Each of us should please our neighbors for their good, to build them up. Romans 15:2
“Those who would do good to the poor must attempt it in the way in which best they could do good to people of their own standing. They must make their acquaintance first. They must know something of the kind of person they would help, to learn if help be possible from their hands.
Only man can help man; money without man can do little or nothing, most likely, less than nothing. As our Lord redeemed the world by being a man, the true Son of the true Father, so the only way for a man to help men is to be a true man to his neighbor and that.
But to seek acquaintance with design is a perilous thing, nor unlikely to result in disappointment, and the widening of the gulf between the individuals, and the classes to which they belong. It seems to me that, in humble acceptance of common ways, we must follow the leadings of providence, and make acquaintance in the so-called lower classes by the natural workings of social laws that bring men together.
What is the divine intent in the many needs of humanity, and the consequent dependence of the rich on the poor, even greater than that of the poor on the rich, but to bring men together, that in far-off ways at first, they may be compelled to know each other? The man who treats his fellow as a mere mean for the supply of his wants, and not as a human being with whom he has to do, is an obstructing clot in the human circulation.”
George MacDonald (1824-1905), Scottish author and Christian minister in Weighed and Wanting (New York: HardPress, 2006) 73.
There’s a lot in today’s meditation. It’s one worth reading again for at least three reasons.
First, our generosity must flow through relationships. Help of neighbor happens best through acquaintance. Powerful to think that “money without man can do little or nothing, most likely, less than nothing.” As we see others with needs, let us be like Christ in knowing them and ministering among them in order to best help them.
Second, when we follow “the leadings of providence” or that divine nudge to go, to minister, to help, to assist, something happens within us. We are brought together with others in a manner that leaves both us and those we serve transformed. We realize experientially that before God there are no “classes” per se. All people are on the same level.
Third, it is ironic that the rich depend on the poor more than the poor depend on the rich. Think about it. The rich expect the poor to do things for them for money. The rich become nothing more than an “obstructing clot in the human circulation” because they expect all others to serve as means for the supply of their wants. God forbid!
MacDonald brilliantly addresses three key elements to generosity: it requires relationships, everyone is on the same level, and those who want to remain rich are actually the problem when they could be part of the solution. No wonder Jesus commanded the rich man to sell everything. He was not trying to rob him, but help him (cf. Mark 10:17-31).
Follow “the leadings of providence” out of your comfort zone and you may actually take hold of life.