Blessed are the Poor in Spirit

(Part 1 of a series of 9 articles on the Beatitudes)

by Pastor Paul Wolff

“Seeing the crowds, (Jesus) went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.’” (Matthew 5:1-3)

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Blessed are the poor in Spirit (Matthew 5:3) Image from a Mosaic in the Saint Louis Cathedral, St. Louis, Missouri

The beginning of Christ’s Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5:1-12 is called the Beatitudes. We don’t hear that word much in everyday conversation, but beatitudes are blessings, and blessings are gifts. These gifts are special because they come from God. Jesus gives a list of blessings that God gives His beloved children, but if you read what type of things that Jesus says is blessed in His Sermon on the Mount, you will see that these are gifts that no one really asks for, and wouldn’t want – except for the fact that they are blessed by God. Because of this, Christians are happy to receive them as true gifts of God.

The first beatitude is: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:3) No one wants to be poor, but this isn’t talking about worldly wealth and riches. Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” These are Spiritual blessings, and those who are blessed here are people who recognize that they are poor in the Spiritual realm. They have nothing to give God Spiritually, because they are sinners who deserve only God’s wrath and punishment. This is true for all of us, but not all people recognize their Spiritual poverty. The people who are blessed by this Beatitude would certainly receive God’s condemnation unless another arrangement were made. Fortunately for us, Jesus has made another arrangement so that instead of punishment, we receive the blessings of God’s kingdom. Another way to say this is that these are repentant sinners who recognize their poverty of Spirit and know that they must rely on God to rescue them through Jesus Christ.

Jesus once taught people from a boat on the lake. (see Matthew 13, Mark 4, and Luke 5)

In Luke’s Gospel he records Jesus teaching on the plain, where He gives similar blessings as He did in the Sermon on the Mount. In Luke 6:20 Jesus says, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.” Though on the surface it may seem as if Jesus is commanding His people to be poor, but that interpretation really has it backwards. Because of our sin, we are all poor already. Those who are rich are just fooling themselves, thinking they are something when they are not. Saint Paul writes to Timothy, “Godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” (1 Timothy 6:6-10) It is because of our sin that we have nothing to offer God. All the money in the world cannot save you because it all belongs to God. It is also because of our sin that we are subject to death. All that we have is a gift from God, and there comes a time in all our lives when we must give it all back. “You can’t take it with you,” is a saying which paraphrases Saint Paul’s words to Saint Timothy. Yet, we can be content with what we have because Christians trust that God gives us the “daily bread” which we ask for in the Lord’s Prayer, as Jesus taught us to pray (Matthew 6:9-13). Because Jesus told us to ask for this, we trust that God provides for our needs every day.

James 2:5 says, “Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him?” Christians are “rich in faith” because Christ has promised us the inheritance of God’s Kingdom. Though this is not a worldly gift, we trust that this heavenly gift is ours because God has promised to give us this inheritance through faith in Jesus. Jesus said, “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” (Luke 12:32) We may not be rich in this world, but God still provides us all with good things, and He has promised to share with us all the riches of His Kingdom, which is eternal. So we live by faith, and trust that God’s promises are more sure than anything that we may hold in our hands. God’s heavenly Kingdom is already ours by faith, but we must wait to see its fulfillment.

A good example in Holy Scripture of someone who is “poor in spirit” is the character of the tax collector in Christ’s Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector (See Luke 18:9-14). The tax collector was in God’s house looking for God’s blessings, but he was so ashamed of his sin that he wouldn’t even raise up his head, and he simply prayed, “God be merciful to me, a sinner.” Jesus said he was the one who went home justified (forgiven), because he repentantly recognized his poverty of Spirit, and looked to God to save Him.

The opposite of “Poor in Spirit” would be something like “proud in spirit” or “self-righteous.” A good example of this is the Pharisee in Christ’s parable. He was boastful before God because he thought that he was so good that he had something to offer God. He was wrong, of course, but he thought he was so good that God had to be pleased with him. He didn’t recognize the guilt of his sin and how much he deserved God’s condemnation, so he did not repent, nor did he look to God to save him. This is why both John the Baptist and Jesus were so harsh in dealing with unrepentant Pharisees. The Pharisees weren’t bad people in the civil sense, but they were (generally speaking) unrepentant unbelievers. They needed to hear God’s Law to recognize their sin, and the true poverty of their spirit, and their need for God to save them. 

