Whoever heard me spoke well of me, and those who saw me commended me, because I rescued the poor who cried for help, and the fatherless who had none to assist them. Job 29:11-12
“It is possible to do an immense amount of harm by charity, so-called. It is possible to reduce a fellow-being to the condition of a willing pauper by fostering habits of indolence…if charity is not tempered by judgment, the poor will learn to be dependent, till at last, though by degrees, every vestige of manliness and ambition will have been destroyed, and they will come back as skilled beggars, to torment and curse the very people whose so-called charity has made them what they are.”
Stephen Humphreys Gurteen in The Tragedy of American Compassion by Marvin Olasky (Washington DC: Regnery, 2022) 90. This book just came out and sketches the realities of charity and so-called charity in America.
In today’s Scripture, notice Job is not commended for giving charity without judgment to use Gurteen’s words, but rather for rescuing those in need and providing them assistance. The biblical language here is not insignificant.
To “assist them” implies that he gave them the hand up they needed in crisis, not to create a dependency but to show love of neighbor. I invite you to do the same thing with me at GTP.
If you have not watched the Palmful of Maize video, watch it here and ponder the discussion questions. Do it for this reason: people want help to shift from receiving to giving.
They don’t want to become skilled beggars. But the only way to deliver them from indolence is to rescue and assist them. Join me in providing such assistance.