“But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.” (1 John 3:17-18 ESV)
Deeds expose the heart. What we do is the clearest evidence of what we believe. If someone claims to believe something yet acts in a manner that is directly contrary to that belief, that person is a hypocrite.
To illustrate this point, John presents us with a hypothetical situation. He describes someone who “has the world’s goods.” This is one who possesses some degree of worldly wealth and financial stability; someone who is not struggling with poverty or waking up each day uncertain of the source of his next meal. In short, this is someone for whom God has provided abundantly.
If such a person “sees his brother in need,” he is required to help meet that need. This is not a response into which he is coerced by a governing body or the pressures of his peers, but one that is required by virtue of the goodness of God to him. He is not obligated to give to every single person he meets, but as a member of the body of Christ who is united to other believers as he is united to Christ, he has an obligation to give abundantly as he has received abundantly.
He is not to “close his heart” to the needs of his brother. He is not to hoard his possessions, even if he worked diligently to obtain them, because ultimately all he has belongs to the Lord. “The earth is the LORD’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein” (Psalm 24:1), declares the psalmist, and that includes all the “world’s goods” with which God has blessed his people. The generosity of the body of Christ in meeting one another’s needs is not rooted in the implicit goodness of the giver, but in the fact that God blesses his people in order that they might build up the body.
Matthew Henry comments,
It pleases God that some of the Christian brethren should be poor, for the exercise of the charity and love of those that are rich. And it pleases the same God to give to some of the Christian brethren this world’s good, that they may exercise their grace in communicating to the poor saints. And those who have this world’s good must love a good God more, and their good brethren more, and be ready to distribute it for their sakes.
This is not at all to say that personal decisions and work ethic do not play a central role in acquiring one’s worldly goods, but it is to affirm that the Lord is the ultimate giver. In his good providence, some of his people are well off while others experience poverty. Therefore, those who have much ought to give to those who have little. As John explains, this is an expression of love toward one another. To freely give from your bounty to someone who has little is to love your brother “in deed and in truth.” It is not enough to simply offer “thoughts and prayers,” but the heart of love must turn into the hand of love.
John connects the giving of one’s worldly goods to the giving of one’s life. If Christ laid down his life for us, but we are not even willing to lay down our worldly goods for our brothers, what does that say about our understanding of the work of Christ? If Christ showed his love for us by giving his life, how much more ought we to show our love for those who belong to him in caring for the poor and suffering.
If we are unwilling to do that, it is worth considering whether we have really understood the gospel and the work of Christ. Those in whom God’s love abides will freely and joyfully open their hands to meet the needs of Christ’s people.
Opening your heart to poor brothers is not the epitome of the Christian faith, but it does communicate that you have clearly understood that which is: that “[Christ] laid down his life for us” (1 John 3:16).
Prayer:
Heavenly Father,
Christ has given us the greatest gift we could ever receive by laying down his life for us. Help us to grasp the depths of that love that we might love one another with the abundant provision we have received.
In Jesus’ name, amen.
Prayer Requests:
- Tuesday: Pray for Raymond and Shelley Kwan and the church plant they serve with in Tokyo, Megumi Bible Church, as they labor to make disciples in Japan.
- Wednesday: Pray for missionaries serving with the Shepherd’s Refuge program as they provide biblical counseling, mentoring, and training to pastors in Eastern Asia.
- Thursday: Pray for those who are teaching English around the world.
- Friday: Pray for the necessary funds for a church expansion project at Strong Tower Evangelical Center in Spain.
- Saturday: Pray for missionaries who are evangelizing remote villages in northern Togo.
- Sunday: Pray for missionaries in Costa Rica.
- Monday: Pray for missionaries serving in administrative and accounting roles.
Featured Opportunity to Serve:
Operating Room Manager
Location: Togo
We are looking for a registered nurse with at least two years of operating room experience to manage the operating room at the Hospital of Hope in Togo, Africa.
