Reading your Bible for Today February 27

February 27: Proverbs 19:17

KJV Key Verse: Proverbs 19:17
17 He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.

Devotion:
Charity is not something that you must show to the world or prove to the world. Charity should be something which comes from the heart when you have compassion for those who need it. When Jesus told the rich man he should give everything away before he could think about getting to heaven, He knew what was on that rich man's heart and knew he did not have compassion for the poor. Without that compassion, we cannot really show how we do love anything other than ourselves or money like that rich man did. His god was his money and Jesus wanted others to see that first because the rich man was blind to it – he was trapped in his idolatry of money.

Just having compassion for the poor is not going to help them though. If we do have compassion, we will be moved to give them something of what they need according to our ability and to their necessity. That giving does not necessarily have to be money, for your compassion for them can be shown through helping them or even through showing them what you are happy about in your life. If we cannot afford to give out money, then maybe we can afford to give a little physical effort to help them with their deeds; but don’t hold back just in case you may go short in the future…

The encouragement others will get through our efforts to show charity will be more than we will be able to see. For what we do to the poor, we are doing to God's people. God continues to watch over us and continues to see what we are doing to His people. By us assisting those in need in some manner, we are showing God how much we care for His people and He is just and willing to give back to us when we are in need. Our need may not be a monetary need but a simple need for comfort – God is willing to share and show us His compassion.

Falling into the trap of giving alms for your own sake is what we learned about last week – we need to make sure that we are doing things for the right reason, for charity's sake and not for our own pride!

Points to Ponder:
How much do you help your friends when they ask for help?

How much do you help others when they call out for help?