Have you ever tried to help someone and wondered if it really made a difference? There are many occasions when we need to help people in mercy ministry and there are other times when we need to seek to help people help themselves. As the old proverb goes, 'Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day, teach a man to fish and he will eat for the rest of his life.' When we help someone learn how to fish they will be exponentially better off than if we simply give them food from day to day. And, the long-term help of personal development is important, but the gospel is the best help of all.
Brian Fikkert and Steve Corbett have written an interesting book entitled, When Helping Hurts, to address the issue of economic development in low-income areas. They identify poverty as a matter of broken relationships for mankind with - 1) God, 2) Self, 3) Others, and 4) Creation. We all suffer from poverty in their assessment. There is personal and systemic poverty and both need to be addressed in different ways. When a person has a lack of education, for instance, one form of assistance would be to provide scholarships to go to college. But when that person grows up in a country that has no suitable primary or secondary education, there is a systemic problem that all people in that country suffer from. Their book develops several possible solutions for tackling each type of economic problem.
The authors identify the broken relationship with God as the first problem for all mankind. They reference Colossians 1:15-20 where Christ is described, "In him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible ... all things were created through him and for him." Also in v.20, "And through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of the cross." This shows the necessity of the gospel and the primary redemptive work of Christ. Yet the focus in 'WHH' shifts to the mercy ministry of helping people in low-income positions. They often reference "community development" as a means for advancement, which they believe in turn will work toward ending poverty and advancing economic development. I believe there needs to be a much clearer emphasis on the Gospel for Spiritual development as our root problem is our sinful nature.
Much like giving a man a fish, community development without a clear proclamation of the gospel will fall short of healing the brokenness of our relationship with God. And there's no guarantee that economic development will lead people to Christ. With mercy presuppositions, their perspective emphasizes several mercy passages to describe how Jesus was interested in relieving suffering. In Luke 4 they highlight the Isaiah 58 prophecy of the Messiah's bringing "liberty to the oppressed." And in Luke 7 when Jesus responded to John's disciples by referencing his miracles that "the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed... " In both passages, compassion to the needy is emphasized but the primary message is that Jesus is the promised Messiah who alone can bring salvation. The miracles he performed were to illustrate his true identity as the Messiah.
The gospel of Christ is the greater message of Scripture even though mercy is an essential part of the Christian faith. Jesus demonstrated the gospel priority in several ways, and in particular when he questioned his disciples regarding his identity in Matthew 16:15. Peter answered that he was the Christ, the Son of the living God. Jesus then instructed his disciples that he needed to go to Jerusalem to be crucified, over and against their protests. The gospel is not pragmatic but Spiritual, it is the greatest priority, and in turn, it brings Spiritual life and transformation to those who accept it.
Also in Mark 12:30 when Jesus was asked what was the greatest commandment, he did not reply with mercy or compassion. Rather he stated, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength." And then he said, "The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” If there ever was a place where Jesus could have clarified the priority of mercy ministry over the gospel, this would have been it. Yet the authors of 'WHH' do not make this distinction of the priority of the gospel over all missions. Nor do they clarify the difference between the gospel and the common grace of philanthropy and humanitarianism.
Even more there needs to be an emphasis on family and work. In Genesis 1-2, God institutes marriage and family as the central institution for society and commissions them with the creation mandate of having dominion over all the earth. The family has historically been the central economic unit for society in the teamwork of husband and wife caring for their children. Yet the breakdown of the family structure has been devastating to low-income people, and in its place community development has often been the focus. This development can easily progress into social networks and reliance on government programs, which in turn can also regress further into socialism, and even communism.
When Helping Hurts has many positive and pragmatic examples of economic development, but there is a lack of promoting personal responsibility within a Christian work ethic and worldview, and in even developing a Christian capitalism. For God instructs us in Colossians 3:23, "Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men." Also in Ephesians 4:28, "Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need." The mercy ministries of helping other people in need is an important aspect of our faith, for this is an example of the mercy and grace God gives to us in Christ. But, the Gospel is the primary ministry for all Christians as there is salvation in no other name. We can help people eternally with the gospel of Christ, which in turn can inspire us all in the here and now.