 Jesus said to the Pharisees, who did not believe in Him, “Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits.” (Matthew 21:43) The Pharisees admitted among themselves that they didn’t believe in Jesus (Matthew 21:25). This is why Jesus told the Parable of the Wicked Tenants against them. They didn’t want to be God’s people, and follow Him. They wanted to be in charge themselves. They were not producing the fruits of faith, because they did not have faith themselves. The fruits of faith are love, which is the good works done in obedience to God’s commandments. The Pharisees were too busy trying to save themselves that they did not do good to others. It is a paradox that those who are “poor in Spirit” are rich in good works, and those who think themselves “rich in Spirit” are poor in good works. Hebrews 11:6 tells us, “Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Repent of your sins and seek God in the Holy Scriptures because that is where God has revealed Himself, and there is where God’s Holy Spirit comes to you to bring you salvation, and God’s Kingdom.

Jesus was not so proud of Spirit that He wasn’t willing to suffer and die on the cross to save sinners, and give us the blessings of His Kingdom.

Jesus was poor in Spirit, but not quite in the same way that we are. We are humble because we are sinners who rightly are subject to God’s condemnation, and desperately need God to save us. Jesus had no sin, so He could rightly claim innocence before God, but He was certainly not “proud in spirit” so God the Father was pleased with Him in all things. Jesus knew He was innocent, and He never admitted to any sin which He did not commit, but He also never boasted that He was better than anyone else because of His holiness. Martin Luther explained that one who is “poor in spirit” “must not set his confidence, comfort, and trust on temporal goods, nor hang his heart upon them and make Mammon his idol.” * Jesus was not proud, and never made an idol of any created thing, but loved God with His whole heart, soul, mind, and strength in all that He did – and, in putting that into action in His life, Jesus also served us sinners in everything He did.

Saint Paul describes Christ’s humility this way in Philippians 2:5-8: “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness … and became obedient to death, even death on a cross.” Jesus was equal to the Father in all things including power, glory, and all His being. However, He humbled Himself as a man to win our forgiveness and salvation. During His life and ministry, Jesus gave up all the honor, glory and riches which rightly belonged to Him as the Son of God, so that He could offer His life as the atoning sacrifice which would provide forgiveness and salvation to all who trust in Him to save them. The result of Christ’s humbling Himself like this is described by Saint Paul in this way: “Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-11) Jesus did not exalt Himself as a man, but God, the Father, exalted Him (as a man) for His faithful obedience and for winning our salvation.

The blessings that repentant sinners receive is that the Kingdom of heaven is given to them. What this means is that they are welcomed into God’s heavenly kingdom as beloved children who have been washed clean of their sins through the blood of Jesus. The blood of Jesus cleanses us from all our sin (1 John 1:7) because death is the punishment for sin, and Jesus died in our place as our substitute. Through holy Baptism and faith we are adopted back into God’s family as His beloved children, and, having been washed clean of all sin, we will get to enjoy the full blessings of the kingdom of heaven. There we will live in eternal blessedness and peace with God, and all our needs of body and soul will be provided for us by God.

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Other articles in this series:

Blessed are Those who Mourn, For They Will be Comforted 

Blessed are the Meek, for They Shall Inherit the Earth 

Blessed are Those Who Hunger and Thirst for Righteousness, for They Shall be Satisfied

Blessed are the Merciful, for They Shall Receive Mercy 

Blessed are the Pure in Heart, for They Shall See God 

Coming soon:

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

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* Martin Luther quote from Luther’s works, vol. 21: The Sermon on the Mount and the Magnificat (J. J. Pelikan, H. C. Oswald & H. T. Lehmann, Ed.). Luther’s Works (Mt 5:4). Saint Louis: Concordia Publishing House. (©1956)

The Problem with Socialism

by Pastor Paul Wolff

“The desire of the righteous ends only in good, the expectation of the wicked (ends) in wrath. One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want.” (Proverbs 11:23-24) 
 
The best way to keep a prisoner from escaping is to make sure he never knows he’s in prison. -- Fyodor Dostoyevsky

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God commands individuals to be charitable, not governments.

I remember seeing a bumper sticker which read, “I think, therefore I am not a socialist.” There is much truth in that, yet there are many people who think themselves intellectuals who favor socialism. It takes more than a thinking mind to understand that socialism is a wicked system to order society. It also takes a caring heart (not a bleeding heart).

Socialists in the United States (and other Western countries) have been pushing their wicked agenda in schools, TV, movies, newspapers, magazines, and the news media for many decades, but there hasn’t been much serious public discussion about the implications of the socialist worldview and political agenda. Ever since the unexpected success of socialist Democrat Senator Bernie Sanders in the 2016 United States presidential campaign there has been much more public interest in the U.S. in the ideas of socialism. If you recall, Senator Sanders might have won the Democratic nomination for president if it hadn’t been for the Clinton controlled “Democratic” Party rigging the primaries to help Hillary Clinton win the nomination. Since then, in 2018, an openly socialist, naïve young woman from New York was elected to the United States Congress.

Socialism has never been very popular in the United States because we have a history of both Christianity and good education where people are smart enough (and free enough) to learn the weaknesses of socialism, and reject it. Both of those things are changing due to many decades of socialist indoctrination of students by unionized teachers in schools and universities. The result of this is that socialism seems to be gaining in popularity in our country.

