Does the Church have a responsibility to the poor and oppressed?
This Sunday, Bethel will be hosting Bill Payne, who is the Assistant Director of Missoula 3:16. Missoula 3:16 is a local ministry seeking to aid and meet the needs of the homeless and economically disadvantaged in Missoula. As I was thinking about their work, I recognized that throughout Church History, God’s people have responded in various ways to the plight of the poor and oppressed. History is full of Men and Women, who in the name of Christ, built hospitals, cared for the sick, abolished slavery, and ministered to deep felt needs. But over the last century, especially in the Evangelical church, there has been a movement away from what I call “compassion ministries.”
As an Evangelical, we believe that the primary purpose of the Church is to point people towards receiving and growing in Christ. We have focused on spiritual issues rather than meeting the felt needs of people and lately I can’t help but sense that we have been missing out on something. So I find myself asking, “Does the Church have a responsibility to the poor and oppressed?”
I think Scripture overwhelmingly teaches that we do. Being the Church is more than just a matter of preaching about Spiritual things, but its about demonstrating the power of those Spiritual ideals in our relationships. Here are two realities that I think Scripture reveals about our responsibility to meet physical and spiritual needs.
1) Jesus commands it of us. (Matthew 25:34-45)
In this passage, Jesus reminds us that our neglect of the needs of the poor is ultimately a neglect of Jesus himself. He stands in solidarity with the poor and expects that we as His people care for those needs. Those that came and clothed, encouraged, and cared for others are rewarded as if they had done it to Christ himself. At the same time, one cannot help to notice the harshness and directness with which Jesus speaks to the other group. Those that looked past needs missed the opportunity to care for the poor and in doing so are held responsible for their neglect. Our obligation to meet the physical needs is first and foremost sourced in the fact that Jesus requires it of us.
2) Our recognition of the Love of God expresses itself in a love for the poor. (1 John 3:17)
The degree to which we understand the love and provision of God will express itself in the love and compassion that we have for others. The Apostle John writes, “But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?” John is reminding us that God has set an example for us of how we are to love. He gave himself extravagantly to bring us into a right relationship with himself. He provides for our needs even when we take him for granted. The things that we enjoy as his provision are ultimately a gift from God.
John puts his finger right on the issue when we says that this person, “sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him.” To be sure there is a place for wisdom and stewardship in meeting the needs of the poor. The church is not an ATM to be taken advantage of. But, I fear that we have gone to the opposite extreme and closed our heart to true need. The first step to showing compassion for the poor is to “notice” and to not close the heart. People in need can fade into the background just like the wounded man that was passed by the Rabbi and Scribe in the parable of the Good Samaritan. I think more than just seeing someone “in need” we need to see the person. Only then can our hearts be brought into a place where we can truly minister to physical and spiritual needs. If the love of God doesn’t translate for a care for the poor, then have we really understood the goodness and Love of God in our own lives?
I believe that, “All true beliefs express themselves in tangible action. “ The truest test of whether or not we believe something is whether or not we are willing to live it. Our care and compassion for the poor is a reflection of our understanding of the love and mercy of God. May he grant us the grace to keep our hearts open and to manifest his love to a world in need.
4 Responses 
Leave a Reply 
Each Sunday, Bethel gathers for an inspiring time of worship and time in God's word at 10:30 a.m. Programs and activities for the whole family are offered with Childcare and Children’s Ministries provided. We are located at the corner of 6th and Washburn at 1601 South 6th Street West in Missoula just one block west of Russell Street. For more information, contact the church office at (406)721-2780. 
Dear Pastor Ryan, think I just previously and accidently sent you some unorganized thoughts. Here are some better organized thoughts/questions for you.
I live in Colorado Springs, am an evangelical, but I’m bothered with some statements about helping the poor and I can’t find a good scriptural reference. What I’m hearing is that it is the church’s responsibity to take care of the poor, as you cite on your website. People are using this to cause a divide between secular and non-church help to the poor and the chrisitian help to the poor. Do you have a scriptural refenerence that says the church is first in this mission above all others? Does this mean that christians should elbow out all others so that we can claim this right…even though I think this will worsen the plight of the poor and hurt? thanks for your advice and additional scripture reference.
