The Gospel Demands Radical Giving

God freely forgives our sin through the gospel, but he doesn’t intend to leave us in our sins. Genuine faith should lead to a change of heart, and according to Jesus’ teaching in Luke 16:19–31, that change of heart should be evident in the way we treat the poor. Sadly, we are often tempted to ignore the needs of others while prioritizing our own comfort. In this message, David Platt urges us to consider our treatment of the poor and needy as an indication of the condition of our hearts. At the same time, our use of money should not be motivated by guilt but rather by grace. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
You are listening to Radical with David Platt, a
weekly podcast with sermons andmessages from pastor, author and
teacher David Platt.
If you have a Bible and I hopeyou do I want to invite you to
open with me to Luke, chapter 16.
I invite you to pull out thenotes that are in the worship

(00:26):
guide that you received when youcame in as well.
I'm thankful for Chris Nicholspreaching the word in my absence
last week.
Had a few good days away withmy family and had the
opportunity to baptize a cousinof mine, but miss you, miss you

(00:52):
greatly.
I'm thankful for you, I'mthankful for the opportunity to
be your pastor and I'm thankfulfor the opportunity to serve
alongside men like Chris Nichols.
We are halfway through theseries on radical what the
gospel demands and we're lookingat seemingly startling words

(01:19):
from Jesus, tough words fromJesus, life-shifting,
challenging words from Jesus,life shifting, challenging words
from Jesus.
And as we're processing throughthese words, we've set up a
couple of times to have somedialogue, just some question and
answer kind of time where youcan ask me any questions that
you're wrestling with and justget my perspective on things

(01:40):
based on our study in the Word,and I think the first one of
those is October 15th, onWednesday night at 6.30 in the
Student Center, and then we'regonna have another one, probably
on a Sunday evening, for thoseof you who either serve on
Wednesdays or are not able to bethere for that, and so we'll
let you know about the exactdate for the Sunday evening one
and both of those will be onlineif you're not able to attend

(02:01):
those, but I want to helpshepherd you through this Word
in any way that I can.
At the same time, I want thismorning see at the top of your
notes some foundations.
I want to put before you acouple of things that I think
are extremely important for usto remember, especially as we go
into the last half of thisseries, the next few weeks, and

(02:24):
especially as we talk more abouthow the gospel affects our
possessions.
I think that the adversary doesnot want us to be focused on the
right things.
I believe he would like to beour focus to the wrong things
and to distract us and to temptus with the way we think and
respond to his Word, and so Iwant us to guard against that in

(02:46):
these ways.
There's four of them that arelisted there that I was praying
as I was been praying for youand as I've been wrestling
through these things in my ownlife and talking with
individuals and families.
These are some things I want toencourage you with.
Number one we do not compare.
Do not compare because Jesus'life is our standard.
We don't compare because Jesus'life is our standard.

(03:10):
Here's what I mean by that.
I believe there's a dangeroustendency in this series and in
the application of these truthsto begin to look at each other
in an unhealthy way.
Cs Lewis, in a great chapter onpride and mere Christianity,
talks about how pride isinextricably linked to

(03:30):
comparison.
We are constantly comparingourselves to others and if we're
doing better than others, wefeel good about ourselves.
We're doing worse than others,we begin to think poorly of
ourselves and we're constantlylooking at how we match up
according to where others are.
This is something the discipleswere familiar with.
You go to John, chapter 21, andJesus says some hard words to
Peter about how he's going todie, some very radical words.

(03:53):
And the first thing Peter doesis he turns around and he sees
John standing there and he says,well, what about him?
And he immediately turns tocomparison and Jesus looks at
him and says, if I choose to lethim live until I return.
What is that to you, peter?
And he says these two words.
He says follow me, follow me,fix your eyes on me, focus on me

(04:17):
and follow me.
And so it would be wrong for us, as we walk through this series
, to begin to think.
Or, as we continue to walkthrough this series, begin to
think things like well, I hopethat this family really has a
lot of money, is thinking aboutlistening to these things.
Compared to them, I'm doing allright, or I'm giving more than

(04:38):
this family is doing, or thisperson is doing I'm doing more.
And we, constantly we start tocompare ourselves.
It's not the path we need to goon.
Jesus' life is our standard.
Now, I want to be careful here,because I think there's a
healthy way in which we can lookto each other to see the life
of Christ.
This is why I read biographies.
This is why I need to readbiographies in my life, because
I need to see men who have givenup everything.

