Poverty—a Complex Problem

Responses to the word poverty range from compassion to frustration.

Compassion stirred in my heart during a mission trip to Haiti, as I walked the streets of Port-au-Prince and some of the world's most desperately poor. Families cooked meager meals over charcoal fires in front of makeshift shelters fashioned from rusty pieces of tin held up by sticks. Little children hawked used sneakers on streetcorners. I was deeply impressed by the faith of the Haitian Christians, many of whom quite literally trust God for their "daily bread."

Compassion moved a member of our church to provide groceries for a single mom, and it was my privilege to deliver the food. That young mother, recently abandoned by her alcoholic husband, struggled to get by as she lived with four preschool children in a tiny, crowded apartment.

But sometimes compassion gives way to anger. Do you feel frustrated with people who could work, but don't? With professional panhandlers who harass pedestrians on city streets? With politicians who talk about concern for the poor while preparing to vote themselves another pay raise? With dead-beat dads who beget, then forget, their children? With expensive social programs that reinforce dependency and helplessness instead of encouraging responsibility and effort?

Ron Sider, author of Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger, was interviewed earlier this year by Christianity Today (April 28, 1997). Why are people poor? Sider answered, "Some people are poor because they're lazy or because of wrong choices, like drugs and alcohol. Some are poor because of natural disasters or because they lack basic technology or hold worldviews that don't encourage the right kind of approach to the natural order—Hinduism's 'untouchables' are a classic example. In addition, significant numbers are poor because of unjust structures and great imbalances of power."

By helping the poor, Christians are not departing from Scripture to embrace a "social gospel." Both the Old and New Testaments have a lot to say about poverty. Farmers were to leave the remnants of their harvest for the poor to gather—a way to share generously while preserving the dignity of the poor, who still had to work for the food they gathered (Leviticus 19:9, 10). Deuteronomy warns God's people not to be "hardhearted or tightfisted" toward the poor (15:7-11). "He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God" (Proverbs 14:31).

Though Jesus frankly stated, "You will always have the poor among you" (John 12:8), he urged his followers to care for those in need (Matthew 25:31-46), and the early church responded with overflowing generosity (Acts 4:32-35, 9:36, 10:4). Ministry to the poor was a special concern to Peter, John, Paul, and James (Galatians 2:10, James 2:1-7).

So what can you and I do? Adopt a simpler lifestyle. Develop personal benevolence funds to give when special needs arise (see Ephesians 4:28 and 1 John 3:16-18). Find one needy person or family (in your neighborhood or overseas) to befriend for the long haul. Support Christian ministries that serve the poor and plant new churches in urban areas. Develop effective benevolence programs that provide for temporary and longterm housing, financial counseling, job training and placement, and emergency food and clothing.

Most important, we can do as Jesus did and "preach good news to the poor" (Luke 4:18)—for the only lasting wealth resides not in material things, but in heavenly treasures which no moth or rust can destroy, and no thief can steal.