Peggy from Colorado Springs
Hi Peggy,
Thanks so much for your posts and insights, I think you’ve identified some key issues in the discussion that are worthy of clarification.
You mention that many are using the church’s mandate of caring for the poor as an excuse to “cause a divide between secular and…christian help to the poor.” I agree with you that this attitude is prevalent and I think it misses the point of ministry that God intends. Let me say from the outset that I don’t believe that Christians are the only ones that can provide quality social services to the poor. To the contrary, I recognize that there are many worthy organizations that are doing much to meet the needs of the poor and oppressed that are not faith based. Where my concern lies is in the fact that the church in the last 50 years has turned a blind eye to need in exchange for meeting “spiritual” needs. Passages such as James 1:27 and 2:14-17 remind us that meeting the physical needs of others is an important part of our ministry. Our goal in ministry is to see people come to wholeness in Christ in every area of life. In light of that fact, sometimes the best thing the church can do is come along side a secular agency and volunteer financial and human resources in the name of Christ. I think to “elbow out” other providers would be foolish. No one in Scripture ever discouraged another from meeting the needs of a hurting person because they were not a part of God’s family. To the contrary, in his parable, Jesus actually applauds the “Good Samaritan” (Lk 10:25-37) who would have been viewed as religiously unfaithful by many of the Jews. In the same way, the church should be able to celebrate the good work that is being done by secular agencies, and should follow their example of meeting needs.
Though the church shouldn’t discourage others meeting these needs, I do think we should be one of the loudest voices of social compassion. As the church God has gifted his body with a variety of spiritual giftings and resources for healthy minsitry. The church is uniquely positioned to meet not only physical needs, but spiritual needs as well. In fact, I would suggest that the only way to fully address physical need is to see hearts transformed by the gospel. Oppression exists because men and women are slef centered and bent on sin. It is only through a life transforming relationship with Christ that hearts are changed and freed to love God and love others. The end of social compassion is spiritual transformation through the Gospel, but a gospel that lacks social compassion fails to demonstrate the love of Christ.
The church should he a leader in social compassion ministries, but should never discourage the good work that is being done by secular agencies. My purpose in this article was not to suggest otherwise, but to call the church to a deepening awareness of our need to be active in compassion ministries. I believe that great potential exists (we’re actually seeing this at Bethel right now) in forging partnerships with secular agencies who share our concern for the health and wholeness of people. These partnerships allow us to share the gospel in love and in deed. It communicates that we are more interested in helping people than making them our “project.”
Thanks for you questions and interaction on this. You have some great insights.
Blessings
Ryan
I completely believe in God. I think he’s the creator of everything and I am truly a a person who knows he exists. Thank you for this resource
I love this goal of yours. I have been really trying to find a way to help get the poor un oppressed. I am poor and Have Jesus Christ living in me. Some poor may be called later or now. Never know. I have prayed for some and Hope they were delivered from oppression of the enemy. I find it very difficult to get a job and I have been trying to do a online business and MA wants to change word defintion to exalt it to higher educated people. to something it does not mean in the english dictionary. A lot of poor have lost their parent at young age and now we are a adullts and don’t have eductation like many do. That is oppressing the poor that want to get off the system. All the requirements of big education even just to get a custodain job. Need High School deploma. What makes me sick is some consertive christian churches on a role that the poor are lazy and bums. I know differenly in some cases they are trying to find away to work. I also see where the church is oppressed. When I find a way to make money that is of precious stone and not hewn stone will I want to teach other poor that want to help themelves. Do you have any ideas for what I could do to get them releaved off the welfare system that want to do it? I need to put my own business together before I get teaching another poor to do it. And this will be done in the Rock of Jesus Christ. I would love to talk with you about it. Thank you for helping the poor spiritual. That is vital for the poor, needy and adult orphans that has lost their parents as kids. I have been bash down a few times trying to get this going and at this point waiting on the Lord for more direction. any advise would be a help.
Exuse my writing. I am not good at this. I am behing what you are doing.