(05:00):
They have given away everythingthey have to give their lives
to the lost and the poor.
And I read stories like thatand I see that there is another
way to live.
And they call me to a higherplane, but not in an unhealthy
way, in a way that I see thelife of Christ in them and I'm
spurred on toward Christ, and sothis is a good thing we do for

(05:21):
each other.
We need each other in this way.
I need to see what the life ofChrist looks like radically in
action in you and you need tosee that in me, and so we need
to spur one another on towardChrist.
God help us.
We need to be delivered fromexamples of nominal Christianity
that abound and we need to seebrothers and sisters who are
living out the Christ life andobeying these words radically

(05:50):
and to spur one another ontoward Christ in that in the
process, to guard againstunhealthy comparison that gets
our focus off following Christ.
So we do not compare.
Jesus' life is our standard.
Second, we do not despair.
Jesus' presence is our hope.
We do not despair becauseJesus' presence is our hope.
Here's what I mean by that.
I think there's a tendency, whenwe look at some of these
radical truths in Scripture,when we see Jesus saying if you

(06:12):
don't hate your father andmother and your brother or
sister, if you don't pick upyour cross, an instrument of
death and torture and follow me.
If you don't give up everythingyou have, you cannot be my
disciple.
There is a tendency to hearthose kind of words and to walk
away and think I have so far togo.
Where do I even begin?
I don't think I'm ever going tobe good enough.

(06:35):
These words start to creep in,and this is where I want to
remind you that that kind ofdespair is not coming from
Christ.
It's coming from the adversary,because Christ has never called
you to be good enough.
He's said I'm the only one thatcan make you good enough.
And he's not called any one ofus in this room to hear these
words and figure out how to putthem into practice on our own.

(06:56):
This is the beauty of hispresence as our hope.
He lives in us, he lives in you, he dwells in you and he does
not say hate your father andmother, brother and sister, pick
up an instrument of torture andgive up everything you have and
follow me, and then say nowfigure out what it looks like in
Birmingham.
Instead, he says here's my wordand I'm going to show you what
it looks like in action.
I'm going to change yourthoughts, I'm going to change

(07:16):
your desires.
I'm going to transformeverything about you so that you
are enabled to put all of thisinto practice.
So trust me, trust in him.
Brothers and sisters, trust inChrist.
He's good, go to him, praybefore him, pray long, pray hard
, pray together, pray alone,seek him and ask him to bring
these truths to life in you.

(07:37):
And he's good for that.
He's honored with that kind ofpraying.
Don't despair.
Jesus' presence is our hope.
You're not trying to earn kudosbefore Jesus.
We're not trying to earn or getanywhere.
We're experiencing the reality,the presence of Christ in us,
more and more and more and more.
And that is a journey not ofdespair, it's a journey of hope.

(07:58):
So don't despair.
Jesus' presence is our hope.
Third, we avoid apathy becauseJesus' words are our authority.
We avoid apathy because Jesus'words are our authority.
This is apathy, is onepotential reaction, and I fear
it's likely a common reactionacross this faith family.

(08:20):
When we hear words like we'relooking at in the Gospels, there
is a temptation to becomeindifferent toward these words.
Some of you are thinking well,you're talking about wrestling
with these truths, and thereality is there are many who
are not wrestling with thesetruths, maybe teenagers who are
thinking what does this reallyhave to do with my life?

(08:42):
For adults, they're soprogrammed toward a nominal
Christianity to be in a roomlike this, hear a sermon, go
through the routine and move onwith our lives as soon as we can
afterwards, and we need toavoid this at all costs.
We need to.
I want to urge you to avoidbecoming indifferent or

(09:07):
apathetic toward what Jesus issaying.
I want to urge you in that waybecause, if you are a follower
of Christ, this is simply not anoption.
It's not an option to beindifferent to the words of
Christ if you are a follower ofChrist.
Now, some of us in this roomhave become Christians, so to
speak, and we were told that allwe needed to do was pray a

(09:28):
prayer and we could live ourlife however we wanted and we
would go to heaven.
And that's what it means to bea Christian.
And if you came to becoming aChristian under that illusion, I
want you to know that,biblically, you are not a
Christian.
You have not come to Christ atall.
This is not what it means to bea follower of Christ.
To be a follower of Christmeans to come to an awareness of

(09:49):
your sinful rebellion againstGod and to see in Jesus the only
substitute for your sins and,by His grace, to turn from your
rebellion against God and totrust in Him as the Lord and
sovereign king over your life.
And when that is the case, thenwhat Jesus says determines how

(10:10):
you live.
Let me repeat that one moretime what Jesus says determines
how you live.
Therefore, it is not possible tobe a follower of Christ and be
indifferent to what Jesus says,because whatever he says
determines how you live.
So let me encourage you, urgeyou, not to be apathetic.

(10:33):
His words are our authority.
This radically affects the waywe listen today, because we are
listening to words, not to saylet's hear what Jesus says and
figure out if we want to obeythem.
What we are saying when we openup this book is we are saying
this morning, whatever Jesussays, we will obey His words,
have that kind of authority.
Finally, we avoid lethargy.

(10:54):
Being lethargic why?
Because Jesus' glory is ourgoal.
Apathy is indifference to whatJesus says.
Lethargy is laziness inapplying what Jesus says.
And I want to be careful herebecause I believe this is a
dangerous temptation for eventhe most devout follower of

(11:16):
Christ in this room.
I want to be honest with youand say that this is something
that I struggle with.
I think there is a dangeroustemptation to look at words like
we're looking at in this series, and to look at our lives and

(11:36):
look at the culture around usand to think I just don't want
to deal with these words.
Besides, I cannot deal withthese things and live a good
life and be a good pastor and bea part of a good church, and we
don't have to deal with givingup everything we have and

(12:01):
examining how our lives and ourpossessions must be spent for
the sake of the lost and thepoor.
We don't have to dive intothese things and all of a sudden
we can begin to think it's justnot worth fighting the battle,
and I want to encourage you thismorning.
This is a battle worth fighting.

(12:22):
It's worth fighting againstmaterialism and consumerism and
professionalism and evenlegalism.
It's worth fighting againstself-saturated and
self-indulgent culture that notonly surrounds us, that consumes
us.
It's worth fighting againsthypocritical, nominal,

(12:44):
unbiblical Christianity.
It's worth fighting, struggling, wrestling these are all words
that are familiar to the NewTestament.
The New Testament nowhere givesa picture of Christianity.
Like you're going down a hilland the wind is just blowing
through your hair and it's thiseasy ride.
No, you see, words like we'rein a fight and a race and a
battle and a war, and that's thepicture here.

(13:07):
To really wrestle with thesetruths, to fight through our
tendencies that are so prone tothe culture around us and the
wisdom of the world around usthat we have completely ignored
much of the Word of God in themiddle of us.
And we need to fight thisbattle and it's worth fighting
because Jesus' glory is worth it.
He's our goal.
We want His glory, we want toexperience His glory.

(13:31):
Not only do we want toexperience His glory, but we
want the lost and the poor toexperience His glory.
And it's worth diving intothese things and wrestling
through these things and workingthese things out in our lives.
And it's not going gonna end atthe end of this series.
It's not gonna end a year fromnow.
It's going to be a continualbattle until the day when we
will see Christ.
And that's the beauty of it,because we're guaranteed the

(13:52):
victory in this battle.
And so I want to urge you,encourage you, to fight through
these things, to wrestle throughthese things and how they look
in your life.
Let's fight together throughthese things as a faith family.
Let's join with one Africanpastor who said we won't give up
, shut up, let up, until we havestayed up, stored up, prayed up
, paid up, preached up for thecause of Christ.
We are disciples of Jesus andwe must go till he comes, give

(14:15):
till we drop, preach till all,know and work till he stops us,
and when he comes for his own,he will have no problems
recognizing us.
Our banner will be clear.
So let's fight like that, diveinto these truths like that.
I really need to get to thetext, but Foundations it will