Christians ought to be charitable as Christ is charitable to us.

It is no surprise that the Democrat Party is the one which is pushing the socialist agenda. Socialism has its roots in liberalism, and can be seen as liberalism pushed to its logical extreme. One definition of the term “liberal” is “generous”. That sounds good at first, but the problem with liberalism is that liberals aren’t particularly generous personally, but they do want to be seen as “generous” when they have control of other people’s money and possessions. Socialism takes that to the extreme so that the late British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, is famously known for saying something to the effect of, “The problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people’s money.” The truth of this shows the first problem with socialism, which is that socialism is fundamentally thievery. Socialism is thievery because it takes the wealth and income of those who work to earn it and gives it to those who do not earn it.

Adam and Eve stole what was forbidden and condemned us all to die. Jesus gave up everything He had and redeemed us from death.

In a way, the first sin of Adam and Eve involved thievery. It was primarily idolatry because God had said, “Don’t eat the fruit of this one tree,” and their eating was rebellion against God, but it was also stealing what didn’t belong to them. God had given them all the food in the whole world, but reserved for Himself the fruit of one tree in the Garden of Eden. God did not need the fruit for food, but neither did Adam and Eve – since they had plenty of good food to eat, but as long as Adam and Eve obeyed God’s simple command they showed their trust and obedience to God. When Adam and Eve ate the fruit they combined stealing what didn’t belong to them with idolatry because they listened to the lies of the devil and thought they knew better than God what was good and what was evil. In this way the name of the “Tree of the knowledge of good and evil” worked backwards from what we normally think. As long as Adam and Eve obeyed God and did not eat the forbidden fruit they could properly distinguish between good and evil. However, once they gave themselves to the temptation and stole and ate what was forbidden, then they lost the ability to distinguish between good and evil. After the fall into sin, what people think is good is often evil, and what is truly good for us is often seen as evil, and we have a hard time telling which is which.

The premise of socialism is that it purports to desire to make everyone equal. In practice it accomplishes this by making everyone impoverished, except for the ruling tyrants. There are always ruling tyrants in societies which practice socialism, because the system can’t work without a totalitarian government enforcing this unnatural social structure. There is little or no concept of personal property in socialism, but all things are shared among everyone. I remember a few years after the disintegration of the Soviet Union I spoke with a young man who was from the former Soviet Union (from one of the Baltic nations, as I recall), and he said that during the Soviet days there was no concept or teaching of the Seventh Commandment (“You shall not steal.”) as a command from God. It was a revelation for them to learn this concept once they were free from socialism. The Seventh Commandment assumes that there is such a thing as personal property, and that it transgresses God’s will to obtain someone else’s property in a dishonest way, or, as Martin Luther explained in the Small Catechism, in a way which only seems right – like a governmental Robin Hood-like redistribution of wealth. In this way socialism is fundamentally opposed to Christianity, and God’s created order.

The Good Samaritan used his own money to help the man injured by robbers.

Because the Seventh Commandment assumes private property, we know that God wants us to work for what we have, and to keep and take care of our possessions. Saint Paul wrote, “If a man will not work, he shall not eat.” (2 Thessalonians 3:10) This shows that whenever possible each person is responsible for providing for his own personal needs, like food, clothing, and shelter. Note that this does not apply to those who cannot work, but only those who will not work. Elsewhere St. Paul (and other prophets and Biblical writers) encourage Christians to charitably support their neighbors who cannot work due to disability. St. Paul writes to the Ephesians (4:28) “He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need.” This also condemns the ideology of socialism, and also implies that God gives His people more than they need so that they “have something to share with those in need.” This shows why democratic free market economy works in Christian societies (and not so well in non-Christian societies), because Christians are encouraged by Scripture to charitably share their excess with family and neighbors who are unable to care for themselves. They don’t need the Government to take care of the poor because they are cared for by their neighbors directly until they get back on their feet financially.

Here one might object and say that in the Acts of the Apostles the church of the Apostles lived in what seems like a socialist community. “All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.” (Acts 2:44-45) This is true enough, but it is not a small thing to note that they did this voluntarily, and their actions were not coerced by the Apostles or the governing authorities. When Ananias and his wife Sapphira were killed by God (Acts 5), it wasn’t because they withheld their property from the community. They were free to sell their property and do with the proceeds as they saw fit, even keeping all, or part of, the proceeds for themselves. Their crime was that they made a show of selling their property and saying that they had given ALL the proceeds to the church, while they actually kept some of the money for themselves. They died because they were liars, and they pretended to be holy to make people think they were better than they actually were. God showed everyone what they really were like (i.e. dead).

