Topic: Care for the Needy (Open Heaven 30 January 2019)
Memorise: “He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.”- Proverbs 19:17
Read: James 2:14-17 (KJV)
14 What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?
15 If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food,
16 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?
17 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.
Bible in One Year: Luke 9, Isaiah 28:14-29
Open Heaven 30 January 2019 Wednesday MESSAGE:
Caring for the needy is an issue that is very dear to the heart of the Almighty God. In Deuteronomy 15:11, He reveals His mindset to us concerning the poor:
“For the poor shall never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy, in thy land.”
Because God is sovereign, it is needless to ask why there should be poor people in the land, and it is equally unwarranted to query Him as to why He did not put an end to poverty. The good thing is that God has made provision for the needy in His infallible word. It is left for us to obey His commands and be blessed in return. Someone is in need when he or she lacks what matters for his or her existence, and we are commanded to meet such needs if we are in a position to do so. Without any form of ambiguity, today’s memory verse reaffirms God’s concern for the needy, and this is further established by the Holy Spirit in today’s Bible text. Through these verses, caring for the needy is established as a work of faith. In other words, we are not people of faith if we are not mindful of the condition of the needy in our midst.
In Matthew 15:32-38, our Lord Jesus Christ demonstrated His care for the needy when after some days of spiritual retreat, He said to His disciples:
“…I have compassion on the multitude, because they continue with me now three days, and have nothing to eat: and I will not send them away fasting, lest they faint in the way.” – Matthew 15:32
In this scripture, we see that it was not just a situation of the people not having money to buy food but also that there was no food to buy. This shows that money can be of no use when what you need is not available to buy. We should therefore learn that the needy are not just those who don’t have food, clothes or money; even “rich people” among us can be in serious need of things that money cannot buy. Naaman had money, but the healing that he needed could not be purchased. Thanks be to God of Israel who met that need in his life through His prophet, Elisha (2 Kings 5:10-14). God also used Elisha to meet the needs of the Shunammite woman, whose money could not conquer her barrenness (2 Kings 4:8-17). I pray for you that the Almighty God will take care of your needs today in Jesus’ Name.
Open Heaven 30 January 2019 Wednesday Prayer Point:
Father, please equip me with Your divine blessings so that I can take care of the needs in my community on Your behalf.
