Giving to help the poor and needy is one of the many ways God’s love can be seen in action. Both John and James make the point that an invisible God only becomes visible to the world when it sees love in action (see James 2:15-16, 1 Jn 3:17-18). Some people, however, struggle not so much with the fact of this command as the ‘how’ it can be put into action. It’s all too easy to see people as perpetually needy or to feel there is a difference between those whose poverty is self-inflicted through wrong lifestyles and those who are ‘undeservedly poor.’ Some claim that by giving money to the poor, we are simply, in fact, salving our consciences and perpetuating poverty, actually exacerbating the problem (‘if I give a homeless man money and he uses it for drugs, haven’t I actually made things worse, not better?’)

Poverty is a complex issue which will never be fully resolved in this world (even Jesus acknowledged the poor we will always have with us, Matt 26:11). It is inevitably tied to wrong choices and sinfulness, but that does not mean we should withhold compassion and support from those in need. There are many ways we can help people: the proverb says, ‘give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for life.’

Reeba’s tailoring programme in India attempts to do this with widows, teaching them how to sew and run a business for themselves and giving them a sewing machine at the end of the programme so that they have the means to fend for themselves in future. Our support of the Salvation Army food bank gives food to people in dire need, but so much more is also offered there: help with finding jobs, help in overcoming addiction, advice on how to handle debt and money, positive ways of using time (in volunteering, learning craft skills, gardening and so on) in order to give people an opportunity to see that God is interested in every aspect of our lives and to engage with the God who cares.

William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army, said, ‘You cannot warm the hearts of people with God’s love if they have an empty stomach and cold feet.’  Christian churches are involved in soup kitchens, refuges for the homeless, helping prostitutes and slaves, providing medical help for the needy, helping those further afield in so many ways that is almost impossible to enumerate. Street pastors work in our towns and cities, seeking to bring help, prayer and practical support to those who may well be making wrong life choices through their addictions. Charities like World Vision, Tear Fund, Christian Aid, Compassion International and so on work tirelessly to help alleviate poverty, demonstrate love and compassion and offer practical support in so many different fields and countries. All such help is a visible demonstration of God’s love to people in need.

The writer to the Hebrews urges us not to let sin’s deceitfulness harden our hearts. (Heb 3:13) It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the needs all around us, to believe that amongst this ocean of need, what can we, as individuals, or even as a church really do? Loren Eiseley’s story is not twee or saccharine. It is a powerful reminder that we are all called on to do what we can and that every single one of us can make a difference.

“Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work.
One day, as he was walking along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up.
As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young man, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. The young man was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.
He came closer still and called out “Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?” The young man paused, looked up, and replied “Throwing starfish into the ocean.”
“I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?” asked the somewhat startled wise man.
To this, the young man replied, “The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them in, they’ll die.”
Upon hearing this, the wise man commented, “But, young man, do you not realise that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can’t possibly make a difference!”
At this, the young man bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, he said, “It made a difference for that one.”

Jesus talked a lot about money (see Matt 6:1-4, Luke 18:18-30, Luke 12:13-21). Money is not evil in itself, but a love of money can easily breed greed, which causes people to act in their own self-interest and distracts Christians from helping others. We have to examine our attitudes to money carefully and be prepared to put our money where our mouth is!

Paul urged the Corinthians to give regularly, systematically and generously to help God’s people in need. Giving should be thought about before the bills (the Corinthians were urged to give on the first day of the week, not the last, a principle reinforced in the Old Testament teaching on ‘firstfruits’ – see Ex 23:14-16, Prov 3:9-10, Mal 3:9-12) and should be proportionate to one’s income (1 Cor 16:2, 2 Cor 8:12). Those who debate furiously about tithes (giving 10% of one’s income to God) often seem to want to give less than 10%, but the tithe is usually seen as the first step in giving, not the last! Our giving should not be motivated by pressure from others, but must be willing, given freely as part of our everyday worship (2 Cor 9:7). Manipulation and psychological pressure can often be used to ‘persuade’ people to give to charitable causes, but such things are no part of Biblical giving.

For those of us with responsibility in handling money, we need to do so with openness and integrity (1 Cor 16:3, 2 Cor 8:20-21). We are blessed at Goldthorpe in having a treasurer who is generous, scrupulous, capable and careful, and our thanks go to him for all the work he tirelessly puts in to this role. As a church, we seek to help those in need, supporting the local Salvation Army food bank each month and missionaries abroad. People’s generosity in giving towards the support of our Compassion child, Bedline, above and beyond their regular giving is phenomenal. We know that God is ‘no man’s debtor’ (see Job 41:11, Heb 6:10) and that we can never out-give God! (Mal 3:7-12) Let’s be prepared to give and thus reflect God’s heart of love for the poor, the hopeless, the homeless and the vulnerable.

In 1 Cor 16:1-4, Paul lays out some basic principles for giving money to the poor. The topic of giving to charity or to help the poor is rarely discussed; it is simply assumed that ‘good’ people will do this, but as always, the Bible gives us reasons to give as well as practical guidelines to help us. First and foremost, we have a giving God. Paul tells the Corinthians they ‘know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.’ (2 Cor 8:9) God’s generosity towards mankind is one of the common threads of the Bible. God loves a cheerful giver (2 Cor 9:7) primarily because He is Himself a cheerful giver. He so loved the world that He gave His only Son, Jesus, to save us (Jn 3:16); His generosity is expressed in countless ways (see James 1:17, Ps 84:11). We should give primarily because God gives!