The Magi gave valuable gifts to Jesus. This helped the holy family in Egypt, and also foreshadowed Christ’s suffering and death.

Socialism is fundamentally opposed to the natural order of things because it tries to make everyone equal. Although God created everyone equal in His sight (as the U.S. Declaration of Independence stated – referencing common God-given rights), not everyone is equal in all things. Some people are smarter, others are less intellectually capable. Some people are stronger, others are weaker. Some people are older, others are younger. Some people are wiser and others are more foolish. Those who are more capable can rightly command a higher pay because they can do more good in society than those less capable. There is nothing evil or wrong about this. The wickedness of socialism can be seen if you say that everyone should have the same wage when one can do more or better tasks than another.

Wherever socialism enforces equal outcome, rather than equal opportunity, there is no incentive for people to work hard or be innovative or entrepreneurial. If I am going to be paid the same as my neighbor no matter how hard I work, then why should I work harder than my lazy or incompetent neighbor? This shows the unfairness of a system which pretends to be equal for all people. If you have educated workers who can think logically and reason deductively and have a free choice, then they would never choose socialism over a free market.


Socialism dehumanizes people. No matter how talented you are, no matter how hard you work, no matter how good a job you do, under socialism you are no more valued than the least talented, laziest, incompetent hack. You can never get ahead because it is unnaturally forbidden by law, or social norms, or whatever is enforcing the socialist ideal. In this way capitalism is better because it rewards people for a job well done, or for doing a task that is greatly needed, but is not able to be accomplished by many people. In a Capitalist society there is real incentive to do the best that you can do with your talents and effort. This values people much more than a system which says that no matter how much you can do, or if you can do something that no one else can do, you are not worth any more than anyone else.  

Christianity says that you are precious to God. Even though you are a sinner and deserve only God’s wrath and punishment, God loves you and has redeemed you from your sin through the life and death of Jesus Christ. It doesn’t matter if you are a newly conceived one-celled person, or if you are a life-saving doctor, or if you are a brain injured quadriplegic, you are precious to God. God proves His love by becoming the man, Jesus Christ and living a full life from conception to death to resurrection in order to rescue you from the consequences of your sin. Although some may say that this sounds like a socialist ideal, the Bible is clear that God gives different gifts to different people in life. Some are more able to contribute to society than others. What makes Christianity different from socialism is that since you are precious to God then Christians ought to consider others precious also, and as much as we can have a say, should promote a society that treats its citizens the same way. Socialism is not the way to treat humans in a loving way.
 

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich. - 2 Corinthians 8:9

Jesus lived a humble life, even though He was God incarnate. St. Paul describes it by writing, “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross!” (Philippians 2:5-8) Jesus demonstrated the love of God by becoming a man and forsaking the glory and honor and power and riches of His Heavenly kingdom, and He not only lived a humble life, but He offered His life as an atoning sacrifice to redeem sinners from the curse of our sin. St. Paul also described it this way to the Corinthians, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9) Many Christians throughout history have lived humble lives in imitation of Christ’s humble life. Jesus also warned His followers, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” (Mark 10:25) They responded “Who, then, can be saved?” Jesus answered, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” And yet, there are many believers in the Holy Bible who were blessed with great wealth, such as Abraham, King David, Job, and others. Wealth is not itself an evil. St. Paul warns Timothy about putting his trust in wealth when he wrote, “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” (1 Timothy 6:10) Money is not evil, but people fall into evil when they love money and make it their idol.
 
Those who favor socialism are either the uneducated who are manipulated into thinking that this is a good deal, or the elites who seek to take advantage of the ignorant workers. The elite socialist politicians want to be seen as helping people, but they don’t actually want to help people succeed. We see this in socialist societies where the people are not described as “citizens” but as “workers.” In other words, those who view citizens only as “workers” really view their neighbors as “slaves”. Their only value to the centralized government is in the work that they can provide, not in themselves as unique persons with their unique strengths and weaknesses. If they can not provide labor, then they have no value to those who control the government. In socialist countries the people who form the government are slave masters and the people are slaves. In 20^th century Communist China, Mao Tse Tung dressed in peasant-like outfits (custom tailored to fit his fat ass), but he lived in luxury off the labor of his enslaved people.

Zacchaeus responded to Christ’s kindness to him by promising to return what he had stolen and give generously to the poor. See Luke 19

There are a couple of key scenes in the 1965 movie Dr. Zhivago which beautifully illustrate the evils of socialism. Early in the movie Dr. Zhivago is seen living in a beautiful mansion which is well appointed and well maintained and looks bright and cheerful. Although I think that house belonged to his wife’s father, a successful doctor ought to live comfortably as a reward for a highly skilled career which provides caring service to the lives and health of his neighbors. Later, after the Bolshevik revolution, he is shown entering the same home, which is now also the home to several other families who didn’t pay to live there, and don’t care to maintain the house, or keep it in good condition. The house is stripped bare of its beautiful furnishings, and is dilapidated, run down, dark and dismal, and filled with ill mannered people who don’t care about Zhivago and his family, or one another.

