GIVING SELFLESSLY OUTSIDE OUR CHURCH WALLS

By: Kola Sonaike, DBA, Ph. D

There is no doubt that the Church of God today understands, to a large extent, the values of selfless giving within its fold.  Children of God have, for years, claimed the benefits that the word of God attaches to such selflessness.  We know and claim such promises in the scriptures from time to time….”Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom.  For with the same measure that ye mete withal, it shall be measured to you again” (Luke 6:38, KJV); “I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35, KJV); “But this I say, he which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully, shall reap also bountifully.  Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver” (II Cor. 9: 6-7, KJV), etc., etc.  And God, being faithful, has always fulfilled His own side of the bargain.  That is why many Christians, who stand by His word, live in abundance today.

The biblical law of sowing and reaping is a truism that has been tested and that has produced results, over the years, within Christendom.  Good enough, an appreciable portion of that wealth is plowed back into the Church.  Ministries, in general, have departments that cater for the needs of the unemployed, strangers, widows, orphans, newly arrived individuals, students in need of financial and other support and other members of the congregation in need of one form of help or another.  While doing these, we are obeying the injunction of our Lord while at the same time populating our Churches.  Wise step.  I have heard people say to my hearing such statements as “I am stuck with that Church because they helped me a lot when I first came into this country.”  No problem with that at all and it is in line with the scriptures.  We give all the honor and glory to God!

What we want to emphasize today, however, is the portion of that abundance from the Lord that we, as the body of Christ, and as individual Christians, consciously share with the poor and needy outside the walls of our Church buildings.  Many of our churches are decked in “gold” and radiate beauty which make us feel good and which convinces those outside the body of Christ that we truly serve a living God.  After all, in this day and age, who would spend precious time listening to or attempting to imitate someone whose entire posture and surrounding radiate nothing but poverty.  God forbid!  People would generally associate with success.  There is a limit to this, however, if we are going to be true representation of our Lord and Master.  As we live our lives as Christians, we should remember the key injunctions of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  In Matthew 5:42, Jesus said “Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee, turn not thou away” (KJV).  Prov. 11:24 declares that “There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty” (KJV).  Further, Jesus Christ, imploring His disciples to eschew covetousness declared “Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth” (Luke 12:15, KJV).

Apostle Paul, writing to Pastor Timothy emphasized “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows” (I Tim. 6:10, KJV).  Apostle Paul further reminded Philippian Christians of the need for simplicity when he wrote “Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand” (Phil. 4:5, KJV).  Jesus said in Matthew 8:20 that “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay its head” (KJV).  He had the whole world in His hands, He controlled the cattle upon a thousand hills, yet, in obedience to His Father (who is also our Father), He chose to live a lowly, non-extravagant life.  If indeed He is our master, then we need to follow His example.  Jesus was more concerned about the survival of the poor, the needy and the outcasts in the society.  He fed them (Matt. 14: 19-21, Matt. 15: 36-38), healed them (Mark 1: 32-34), stayed with them (Luke 19:5), related to them (Mark 1: 16-17) and enjoined us to “go and do thou likewise” (Luke 10:37, KJV).

If the body of Christ in our communities would impact society positively in 2015, we truly need to “go and do likewise.”  Poor and needy people, particularly outside the walls of our local Church buildings, have to be remembered in our annual budgets.  There must be conscious efforts on our part to care for the less privileged around us.  They are not so difficult to see.  We come across them at traffic lights, under or near many of the bridges in our cities, in the traffic, in shelter homes, in the homes for battered women, in orphanages, in prisons, in teen pregnancy centers and other government establishments that address such category of individuals.  Our Churches should start supporting the impoverished parts of this world.  We see the pictures of children and mothers suffering in such places from time to time.  Some have experienced serious climatic devastation, famines, wars,  serious diseases, and bad governments that have translated into serious societal poverty.  Many live under the fear and terror of Satanic bands operating under the cover of religion.  Should we continue to be less concerned?  One dollar can make a huge difference in the lives of children and adults in many of those parts of the world.  Our congregations do not need to be very large before we start embarking on such ventures.  All we need is a conscious effort to remember them in our budgets and the list of “Vital Things to Do.”  The missionaries that came to Africa and other parts of the world made such conscious efforts. Many left the comfort of their societies and families to ensure the comfort of others.  We cannot afford to be unconcerned anymore.  We must show our faith by our works (James 2: 14-17).  May God bless our community in 2015 and make a huge difference among us as we determine to reduce our affluence and share some of our wealth with the less privileged in the society.  Happy New Year!!!