Good morning and welcome in everybody. Today, we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture, but before we do that, I wanted to tell you a little story.
Every morning a wealthy man passed by his neighbor’s house on his way to work, but he would always mumble underneath his breath each time that he saw the condition of his roof. You could tell that it was in dire need of repair because the shingles were in really tough shape. Apparently, it had even started to leak, and his family was catching water with a bucket whenever they had a heavy downpour. As he drove by, he would shake his head because he couldn’t understand why his neighbor wouldn’t fix the problem. But what he didn’t know is that he only had a few hundred dollars to his name. During the past few years, he had undergone some extreme hardship and had even been bedridden because of an accident. The wealthy man had lots of money available, but rather than reaching out and lending a helping hand, he disparaged his poor neighbor instead. He even went so far to tell people in town that his neighbor wouldn’t provide for his own family.
This reminds me of the Christian Life.
Wealthy people can become so callous and blinded by their riches that they are completely oblivious to the sufferings and the needs of their own neighbors.
Luke 10:30-37 (KJB) And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee. Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.
When he recognized the suffering of his neighbor, the Samaritan immediately reached out to help him, and even paid for his care out of his own pocket. Some people have worked for many years and stored up all of their money in their savings accounts, or purchased different types of possessions. Some of them have inherited things or even won the lottery, but God is watching to see what you do with the things that you have.
1 John 3:17 (KJB) But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?
It has always amazed me how wealthy people will justify their riches. They will claim that they are poor, simply because they have invested all of their money in houses and other things of this world. Self justification is a killer because it deceives a person. They quickly claim that they have large bills to pay, but the truth is that if they weren’t so greedy, they wouldn’t have any at all. Jesus warned the people about the dangers of covetousness.
Luke 12:13-21 (KJB) And one of the company said unto him, Master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me. And he said unto him, Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you? And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth. And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.
Rather than being content, this man ripped down a perfectly good barn. Sometimes when people become wealthy they will store it all away, live off of the interest, and then retire early. Then, rather than doing anything productive to help others, they will kick back and focus on all of the self-oriented pleasures of this world instead. This is why the love of money is root of all evil, because people in their wealth, turn their ears away from the cries of the poor.
Proverbs 21:13 (KJB) Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard.
Deuteronomy 15:7-8 (KJB) If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates in thy land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother: But thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth.
Proverbs 28:27 (KJB) He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack: but he that hideth his eyes shall have many a curse.
Many heretics will claim that works are not a part of the Christian Life, but God is going to judge us according to our works. If you’re sitting comfortably, and cannot reach out to help those who are in need, then the faith that you profess is vain.
James 2:14-17 (KJB) What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him? If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.
As I said recently, we can help our neighbors in many different ways, whether it’s giving our time, finances, or possessions. If your poor neighbor is in dire needs of tires, then buy him a set. If an old woman needs her wood stacked, then fill up her shed. Whenever you see a need and you have plenty of finances available, then maybe you could become a good Samaritan, by picking up some shingles, grabbing your tool belt, and,…..
…….Roofing the House
Let’s think about these things for right now. We can be found on your web browser by searching, tlkjbc where you can find our diaries distributed through various platforms. We are not associated, nor affiliated with any other religious groups. You can get our entire podcast feeds directly, along with transcripts at tlkjbc.com or I suppose that you could find us somewhere up here, in the Great Northern Minnesota woods. Peace to you all, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody.
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