Politicos -- If Jesus came back, how would He feel about "government cheese" for the poor?

In both the Old and New Testaments, we see God’s desire for His children to show compassion to the poor and needy. Jesus said that the poor would always be with us (Matthew 26:11; Mark 14:7). He also said that those who show mercy to the poor, the sick and the needy are in effect ministering to Him personally (Matthew 25:35-40) and will be rewarded accordingly.

There is no doubt that poverty’s reach is both widespread and devastating today. God’s people cannot be indifferent toward those in need, because His expectations for us in regard to taking care of His poor are woven throughout the entirety of Scripture. For example, look at the Lord’s words about the goodness of King Josiah in Jeremiah 22:16 “He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it means to know me, declares the LORD?” And Moses instructed his people how to treat the poor and needy: “Give generously to [them] and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to” (Deuteronomy 15:10).This sentiment is perfectly captured in Proverbs 14:31: “whoever is kind to the needy honors God.”

Conversely, there is another part to this verse: “He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker.” Proverbs is in fact filled with Scripture clearly showing that God loves the poor and is offended when His children neglect them (Proverbs 11:4,17:5, 19:17, 22:2, 9, 16, 22-23, 28:8, 29:7, 31:8-9). The consequences for ignoring the plight of the poor are also made clear in Proverbs: “If a man shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too will cry out and not be answered” (Proverbs 21:13). And note the strong language in Proverbs 28:27 “he who closes his eyes to [the poor] receives many curses.” Among the many sins of Sodom described in Genesis 19, her people were “arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy” (Ezekiel 16:49).

The New Testament is equally clear as to how we are to take care of the poor. One verse that nicely summarizes our expected altruism is found in the first epistle of John: “If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children let us not love with words or tongue but with action and in truth” (1 John 3:17-18). Equally important is Matthew 25:31-46. Now, this judgment precedes Christ’s millennial reign and is often referred to as the “judgment of nations,” in which those assembled before Christ will be divided into two groups—the sheep on His right side and the goats on His left. Those on the left will be sent to the “eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (v. 41), whereas those on the right will receive their eternal inheritance (v.34). Noteworthy, however, is the language Christ used in addressing these separated groups. The sheep were basically commended for taking care of the poor, the sick, the imprisoned, and the vulnerable. The goats, on the other hand, were chastised for their lack of concern and action toward them. When the righteous asked Him when they did these things, Christ responded by saying “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.”

Now, we are not to misconstrue this as meaning the good works of the sheep factored into their gaining salvation; rather, these good works were the “fruit” or evidence of their having been saved by grace (Ephesians 2:8-10), further evidencing that a commitment to Christ will indeed be accompanied with undeniable evidence of a transformed life. Remember, we were created to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do, and the “good works” Christ spoke of in Matthew 25 included taking care of the poor and suffering.

Now, with all of these scriptural truths in mind, we are to obey them and act on them, because “faith without works is dead” (James 2:26). As James stated “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says” (James 1:22). Similarly, John said “The man who says, ‘I know Him,’ but does not do what He commands is a liar and the truth is not in him…Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did” (1 John 2:4,6). And the words of Christ Himself: “If you love me, you will obey what I command” (John 14:15).

Jesus commanded us to love one another (John 13:34-35). And what better way to demonstrate the love and kindness and compassion of Jesus Christ than by reaching out to the “least of these” among us?

gatita

Baptized in Jesus Name according to Acts 2:38

My faith in the One who died for me

this often is the case. Societies commonly do no longer prefer a savior, they're rapid to show on them. it variety of feels such as the biblical "sheep between wolves" analogy. today if Christ back he would be branded a heretic through the church, condemmed as a cult chief, and watched through the tabliods like the Heaven's Gate cult. Why would all people be indignant through a Santa hat?

First of all, you have to look at 'govt. cheese' through the other end of the binoculars. More and more of our dairy farms are enormous 'agribusiness' operations that are rich & powerful enough to get big subsidies from govt. The fed. govt. does all their planning and marketing, which results in a big surplus of milk, which is made in to cheese and then eventually given away. Govt. cheese, like Food Stamps, is as much a subsidy to agribusiness as it is a charitable aid to the poor.