Another aspect of Dr. Zhivago that shows the evils of socialism is that Yuri leaves his wife to live with his lover. While this is by no means something that only happens in socialist societies, it does show a temptation of what can happen when all things are held in common and there is no personal property. People can view their personal relationships in the same way and want to take someone else’s wife (or husband, respectively) for themselves. This is by no means the norm even in socialist countries. A majority of people will still regard the marriage covenant as sacred, but there will be a strong temptation to view other people’s spouses as common property, since everything else is held in common. This can happen especially among the ruling class, who view the people as slaves anyway. They can abuse their authority to tempt someone else’s wife to be unfaithful with the promise of a more comfortable life, or coerce with the threat of mistreatment of the woman’s husband if she doesn’t comply. Such is the terrible wickedness of the sinful heart.
 
Because socialist societies are, by necessity, run by totalitarian dictators or central committees, the workers are not free to make decisions about how their companies are run, even if it was their company to begin with. The government plans the economy, but a central government cannot foresee or react to customer needs or market trends or changes in a timely manner, which results either in overproduction of unwanted products, or in scarcity. I have several Russian made camera lenses from the Soviet era which I purchased cheaply in the early 2000’s because during the Soviet years they overproduced these products because the factories had government quotas to meet, but since they did not update the pre-WWII German Zeiss designs after they captured the East German factories after the war, there was not as much demand for the lenses as there was supply. These items can still be bought inexpensively because there were so many produced.

Overproduced, underdeveloped camera lenses are a trivial problem, but what wasn’t trivial was the Russian famine which happened in 1921-1922. Because the Bolsheviks took control of the farms and the food produced by the farms, there was widespread famine and millions of people are reported to have died from starvation. Farming is hard work under the best of circumstances, and farmers who can make a profit from their labor work hard to get the highest yield while carefully farming in a sustainable way so that they can make good profits year after year. In a planned socialist economy the farmers have neither the incentive to work hard, nor to take care of the land, and because the output of the farms is controlled centrally, in times of scarcity the elites get fed first, while the worker/slaves are left to starve. The freedom of American farmers to manage their farms and sell their produce as they see fit is why the United States has been long known as the “breadbasket of the world” and continues to be so. The current U.S. regulations which promote industrialized farms, however, may be good for low prices, but I believe it may not be good in the long run for farmers, nor the small rural towns which support agriculture, nor for the country as a whole, but that is a topic for another time.

Money bag for giving to the poor. When God gives us more than we need we are to give generously to those in need.

In many ways socialism is more materialistic than free market capitalism, and much more oppressive. Socialism only values what people have, not the people themselves, nor their talents and ingenuity and resourcefulness. In doing this, socialists do not recognize the true wealth of any society. The money and things which people possess is a limited resource, and its value is not as constant as the socialists imagine. As is shown in the movie, Dr. Zhivago, when you take the material of the rich and give it to people who didn’t work for it, they despise it and do not maintain it, and its value and usefulness is quickly destroyed. Things which are so valuable in a free society, quickly become worthless in a socialist managed economy. In a free market, people who are more capable, or who have talents and abilities which are in demand, are able to earn more, and thus they work harder, and the society as a whole benefits, and is made richer. Also, when people earn and own their own things, they take better care of them and maintain them and their value and usefulness remains longer.

Because socialists are naturally atheists, and not Christian, they do not trust people to be charitable and generous to those in need, so they say that the government must care for the poor instead of their own family and neighbors. In a predominantly free Christian society, where people are able to earn more than they need, they are generous with their charity and the poor are well cared for until they can get back on their feet and provide for themselves. Sometimes people will say that poverty causes crime. That is false. During the great depression in the United States in the 1930’s after the stock market crash of 1929, unemployment was about 25% of those of working age for quite some time, and people cared for one another. Crime did not rise as much as poverty because most Americans were Christians and they lived honest lives, and the poor were content to live off the charity of others until they got back on their feet financially. The post-war economic boom was a result of people who had lived through the depression and the war and wanted to work hard to make a better life for themselves and their families, and they were willing to work hard to do so as long as they were properly rewarded for it.

