Return to God Loves the Needy at the Alliance.
A Portrait of the Needy
The Warao People in Northeastern Venezuela
Basic Facts
Life expectancy approx 40 yrs
Common for girls to have first child as early as age 13
No concept of common week: church held every day since every day is the same
No concept of hours, minutes, etc: church at sundown
Approx. 35,000 Warao in 500 isolated communities
Only 15 communities have been reached with the Gospel; 3 missionary families
Source: Team Expansion. “Together Venezuela: Church planting with Samuel Schutz.” April 2006. <http://www.soulharbor.net/sam/200604-Newsletter.pdf>.
“...the Warao are so preoccupied with death and dying that the language has no word for 'living.'”
Source: Sharon Girard’s review of Music of the Warao of Venezuela; Song People of the Rain Forest by Dale A. Olsen in Latin American Music Review / Revista de Música Latinoamericana, Vol. 18, No. 2 (Autumn - Winter, 1997), pp. 331-337 (review consists of 7 pages) <www.jstor.org/stable/780403>
“The largest number of deaths among the Warao is among the children---the infant mortality rate, at 49 percent, is especially high.”
Source: Dale A. Olsen, Ph.D. (Distinguished Research Professor Emeritus of Ethnomusicology Florida State University) “An Introduction to the Music and Culture of the Warao Indians of Venezuela” <http://www.dolsenmusic.net/advocacy/case_study_1.html>
The Story of Robert Yanez
MY NAME IS ROBERT YANEZ, I AM 9 YEARS OLD WARAO INDIAN LIVING IN THE ORINOCO RIVER DELTA IN VENEZUELA.
We are a family of 12 and we have one thing in common, we all have Tuberculosis. My case is more severe than the others and they keep shuttling me between my house and the hospital in Tucupita every few month (2 hours by boat).
The problem is that most of our community members have Tuberculosis, and as the Doctor said one time it does not work to treat only one member of our village while almost everyone is infected. We need medical help urgently here I already lost 2 brothers in the past.
Robert died on June 15th/2001.
Source: Warao.org. Accessed May 29, 2010.
God Loves the Needy (Teacher Guide)
Sunday Evening Teaching on May 30, 2010
at Christian Missionary Alliance in Aurora, IN
Concepts
God identifies with the needy (Matthew 25:40,45; Proverbs 14:31; 17:5; 19:17); but serving Jesus, who is God (Hebrews 1:3; John 1:1-4), is more important than serving the poor (John 12:5-8).
God commands people to help the needy and not to harm the needy (Psalm 82:3; Proverbs 31:9; Exodus 22:22; Deuteronomy 15:11; 24:14 Isaiah 1:17; Jeremiah 22:3; Zechariah 7:10; 1 John 3:17; James 2:1-13).
In the Old Testament, God commanded tithing (Deuteronomy 16:11, 14), charitable farming (Deuteronomy 24:17-22; 26:12-13) and perpetual inheritances (Proverbs 23:10-11) within the laws of Israel.
In the New Testament, God used a local church to commission individuals who were “of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom” to distribute food equitably to widows of all ethnic backgrounds (Acts 6:1-7); true widows of a church are old, godly, and abandoned (1 Timothy 5:3-16). There are also collections for the poor believers in other churches (Romans 15:25-27).
Side Note: Treatment of the needy is a distinction (Proverbs 29:7. C.f. Job 6:27; 22:9; 24:3,9; 29:12; 31:17-18,21) between the righteous (Psalm 112:9; Proverbs 31:20) and the wicked (Proverbs 28:15; Psalm 10:2; Isaiah 32:7).
God intervenes to help the helpless (Deuteronomy 10:18; Psalm 10:14-18; 12:5; 14:6; 34:6; 35:10; 40:17; 68:5; 70:5; 113:7-8; 146:9; Jeremiah 49:11. C.f. Psalm 9:18)
God blesses those who love the needy (1 Corinthians 13:3; Deuteronomy 14:29; Psalm 41:1-3; Proverbs 14:21; 19:17; 22:9; 29:14) with an eternal blessing (Matthew 25:31-40).
