Why Caring for the Poor Is Actually Caring for God

Proverbs 19:17 says whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and He will reward them for what they have done. The more I read that verse, the more I understand what it is really saying. God is pleased when we are kind to people who have nothing to give us back. He treats it like we handed the gift straight to Him, and He remembers it.

I watched a movie recently that made this hit home in a hard way. It followed people who were mean spirited toward the homeless, not just unkind but violent. They pushed people out of the only home they had, stole from them, beat them, and one homeless man was killed. It was difficult to keep watching. I kept asking myself who could treat another human being that way.

One of the people doing the most damage in that movie ended up homeless himself by the end. I was not surprised. You can call it karma if you want, or maybe there is a more faith based word for it, but I do believe this. You cannot spend your life mistreating people and expect your own peace and blessing to last forever.

I thought about a conversation I had with my brother once about someone who is rich, powerful, and influential. I told him I felt sorry for that man because of how he treats foreigners, the poor, and the widowed in his own country. My brother said not to feel sorry for him because he has money and power. I understood what he meant, but I still stand by what I said. No one with real joy in their life can treat people that way. I do not care how much money is in the bank account. I still pray for people like that, because something is missing in them that money cannot fix.

The devotional I read this morning, narrated by Jennie Allen, said that when we care for the poor and needy we are actually caring for God, and that it feels amazing to know that is what we are doing in the moment. I found myself thinking about how good that would feel, to really know in real time that caring for someone in front of you is the same as caring for Jesus Himself.

That same devotional talked about being poor in spirit, not just poor financially or materially. Poor in spirit means someone who feels spiritually empty, discouraged, or far from God even if their bank account looks fine. Jesus talks about this in Matthew 5:3 when He says blessed are the poor in spirit, because the kingdom of heaven belongs to them. Being poor in spirit is not a bad thing to admit. It is actually the starting point for God to fill you.

The devotional also talked about living an openhearted life. To me that means staying willing to give, help, and notice people even when it costs you comfort or convenience. It is the opposite of protecting your peace so hard that you stop seeing the people around you who need something from you.

Matthew 25 backs this up completely. Feeding the hungry, clothing the needy, welcoming strangers, and visiting the sick and incarcerated are all listed as ways we serve Jesus directly. And 1 John 3:17 asks a question that convicts me every time. If someone has enough to live well and sees their brother or sister in need but shows no compassion, how can God's love be in that person?

There is no specific action step attached to this one for me today. It is more of an invitation to look at how I treat the poor, whether they are poor financially, materially, or in spirit, and ask if I am loving them the way I would treat Jesus if He walked into the room. If we all lived that way, I do not know how different eternal life would even need to feel, because we would already be living in a kind of peace right here.

Peace, Love and Joy always. Infinite Faith and Favor | InfiniteFaithandFavor.com