God’s Heart for the Poor,Relief & Development

Presented by Craig HoffmanVice President of Operations

Engineering Ministries International

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed

me to preach good newsto the poor.”

– Luke 4:18

Homeless boys outside of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Outline

I. What is Poverty?II. Why is there poverty?III. How does God respond to

the poor?IV. How does God want

Us to respond to the poor?V. Relief & Development

- some biblical keys for helping the poor

Girl carrying firewood in Nepal

I. What is Poverty?• Not having what you need

...is different than not having what you want• 8 different types of poverty:

– Spiritual - Intellectual - Self Control– Affection - Communal - Relational– Physical - Economic

• Physically Poor can be spiritually rich– "Has not God chosen those who are poor of the eyes of the

world to be rich in faith” - James 2:5 • Our focus today is on Economic & Physical poverty

Statistics – wealth distribution• The wealthiest fifth of the world's people consume an astonishing 86

percent of all goods and services, while the poorest fifth consume one-percent.

• Of the 6 billion people in today's world:1.0 billion live on below $1 per day –“Extremely Poor”1.5 billion live on $1 - $2 per day – “the Poor”2.5 billion have what they need – “Middle Class”1.0 billion have more than need - “Rich”

(Ending Poverty by J. Sachs 2005)

• Africa and South Asia are home to largest percentage of people in the world living on less than $1 / day.

Statistics – water, sanitation & health•• 1.1 billion people lack access to safe drinking water.1.1 billion people lack access to safe drinking water.•• Contaminated water kills 2.2 million people per year. Contaminated water kills 2.2 million people per year.

(UN Human Settlements (UN Human Settlements ProgrammeProgramme; UN Children's Fund); UN Children's Fund)

•• 900 million 900 million people lack people lack access to access to adequate adequate health health services.services.

•• 2.4 billion people 2.4 billion people lack access to lack access to basic sanitation. basic sanitation.

Statistics - malnourishment•• Over 850 million people in the world are malnourished: Over 850 million people in the world are malnourished:

800 million are from the developing world, 800 million are from the developing world, 200 million are children. 200 million are children.

•• Each day in the developing world, over 20,000 children Each day in the developing world, over 20,000 children die from mostly preventable and treatable causes die from mostly preventable and treatable causes such as diarrhea, acute respiratory infections or malaria. such as diarrhea, acute respiratory infections or malaria. Malnutrition is associated with over half of those deaths. Malnutrition is associated with over half of those deaths.

•• Virtually every country in the world has the potential of Virtually every country in the world has the potential of growing sufficient food on a sustainable basis. growing sufficient food on a sustainable basis.

Statistics – food distribution• The Food and Agriculture

Organization of the United Nations has set the minimum food requirement at 2350 calories per person per day. Worldwide, there are 2720 calories available per person per day.

• 54 countries (out of 160) fall below that requirement; they do not produce enough food to feed their populations, nor are they able to afford to import the necessary commodities to make up the gap.

• Most of these countries are in sub-Saharan Africa.

II. What Causes Poverty?

• This is usually a lively discussion

• What does the Bible say causes poverty?– It says a lot about poverty– It says more about money

than heaven or hell

• Poverty passages seem to fall into some broad categories of causes.

Cause 1: • “Evildoers frustrate the plans of poor.”

- Psalm 14:6

• “…(the proud) devour the poor from the earth, the needy from among mankind”

- Prov 30: 14.

• “..(the wicked) have hounded to death the poor, the needy, and the brokenhearted.”

– Ps 109:16

Oppression by the Wicked

Cause 2: • “The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.”

- Prov 22:7 • ..”you are exacting usury …and now you are selling your brothers (into

slavery).”- Neh 5:1-10

• Examples of usury (exorbitant interest) on the poor:– Payday loans and credit card rates of 20%. – World Bank / IMF loans. Some countries pay up to 50% of their

expenditures on debt servicing

Greed / Exorbitant Interest

Cause 3: • “The righteous care about justice for

the poor, but the wicked have no concern.

- Prov 29:7

• “A poor man’s field may produce abundant food, but injustice sweeps it away.”

- Prov 12:23

• “..(the wicked) do not plead the cause of the orphan, they do not defend the rights of the poor.”

- Jer 5:28

• Examples of lack of Justice:– Corruption – over 2/3 of 120 poorest

countries have a big corruption problem (Transparency Intnl)

Injustice

Cause 4: LazinessLaziness•• ““Lazy Hands make a man poor.Lazy Hands make a man poor.”” -- ProvProv 10:4 10:4 •• ““Do not love sleep, or you will grow poorDo not love sleep, or you will grow poor”” -- ProvProv 20:13 20:13

Love PleasureLove Pleasure•• ““He who loves pleasure will become poor; whoever loves wine and He who loves pleasure will become poor; whoever loves wine and

oil will never be rich.oil will never be rich.”” -- ProvProv 21:1721:17•• ““..for drunkards and gluttons become poor...for drunkards and gluttons become poor.”” –– ProvProv 23:2123:21

This is frequently an excuse for the rich to not This is frequently an excuse for the rich to not ‘‘botherbother’’ with the poor. with the poor. But many more verses talk about poverty caused by others, than bBut many more verses talk about poverty caused by others, than by y oneself.oneself.

Self

Cause 5: • Cain builds the first city in Gen 4:17• Man builds Babylon to make a name for

himself and not be scattered in Gen 11:4• Cities concentrate mans sin. Sin is so

prevalent it becomes an accepted institution in a culture, even though it fundamentally hurts people.

• During year of Jubilee all land and homes go back to original owners, except houses in city (Lev 25:30)

• Examples of Institutionalized Evil:– Religion – Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism– Flawed Economic/Governmental theories

Communism – China (under Mao), Cuba – Sinful Savors – Haiti, post-colonial Africa– All of these ignore or minimalize man’s sin

Institutionalized Evil / Man’s Pride

III. God’s Response to the PoorListens, Encourages & Defends • “You hear O Lord, the desire of the afflicted; you

encourage them, and you listen to their cry, defending the fatherless and the oppressed, in order that man, who is of the earth, may terrify no more.” –Ps 10:17-18

Raises up• “He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy

from the ash heap; he seats them with princes, with the princes of their people.” – Ps 113:7-8

Provides for • “From your bounty, oh God, you provided for the

poor.” – Ps 68:10

Secures Justice • “I know the Lord secures justice for the poor and

upholds the cause of the needy – Ps 140:12

III. Does God really do all this?I can believe that He listens to, encourages, and raises up the poor. • That work He does is all in their hearts

But does God physically provide for them, defend them, secure Justice for them?• I don’t see this happening around the world• The poor are starved, beaten, abused, taken advantage of, stolen from, and killed – Darfur, Ethiopia,

Bhopal, Haiti, Bangladesh, • Is God a liar? Is the Bible not true?• How does God want to rescue the weak, feed the hungry, bring justice to the oppressed?

God wants to help the poor - Through Us • “They do not need to go away, you give them something to eat.”

– Mt 14:16• We are to be Christ’s body - God’s eyes, ears, hands, feet, mouth

here. • His representatives for Him to work through to rescue the world.• "He who shuts his ear to the cry of the poor, will also cry himself

and not be answered.” - Prov 21:13

IV. How does God want

Us to Respond to the Poor ??

Response 1:

Don’t Oppress (passive)• “You shall not oppress a hired servant who is

poor and needy, whether he is one of your countrymen or one of your aliens who is in your land in your towns". – Dt 24:12-14

• “Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the aien or the poor. In your hearts to not think evil of one another” – Zech 7:10

Rescue (active)• “Rescue the weak and needy; deliver them

from the hand of the wicked” – Ps 82:4

• “True religion is this to look after widows and orphans in their distress” – James 1:27

Rescue (instead of Oppress)

Response 2:

Help Escape Debt• “Do not take interest of any kind from (the poor)…or sell him food at a profit" – Lev 25:

36-37 *• Sabbath Year - Cancel debt of fellow Israelites every 7 years – Deut 15:1-6• Year of Jubilee – every 50 years any sold land goes back to original owner for those

that who have lost the means to be productive to get it back– Lev 25:8-31

God doesn’t want people to be trapped in poverty –He set up ways for those who are in it to escape.

Give to the Poor• “Give generously to (poor) and do so without a grudging heart.” – Dt 15:10• “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets” – Matt 6:2

Examples:• Jubilee campaign to forgive 3rd world debt• Grameen bank & micro-finance loans

Help Escape Debt & Give(instead of Usury & Greed)

Response 3:

• “Speak for these who cannot speak for themselves" – Prov 31:8 • “Do not crush the needy in court” – Prov 22:22 • “Do not deny justice to the poor in their lawsuits” – Ex 23:6

(instead of injustice)Maintain Rights

Examples:• EMI’s work in Guatemala resettlement camp• “Like many hardworking Africans, I have a

bone to pick with the G8. Even if they cancel the debt, even if they give our governments aid money, ordinary Africans will not benefit. That money will only make the corrupt people richer and Africans international beggars for decades to come.” – Peter Kanans, Kenyan as quoted in Washington Post before 2005 G8 summit.