Christianity does not necessarily require a certain political or social structure. Christians can, and do, live in all societies, even where it is illegal for them to practice their religion openly. Christian principles do tend to favor good and just practices and rule out certain unjust practices where we have a say in how things are run. The Christian worldview is more honest about human nature than the worldview which leads to socialism. Christianity teaches that all people are naturally sinners whose selfishness needs to be curbed by laws and penalties for expressing that selfishness, through stealing, greed, and other sinful deeds. Not only is Christianity more honest about the sinful, selfish nature of man, it is also more compassionate, forgiving, and encouraging, even to unbelievers. Christianity teaches that all people are sinners and selfish, and that is why the United States Constitution sets checks and balances on each of the three branches of government to curb the power grabbing tendencies of each. We have been historically weak curbing the judicial tyranny, and that is where our government is weakest currently, but we pray that will be set right soon. Many Christians (and others) are working to accomplish true justice and lawfulness in our judicial system, but we are not nearly there, yet.
 
It is no coincidence that Christians were very prominent in the abolitionist movements in Europe and America. It wasn’t only Christians who were against slavery, but Christianity played a prominent role in abolishing slavery in the 19^th century in many places.

Jacob favored Joseph, but Joseph’s brothers envied him and sold him into slavery. Joseph forgave them and saved them from famine.

Holy Scripture is somewhat ambivalent about slavery. Nowhere does the Holy Bible endorse slavery, but God recognizes that because man is sinful they will wickedly enslave one another, and God set limits to what His people were allowed to do. In Leviticus 25:42-43 God says, “Because the Israelites are my servants, whom I brought out of Egypt, they must not be sold as slaves. Do not rule over them ruthlessly, but fear your God.” God also says that slaves were to be treated as hired workers, more like indentured servants than property, and after seven years they must be set free. God also gave a provision that if a servant wished to remain as a slave in the household (presumably because he was treated well and paid fairly for his work) there was a public ritual to make that arrangement legal and permanent.

Also the New Testament is likewise ambivalent about slavery, recognizing that it exists in a sinful world, but setting limits on the evil. St. Paul writes, “Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ.” (Ephesians 6:5) But he also sets limits on the masters when he writes, “Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven.” (Colossians 4:1) Here both slave and master are called on to be good Christians. St. Paul also writes, “Were you a slave when you were called? Don’t let it trouble you – although if you can gain your freedom, do so. For he who was a slave when he was called by the Lord is the Lord’s freedman; similarly, he who was a free man when he was called is Christ’s slave. You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men.” (1 Corinthians 7:21-23)  

The operating principle in both the Old Testament and the New Testament is that we are all servants of God and we ought to serve one another in love all the time, but as Christ has humbled Himself for our sake even unto death (see Philippians 2) for our benefit, we are free men in God’s sight, even if we live as slaves here on earth. It was this sort of teaching which in 19^th Century United States made the Christian American slaves much more noble than their wicked masters. This is why the character, Uncle Tom, in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s book, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, resonated so much with white northern Christian abolitionists that they supported the Civil War and tens of thousands of free Northerners fought and died to make all Americans free men.
 
St. Peter writes, “Slaves, submit yourselves to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh. For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is conscious of God. But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.” (1 Peter 2:18-21) Sinful man may be cruel, but Christians are to be kind and forgiving even to the most wicked person. Jesus is our example in this. The first words He spoke after being nailed to the cross and lifted up to be crucified is, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34)

Christians ought to befriend the homeless to help people to support themselves again, not to make homelessness a permanent condition.

Socialism is certainly an evil system of ordering society. Christians, however, can and do live peaceably in such societies serving their neighbors in love, while ignoring the atheistic requirements which necessarily are associated with socialism. Jesus says, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:39) In following this command, Christians work hard in their jobs and vocations to provide good things for their neighbors, even if they are not well compensated for it, knowing that their true reward awaits in heaven. This is no excuse to mistreat your Christian employees, because they will ask God to curse you for the grief you cause them, but it is one reason why socialist societies function for as long as they do before they see their inevitable collapse. It is hard for Christians to do what is right in a sinful world. That is why St. Paul writes, “If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.” (1 Corinthians 15:19) Christians take the long view of life, and know that if Christ endured suffering and death for our sins, we can endure a little unjust treatment at the hands of sinners. Eternity is a long time, and the sufferings of this life are only temporary.

Ultimately, the problem with socialism is that people don’t trust that God will provide us with daily bread, and we are too greedy to share what we have above our needs, so we look for worldly solutions. Such worldly solutions are bound to fail because of all people’s sinful nature. People are selfish and will tend toward solutions which benefit them, personally, but will harm their neighbor. Socialism is just such a worldly solution.  

Jesus also has other teachings against the ideals of socialism. He said, “Do unto others what you would have them do unto you.” (Matthew 7:12) This would prevent us from taking our neighbor’s hard earned possessions for ourselves, or sanctioning the government to do the same. If God has blessed me with great talent and skill, and has rewarded me commensurately for my use of these gifts, then I ought to be able to determine how I use my wealth to also help my neighbor. Christian Americans are generally wealthy people (from a worldwide perspective), but they are also generous to those in need. Governments, and people exercising power within governments, are not always wise in how they use public funds in giving aid to people in need. They often give money to people who don’t need it, or who misuse it, and they often take some of the money to enrich themselves before anyone in need sees a (much smaller) benefit. Government corruption is yet another reason why enforced socialism is a wicked system.
 
