Discontinuity: the Poor, Israel, and the Church

Much of the push for the church to engage in social transformation and indiscriminate care for the poor of the world comes from a wrong understanding of the relationship between the church and Israel. There is no doubt that Israel was called to care for the poor in their land—regardless of their creed. The alien, foreigner, slave, and sojourning widow were all protected by the Law, and if Israel would have kept the law, there would have been no poor in the land.

The question is this: does the church have a similar task? Is the church charged to care for the poor of the world, in the same way Israel was? I have argued elsewhere that the answer is “no,” but here I want to explain why the difference is important and helpful in understanding God’s mission to the world.

First, it has to be noted that Israel’s call to care for the poor was constrained in a very significant way. While it was not limited by creed, it was bound by geography. Israel was not called to care for the poor in Egypt. When a drought hit a neighboring country, the Israelites would have been more likely to celebrate than send a food pack. Contrast that with the church; we are quick to send aide around the world, but are rightly cautious to aide the non-believing poor in our own community. Why is that?     Keep Reading...