God punishes those who harm the needy (Deuteronomy 27:19; Proverbs 17:5; 20:10-11; 21:13; 22:16,22-23; Psalm 146:9. C.f. Psalm 37:14-15), such as the Pharisees (Mark 12:40; Luke 20:47), with an eternal punishment (Matthew 25:40-46).
Food for Thought: Those who help the hurting now will never hurt then (Revelation 21:1-4). Those who did not help the hurting now will always hurt then (Matthew 25:46; Luke 16:23,28; Revelation 14:10-11).
Quotations
“Whoever gives to the poor will not want, / but he who hides his eyes will get many a curse.” Proverbs 28:27 (Also see verse 8.)
“Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” (James 1:27 ESV)
40And 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.' … 45Then he will answer them, saying, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.' 46And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life." (Matthew 25:40,45-46)
Digging Deeper into
Work & Give
April 15, 2012 | Ephesians 4:28
“...let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands...”
The word “labor” here (κοπιάτω) refers specifically to tiring, physical labor. For example, disciples as fishermen “labored all night,” trying to catch fish (in Luke 5:5). When Jesus had finished a wearying trip, the phrase “being wearied” is a translation of this word “labor” (in John 4:6). In other words, put your whole self into it - regardless of your job (Colossians 3:23), regardless of your boss (1 Peter 2:18) - as unto the Lord.
Bonus: If a brother in Christ does not work, do not have anything to do with him - do not even give him food (2 Thessalonians 3:6-12; cf. Acts 18:3) - “that he may be ashamed.” (2 Thess 3:14). For a similar command, see 1 Corinthians 5:9-13.
Bonus: Excessive sleep (Prov 6:6-11; 20:13; 24:30-34; 22:14-15), excuses (Prov 22:13; 26:13), and chatter (Prov 20:13) get in the way of obedient productivity.
Question: In your labor (in school, the workplace, or ministry), what is one way to labor better this Monday?
“...so that he may have something...”
You can expect diligence to lead toward provision (Proverbs 28:19; 12:11) and honor (Proverbs 22:29), and it is right for the diligent to receive provision (Luke 10:7) and honor (Proverbs 31).
Bonus: As boss, God notices how you pay your employees (James 5:1-6).
Bonus: Diligence not only tends to result in having things but also in having well-maintained things (Ecclesiastes 10:18).
Question: Is there an important thing that I already own that I can maintain better this Monday?
“...to share with anyone in need.”
“Share”
Share as an expression of love (1 Corinthians 13) - for God’s applause, not man’s (Matthew 6:4,6,18).
“Anyone”
Family. God desires for parents to save for their children (Proverbs 13:22; 2 Corinthians 12:14) and for children to put their parents’ financial needs above an offering to the Temple (Mark 7:9-13). For example, the family should take care of any widows who are relatives (1 Timothy 5:8-16).
Believers. “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers [who are the obedient followers of Christ, according to Matthew 12:46-50], you did it to me.” (Matthew 25) This can manifest in giving as an individual to individual needs (James 2:14-17), in giving through the local church to the local church’s needy (Acts 2:32-37), or in giving through a trusted group to another church’s needy (1 Corinthians 16:1; 2 Corinthians 9:1).
Others. When we love our haters (Matthew 5:38-42), we follow the example of Jesus who washed the feet of Judas (John 13:14) and healed the ear of the High Priest’s servant (Matthew 26:51).
Bonus: If your ultimate aim is wealth for yourself, you are in grave danger (1 Timothy 6:9; cf. Mark 4:19). If you gain wealth, invest it into your eternity through generosity (1 Timothy 6:17-19).
Question: If you had 100 dollars to give, who would you help (directly or through a ministry)?
