November 21, 2023 -- Ephesians 4:28 -- No more stealing thief, in Christ, do honest labor, sharing with others

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Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work
with his own hands,
so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.
Ephesians 4:28 ESV

Many (perhaps even most) of us Christians have ignored this passage. Today I am going to use the words of Robert Lupton to explain.

     Charity is good for us.

      It is, after all, the mark of good citizenship…And because it is so
     widely embraced as good—good for our society, good for our
     souls—it is easy to assume that it is also good for the recipients.
     It is not. Not the way we have been practicing it.

     Very few people in our society are so severely dysfunctional that
     they have no capacity to give. Even the chronic homeless with
     mental illness or addiction have something to contribute. Everyone,
     no matter how impaired or down on their luck, has a talent, a
     capability, a strength to bring to the table. To overlook their abilities,
     to offer pity instead of opportunity, is to diminish rather than empower.
     Subsidizing nonproductivity disempowers the poor. Doing for others
     what they have the capacity to do for themselves is debilitating.
     Unfortunately,, this describes more of our charity—from donating toys
     at Christmas to passing out socks to street people to providing free
     soup and cots at homeless shelter. Without a means of exchange,
     the recipients of our benevolence remain objects of our pity. As we’ve
     already seen, the most effective programs require participants to
     assume responsibility for their own development. These programs
     discourage free handouts and other kindhearted subsidies that erode
     a work ethic and hinder the growth of personal initiative. Which is to
     say that most of the giveaway volunteer efforts initiated by religious
     and charitable groups work at cross purposes with programs
     committed to moving people out of poverty. Such giveaway program
     consider their existence proof of their success; they hardly ever
     evaluate their success in terms of moving the poverty needle.
Robert Lupton, Charity Detox, page 68

Truly effective ministry means that a man or a woman is transformed in Christ. Addiction ends. Stealing stops. Entitlement ends. Such a person engages in communion with Christ and in healthy, purposeful interactions contributing to society. It is way harder than merely opening one’s wallet (and getting a tax receipt). Truly walking with Christ means that believers engage with the most vulnerable in our world and consistently, persistently, walk them out of poverty in their new life in Christ.

It is too much. Impossible you say? Absolutely. In our own strength there is no way on this planet that we can do this. “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire” II Peter 1:3-5 ESV.

Do we stop giving to charity? No.

Ask yourself this: is the charity transforming lives, moving people from being trapped in cycles of poverty to becoming empowered, productive citizens? Examine such things as these: are the recipients expected to change, helped to make lasting changes in their own condition and lives, expected to help others? As Christians we should expect the gifts and abilities of the recipients of charity be acknowledged and developed so that such men and women are not mere objects of pity, but are seen as those who by the grace of God have much to contribute to the Kingdom.

Our Father in heaven hallowed be Your Name. We confess that much of Your word remains mysterious to us. Truly Your ways are higher than our ways and Your thoughts are higher than our thoughts. As those who have been transformed in Jesus Christ lead us in the way everlasting. Spirit of God, grant us the biblical vision and strength to act so that our gifts, talents and abilities will be used to help and equip the thief to steal no longer but to work and from his honest labor allow him to share with others in the powerful Name of Jesus. Amen.

https://youtu.be/y3gWwGDGgVA?si=BYcSN_0KXtVfZYlV “Take My Life and Let It Be”

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