Today, we discuss the need to care for the poor and sick. God commands us to be compassionate towards the poor and sick. Just as God loves and has mercy on us, He also wants us to love and care for the helpless.
When the Lord Jesus was on earth, He healed the sick and fed the hungry. He stood by the oppressed people of society and helped them in every way. From Jesus’s life, we can learn that we should also care for the neglected and poor people of society.
In the Old Testament, we see that the people of Israel would leave the fallen part of their crops for the poor and foreigners. This was a command from God so that all people would have enough food. God has been compassionate towards the helpless and poor from the beginning, and He wants us to help them too.
In the New Testament, we see that the members of the early church sold their property and goods and shared everything among themselves, obeying God’s command. All the believers in that early church cared for each other and shared all their belongings.
From the Word of God, we learn that if we serve the poor and sick in society, we will be serving Jesus. We cannot serve anyone with just money. For true service, we need love and kindness. Through these, we can serve the poor and sick.
Therefore, we should follow the teachings of Jesus and deliver God’s message to the poor and sick in society. We should never ask for a reward from anyone for this work because the one who sees our work in secret will reward us.
Let’s look at the following Bible verses that talk about caring for the poor and sick.
Matthew 10:8 : —
“Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give”
Matthew 14:14 : —
“Jesus went forth, saw a great multitude, was moved with compassion toward them, he healed their sick”
Matthew 19:21 : —
“Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go sell that thou hast, give to the poor, thou shalt have treasure in heaven: come follow me”
Matthew 25:35-40 : —
“For I was an hungred, ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, ye took me inNaked, ye clothed me: I was sick, ye visited me: I was in prison, ye came unto meThen shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, fed thee? or thirsty, gave thee drink?When saw we thee a stranger, took thee in? or naked, clothed thee?Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, came unto thee?the King shall answer say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me”
Matthew 5:42 : —
“Give to him that asketh thee, from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away”
Matthew 6:1-4 : —
“Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heavenTherefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their rewardBut when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doethThat thine alms may be in secret: thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly”
Isaiah 14:30 : —
“The firstborn of the poor shall feed, the needy shall lie down in safety: I will kill thy root with famine, he shall slay thy remnant”
Isaiah 1:17 : —
“Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow”
Isaiah 25:4 : —
“For thou hast been a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat, when the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall”
Isaiah 58:10 : —
“If thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, thy darkness be as the noon day”
Isaiah 61:1 : —
“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, the opening of the prison to them that are bound”
James 1:27 : —
“Pure religion undefiled before God the Father is this, To visit the fatherless widows in their affliction, to keep himself unspotted from the world”
James 2:14-17 : —
“What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, have not works? can faith save him?If a brother or sister be naked, destitute of daily foodAnd one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone”
Luke 10:33-37 : —
“But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: when he saw him, he had compassion on himAnd went to him, bound up his wounds, pouring in oil wine, set him on his own beast, brought him to an inn, took care of himAnd on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, gave them to the host, said unto him, Take care of him; whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay theeWhich now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, do thou likewise”
Luke 12:33-34 : —
“Sell that ye have, give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corruptethFor where your treasure is, there will your heart be also”
Luke 14:13-14 : —
“But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blindAnd thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just”
Luke 3:11 : —
“He answereth saith unto them, He that hath two coats, let him impart to him that hath none; he that hath meat, let him do likewise”
Luke 6:38 : —
“Give, it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again”
Luke 7:22 : —
“Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your way, tell John what things ye have seen heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached”
Proverbs 14:31 : —
“He that oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker: but he that honoureth him hath mercy on the poor”
Proverbs 21:13 : —
“Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard”
Proverbs 22:9 : —
“He that hath a bountiful eye shall be blessed; for he giveth of his bread to the poor”
Proverbs 28:27 : —
“He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack: but he that hideth his eyes shall have many a curse”
Proverbs 31:8-9 : —
“Open thy mouth for the dumb in the cause of all such as are appointed to destructionOpen thy mouth, judge righteously, plead the cause of the poor needy”
Deuteronomy 15:11 : —
“For the poor shall never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, to thy needy, in thy land”
Acts 11:29 : —
“Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judaea”
Acts 20:35 : —
“I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive”
Acts 4:34-35 : —
“Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, brought the prices of the things that were soldAnd laid them down at the apostles’ feet: distribution was made unto every man according as he had need”
Galatians 2:10 : —
“Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do”
Galatians 6:2 : —
“Bear ye one another’s burdens, so fulfil the law of Christ”
Hebrews 13:16 : —
“But to do good to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased”
Psalm 146:7-9 : —
“Which executeth judgment for the oppressed: which giveth food to the hungry. The Lord looseth the prisonersThe Lord openeth the eyes of the blind: the Lord raiseth them that are bowed down: the Lord loveth the righteousThe Lord preserveth the strangers; he relieveth the fatherless widow: but the way of the wicked he turneth upside down”
Psalm 41:1-3 : —
“Blessed is he that considereth the poor: the Lord will deliver him in time of troubleThe Lord will preserve him, keep him alive; he shall be blessed upon the earth: thou wilt not deliver him unto the will of his enemiesThe Lord will strengthen him upon the bed of languishing: thou wilt make all his bed in his sickness”
Psalm 82:3-4 : —
“Defend the poor fatherless: do justice to the afflicted needyDeliver the poor needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked”
Zechariah 7:9-10 : —
“Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Execute true judgment, shew mercy compassions every man to his brotherAnd oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor; let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart”
Leviticus 25:35 : —
“If thy brother be waxen poor, fallen in decay with thee; then thou shalt relieve him: yea, though he be a stranger, or a sojourner; that he may live with thee”
Job 29:12-16 : —
“Because I delivered the poor that cried, the fatherless, him that had none to help himThe blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me: I caused the widow’s heart to sing for joyI put on righteousness, it clothed me: my judgment was as a robe a diademI was eyes to the blind, feet was I to the lameI was a father to the poor: the cause which I knew not I searched out”
Job 31:16-23 : —
“If I have withheld the poor from their desire, or have caused the eyes of the widow to failOr have eaten my morsel myself alone, the fatherless hath not eaten thereof(For from my youth he was brought up with me, as with a father, I have guided her from my mother’s womb;)If I have seen any perish for want of clothing, or any poor without coveringIf his loins have not blessed me, if he were not warmed with the fleece of my sheepIf I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless, when I saw my help in the gateThen let mine arm fall from my shoulder blade, mine arm be broken from the boneFor destruction from God was a terror to me, by reason of his highness I could not endure”
Romans 12:13 : —
“Distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality”
Romans 15:1 : —
“We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, not to please ourselves”
Philippians 2:4 : —
“Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others”
Ezekiel 16:49 : —
“Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, abundance of idleness was in her in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor needy”
Ezekiel 18:7-8 : —
“Hath not oppressed any, but hath restored to the debtor his pledge, hath spoiled none by violence, hath given his bread to the hungry, hath covered the naked with a garmentHe that hath not given forth upon usury, neither hath taken any increase, that hath withdrawn his hand from iniquity, hath executed true judgment between man man”
Jeremiah 22:16 : —
“He judged the cause of the poor needy; then it was well with him: was not this to know me? saith the Lord”
Titus 3:14 : —
“Let our’s also learn to maintain good works for necessary uses, that they be not unfruitful”
Ephesians 4:28 : —
“Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth”
Nehemiah 8:10 : —
“Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord : neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength”
Mark 10:21 : —
“Then Jesus beholding him loved him, said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, give to the poor, thou shalt have treasure in heaven: come, take up the cross, follow me”
Colossians 3:12 : —
“Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering”