God calls Christians out to help others.
At times we are slow to embrace this
aspect of the Christian life. We don’t apply the free gift of
God’s grace to us in Christ in a way that we could.
Scripture is saturated with God’s
command to his people to help others, care for the poor, imitate
his generosity, and to take a posture of self-sacrifice.
Consider these Bible verses and themes in Scripture that
instruct the church to love God and neighbor by helping others.
1. TO CARE FOR THE WEAK
We are commanded by God to care for the
weak. It's one of his recurring themes throughout the Bible.
Every need is seen by the all-powerful Creator of the universe,
who keeps an eye on every single vulnerable person on the
planet. One of the most striking ways God displays his concern
for the poor is by making it a priority for his people to assist
them.
Isaiah 25:4: “For you
have been a stronghold to the poor, a stronghold to the needy in
his distress, a shelter from the storm and a shade from the
heat; for the breath of the ruthless is like a storm against a
wall.”
Isaiah 58:10: “If you
pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the
afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your
gloom be as the noonday.”
Matthew 10:8: “Heal
the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive
out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.”
Leviticus 25:35: “If
your brother becomes poor and cannot maintain himself with you,
you shall support him as though he were a stranger and a
sojourner, and he shall live with you.”
Deuteronomy 15:11:
“There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I
command you to be openhanded toward your fellow Israelites who
are poor and needy in your land.”
Proverbs 29:7: “A
righteous man knows the rights of the poor; a wicked man does
not understand such knowledge.”
2. IMITATING
GENEROUS CHRISTIANS
One of the ways God teaches us to be
generous is by providing examples of generosity throughout the
Bible. Here are two cases in point.
Exodus 17:12: “When
Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him
and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one
side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till
sunset.”
Acts
9:36: “Now there was
in Joppa a disciple named Tabitha, which, translated, means
Dorcas. She was full of good works and acts of charity.”
3. TO GIVE IS TO BLESS
"It is more blessed to give than to
receive," says one of the most well-known verses in the Bible.
Because it is so self-evidently true, this truth persists in our
hearts and minds, even in secular culture. While it may seem
contradictory, we enjoy fulfillment and grow more conformed to
the image of Christ, who gave himself for us, when God stirs our
hearts to give and we obey him.
Proverbs 11:25:
“Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters
will himself be watered.”
Proverbs 19:17:
“Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will
reward them for what they have done.”
Proverbs 22:9: “The
generous will themselves be blessed, for they share their food
with the poor.”
Matthew 25:44-45:
“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or
thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison,
and did not help you?’ He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you,
whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did
not do for me.’”
Luke
3:10-11: “‘What
should we do then?’ the crowd asked. John answered, ‘Anyone who
has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and
anyone who has food should do the same.’”
Luke
6:28: “Give, and it
will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken
together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For
with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
Luke
12:33-34: “Sell your
possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves
that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never
fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where
your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Acts
20:35: “In all things
I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help
the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he
himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
Galatians 6:9: “And
let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will
reap, if we do not give up.”
4. LOVING TO
DO WHAT IS RIGHT
The more we do the right
thing—especially when it comes to helping others—the more we
enjoy it. Our loving God delights in instilling in us a desire
to love and do good in order to mirror his character. We are
pulled closer to Christ and reflect his glory in the world as a
result of our obedience.
Isaiah 1:17: “Learn
to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to
the fatherless, plead the widow's cause.”
Luke
10:27-37: “And he
answered, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart
and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all
your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.’ And he said to him,
‘You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.’ But
he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, ‘And who is my
neighbor?’ Jesus replied, ‘A man was going down from
5. IMITATING GOD’S HELPFULNESS
God wants us to help others for a
variety of reasons, one of which is that he himself a Helper.
Moses calls his son Eliezer in Exodus 18:4, which means "God is
my helper" in Hebrew. This topic appears throughout Scripture as
a command to Christians to imitate God, the ultimate Helper.
Matthew 5:16: “In the
same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see
your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”
John
3:17: “For God did
not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in
order that the world might be saved through him.”
John
15:12: “My command is
this: Love each other as I have loved you.”
James
1:5: “If any of you
lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all
without reproach, and it will be given him.”
James
1:17: “Every good and
perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the
heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”
2
Corinthians 8:9: “For
you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was
rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his
poverty might become rich.”
1
John 4:19-20: “We
love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet
hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love
their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God,
whom they have not seen.”
6. THE HOLINESS OF HELPFULNESS
God wants us to help others for a
variety of reasons, one of which is that he himself a Helper.
Moses calls his son Eliezer in Exodus 18:4, which means "God is
my helper" in Hebrew. This topic appears throughout Scripture as
a command to Christians to imitate God, the ultimate Helper.
Matthew 5:42: “Give
to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who
wants to borrow from you.”
Ephesians 2:10: “For
we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works,
which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
Galatians 2:10:
“Only, they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was
eager to do.”
Galatians 6:2: “Carry
each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law
of Christ.”
Hebrews 6:10: “God is
not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have
shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help
them.”
Hebrews 13:16: “And
do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such
sacrifices God is pleased.”
Luke
6:30: “Give to
everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your
goods do not demand them back.
John
15:13: “Greater love
has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”
Romans 12:10: “Love
one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in
showing honor.
Romans 12:13: “Share
with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.”
Romans 12:20: “If
your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him
something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals
on his head.”
Romans 15:1: “We who
are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not
to please ourselves.”
1
Thessalonians 5:11:
“Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just
as you are doing.”
7. THE WICKEDNESS OF SELFISHNESS
The Bible not only extols the virtues of
helpfulness, but also condemns its polar opposite, selfishness.
"It is more blessed to give than to receive," as the saying
goes. It is a curse to act selfishly at the expense of others.
God generously warns us against following this path, which
devours those who follow it.
Proverbs 3:27: “Do
not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in
your power to act.”
Proverbs 21:13:
“Whoever closes his ear to the cry of the poor will himself call
out and not be answered.”
Ephesians 4:28:
“Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must
work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may
have something to share with those in need.”
Philippians 2:3-4:
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in
humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own
interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”
2
Thessalonians 3:10:
“For even when we were with you, we would give you this command:
If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.”
1
Timothy 5:8: “But if
anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for
members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse
than an unbeliever.”
James
2:14-17: “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.”
CONCLUSION
Helping others
is a holy act for Christians, and the most important way for
Christians to help others is by spreading the gospel. Perhaps
you've been called to leave your home and spend your life to
reaching out to others who have yet to hear about Jesus.