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Originally Posted by edjen01
I don't believe I am suppose to meet every need. I do believe God will give me the resources needed to meet the needs of those I can reach. While i cannot pay your grandmother's medical bills...maybe there is someone close who can. The idea of caring for the needy as a "society"...cannot work unless we begin as individuals caring for the needy. A society cannot have compassion if it is comprised of individuals who do not have compassion. When individuals are driven by compassion first...then a society will be compassionate...it cannot work the other way around.
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I agree and disagree. I agree in that compassion must be a personal value.
However, I also have experienced from personal experience that “vision” is necessary for a body of people. Often those with compassion feel, “What can I do? The need is so great. I’m just one person?” However, with a sacred social vision of compassion all who have compassion can come together and form a very broad based platform from which to do works of compassion. This was the way the early church functioned. They gathered together and took up offerings to relieve churches in famine, the needy, and widows. Why didn’t the church just focus on theology and doctrine? Why didn’t the church just become internalized and ascetic? It appears that the first century church had a vision for social compassion wherein the entire body was responsible for one another and those in desperate need. Their dedication to this vision was so great none of them felt that they owned anything exclusively; they shared ALL that they had. For example, if we lived according to the early church if a brother had need of a lawn mower he’d not have to beg an unsaved family member to borrow one. Nor would he have to beg a brother in the church to borrow one. Brothers in the church with lawn mowers would believe that their lawn mowers belonged to the entire body. Once our brother expressed his need provision of the mower would be readily provided and the mower returned to its steward. In the first two centuries those who weren’t Christian often wrote of Christians as being the most generous and united body when it came to helping those in need.
Also this social vision is prophetic. If you perform a search on the word “poor” on biblegateway.com you’ll discover that the Bible, namely the prophets, had A LOT to say about provision for the poor and often rebukes were issued not to individuals… but the entire nation. Therefore we see the principle that a society is responsible for it’s poor and hurting.
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Regarding God's Law...I only find 2....love God with every part of my being...and love my neighbor as my own flesh. no mention of "tithe" at all.
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The tithe was an agrarian income tax on the land’s increase. Only land owners who were farmers and herders were bound by the tithing law. Craftsman and tradesmen weren’t. No Christian is bound by a “tithe” law. However, the tithe does demonstrate the principle that a society should contribute to those measures providing the basic sustenance of the poor and needy. Socialists want to achieve this through taxation and government programs. Distributists want to achieve this through generous financial support, volunteer time, and advocacy for private entities that can meet these needs.
It’s also important to note that Jesus didn’t say that those were the ONLY two laws. Let’s look at the text,
Matthew 22:34-40
{22:34} But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put
the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together.
{22:35} Then one of them, [which was] a lawyer, asked
[him a question, ]tempting him, and saying, {22:36}
Master, which [is] the great commandment in the law?
{22:37} Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy
God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy
mind. {22:38} This is the first and great commandment.
{22:39} And the second [is] like unto it, Thou shalt love thy
neighbour as thyself. {22:40} On these two commandments
hang all the law and the prophets.
Jesus didn’t dismiss the Law of God. Jesus simply explained that these two laws embody the two primary principles found in the Law of God. Here’s a break down:
How do you love God will all your heart?
- Put God before every thing in your life.
- You don't adore idols or dabble in the occult.
- Reverence the name of Jesus.
- Remember the Sabbath rest as a time of worship.
How do you love your neighbor as yourself?
- Starts with the home, love and honor your parents. A child who cannot love and honor parents will not love and honor others.
- You value life and refuse to murder in word or deed.
- You honor your vows by loving your wife and not committing adultery.
- You respect the property of others and don't steal.
- You're truthful and honest with your neighbors.
- You're thankful for what you have and not consumed with attaining that which belongs to your neighbor.
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These principles are best articulated as follows:
I
Thou shalt have no other gods before Me
II
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image
III
Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord
thy God in vain, for the Lord will not
hold him guiltless that taketh His name in vain
IV
Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy
V
Honor thy father and thy mother,
that thy days may be long upon the land
which the Lord thy God giveth thee
VI
Thou shalt not murder
VII
Thou shalt not commit adultery
VIII
Thou shalt not steal
IX
Thou shalt not bear false witness
against thy neighbor
X
Thou shalt not covet
Notice that the Law of God hangs on the two commandments of Christ. You can’t just say love God and your neighbor without defining what that entails.
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what happens when a "tithe" is not enough...Christ's law compells me to give all...not just 10%.
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Christ way demands that we give ALL.