Insert Preview

John 9:24-25

For the second time [the Pharisees] called in the man who had been blind and told him, “God should get the glory for this, because we know this man Jesus is a sinner.” “I don’t know whether he is a sinner,” the man replied. “But I know this: I was blind, and now I can see!”

Question

Prayer

“Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his deed.” - Proverbs 19:17

As Christians, we’re called to be generous, but what does that look like when someone asks for money on the street? Should we give? Is there a better way to help? Today, Dr. David W. Jones joins us to explore the ethics of giving to homeless people and how to show compassion without causing harm.

Dr. David W. Jones is Senior Professor of Christian Ethics at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He holds a Ph.D. in Christian Financial Ethics and is the author of Every Good Thing: An Introduction to the Material World and the Common Good for Christians.

Scripture is clear about God’s concern for the poor and His expectation that we share that concern. Jesus said, “Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you” (Matthew 5:42). The apostle John echoed this, writing, “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?” (1 John 3:17).

We should want to help those in need. The real question isn’t whether we help, but how.

Before we give, we should examine our hearts, because our initial reaction may often be judgmental, as we may assume that the person is lazy or addicted. But Dr. Jones calls this being “middle class in spirit”. Christ doesn’t call us to be “middle class in spirit”—He calls us to be “poor in spirit” (Matthew 5:3).

This shift in mindset is essential. Even if someone is unworthy of help, that’s the very reason we should want to help them. What if God waited until we deserved His grace?

That leads to the practical question: Should we give cash to someone on the street? While the act of providing cash isn't inherently wrong, it could enable harmful behavior.

Instead, it may be more beneficial to prepare in advance by carrying granola bars or other non-perishable food items. Offer something that meets a need without enabling sin. If you have the time, offer to buy them a meal instead.

This kind of planned generosity helps believers act as good stewards, offering love without ignoring potential consequences.

But what if the person uses the money responsibly? Should we just leave that up to God?

There’s a balance because we can’t know everything about someone’s situation in a brief moment, but we are still called to be wise and loving. That means doing what we can with what we know, and entrusting the rest to the Lord.

Sometimes, opportunities arise to do more than just meet an immediate need. Perhaps that involves building long-term relationships with individuals experiencing poverty or homelessness. These acts of sustained compassion often lead to deep transformation when we take the time to build a relationship with those who are struggling. 

This is an example of a development-based model of helping the poor, which contrasts with an aid-based model (like giving money or food on the spot). If a natural disaster causes poverty, aid is appropriate. However, if it’s due to systemic injustice or poor choices, long-term involvement—such as discipleship, mentoring, and support—may be necessary.<

Our society teaches us to always have the final word and never to let someone get the best of us! Justus Coppinger points out a completely different approach with a much different outcome -- an approach Jesus modeled with gentleness and patience.

As a token of our appreciation, we’re excited to send you a copy of Romans: Daily Scriptures to Receive, Reflect, and Respond by Harold J. Berry. This powerful verse-by-verse study offers a solid spiritual fitness plan—one that will challenge your thinking, grow your faith, and help you share God’s love, mercy, and grace.

Yours with a gift of any amount.

Thank you for supporting the mission of Christ.

Money — we can't live without it, yet many bristle when the church talks about it. Dr. John examines Moses' teachings on tithing and discovers that God's financial principles aren't about taking from us, but teaching us to fear and trust Him. From joyful celebrations of God's provision to caring for the poor, Dr. John explores how proportional, systematic giving remains a biblical pattern that shapes our hearts and demonstrates our faith.

Living the Moral Life: A Practical Application for Every Generation: Morality cannot be reduced to a bumper sticker. Neither is it the sum total of our debates, campaigns or banners. Morality is presented by how we live. The book of Deuteronomy is a second presentation of God’s Law. It contains three sermons by Moses, as Israel stands on the border of the Promised Land. In this series, Dr. John highlights chapters 12- 17 in which Moses emphasizes living out God’s commands for a moral life. Why should we listen? Because living a moral life speaks louder than any bumper sticker.

How the Bible Was Formed Q+R (E5) — What is the relationship between the written word of the Bible and Jesus as the Word at the beginning of creation? How do we reconcile the Bible’s editing process with Scriptures that forbid adding or taking away from God’s word? And what should we do with other writings that closely followed the New Testament? In this episode, Tim and Jon respond to your questions from our How the Bible Was Formed series. Thank you to our audience for your thoughtful contributions to this episode!

CHAPTERS

1. Intro (0:00-1:16)
2. Do you have any new learnings or discoveries since the Making of the Bible series? (1:16-7:45)
3. Does the Bible being written by humans, but inspired by God, change its reliability? (7:45-17:07)
4. What is the relationship between the written word of the Bible and Jesus as the Word at creation? (17:07-31:00)
5. How do you reconcile humans editing the Bible during its development with Scriptures that command not to add to or take away from God's Word? (31:00-42:18)
6. What should we do with other writings that closely followed the New Testament? (42:18-1:00:46)
7. Outro (1:00:46-1:02:52)

REFERENCED RESOURCES

• The first question references the Making of the Bible series from Tim’s podcast Exploring My Strange Bible.
• The Journey from Texts to Translations: The Origin and Development of the Bible by Paul D. Wegner
• The Apostolic Fathers in English by Michael W. Holmes
• New Testament Apocrypha, vol. 1: More Noncanonical Scriptures, edited by Tony Burke
• The Apocryphal New Testament, edited by J. K. Elliott
• Check out our newly released video series, The Deuterocanon / Apocrypha.
• You can view annotations for this episode—plus our entire library of videos, podcasts, articles, and classes—in the BibleProject app, available for Android and iOS.
• Check out Tim’s extensive collection of recommended books here.

SHOW MUSIC

BibleProject theme song by TENTS 

SHOW CREDITS

Production of today’s episode is by Lindsey Ponder, producer, and Cooper Peltz, managing producer. Tyler Bailey is our supervising engineer, who edited today’s episode and also provided the sound design and mix. JB Witty does our show notes, and Hannah Woo provides the annotations for our app. Our host and creative director is Jon Collins, and our lead scholar is Tim Mackie. 

Powered and distributed by Simplecast.

A Christian radio ministry founded by Lester Roloff in 1944. Visit roloff.org for more resources from Roloff Evangelistic Enterprises.