The Poor and Less Fortunate

(Prov 17:5 NLT) Those who mock the poor insult their Maker; those who rejoice at the misfortune of others will be punished.

Solomon is pretty stern here when discussing those that have the audacity to make fun of the poor and the unmitigated gall to celebrate the calamity of others. Remember, God is love! (1st John 4:8). As believers, we are called to walk in love every day of our lives. There is never a moment that Jehovah does not expect us to operate in His love and He expects us to share it with everyone, regardless of race, age and socio-economic status.

James said, “Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you” (1:27). It pleases the Father when we seek to be a blessing to the less fortunate, not when we ridicule them.

Back in chapter 14 Solomon said something similar, saying, “You insult your Maker when you exploit the powerless; when you're kind to the poor, you honor God” (14:31). Later on Solomon said: “Whoever gives to the poor will lack nothing, but those who close their eyes to poverty will be cursed” (17:22) and “Don't take advantage of the poor or cheat them in court. The LORD is their defender, and what you do to them, he will do to you” (22:22,23).

In Solomon’s teachings he is encouraging us to be a blessing to the poor; reminding us that we will be rewarded for it and warning us against mistreating them, because God Himself will come to their defense. But receiving a reward or avoiding God’s wrath should not be our motivation. I should not have to bribe you to do good, by promising a blessing and I should not have to scare you into doing right, by telling you that God is going to get you if you don’t. When you walk in love you seek to be a blessing simply because you love God and others.

Jesus Himself acknowledged the fact that there would always be poor people in the world (Mat 26:11). For a myriad of reasons (self-inflicted and otherwise) we will always have poor among us. And I am thankful that Jesus came as a poor man. I am convinced that Jesus could have been born rich if He wanted to. He could have operated as the richest man on the planet, but had He done that He would not have been able to relate to the average person. I believe that part of the reason why He came as an average man, was so that He could relate to and reach the marginalized.
Jesus always reached out to those whom society had written off.

Jesus paid attention to those that no one else paid attention to. Jesus spent His time with whoremongers, tax collectors (who were notoriously known as crooks), adulterers, and all sorts of other sinners. Why? Because He came to reach ALL people: rich and poor, Jew and gentile, male and female, Black and White, Hispanic and Asian… He was all things to all men!

So what does this mean to you ? It is a terrible sin to mock the less fortunate. It pleases God when we are kind to the poor and it insults Him when we exploit them. I have met many who put others down, just so they can feel better about themselves, but as a believer, you should never need to ridicule someone else in a twisted attempt at self-gratification. You are called to be salt, light, and love. You will not reach whom you cannot related to and you will never relate to anyone you look down on.

The Father sent Jesus to die for ALL people and He expects you to treat ALL of His creation with dignity and respect.

Father, thank You for the reminder this morning. I acknowledge You as my Creator and I refuse to disrespect Your creation. I will treat all people – regardless of socio-economic status, race, color, creed, or gender – with dignity and respect. I am blessed TO BE a blessing and I will seek to be a blessing to all those that You send my way. Send people to me today, Father, so that I can share Your love and light with them, helping them to lift up their heads and to look unto You. I seek to be a blessing to all people, because I walk in love! In Jesus’ name. Amen!