A generous [person] will himself [or herself] be blessed, for he [or she] shares his [or her] food with the poor. Proverbs 22: 9, NIV.
Dear Father, we thank You that no act of kindness goes unnoticed by Your all-seeing eye. Please bless our study today we pray, in the precious name of Jesus! Amen.
A lot has been said about sharing what we have with the poor, in the Word of God. That must mean a lot to God! It surely does! And every time God encourages us to do something, it is because He has a blessing reserved for us in return. Perhaps the reason so much time has been dedicated to the topic of giving, is because, as human beings, we are not naturally kind. I believe that kindness is a spiritual gift. God is constantly finding ways for us to give, to share, to let go! In so doing, He is helping us to develop a kind spirit. The more we do something, the easier it becomes the next time we do it. So God will put people who have needs, in our way, time and time again, in order for us to be kind to them.
I have heard that one of the methods used in trapping monkeys is to put bright colored marbles in a jar, and glue the jar to a surface where the monkeys can see it. When their curiosity gets the best of them, they come from wherever they are, and put their hands in the bottle and grab the marbles. While their hands are in the bottle, full of marbles, the hunters come and cover them with a net and take them away. It is commented that even when they see the hunters approaching, instead of letting go of the marbles and fleeing, they hold on to them for dear life! This, of course, is what leads to their capture. If they were to only let go of the marbles, they would be able to pull their hands out of the jar, and escape!
In the case of human beings, we too, like to hold on to what we have. Letting go is quite hard for most of us. So we try to compensate by doing other things, instead of being kind and sharing what we have with others. Jesus’ admonition to the Pharisees was, “Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone” (Luke 11: 42, emphasis provided). One “good” deed cannot take the place of another. Being faithful in their tithing did not compensate for their lack of Christian love.
Kindness brings its own reward with it. Have you ever experienced the surge of energy, and the feeling of unspeakable joy that comes as a result of making someone happy by supplying a need, whether that need be physical, emotional, or spiritual? There are no words to describe it! Just knowing that you made someone feel good about him or her(self), or situation, is as much a blessing to you, as it is to them! However, let us be sure that what we are doing, we are doing because of love, and not only for our self-satisfaction; because with God, motives are important, “And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor . . . but have not love, it profits me nothing” (1 Corinthians 13: 3).
All blessings come from God, because only God can bless (Numbers 23: 20). God identifies with the poor to the extent that, “He who is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward him for what he has done.” (Proverbs 19: 7)! At the end of time there will be only two groups: The sheep and the goats. Those who were kind to the “least of these,” and those who were not (Matthew 25: 31-46)! It is today that we must decide which group we want to belong to.
One day the King may say to you and to me: ” ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me’ ” (Matthew 25: 40). Or, ” ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me’ ” (45).
Which group will you be in?