Today is Blog Action Day on the subject of poverty. So naturally, I ask myself, what would Jesus do about poverty on the Sabbath? A verse from Nehemiah comes to mind:
“Go your way, eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions of them to those for whom nothing is prepared, for this day is holy to our Lord; and do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:10
If this verse were a description of Sabbath (which it is not), it would include the people gathering together, hearing the Word, feasting, and sharing with the poor.
Wait, sharing with the poor? I hardly share with the middle-class! I’ve never sought out the poor to see that their needs are met on the Lord’s Day.
A true Jesus-Sabbath would include buying breakfast for a homeless person, letting them shower at my house while I wash their clothes, taking them to church, inviting them to join me and my closest friends for lunch, then bring the whole gang into my home for a board game. Oh, and if I were Jesus, I’d heal their diseases, even the ones brought on by sin.
That would truly be something. If I at least talked to one of the homeless people wandering around my church. If I bought them breakfast at McDonald’s, and in so doing, skipped church. I bet then I would go home rejoicing, knowing God as my strength.