There is no perfect form of government because all people are sinful and some will attempt to work any system for their own benefit. However, socialism has many flaws which are inherently wicked and cannot be redeemed. The institutionalizing of thievery and slavery can never end well in any system of society. Socialism makes many good-sounding promises, but because it is inherently evil, it will never fulfill its promises nor even its best intentions.

“You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Galatians 3:26-29)

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Other Bible Verses which Speak Against Socialism 

“Whoever despises his neighbor is a sinner, but blessed is he who is generous to the poor.” (Proverbs 14:21) 

“The desire of the righteous ends only in good, the expectation of the wicked in wrath. One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want.” (Proverbs 11:23-24) 

“For you say, ‘I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing,’ not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.” (Revelation 3:17)  

Jesus said, “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” (Luke 12:32-34) 

 “We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.” (2 Corinthians 6:8-10) 

 “Whoever mocks the poor insults his Maker; he who is glad at calamity will not go unpunished.” (Proverbs 17:5) 

 “Whoever oppresses the poor to increase his own wealth, or gives to the rich, will only come to poverty.” (Proverbs 22:16) 

“Do not rob the poor, because he is poor, or crush the afflicted at the gate, for the Lord will plead their cause and rob of life those who rob them.” (Proverbs 22:22-23) 

  “Am I still to forget, O wicked house, your ill-gotten treasures and the short ephah (a weight measure), which is accursed? Shall I acquit a man with dishonest scales, with a bag of false weights? Her rich men are violent; her people are liars and their tongues speak deceitfully. Therefore, I have begun to destroy you, to ruin you because of your sins. You will eat but not be satisfied; your stomach will still be empty. You will store up but save nothing, because what you save I will give to the sword. You will plant but not harvest; you will press olives but not use the oil on yourselves, you will crush grapes but not drink the wine.” (Micah 6:10-15)

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See also my article on “The Problem with Democracy”  

See also my article on “The Problem with Sexual Politics”

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The Widow’s Mite

by Pastor Paul Wolff

Jesus is the Good Samaritan who rescued the man considered His "enemy"

Jesus taught, “Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted in the marketplaces, and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men will be punished most severely.” (Mark 12:38-40)

Jesus warns us to beware of those who love worldly honor. Yet, who doesn’t love worldly honor? We all want people to like us and admire us. But the world doesn’t always treasure what God considers righteousness, and even when it does, those who seek praise make a pretense of righteousness and the public can be fooled.

St. John writes, “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world – the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does – comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.” (1 John 2:15-17) People are sinful and their desires are sinful. Worldly people will seek to corrupt you (if they haven’t already) in order that you will be more willing to go along with their sinful desires. At the very best, if you seek the world’s favor, they will only give it to you as long as they can get something in return. When you have nothing more to give, then the world will abandon you. There is no salvation in seeking the world’s favor and praise.


That is why James (4:4) writes, “Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.” But understand that it is not as if God feels slighted or offended because you prefer someone else to Him. God loves you and wants you to be saved from your sins. If you seek other gods you are rejecting your only hope of salvation and will be lost.

Though the devil offered Jesus the riches of the world, He would not be diverted from His saving work

To illustrate this, Jesus watched the people putting money in the offering box. He noticed many rich people put in large sums of money. Jesus does not condemn them for this. It is not a sin to give large amounts of money to support the church – if God has so blessed you with wealth. The church needs money for maintenance, repair, salaries and the like. This is a good work. It is necessary for the spread of the Gospel. “Faith comes by hearing the Gospel.” How can anyone be saved if they don’t hear the message? So it is good to support the church with your tithes.

It is only a sin if you have the wrong attitude when making your offering, such as using your wealth to buy influence and control in the church. You might say, “I paid my dues, now I get to say how things are run around here.” That attitude forgets that neither the church nor your wealth belong to you – they belong to God. It is also a sin if you think your gift gets you closer to God, or makes God see you more favorably. God’s favor cannot be bought by giving to Him what belongs to Him anyway. Do you really think God will be impressed? Repent of this.

On the other hand, it is also a sin if you give all you have to the church and have nothing left for your family. It is a service to God to provide for the needs of your family. Though this, too, can be taken too far if you use your family as an excuse to get out of your obligations to the church. If you spoil your children by giving them every wicked thing they ask for, while the church is in decay and the staff is underpaid. That does no one any good – neither the church, nor your children.

Yet, instead of rebuking others for one reason or another, Jesus notices this one poor widow who put two pennies into the offering. Those who loved worldly honor and praise hardly noticed this poor widow. She could do nothing for them. Others probably didn’t take much notice of her either, but Jesus did.

