Why Can't the Poor be Like Us?

[BlueStreak]

I actually sat in on a discussion with a local Baptist Minister who's also Conservative and quite political. This guy told me that it's "actually a mistake" to do anything for the poor or the homeless because, "We are told that 'Ye shall reap as ye have sown.' Therefore, if you are poor it is because you have sown the seeds that yield poverty, which is as God meant it to be. To engage in charity is to thwart the will of God. If you wish to avoid such hardship, then sow the seeds of prosperity."...….

Sounds like a fairly evil justification for selfishness and apathy to me.

[whell]

Originally Posted by BlueStreak

I actually sat in on a discussion with a local Baptist Minister who's also Conservative and quite political. This guy told me that it's "actually a mistake" to do anything for the poor or the homeless because, "We are told that 'Ye shall reap as ye have sown.' Therefore, if you are poor it is because you have sown the seeds that yield poverty, which is as God meant it to be. To engage in charity is to thwart the will of God. If you wish to avoid such hardship, then sow the seeds of prosperity."...….

Quite the opposite, at least as it relates to the highlighted text above. If everyone did their best every day to sew the seeds of prosperity, there would still be hardship but there would be far less of it.

However, your baptist minister also missed a pretty key element of the New Testament, which is:

But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him?

Also:

If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?

This is why so churches have so many ministries dedicated to helping those in need. I wouldn't put much stock into what this particular minster is saying. The Baptists have some pretty active charitable organizations. Here's one example.

[Pio1980]

Originally Posted by BlueStreak

I actually sat in on a discussion with a local Baptist Minister who's also Conservative and quite political. This guy told me that it's "actually a mistake" to do anything for the poor or the homeless because, "We are told that 'Ye shall reap as ye have sown.' Therefore, if you are poor it is because you have sown the seeds that yield poverty, which is as God meant it to be. To engage in charity is to thwart the will of God. If you wish to avoid such hardship, then sow the seeds of prosperity."...….

Sounds like a fairly evil justification for selfishness and apathy to me.

Henny Penny Christianity.
Now, which part of the sermon on on the mount covered that?