Real Philanthropy

Philanthropy-the practice of performing charitable or benevolent actions

Now, before you think I am demeaning charitable donations by the rich, let me be clear that I am not. Organizations that do the work on the ground could not survive without private donations and corporate or federal grants. People like Bill Gates and Warren Buffet often give enormous amounts of money to charity. Whether or not they give to make an impact, to feel good about giving, for tax purposes, or a blend of all three is not something that I can know.

That being said, our idea of philanthropic giving is letting go of something for the benefit of others at your personal expense. If this is the case, we must acknowledge the working poor as philanthropic because many give their time and effort for jobs that benefit others at wages that they cannot properly live on.

Real philanthropy works 50+ hours a week welding steel beams and doing construction so that I can have a building for work and a house to live in.

Real philanthropy works in the cafeteria at my university so that those in the future middle and upper classes can have something to eat.

Real philanthropy works in the gas station down the street so I can drive my car to go to work and school, and to see my friends.

Real philanthropy works in the kitchen at the restaurant my friends and I visit to watch the big game.

Real philanthropy works overseas so that I can have my shoes, clothes, phone, computer, etc.

Real philanthropy takes out my trash, cleans the bathrooms at school, prepares food for me at work, bags my groceries, makes my hotel bed, serves my drinks, and dry-cleans my suits.

Jobs provide dignity. Many working poor are proud of their jobs and enjoy doing them. However, we cannot continue to climb over the backs of the poor in our quest for the American dream. We must realize that our comfortable, secure lifestyle depends on people who “tread the winepresses, but suffer thirst” (Job 24:11). The Great Recession has seen increased unemployment and downward mobility in the American family, yet many corporations are seeing record profits. We have been sold the naïve ideas that wealth eventually trickles down and that with growing profits, all boats will rise with the tide. This is not a call to diminish corporate profits, but for those businesses and individuals who are able, to provide adequate wages that allow for greater standards of living that are in line with rising profits.

There are those that grumble about welfare, unemployment benefits, SNAP, and other social safety nets, claim that the government should not be involved at all in helping the poor, and that the church should be the primary agent to care for the “least of these”. If this is the case, it is time to act on these convictions and stop hiding behind our political rhetoric to conceal our apathy and inaction towards the poor. The fact that the government provides safety nets is not an excuse to not be involved in the lives of the poor.

 As we seek the welfare of our cities and those living in them, we shall find our own welfare (Jeremiah 29:7), therefore let those with businesses provide fair wages for their employees, let those who can educate help provide better job skills, let those with time help others find employment, let those with money leave better tips, let those without money listen to the stories of the poor, and let us all look at the faces of the working poor, encourage them, and thank them for their contribution to our society.

Real philanthropy begins with you.

Giving and Receiving

Generally, Christians agree that we should be agents who care for the poor, the widow, the orphan, and the alien. There are plenty of verses in the Bible that herald this truth. However, the majority of us tend to give money to various churches, organizations, individuals, etc. and let that be the extent of our care for the poor. Brothers and Sisters we are not called to be individuals who give to the poor from afar, but we are to have community with the poor, giving and receiving from one another.

2 Corinthians 8:8-15 “I say this not as a command, but to prove by the earnestness of others that your love also is genuine. 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. And in this matter I give you my judgment: this benefits you, who a year ago started not only to do this work but also to desire to do it. So now finish doing it as well, so that your readiness in desiring it may be matched by your completing it out of what you have. For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have. For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened, but that as a matter of fairness your abundance at the present time should supply their need, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fairness. As it is written, ‘Whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack.’”

The Community of Faith cannot properly flourish if it is not woven into the lives of the poor.

1. Christ creates the Community of Faith by becoming poor.

Jesus is our example, “for though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich”. He created the Christian Community by becoming poor so that others may become rich.

Christ could have chosen to remain an “individual” in heaven, helping us from a comfortable distance, but He chose to enter into community with the materially and spiritually poor in order to bring about the Kingdom of God on Earth.

2. Freely Giving

“And in this matter I give you my judgment: this benefits you, who a year ago started not only to do this work but also to desire to do it.” We are to give of our resources and ourselves not out of guilt, pride, or duty, but out of the change of heart that only God can give through the Gospel.