(14:38):
lead us into the next few weeks.
Luke, chapter 16.
Before we read this passage, Iwant to show you who Jesus is
speaking to.
So I want you to hold yourplace and turn back just a
couple of chapters to chapter 14.
The end of chapter 14 is thepassage that we studied a few
weeks ago 14, 25 through 35.
So when Jesus says if anyonecomes to me and does not hate

(15:00):
his father, mother, wife orchildren, brother or sister,
take up his cross and give upeverything he has, we study that
passage.
These are hard words.
Then you get to Luke, chapter 15.
It's one of the more popular,maybe most famous I guess, if
you could use that word chaptersin the New Testament,
especially in the Gospels.
It's the parable of theprodigal son, at the end, after

(15:22):
the parable of the lost sheepand the lost coin.
And you remember at the verybeginning.
Look at what's happening.
Tax collectors, chapter 15,verse 1, and sinners were all
gathering around to hear Jesus.
But the Pharisees and theteachers of the law muttered
this man welcomes sinners andeats with them.
So here you've got a picture.
The Pharisees, the religiousestablishment, the religious

(15:45):
people of the day, arecriticizing Jesus because of his
concern for the spirituallyneedy, the tax collectors and
the sinners, and Jesus isconfronting their ideas about
the fact that their lives aresupposed to be lived for the
sake of these people.
And that's what he talks about,these parables in Luke, chapter
15, his love for them.
It's exactly where we've been.

(16:06):
This is following thedevelopment of this series.
We spent the last two weekslooking at what it means to have
radical compassion and radicalurgency for the lost, for people
who are headed to a Christlesseternity, who are on a road that
leads to an eternal hell, andhow we must spend our lives on
behalf of people who do not knowChrist.
That's the picture and he isconfronting the religious

(16:28):
establishment on that in Luke 15.
And then he shifts, like we'reshifting now to look at
possessions.
What happens is in Luke 16,verse 1, he starts speaking to
his disciples and he tells aparable.
And basically the point of thisfirst parable in Luke 16 is
that we should use our money notto serve ourselves but to serve
the kingdom, and our resourcesand our possessions and our

(16:50):
money are intended to be usedfor the advancement of the
kingdom, not for the indulgementof ourselves.
And again, he's confronting thereligious establishment there
and we know this by verse 14.
Look at what it says there.

(17:11):
After Jesus finishes speaking,he's talking about people who
love money or devoted to money.
He says in verse 14, thePharisees who loved money heard
all this and were sneering atJesus.
He said to them you are theones who justify yourselves in
the eyes of men, but God knowsyour hearts.
What is highly valued among menis detestable in God's sight.
So here's the context.

(17:34):
That is the setup for whatwe're about to read in verse 19.
Please don't miss it.
Pay attention real close.
Jesus is speaking to religiouspeople who are so blinded by

(17:58):
their affluence to the love ofmoney, that they justify their
affluence in the middle of theirreligious devotion.
Let me say that one more timethat Jesus is speaking to a
religious people so blinded bytheir affluence, so consumed by

(18:30):
their possessions, that theydon't even realize it, and
they're operating in devotion totheir religion while indulging
in love for stuff.
That's the picture of who Jesusis speaking to.
Ladies and gentlemen, this is aword for us and this is what

(18:56):
Jesus says to people who lovetheir money and justified it in
their religion.
There was a rich man verse 19,who was dressed in purple and
fine linen and lived in luxuryevery day.
At his gate was laid a beggarnamed Lazarus, covered with
sores and longing to eat whatfell from the rich man's table.

