“Sell all you have and give it to the poor.”
So why the poor? Now that we’ve established the requirement of forsaking it all, why is this connected with giving to the poor?
First, just as Christ did not just simply give His life away, but gave His life so that others in spiritual need could share in His spiritual riches, the goal is not just to lose but to give with recognition of others in need.
Staying with this symbolism, just as we were not able to earn such compassion, the poor don’t have to prove themselves worthy of ours.
Second, it is a recognition of a future state. As we see in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus and the beatitudes as listed in Luke 6, Jesus taught that those with less now will have more later. And I’m pretty sure He would know. Also, the poor church of Smyrna in Revelation was told they had great riches and recieved no rebuke from Jesus (Philiadelphia was the other church of the seven to recieve no rebuke).
The sheep and the goats were divided based upon their actual treatment of the poor and others who could not give back (the dude in prison cannot visit you back), and a reward awaited them in heaven because Jesus so identified with those in need.
While there is a statement in the Old Testament about poverty being a curse, Jesus and the other writers of the New Testament seem to feel differently. Jesus called the poor blessed with heavenly riches later, and James says they are rich in faith now.
So why wouldn’t you want to be poor?
This isn’t a denial of the hardship or suffering of poverty. Quite the opposite. It is a recognition that with faith, hardship produces an eternal weight of glory.
However, this also does not excuse the poor from giving. The poor widow gave all she had and more than the wealthy man. We see a poor church blessed by Paul because they gave out of their need.
In contrast, the rich are constantly given woes and dire warnings throughout the whole New Testament, like being fattened up for the slaughter.
Still want God to make you rich?
The New Testament never promises an earthly Utopia where we rid the world of poverty and oppression. These acts are done in faith due to a revelation of a completely different reality, a spiritual kingdom that transcends and infiltrates earthly nations, both as a testimony now and fully realized at a later time.
okay … one more left …
Peace.