churches he founded to love others and to show that love by their actions. People that they will never know, talk to, or see would benefit from their loving behavior. He asks the Corinthians to minister to the body of Christ in Judea. But for most of us, we do not need to send money far away to minister to the poor in the body of Christ, for they often are our fellow church members. They may be even part of our families or close acquaintances. They are among us, but sometimes our insensitivities are so great that our ears have become deaf to their cries of pain and our eyes are blind to their needs. We almost have to be run over by the proverbial Mack truck before we understand the problems of those around us. As Christians with the power of the Holy Spirit in us, with the voice of God speaking to us, we ought not deceive ourselves by saying all is fine with our world. If we fail to respond to the desperate, the hurting, the poor, who are we? We are no better than people of the world who think only of themselves. James says it very well: Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it — he will be blessed in what he does. (James 1:22-25) Love your neighbor as yourself is God's commandment for us. Do not merely listen to the words of God, but do what He says. Do not let a closed billfold or a shut purse get in the way of you serving God with your whole heart. Store up money for the poor, so when you see a problem, you can help that person in God's name. Open your eyes to those who have needs, and God will bless you in this life and in the life to come. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. (2 Corinthians 9:7) Amen.
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