In Acts 20:35 Jesus says it is more blessed to give than to receive. But what does that really mean? I’ve been on the giving and receiving end of charity. I’ve seen people that don’t have enough, be generous and give anyway. Not to mention those that seem to have too much and appear to keep it all for themselves (not judging - I can’t say for certain how anyone else runs their finances.)
Lately I’ve reflected on the different ways God provides guidance. God often guides us to be charitable. I recently saw an episode of “What Would You Do” where an actor pretended to be a teacher using her own money to buy school supplies and she didn’t have enough so she had to put back her food so she could afford the supplies. People in line spontaneously gave her money or helped her pay. They got a nudge from God, heard the voice and followed His lead to be charitable.
Charity is faith in action. There are three main ways to enact charity:
Time
Talent
Treasure
In the next few weeks, I’m going to post a reflection dedicated to each of these elements. My first planned series! I don’t have all the answers, but I invite you to join me as I ponder and reflect. As always, I encourage your comments - let’s have a virtual discussion on this topic and these sub-topics which are critical elements of most religions.
A cursory glance across the major religions of the world shows that they all require some form of charity. Additionally, it is often advised that the charitable acts be done quietly, not to draw attention or acclaim to the giver.
As I was dipping into the different religions and their charitable guidelines, I came across Maimondes’ ladder of charity which is attributed to the Jewish faith. As an educator who works with at-risk youth, I’m well aware of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, so I was intrigued and dove a little deeper. I think it’s an interesting contemplative concept and will give us a “rung up” on the beginning of our series.
The lowest rung of the ladder starts with being asked to give a small amount and complying but not being happy about it. For me, this brings to mind telling an older sibling they have to share their cookies with a younger sibling.
Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
As you can see, the ladder then progresses through various combinations of giving with or without being asked, the amount of giving, the attitude in giving, and the relationship of the giver and receiver. Ultimately it ends with helping someone become self-sufficient.
The concept reminds me of one of the most treasured gifts I’ve ever received as a teacher. In fact, I wasn’t even a teacher when I received it. It was my second year in the education arena. The previous year I’d been an aide working directly with students, then I changed jobs and became an iPad Tech. The teachers were required to have after school tutoring every day. My office was the circulation desk of the library (we had no full-time librarian) and my workday ended 30 minutes after the students. One day, two of the students I had worked directly with the previous year, came into the library after school and sat down for tutoring. They didn’t seem to realize that it wasn’t my job anymore - it was not even in the realm of multiple responsibilities that I had. I never told them; I just tutored them with whatever subject they needed help with. At the end of the year, Oscar gave me a framed quote that he had displayed artistically. Even though this quote hangs on the wall above my desk, I rarely stop to read it. If you had asked me yesterday, before I took the picture, I would have told you the quote was “Give a man a fish and he eats for a day, teach a man to fish and he eats for a lifetime.” A similar sentiment but with a more practical application.
I found this different version of the ladder on someone’s X feed. I can’t say I’m 100% in favor of a welfare state. I can find vague Biblical support for a welfare state:
Micah 6:8 – “What does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”
Isaiah 1:17 – “Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.”
Proverbs 31:8–9 – “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves… defend the rights of the poor and needy.”
Psalm 82:3–4 – “Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed.”
Leviticus 25 – The Year of Jubilee required debt forgiveness and land return every 50 years—designed to prevent generational poverty and extreme inequality.
Deuteronomy 15:4–11 – God commands generosity: “There need be no poor people among you… be openhanded toward the poor and needy.”
Amos 5:11–12 – The prophet rebukes the wealthy for trampling the poor and corrupting justice: “You impose heavy rent… you oppress the righteous and take bribes.”
Acts 2:44–45 – Early Christians shared possessions so no one was in need: “They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need.”
Galatians 3:28 – “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”
Luke 4:18 – Jesus declares his mission: “He has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor… to set the oppressed free.”
(gathered with the help of ChatGPT)
The first few verses talk about justice and defense which can be rather subjective. As we see in the news every day, some people’s idea of justice is very different from others. Some people think it is okay to defend people even when they are breaking the law. Personally, I lean more towards rendering to Caesar what is Caesar’s. If there are laws of the land, then they need to be followed.
70% of these verses are from the Old Testament. Christians believe that the New Testament is the relevant portion of the Bible that we are to live by in modern times. Even so, Acts is a New Testament book yet this verse describes the actions of Christians who had just been baptized and received the Holy Spirit after Pentecost. It is unclear to me whether they are sharing their possessions with anyone or just the immediate community of Christian believers because the subsequent verses say they were worshipping and eating meals together daily so it doesn’t sound like they were doing much outreach at this point.
Doing outreach is definitely a part of being charitable, but I think one must examine their motives and their end goal before diving into any charitable relationship. Particularly the 6th level - don’t make your gift personal, we should all be in control of our lives. There are some people who enjoy the feeling they get from being benevolent and even thrive on it - sort of like a drama queen thrives on the chaos they create. Along these lines, a “Friends” episode involved a discussion between Phoebe and Joey about the impossibility of doing a good deed without a personal benefit.
Phoebe tries letting a bee sting her so the bee can feel good, but Joey tells her the bee probably died. She tries donating money to the telethon, but that results in Joey getting TV time and that makes Phoebe feel good. At the end of the episode they decide to donate blood, and, as they are leaving, much to their dismay, they are given a free t-shirt as a thank you.
In addition to examining your motives for giving, I believe you should also give careful consideration to the recipient of your charity. I’m not talking about a beggar on the street. Like I said a couple of weeks ago, if you feel led to give them money - give, and don’t worry about what they do with it, at that point it is between them and God. Have you ever tried to feed the ducks at your local park. I don’t know why I have fond memories of this as a child, because I’ve tried to do it with my children and the ducks get greedy. They start attacking you and things get out of hand quickly, kids are climbing on tables to escape the chaos.
On a larger scale, there are disreputable organizations out there. Recently we had a guest priest who spoke on behalf of a company he works for, now that he’s retired from the daily priesthood. The company is called Unbound and helps low income children and senior citizens in foreign countries. He talked about how much he researched the company before he started working for them, and shared some statistics. It sounded good - but I didn’t know that priest so part of me still wanted to investigate for myself. But then, our vicar (assistant priest), who is from India, stood up and said that he was a recipient of Unbound’s charity when he was growing up and what a difference it made for him. OKAY! Research concluded.
One might wonder why poverty exists in the first place. Why can’t God just put us all on the top rung of the ladder? If he loves us all equally, why didn’t he make us all equal? Or why didn’t He make all countries equal. John chapter 9 gives us insight when someone asks a rabbi about a man who was blind from birth and wants to know who sinned, the man or his parents? That answer is that neither did but that it is an opportunity for God’s works to be shown. In other words, human suffering is an opportunity for others to demonstrate God’s love through charitable acts.
John 9:1–3 (NIV)
"As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’
‘Neither this man nor his parents sinned,’ said Jesus, ‘but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.’”
So, get ready to up your giving game and be blessed because, sadly, there are many who suffer and I hope to inspire you to ease their burdens with whatever your God-given gifts are.