In fact, James, Peter, and John, who were known as pillars of the church, recognized the gift God had given me, and they accepted Barnabas and me [Paul] as their co-workers. They encouraged us to keep preaching to the Gentiles, while they continued their work with the Jews. Their only suggestion was that we keep on helping the poor, which I have always been eager to do. Galatians 2:9-10
“Like every human organization the Church is constantly in danger of corruption. As soon as power and wealth come into the Church, manipulation, exploitation, misuse of influence, and outright corruption are not far away.
How do we prevent corruption in the Church? The answer is clear: by focusing on the poor. The poor make the Church faithful to its vocation. When the Church is no longer a church for the poor, it loses its spiritual identity.
It gets caught up in disagreements, jealousy, power games, and pettiness… The poor are given to the Church so that the Church as the body of Christ can be and remain a place of mutual concern, love, and peace.”
Henri J. M. Nouwen in Bread for the Journey: A Daybook of Wisdom and Faith (New York: Harper San Francisco, 1985) reading for October 11.
Notice in today’s Scripture that Paul and Barnabas agreed to minister to the Gentiles while James, Peter, and John would serve the Jews, but don’t miss that both would “keep on helping the poor.”
Nouwen reminds us that such an aim helps us as the Church keep our focus and fulfill our calling. A church that loses sight of the poor will certainly cease to be generous.
What will your church do for the poor this Christmas season? I am flying to New York again today to preach five times at Bethel International Church tomorrow on “Generosity in the Gospels.”
I’ll urge this congregation to move toward the poor following the example of Jesus. Only when we realize that we — ordinary people — are the poor do we grasp how this helps us maintain our “spiritual identity.”
Keep on helping the poor!