FAITH TODAY: James 2:5, "Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him?"
Brian Fikkert and Steve Corbett have written an interesting book entitled, When Helping Hurts, to address the issue of economic development in low-income areas. They identify poverty as a matter of broken relationships for mankind with - 1) God, 2) Self, 3) Others, and 4) Creation. We all suffer from poverty in their assessment. There is personal and systemic poverty and both need to be addressed in different ways. When a person has a lack of education, for instance, one form of assistance would be to provide scholarships to go to college. But when that person grows up in a country that has no suitable primary or secondary education, there is a systemic problem that all people in that country suffer from. Their book develops several possible solutions for tackling each type of economic problem.
The authors identify the broken relationship with God as the first problem for all mankind. They reference Colossians 1:15-20 where Christ is described, "In him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible ... all things were created through him and for him." Also in v.20, "And through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of the cross." This shows the necessity of the gospel and the primary redemptive work of Christ. Yet the focus in 'WHH' shifts to the mercy ministry of helping people in low-income positions. They often reference "community development" as a means for advancement, which they believe in turn will work toward ending poverty and advancing economic development. I believe there needs to be a much clearer emphasis on the Gospel for Spiritual development as our root problem is our sinful nature.
Much like giving a man a fish, community development without a clear proclamation of the gospel will fall short of healing the brokenness of our relationship with God. And there's no guarantee that economic development will lead people to Christ. With mercy presuppositions, their perspective emphasizes several mercy passages to describe how Jesus was interested in relieving suffering. In Luke 4 they highlight the Isaiah 58 prophecy of the Messiah's bringing "liberty to the oppressed." And in Luke 7 when Jesus responded to John's disciples by referencing his miracles that "the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed... " In both passages, compassion to the needy is emphasized but the primary message is that Jesus is the promised Messiah who alone can bring salvation. The miracles he performed were to illustrate his true identity as the Messiah.
The gospel of Christ is the greater message of Scripture even though mercy is an essential part of the Christian faith. Jesus demonstrated the gospel priority in several ways, and in particular when he questioned his disciples regarding his identity in Matthew 16:15. Peter answered that he was the Christ, the Son of the living God. Jesus then instructed his disciples that he needed to go to Jerusalem to be crucified, over and against their protests. The gospel is not pragmatic but Spiritual, it is the greatest priority, and in turn, it brings Spiritual life and transformation to those who accept it.
Also in Mark 12:30 when Jesus was asked what was the greatest commandment, he did not reply with mercy or compassion. Rather he stated, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength." And then he said, "The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” If there ever was a place where Jesus could have clarified the priority of mercy ministry over the gospel, this would have been it. Yet the authors of 'WHH' do not make this distinction of the priority of the gospel over all missions. Nor do they clarify the difference between the gospel and the common grace of philanthropy and humanitarianism.
Even more there needs to be an emphasis on family and work. In Genesis 1-2, God institutes marriage and family as the central institution for society and commissions them with the creation mandate of having dominion over all the earth. The family has historically been the central economic unit for society in the teamwork of husband and wife caring for their children. Yet the breakdown of the family structure has been devastating to low-income people, and in its place community development has often been the focus. This development can easily progress into social networks and reliance on government programs, which in turn can also regress further into socialism, and even communism.
When Helping Hurts has many positive and pragmatic examples of economic development, but there is a lack of promoting personal responsibility within a Christian work ethic and worldview, and in even developing a Christian capitalism. For God instructs us in Colossians 3:23, "Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men." Also in Ephesians 4:28, "Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need." The mercy ministries of helping other people in need is an important aspect of our faith, for this is an example of the mercy and grace God gives to us in Christ. But, the Gospel is the primary ministry for all Christians as there is salvation in no other name. We can help people eternally with the gospel of Christ, which in turn can inspire us all in the here and now.
FAITH TODAY: James 2:5, "Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him?"
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