Help the Needy, Not the Foolish
Posted: Thursday, February 26, 2009
by Terry Mitchell
http://commenterry.blogs.com
Despite what my more liberal-leaning Christian friends may believe, I submit that we (as Christians) are under no obligation to help people who foolishly fritter away their time or money. And I have Scripture to support this assertion.
In the parable of the wise and foolish virgins, here's what Jesus had to say:
"Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight a cry was heard: 'Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!' Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' But the wise answered, saying, 'No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.' And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut." Matthew 25: 1-10 (NKJV)
I suppose they believed that they would have plenty of time to acquire the oil they needed and could wait until the last minute if necessary. But then the bridegroom suddenly arrived and they panicked. They didn't have as much time as they thought, so they asked the wise virgins for help. But wise virgins did not have any oil to spare, so the foolish virgins were left behind while they scrambled to find oil.
And this is not an isolated incident in Scripture. Remember Jesus' parable of the talents? In summary, a landowner puts three of his servants in charge of large sums of money called talents in the King James English. He gives one of them five talents, another two talents, and another one talent - and then goes on a distant journey. When he returns, the servant with five talents has made five more and the servant with the two talents has made two more.
However, the servant with the one talent had dug a hole and buried his in the ground, having nothing additional to show for it. There was nothing preventing that servant from doubling his money, just as the other two had. Now, did the landowner demand that the first two servants help the third one? No, he condemned that servant for his disobedience and even took away the one talent that he had.
Clearly, we are to be good stewards of both our time and our money. When we come up short because we fail to do so, we should not expect God or others to compensate us for it.
We all remember Aesop's fable of The Ant and the Grasshopper from our childhood. We recall how the grasshopper frolicked and played during the summer, while the ant worked hard to prepare for the winter. Then, when winter came, the grasshopper had not stored up any supplies but the ant had plenty. What if Jesus had told this story? Do you think he would have had pity on the grasshopper? Do you think he would have instructed the ant to help him? I believe the answer to the two previous questions is no.
According to the Bible, foolishness and laziness have their rewards. Proverbs 3:35 says, "The wise shall inherit glory, But shame shall be the legacy of fools" (NKJV) However, I love the modern translation of this verse from the MSG that goes as follows: "Wise living gets rewarded with honor; stupid living gets the booby prize." And then we have this from Proverbs 24: 33-34: "A little sleep, little slumber, A little folding of the hands to rest; So shall your poverty come like a prowler, And your need like an armed man." (NKJV)
Of course, most of the people who are truly needy did not get way through foolishness, laziness, and any other fault of their own. Many of them were born into poverty in third-world countries. Even some of those born in the industrialized parts of the world have had few opportunities to better themselves.
Then others have been victims of circumstances beyond their control, like serious illnesses and long periods of unemployment. Some of them could not put any money away when they were in good health and working because they had jobs that just barely covered their cost of living.
But then we have others who are gainfully employed but refuse to plan for tomorrow. They live lavishly (often beyond their means), spending wildly, taking luxurious vacations, and always buying the biggest and the best, when they could be saving for a rainy day. Then, when they are hit with a major setback, they are no better off than those who were forced to live a hand-to-mouth existence.
The other day, I was talking to a co-worker about how I always look for bargains at the grocery store and other places in order to save as much money as possible. He responded by saying he did not do this, even though our salaries are nearly identical. He said he just buys what he wants and doesn't worry about trying to save money.
His rationale is that saving money is not necessary for him because he will always make more. Really? I wonder how he knows this. Proverbs 27:1 says, "Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring forth." (NKJV) Of course, this gentleman, although a person of the highest moral and ethical standards, is not a Christian and would therefore probably not understand that concept.
It seems to me that, since one does not know what the future holds, the wise person would prepare for all possibilities. But when people fail to prepare - although they could - are they not presuming on God? Isn't that a foolish thing to do?
Time and again, the Bible depicts foolish people as being punished. Perhaps this punishment is not such a bad thing, as it may convince some of them to change their ways before it's too late. There is much in the Bible about helping the needy, but nothing about helping the foolish. But if you still insist on helping the foolish, stick to the following guideline: Give to the obviously needy first, and then help the foolish - assuming you have anything left to give. Chances are, you won't.
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Top-level comments on this article: (2 total)New Testament passages
- "Jesus answered, If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.'" Matthew 19:21
- "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." Matthew 25:35
- "They devour widows' houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men will be punished most severely." Mark 12:40
- "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because He has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed." Luke 4:18
- "So he replied to the messengers, Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: 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.'" Luke 7:22
- "Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys." Luke 12:33
- "But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind." Luke 14:13
- "When Jesus heard this, he said to him, You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.'" Luke 18:22
- "Beware of the teachers of the law . . . They devour your widows' houses . . . Such men will be punished severely." Luke 20:46-47
- "'Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year's wages.' He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it." John 12:5
- "In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (which, when translated, is Dorcas), who was always doing good and helping the poor." Acts 9:36
- "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.'" Acts 10:4
- "After an absence of several years, I came to Jerusalem to bring my people gifts for the poor and to present offerings." Acts 24:17
- "On the contrary: If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.'" Romans 12:20
- "For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem." Romans 15:26
- "All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do." Galatians 2:10
- "Give proper recognition to those widows who are really in need." 1 Timothy 5:3
- "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 1:27
- "Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, 'Here's a good seat for you,' but say to the poor man, 'You stand there' or 'Sit on the floor by my feet,' have you not discriminated among yourselves and becomes judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my dear brothers: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom He promised those who love Him? But you have insulted the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court?" James 2:2-6
- "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." 1 John 3:17-18
Hi, thanks for providing more scripture verses to support my point.
Where do you really find people that really are sincere to help those in need like me. Its like they do not care. Or do do they really.Jelene, I'm sorry to hear that you are in need. In what way(s) are you in need? I'm sure there are plenty of caring people who would help you if you just asked.
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