Generosity and willingness to help those in need are, therefore, characteristics of God’s children because they are characteristics of God Himself. Christianity emphasises the fact that we respond to God’s love, grace and mercy by being loving, gracious and merciful ourselves; there is a direct correlation between God’s nature and our behaviour, if God’s nature is imparted to us. The Old Testament makes it clear that God cares profoundly for the poor and helpless and gives us clear instructions about how to help them (see Deut 14:22-29, Deut 15:7-8, Deut 24:22-24, Lev 19:9-10, Jer 22:3, Amos 2:6-7, Prov 19:17, Ps 82:3-4); our response to God’s generosity is to be generous ourselves. It’s another way we can imitate God. (Eph 5:1)

The Bible is adamant that ‘the earth is the Lord’s and everything in it’ (Ps 24:1), reminding us that God is the creator and owner of everything (see also Ps 50:10-11) and that we are merely stewards of God’s creation (see Luke 16:1-13). This teaching revolutionises our attitude to money and belongings, reminding us that covetousness and greed are to be eschewed. Attitudes to giving are more crucial than amounts (see Luke 21:2-3): we are to give ‘as to the Lord’ (see Matt 25:31-46), giving thanks to God for all He has given us.

Paul’s concern is that the church in Jerusalem might be supported and blessed by the other churches he has helped to found. This passage is a reminder that we have a moral duty to help other Christians (see also Gal 6:10, Gal 2:10, Rom 15:27), as well as giving advice on the best ways to do this. Giving to help others (often known as ‘almsgiving’, from the Greek word connected to ‘pity’ or ‘mercy’) is a central tenet in every world religion, but Christians are urged to do so not simply out of a sense of duty, but willingly and gladly. If we’re reluctant to give financially to help others, it may be that we need to re-examine our hearts to find out why. God’s kindness leads us to repentance and becomes the springboard for all action and service. His kindness motivates our kindness; being kind, generous, loving and giving are fruit of God’s Spirit living in us. (Gal 5:22-23)

A preview of Sunday’s message in song! May our focus always be on Jesus.

‘There is a truth older than the ages.
There is a promise of things yet to come.
There is one born for our salvation:
Jesus

There is a light that overwhelms the darkness.
There is a kingdom that forever reigns.
There is freedom from the chains that bind us.
Jesus, Jesus.

Who walks on the waters,
Who speaks to the sea,
Who stands in the fire beside me.
He roars like a lion;
He bled as the lamb;
He carries my healing in his hands.
Jesus.

There is a name I call in times of trouble.
There is a song that comforts in the night.
There is a voice that calms the storm that rages.
He is Jesus, Jesus.

Messiah, my Saviour,
There is power in Your name.
You’re my rock and my redeemer .
There is power in Your name,
In Your name.

You walk on the waters
You speak to the sea
You stand in the fire beside me
You roar like a lion
You bled as the lamb
You carry my healing in Your hands.

There is no one like You, Jesus.
There is no one like You.’ (‘Jesus’, Chris Tomlin)

Don’t forget we have events coming up this weekend which celebrate creativity!

On Friday 18th November from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m., Furlong Road Methodist Church will be open for prayer and meditation. Prayer is not often considered ‘creative’ as such, but as we deliberately slow down and wait on God, the awesome God of all creation speaks to us and communicates His heart. Take time out to pray tomorrow!

The Arts Festival at Hope House Church on Wellington Street (Barnsley) from 10 a.m. until 9 p.m. also promises to be a time of great creativity. If you’re interested in painting, drawing, knitting, sewing, music, photography, writing or any other kind of creativity, go along and find out more! It is also open on Saturday 19th November from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m.

Don’t forget the Winter Wonderland at Thurnscoe Memorial Park on Saturday 19th November from 12 noon till 6 p.m. This is an opportunity to do Christmas shopping and have fun at the same time – Santa’s Grotto will be there, along with an outdoor skating rink. Organised by Big Local Thurnscoe, it’s great to have such events to celebrate our community, and it’s always good to see people’s creative craft skills on display. Turner New Leaf, featuring homemade chutneys, piccalilli, apple sauce and tomato & basil soup, will be selling products at this event, so go along to support Stephen and Stacey’s business venture and enjoy some homemade food! (For those of you who like sweet stuff, the gift baskets contain homemade mince pies and chocolate chip cookies and there will be chocolate brownies to buy… some containing homegrown chillies, which bring back fond memories of Mummy, Daddy and Runty chilli stories…!)

Don’t forget that on Sunday 20th November, we are at Cherry Tree Court in the morning (10.30 a.m.) and Market Street in the evening (6 p.m.)

Having thought about the letter T, I was struck by the idea of 4Gs. 4G is the fourth generation of wireless mobile telecommunications technology, allowing people to have access to the Internet whilst on the move, along with IP telephony, gaming services, high-definition mobile TV, video conferencing and 3D TV. To anyone under 50, it’s probably the latest ‘must have’ of mobile telephones!

God’s ‘must-have’ 4Gs, however, for His people are:

• graciousness (the God of grace wants us to be gracious people)
• generosity (God is a generous God and therefore loves generous people – cheerful givers, as our Bible study will consider!)
• giving (the God who gave His only Son calls us to be giving people also)
• godly (to reflect His character.)

How are we doing with these 4Gs?!