Response 4:

• ”If a man will not work, he shall not eat.” - II Thes 3:10 • “Put your money to work. Don’t bury it.” - Matt 25:14-23 • “Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and work with your hands.” - I

Thes 4:11-12

• “Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat” –Prov 23:20

• “Let us be alert and self-controlled.” – I Th 5:6

Work Hard & be Disciplined(instead of laziness & gluttony)

Response 5:

• “We are looking for the city that is to come.” - Heb 13:14 • “Don’t shut ears to cries of the poor.” Prov 21:13

Examples:• Examine yourself – invite God to show you sin in your habits that

lead to oppression of others – apathy, indifference. – Figure out what is wrong. Be thoughtful. – Be willing to Act – to do something. Change “the way it is

done”• Jeffery Sachs / Bono

Look to God, not Earth, for Heaven(instead of institutionalized evil)

Should our focus be to help the poor, or to share the gospel with them?

• this has been a heated debate in the body of Christ. • E. Stanely Jones, British missionary, captured it best…

V. Relief & Development

“The Individual Gospel without the Social Gospelis like a soul without a body;

The Social Gospel without the Individual Gospelis like a body without a soul.

One is a corpse, and the other a ghost.”

Relief – around a Single Event

• crisis intervention immediately after a disaster

• doing something for people because they can’t do it themselves: food, water, shelter, medicine.

• Example: Tsunami food distribution

• Relief should be short term

• Giving a man a fish to eat

Relief vs. Development

Development – process of helping people help themselves• Ongoing enablement of people to take control of their lives• More difficult & takes longer than relief,

but longer, deeper, better impact• Is a long term process• Not giving a man a fish, and

not just teaching a man how to fish, but teaching him Why to fish.

• Biblical Basis – Garden of Eden– Gen 1 & 2 – fill earth & rule over it.

• Man given world and work to care for it.– Fall – curse on the ground. Man has to toil

Relief vs. Development

Bad Development - Haiti Village Road

• Dev Org wanted to help poor rural Haitian farmers be more prosperous• All the farmers’ crops profit went to middle man• Idea: lets make road, so easier for farmers to get crops to market • Raised money and Built Road.• But farmers didn’t know to use it. • Middle Man made more money• Road brought in prostitution, drugs • Actually lowered standard of living

Good Development - Nicaragua Drip Irrigation• World Relief field agents working with rural Nicaraguan families over years

– to improve agricultural production, and family health• Hurricane Mitch flooding wipes out crops. No savings• WR Agents ask: how can we help?

– Problem isn’t the flooding, but dry season keeps farmers poor– How can they produce crops during dry season?– Toss around ideas: Water tanks, different crops, use water better– WR introduces idea of drip irrigation to use water more efficiently

• WR secured $200k USAID grant for 100 systems• WR contact EMI to design.• Challenge: Keep it simple in spite of varied water sources, crops,

plots and terrain. • Solution: Fixed zone size based on flow rate. • EMI trains WR agents on how to design & construct systems • WR chose 10 progressive farmers to pilot program• WR sold systems to farmers. Farmers pay it back over 5 years.• WR helped form farmers co-op to bring crops to market• Became so productive, other farmers wanted it.• Payback money allowed WR to by more materials so technology propagated

Keys to Good Development 1. Compassion

• To help them, not direct them

2. Mutual Discovery• Real Listening and Questioning. Rabbinic dialogue• Brainstorm together. Relationship.• Offer new ideas IF people are asking for them

3. Small Financial Assistance• Too much creates welfare mentality and/or corruption opportunity• Revolving credit payback ensures ownership

4. Some Training / Supervision • People like to learn, grow

5. Keep it Simple • for adoption & propagation

Conclusion“Blessed is the man who fears the Lord,

who finds great delight in his commands…

Wealth and riches are in his house,and his righteousness endures forever…

Good will come to him who is generousand lends freely,who conducts his affairs with justice…

He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor,his righteousness endures forever;his horn will be lifted high in honor.”

- Psalm 112: 1,3,5,9