The poor always with us

"The poor shall not fail in the midst of the land ; Therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt open thy hand liberally to thy brother, and to thy poor, and to thy poor, in thy land." Deuteronomy 15:11

"You always have the poor with you, and when you please, you can do them good ; But you do not always have me." Mark 14. 7

How many poor people in today's world ! Those who have little income, certainly, but also the refugees, the excluded of all kinds ... Let us teach by the Word about them. We are surprised to read in the N.T. that the poor will always be with us. Poverty will not be removed from our society any more in the 21st century than it was in the days of Moses.

Efforts can be made to improve everyone's standard of living, but nothing changes fundamentally. Besides, God does not tell us to reform the world, but to do good in the measure of our means. And there are plenty of opportunities where we can bring a blessing to the people God puts on our path. Whatever may be the nature of this blessing, if it be granted in the name of the Lord, he will not lose his reward.

The tragedies that occur in the world, many of which come from the wickedness of man, must not leave anyone indifferent. When the disciples suggested selling the scent spread by Mary and giving the proceeds of the sale to the poor, Jesus replied : "When you will, you can do them good." He does not say, "When you can," but "when you will."

Of the "poor", there will always be with us ; It should not be accommodated but be attentive. Let us have the will to do them good. Let us begin with a benevolent glance, a cordial greeting, a gesture of affection ; It only costs an internal change in our thoughts to judge our egoism, and brings much to the person we meet.

Because of conflicts or natural disasters, there will always be more refugees. The experiments made with them enable us to affirm that the first gesture of cordial welcome greatly facilitates contact and prepares the way for an evangelical testimony that God will make fruitful.

Source (To pleasing the Lord)