We must enact redistribution and social justice in the Community of Faith. However, this is not done through the state but we must freely give out of the joy that has been given to us. We do not worship the empire of man, we worship the Risen King. The Christian Community is where liberty and equality meet.

3. Receiving

“For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened, but that as a matter of fairness your abundance at the present time should supply their need, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fairness.” True Community is a reciprocal relationship not a one-way street. We can easily see that marriages and friendships do not function properly if one person does all the giving and the other, the receiving. Why then do we forget this in our churches and communities?

Serving the poor from afar and merely giving sermons does not create community. We must provide opportunity for each party to offer the gifts they have been given, and not to stifle them by creating dependency and inferiority complexes while puffing ourselves up as “saviors”. 

Acts 4:34-35 “There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.” Those that sold their land did not give the proceeds and walk away but they stayed within the community. The land owners had no more need after they sold everything than those who benefited from their gifts, as “there was not a needy person among them”. The Christian Community is where liberty and equality meet.

We should strive to help others give through their unique gifts and abilities. In Acts 20:35 Paul states the words of Jesus: “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” In the past I took this verse to mean that I should serve but never accept anything in return. I asked myself what good it was if I was given something for my service. But if it is better to give than to receive then one of the best things we can give others is the opportunity for them to give of themselves and not rob them of the joy of giving that we experience. Yes when we serve the poor they may not be able to serve us in the same way, but they can always serve in their own way. In being invited over for a meal from a great cook, told intimate personal life stories, and teaching me how to build with my hands, I have received many gifts from the poor. It is in these times that I have been the most joyful, and I have experienced the greatest sense of community.

We do not prey on the poor, only expecting to receive, but we also do not simply give when we want and walk away. We are to love and serve one another.

4. Our response to Christ?

We then are to respond to the incarnation of Christ (the giving of Himself) by the offering of ourselves back to Christ.  

Acts 17:24-25 “The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.” Unlike us, Christ does not need anything. However, believers are brought into community with Christ through His life, death, and resurrection. Jesus created the ability for us to give of ourselves by serving Him through the lives of the poor.

Matthew 25: 31-40 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King with say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’”

First Post

So I got a blog. I'm hoping that it will encourage me to write more often and have my thoughts heard and critiqued. I really do love writing but most of the time I'm too lazy to do it.

This will be a blog about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and how it overflows into all aspects of my world and the world around me. We live in a time where anyone, at least in the "western" world, can instantly display their thoughts and opinions with minimal effort (trust me, I just set this blog up between classes). My hope is that I will not be just another voice shouting out complaints from the comfort of a computer, but rather that I use my opportunities to herald the truth of scripture that offers the only answer that influences all other answers to our complaints, the Gospel.

This will be a blog about Justice. I almost said "injustice" instead of "Justice", but again, anyone can complain, anyone can google statistics on this or that, anyone can follow @InjusticeFacts on Twitter. My hope is that I can offer answers to injustice, hear your ideas, and learn from each other's mistakes (you should learn a lot, I have plenty of mistakes!) We are not only required to proclaim injustice but to "do justice". (Micah 6:8)

This will be a blog about politics. Yes you heard me correctly, politics. Our tendency as Christians is to say Jesus was a Republican, a Democrat, or He just didn't care about politics. None of these options are the case. Jesus initiated the Kingdom of God that turned the kingdom of man and of empire on its head. More on this later.

This will be a blog about the Church. God didn't choose the government, non-profits, para-church organizations, or mere individuals to enact the Kingdom of God on earth. He gave us the Church. All of these other organizations will fail at the end of the day but the gates of hell shall not prevail against the Church. (Matthew 16:18)

This will be a blog about Learning. I hope to learn to write better, to share my thoughts more fully, to bear my soul honestly, and to listen immensely. Most of the time blogs are a one way street. Please do not let me go unchallenged or un-critiqued. Honestly, I crave the affirmation and pats on the back just like anyone else, but I need to hear correction and perspectives that are different from mine so much more than affirmation. So please leave (hopefully respectful) comments, especially if we disagree.

At the end of the day, I want to steward this blog well and use it to Glorify God, whatever that may entail. My hope is not that scores of people will read my blog, but that a few may read it deeply and that I can spur the few on to actions that affect the many.

Thank You,

Cory Nelson