Neither Mark, nor Jesus, give us her life story except to note that she is a widow, and, as such, she probably had no one to care for except herself. She apparently had no possessions to her name except those two pennies. In a way it would have made little difference to her if she spent those pennies on herself or gave it to the church. She might have been able to buy a meager amount of food for a small meal, but then she would soon have nothing again. Yet, she wanted to give her money to support the church. 

God often provides more than we need in order that we may share with others in need

Why would she do this? Jesus doesn’t elaborate, but we can assume that this woman had great faith. She may have been almost completely destitute, but she was just grateful to be a child of God so that when she got two pennies she wanted to give them to God in thankfulness for His forgiveness and salvation, and trusting that God would see her need and provide what she needed.

God did see her and I trust that He gave her all she needed. She might never have gotten rich, but God certainly provided for her needs. We all would do well to emulate the faith of this woman.

I’m sure many sermons have been preached on this topic that said, “Be like her or else. Amen.” But if I stopped here I would be doing you a great disservice. If the only thing you get out of this Bible story is that you should strive to be like the poor widow, then you are likely to be condemned by that message.  If the lesson you take away from this is to try to emulate the widow because her actions are somehow more holy – then that would only lead you to become like the scribes who do their good works to receive something in return. 

You are most likely not like the widow in her faithfulness, but take heart – she wasn’t like that either. Well, she was, but not perfectly – not her whole life. It might have taken her losing husband and children and all her possessions for her to learn to trust in God enough to give her last two pennies in faith. She surely had many failures and sins along the way, as have you. But she wasn’t saved by her faith, nor by the large percentage of her meager possessions given to God on this one particular day. She was saved by Jesus.

You are not saved from sin and death by what you do. After you are dead, what can you do to bring yourself back to life? You can only be saved by Jesus. But then, in showing this poor widow’s offering, Jesus is teaching about what He, Himself, has done for you – not about what you should do for Him.

What made the widow special was that she gave everything she had out of love for Christ and His salvation. Now, it could have been made easier by the fact that her entire estate only included two pennies (mites), but most sinners would still put their trust in those two pennies to save them until they were gone, and then they might look to God out of desperation. Though even then, some people still would not look to God to save them even if they had nothing else to put their trust in. Jesus taught that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. Though even poor people can make an idol out of what little they have – even two pennies. Yet, this woman’s offering didn’t save her. It wasn’t even her love and trust that saved her. If that was all she had, then it would surely be a case of: “too little – too late.” What saved her was Jesus. 

Though Christ was rich, for your sake he became poor so that by His poverty, you may become rich.

In His essence, Jesus was not poor. Jesus is the eternal God. He created all things. Everything that exists belongs to Him. Nothing that you own or treasure so much really belongs to you. It all belongs to God. It is only by God’s gracious kindness that you have use of your possessions for a little while. We come into this world naked, and naked we shall depart. Yet, although Jesus is the creator and owner of all things, He gave up everything to pay for your sins so that you might have everything. Jesus came down from the glory of heaven to be conceived and born of the virgin Mary. He spent His first night out of the womb laying in a manger. He lived a humble life as the son of a carpenter, and in obedience to God and all His laws. Then He offered up His life as an atoning sacrifice for the sins of the world. Jesus let sinful men nail His hands and His feet to the cross, and they shouted all kinds of blasphemous insults and lies at Him while He was suffering, and then he died. Jesus gave up everything – including His life – to pay the price for your sin. “The wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23) “The soul that sins shall die.” (Ezekiel 18:4 & 18:20) Yet, God, Himself, in the person of Jesus, died in your place, so that you could have life forever more. Jesus gave up everything so that He could give you a share in the riches of His heavenly Kingdom.

It is because Jesus has done this that you can have the same love for God that the poor widow did in Mark 12. It is also because Jesus has done this for you that whenever you realize you frequently fall short of this ideal of faith and obedience, that you can turn to Christ in repentance and trust that He will forgive you all your sins and provide for all your needs. Since Christ has given all He had to rescue you from your sin and redeem you to be His children, you can be sure He will provide for all your needs – and then some. You may be rich, or you may never be rich, but in Christ you have the inheritance of God’s heavenly kingdom, which is worth far more than all the riches of the world.

Do not put your trust in yourself or in your riches or in your goodness. All these things will pass away, and none of them can save you. Put your trust in Jesus, who, though He was rich, became poor, so that through His poverty you might become rich. (2 Corinthians 8:9) Jesus has done everything necessary to save you from your sins and give you everlasting life. Trust in Jesus to save you. Let everything else go – it is all temporary anyway. Jesus, and His salvation is forever, and it is a sure thing. Jesus has paid for it all and has given it to you as a gift. Rejoice! Christ is your salvation.