Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” Luke 14:12-14
“If anyone were surrounded by fire, crushed by the downfall of a building, plunged in the sea, or carried away by a river, would they not think it is the duty of a man to assist him? . . . So what reason is there to think that aid is to be withheld when a man suffers from hunger, thirst, or cold? . . . Yet, the pagans make a distinction between these things. That is because they measure all things by present usefulness—not by the truth itself. For they hope that those whom they rescue from peril will return a favor to them. However, because they cannot hope for this in the case of the needy, they think that whatever they give to men of this type is “thrown away.” . . . However, we must not bestow our funds on suitable persons [i.e., ones who will repay us], but as much as possible on unsuitable objects. For when you do it without the hope of any return, you will truly do it for the sake of justice, piety, and humanity.”
Lactantius (c. 250-325) early Christian author and advisor to Roman Emperor Constantine in Divine Institutes book 6 entitled “On True Worship” chapter 9 entitled “of the persons on whom a benefit is to be conferred” from the Ante-Nicene Christian Library, Translations of the Writings of the Fathers Down to A.D. 325.
Jesus used illustrations such as “who to invite to a meal” to explain “grace” giving to us. This was foreign to people who measured their “philanthropy” based on what they could get in return. Church Fathers like Lactantius, similarly had to instruct Constantine and others he tutored what Christian giving was to look like. In their language, giving to “unsuitable objects” reflects justice and “piety” which is also translated “godliness”.
What’s this got to do with you and me today? Don’t measure your giving like the world does. That is, distributing to those you think are deserving (also known as “suitable objects”). Give to those who cannot pay you back. If you want to give like God and look like Jesus, give to those who cannot repay you. Your treasure will be in heaven. And there will be no need to thank me or Lactantius later for this. Thank Jesus who taught us this first and showed us by example. We are the unsuitable objects.