As God convicted my heart and I began to read Scripture with fresh eyes, whole sections of the Bible came alive for me. In particular, God’s concern for orphans struck a chord. My family had supported orphans through some good ministries, but to be honest, we do so in order to “teach” our kids about helping others. Beyond that, orphans were definitely not on my heart or reflected in my finances.
Let’s look closely at God’s instruction to the Israelites in Deuteronomy 15:7-9, as they prepared to enter the promised land. The core principles God taught His people in those days will also help us live generously and give generously according to His will.
The command in verses 7-8 is pretty straightforward: “If there is a poor person among you, one of your brothers within any of your gates in the land the LORD your God is giving you, you must not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward your poor brother. Instead, you are to open your hand to him and freely loan him enough for whatever need he has.”
When it comes to living generously toward the poor, Moses pointed out the two biggest truths:
Generosity is a heart issue.
Generosity is a hand issue.
The heart has everything to do with attitude, and the hand has everything to do with action. The heart is about belief, and the hand is about behavior.
Earlier in Deuteronomy 15, Moses introduced a new command related to the sabbatical year: every seven years the Israelites were to cancel all debts. Sometimes people view the Old Testament as a collection of harsh rules and stories, but Deuteronomy 15 is a great example of God’s grace, mercy, and kindness. If God’s people would obey His commands concerning lending and borrowing -- including collecting, repaying, and forgiving debts -- the Lord assured them “there will be no poor among you” (v. 4). What an amazing promise!
Unfortunately, people often have trouble following God’s commands. Because God knew that, He gave a stern warning in verse 9: “Be careful that there isn’t this wicked thought in your heart, ‘The seventh year, the year of canceling debts, is near,’ and you are stingy toward your poor brother and give him nothing. He will cry out to the LORD against you, and you will be guilty.”
It might be easy for us to judge the Israelites and wonder: How could they be so uncaring toward their fellow people? But how many times do we rationalize and find excuses for not being generous toward the poor in our own communities?