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Our Obligations to the Poor, November 13
For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye
gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: naked, and ye
clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye
came unto me.
Matthew 25:35, 36
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While the world needs sympathy, while it needs the prayers and as-
sistance of God’s people, while it needs to see Christ in the lives of His
followers, the people of God are equally in need of opportunities that
draw out their sympathies, give efficiency to their prayers, and develop in
them a character like that of the divine pattern.
It is to provide these opportunities that God has placed among us the
poor, the unfortunate, the sick, and the suffering. They are Christ’s legacy
to His church, and they are to be cared for as He would care for them. In
this way God takes away the dross and purifies the gold, giving us that
culture of heart and character which we need.
The Lord could carry forward His work without our cooperation. He
is not dependent on us for our money, our time, or our labor. But the
church is very precious in His sight. It is the case which contains His
jewels, the fold which encloses His flock, and He longs to see it without
spot or blemish or any such things. He yearns after it with unspeakable
love. This is why He has given us opportunities to work for Him, and He
accepts our labors as tokens of our love and loyalty.
In placing among us the poor and the suffering, the Lord is testing us
to reveal to us what is in our hearts.... The culture of the mind and heart is
more easily accomplished when we feel such tender sympathy for others
that we bestow our benefits and privileges to relieve their necessities....
Good works cost us a sacrifice, but it is in this very sacrifice that they
provide discipline. These obligations bring us into conflict with natural
feelings and propensities, and in fulfilling them we gain victory after
victory over the objectionable traits of our characters.
The world will be convinced not so much by what the pulpit teaches
as by what the church lives. The preacher announces the theory of the
gospel, but the practical piety of the church demonstrates its power.
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