Lending to God!

“Kindness to the poor is a loan to the LORD, and He will give a reward to the lender.” Proverbs 19: 17

Let’s take a quick look at lending before diving into the texts. When most people think about lending and giving, they imagine two different things. However, when you break it down, the two are very similar. Lending is defined as giving something with the expectation of getting it back, while giving is voluntarily transferring assets to another person or group without expecting anything in return. So, in a sense, you can think of lending as a more formal type of giving.

If lending to God entails caring for the less fortunate and demonstrating compassion for the poor, it is a worthwhile investment. Why lending to God is a good investment? It is because it helps us to grow in our faith. When we help those who are less fortunate, it allows us to see the love and mercy of God firsthand. This can help us grow in our faith and become closer to Him. Therefore, let’s withdraw the attitude of looking down on the poor and making them unimportant as if it was their punishment to be poor.

Proverbs 14:31 says, “The one who oppresses the poor insults their Maker, but one who is kind to the needy honors Him.”

Since God owns everything, including the money he provided you as an individual, God will compensate you for showing kindness to the needy and demonstrating compassion to them. Do you know why it is in God’s obligation to return whatever you have given to the poor? The impoverished will never be able to repay you for how generous you have been to them.

Lending to God is the key to Kingdom wealth and nothing more than giving freely to the poor. Instruct those who are rich to do good, to be abundant in good work, to be generous, eager to give, laying a good foundation for themselves for the age to come, so that they may take hold of the life that is real, was Paul’s final charge to Timothy (1 Timothy 6:18-19). I believe this is true for me, and I encourage you to do the same. Amen. 1 John 3:17 says, “If anyone with earthly possessions sees his brother in need but withholds his compassion from him, how can the love of God abide in him?”

Prayer
1. Father, thank you for the abundance of life, relationships, health, comfort, and wealth you have provided for me to be your helping hand and feet in showing pity to the poor.
2. Holy Spirit grants me a heart that blesses the poor and upholds the cause of the less privileged in Jesus’ name. Amen