This was proven by GHW Bush, the first president Bush. He promised in his campaign to abolish the food stamp program. And to his credit he actually did try. But he wasn't -allowed- to. It wasn't the poor, politically powerless food stamp recipients that stopped him, it was the big corporate food producers who saw Food Stamps as a subsidy to themselves.

Secondly, the man Jesus told to sell everything he had and give the money to the poor, that story is misquoted all the time. The man came up to Jesus and asked him what he needed to do to go to Heaven. Jesus says 'You tell me.' (Because Jesus was Jewish and Jewish people always answer a question with another question. And also because Jesus knew the guy knew the answer to the question.) The man says something like 'Love God, love your neighbor, stuff like that'. Jesus says 'You got it!' So then the man says 'Well, I do this, but what can I do for extra credit?' THEN Jesus says 'Well, you could sell everything you have, give the money to the poor, and follow me.' The man thinks about it and decides he's not ready to do that. So he leaves. Then Jesus turns to his disciples and says 'There, you see? It's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to get into Heaven.'

Republicans and conservatives tend to demonize the poor. I think they do this to distract us from the REAL problem. it's the -rich- who are stealing us blind, not the poor. Jesus never said it was government's problem to deal with poverty, actually that is a much more modern approach. But the reason we have government poverty programs--welfare and food stamps and school lunches and job training and CHIP and all that--is that relying strictly on private charity didn't work! Charity was insufficient, and often came with strings attached.

The entire bible teaches personal responsibility, not just one little section.

Neither Jesus nor the prophets advocated government supporting the people.

In fact, the provision within the Law for charity was for those who planted crops to leave a portion of the crops for the poor to harvest. The field owners did not pick the grapes, give them to the government, and then have the government give them to the poor.

Jesus did not tell the young rich man to give his wealth to the government to redistribute. He told him to give it away, himself.

While charity and compassion for those who cannot help themselves is part of the Judeo-Christian tradition, it is a PERSONAL thing, not an government thing.

And, since even the poor in the US are "rich" compared to the rest of the world, anyone who really believed in "fairness" would give away 90% of what he has to people in other countries.

FYI, if you were a true Christian, in that you had Faith, alone, in Jesus Christ, alone, for the forgiveness of your sins, you still are a Christian. You may change your mind but God doesn't change His. He doesn't allow you to opt out after you've been born again. So...good for you, you'll be a garbage man in Heaven just as you're a garbage man on earth.

Jesus wanted His Church to care for the needy, not the government. Jesus does not want the government to take care of anyone. Israel had a government and God made allowances for people to have debts, lose their land, be poor and needy without once saying the King of Israel should give them handouts. 2 Thessalonians 3:10 For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.”

@Tyrannosaur Rex, of course Jesus has heard of the US. God knows all. You're denigrating God in the same breath you extol Him.

Jesus Christ has probably never even heard of the United States. And dont be fooled by the impoverished peasant preaching love and forgiveness routine. A King of Kings. Every knee shall bend and every tounge shall confess.

BOW YOUR HEADS!

Jesus preached charity, not strong-arming people to take their money away from them. You must have flunked Bible school.

They don't know what they are talking about

Most of the faithful believe Jesus is that little voice in there heads.

So what he said 2000 years ago is irrelevant, when he just told them that poor people are scumbags.

glad you paid attention. Jesus would NOT want the Federal Govt taking care of the poor. This is where libs and idiots don't understand when they try and say Jesus is Liberal. He NEVER talked about the GOVT doing the job, He ALWAYS talked to the Church and Private Enterprise to be the ones to take care of things. People that think Jesus was a Liberal, are misinformed and know NOTHING about Christianity and even less about Jesus. Sorry if the truth hurts. And yes, As long as the GOVT cheese and checks flow and he gives them abortion, contraceptive on demand, legalized gay marriage, and "free" healthcare, Libs, esp. on here, couldn't care less what Obama does to the economy and the Country

You didn't really pay attention in that study group did you?

Actually if you knew anything whatsoever about Christ and Christianity you would know Jesus was no fan of government rather he was a firm believer in personal charity. A concept most leftist abhor. Instead of expecting the government to take care of the downtrodden, why don't you get off your liberal butt and practice some compassion and charity yourself?