Isaiah 58:6-8
6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness will go before you,
and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness will go before you,
and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard
The Bible abounds in passages much like this one. Over and over we hear about God’s concern for the poor and the oppressed. God insists that people who have been blessed should share with those who don’t have much at all.
Last week I spent significant time in Atlanta. I walked through some tough neighborhoods where it’s obvious that people are struggling. In the midst of that, the challenges of poverty can seem overwhelming. We live in a nation of abundance, yet 19% of our children live below the poverty line (which is $22,050 for a family of four). These children have little say in their situation, but they must bear the weight of it every day. It can seem hopeless! Children should never go to bed hungry because they don’t have enough food to eat. They are children of God and God grieves when they suffer.
Yet with our God, there is always hope. God has provided this earth with more than enough for all people. Our Christian challenge is to find ways to alleviate poverty in our nation. The root causes of poverty are very complex, making solutions hard to agree on. How are people empowered to break out of the cycle of poverty? What role does the government play in caring for the poor? Where do charities fit into the solutions? What systems of injustice hinder efforts to end poverty?
No matter what side of the political aisle you are on, we all have the same Christian calling to care for the poor. In your life, how does God call you to loose the chains of injustice, set the oppressed free, share food with the hungry, or provide the poor wanderer with shelter? Our Christian faith gets wrapped up in how we answer that question!
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