Articles
Christian Benevolence in a Wealthy Society
Most of us are impressed by the care and generosity displayed by the early church. The atmosphere was charged with both excitement and danger; excitement over the reality that God had established His spiritual kingdom among men via Jesus Christ, and the looming danger of the murderous Sanhedrin against Christian “heresy.” But brethren sacrificed to take care of each other. Here are some examples:
Pentecostal Provisions. After documenting the new “apostles’ doctrine” and the worship of and reverence for God it spawned (Ac 2:42-43), Luke notes a hallmark feature of this new fellowship: “Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need” (Ac 2:44-45).
It is likely an accurate conjecture that this need for material sup-port grew out of pilgrims who came to Jerusalem for the Pentecost feast not anticipating the spiritual revival that they experienced. Consequently, many may have lingered in Jerusalem to immerse themselves in the new doctrine and depleted their travel funds. Another possibility is that, although official persecution is not yet mentioned, the abandonment of Judaism would have caused alienation from family and friends and cancelled employment. Whatever the reasons for the underlying poverty, the critical need was met by mutual generosity – even to the selling of possessions to support the destitute.
Barnabas. This spirit of generosity continues as Luke documents in Ac 4: “Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common … nor was there anyone among them who lacked; for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold, and laid them at the apostles’ feet; and they distributed to each as anyone had need” (4:32, 34-35).
Luke then notes a particular example of this generosity, someone who will figure prominently in the early development of the church – Barnabas, who “having land, sold it, and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet” (4:37). “At the apostles’ feet” is a euphemism for collective funds, a “treasury,” if you will, and involves a relinquishing of one’s personal possession for the sake of the community (cf. Ac 5:1-4). At this early stage the apostles are overseeing all decisions concerning the church, but this will gradually change as the kingdom expands beyond Jerusalem (cf. also Ac 6:1-7).
The Macedonians. This spirit of sacrifice and support for fellow saints continues among Gentile converts. Paul cites the Macedonians as an example of digging deep to help, in this case flipping the script to supply the needs of those in Jerusalem who had earlier set the standard for generosity: “According to their ability, yes, and beyond their ability, they were freely willing, imploring us with much urgency that we would receive the gift and the fellowship of the ministering to the saints. And this they did, not as we had hoped, but first gave themselves to the Lord, and then to us by the will of God” (2 Cor 8:3-5). These brethren were not merely concerned about their immediate neighbors but also for distant brethren whom they had never met.
How well do these kingdom concepts translate from a Roman culture of destitution and persecution two millennia ago to an American culture blessed with prosperity unsurpassed in all of history? By “unsurpassed” we do not deny that there have always been wealthy people in the world, but modern industrial/technological/informational advancements have raised the economic tide both in this country and around the world. The United States has long been known as the “land of opportunity,” a place of resource, education and freedom where the immigrant can come with a dollar in his pocket and through hard work build a prosperous life.
Further, we are a land of benevolent, charitable institutions, tax allotments, retirement benefits, tier-priced commodities, extended family support, business accommodations and other assistance programs that make true indigence relatively rare (and often willingly chosen). The poorest among us have a higher standard of living than most across the globe. There is a great upside to this prosperity, but one of the downsides is the tendency to be indifferent to the needy who occasionally drift into our orbit.
It is easy to become emotionally detached from the less fortunate, not understanding the underlying causes of their current predicament. It is also tempting to judge them unfairly by comparison to our own situation. If we have become self-sustaining, why haven’t others done the same? Or, we may simply wish to refer them to the various social safety-net agencies that abound across the land to feed, house and assist those in need. Aloofness does not describe the early disciples of the Lord.
To be clear: I’m not advocating that the church to adopt the social gospel model and divert its attention from the spiritual to the carnal. What I am urging is the kind of love, sympathy, assistance – and sacrifice – that we see modeled by the early Christians toward our own brethren in need. The genesis of this article is a series of conversations I have had with a sister in Christ who is blind. She has related to me several criticisms that have been directed toward her over needs stemming from her handicap. She is neither lazy (she holds a full-time job) nor completely indigent (she pays a modest rent for her accommodations), but she is partially dependent on fellow Christians for rides and other occasional assistance.
These criticisms suggest (I acknowledge only hearing one side of the story) that some who live well-appointed lives may become callous toward those with legitimate debilitation. In this sister’s case, some rather harsh things have been said which indicate a complete lack of sympathy for someone who must navigate this world without vision. Can we who are sighted begin to understand what it would take for the blind to shop, cook, see a doctor, change a light bulb, vacuum, bandage a wound, clip one’s nails, get a date, fully engage in special occasions, etc.?
Let us examine ourselves and make sure that our affluence has not deadened our sensitivity toward those around us who suffer temporary or chronic misfortune. A hallmark of the early church was not begrudging assistance but generosity in the extreme. Do we have such a heart as this?