(19:17):
Even the dogs came and lickedhis sores.
The time came when the beggardied and the angels carried him
to Abraham's side.
The rich man also died and wasburied in hell, where he was in
torment.
He looked up and saw Abraham faraway, with Lazarus by his side.
So he called to him FatherAbraham, have pity on me and

(19:39):
send Lazarus to dip the tip ofhis finger in water and cool my
tongue, because I'm in agony inthis fire.
But Abraham replied son,remember that in your lifetime
you received your good things,while Lazarus received bad
things.
But now he is comforted hereand you are in agony.
And besides all this, betweenus and you a great chasm has

(19:59):
been fixed so that those whowant to go from here to you
cannot, nor can anyone crossover from there to us.
He answered.
Then I beg you, father, sendLazarus to my father's house,
for I have five brothers.
Let him warn them so they willnot also come to this place of
torment.
Abraham replied they have Mosesand the prophets.
Let them listen to them.
No, father Abraham, he said,but if someone from the dead

(20:23):
goes to them, they will repent.
He said to him, if they do notlisten to Moses and the prophets
, they will not be convinced,even if someone rises from the
dead.
God, we pray that you would helpus not to respond this morning
like the Pharisees responded.

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Not to respond this morninglike the Pharisees responded,
god, that you would help us notto sneer at your words or to
justify ourselves when we hearthem.
Help us to hear them truly andto obey them quickly.
In Jesus' name, we pray, amen.

(21:07):
I want us to look at this storythrough three different lenses.
First, a contrast thatdominates the story, a divine
contrast.
It's here in this story and itis all over Scripture.
Here's the contrast.
First, god responds to theneeds of the poor with

(21:27):
compassion.
He responds to the needs of thepoor with compassion.
What you've got here issomething very interesting in
this story the rich man andLazarus, and he's named.
It's the only story parablelike this that Jesus tells where
you've actually got somebodynamed in it, which points us to

(21:48):
a significance.
Lazarus is named for a reason.
His name means one whom Godhelps, or God is my helper.
That's what his name means andit helps us to guard against
thinking we need to guard.
Let's just get this out on thetable from the very beginning.
Scripture here is not teaching,nor should we equate what Luke
16 is saying with the idea thatif you have material poverty you

(22:10):
automatically go to heaven, oryou have material wealth, you
automatically go to hell.
Scripture's not teaching thatwe're going to see that unfold,
but let's just go ahead and getthat out on the table.
At the same time, scripture isteaching that God is passionate
about caring to, compassionatefor the needs of the poor.

(22:32):
He is their helper.
That's the picture of this poorman named Lazarus, covered with
sores, sitting at a gate eatingscraps from a table while dogs
lick his sores, and this is theone whom God helps.
This is a picture here in Luke16.

(22:54):
It's all over the book of Luke,it's all over Scripture.
We're not going to have time toturn to all of these places,
but I want to encourage you bygiving you some listings of some
different places in Scripturefor you to go back and look at.
That show us that God shows Hisgreatness by His concern for
the poor.
1 Samuel 2, verse 8.
1 Samuel 2, 8.

(23:15):
God raises the poor from thedust and lifts the needy from
the ash heap.
He seats the poor with princesand has them inherit a throne of
honor.
Now, this is contrary to whatwe would picture in greatness in
other world religions then orother world religions today.
You go to some of the poorcountries in the world today and
you will see a religious systemthat despises the poor.

(23:37):
And God shows his greatness byshowing compassion for the poor.
He raises up the poor.
1 Samuel, chapter 2, verse 8.
Job 34, verse 28.
Job 34, 28 says God hears thecry of the poor and the needy.
He hears their cry.
He does not turn a deaf ear tothe poor.
He hears the poor.
Psalm, chapter 22, verse 26.

(23:59):
The rest of these are in Psalm22, 26.
The poor eat and are satisfiedby God.
They're neglected by the world.
They eat and they're satisfiedby God.
Chapter 35, verse 10.
Psalms 35, 10.
God rescues the poor.
Psalms 68, verse 10.
God provides for the poor.
When nobody else provides forthe poor, god provides for the

(24:20):
poor.
Psalms 82, verse 3.
God maintains the rights of thepoor and the needy.
He maintains their rights.
Psalms 113.7.
God raises up the poor.
Same kind of picture we saw in1 Samuel, psalm 113.7.
He raises up the poor and thenPsalms chapter 140, verse 12.
God secures justice for thepoor and upholds the cause of

(24:41):
the needy that's the picturewe've got all over the Old
Testament and upholds the causeof the needy.
That's the picture we've gotall over the Old Testament.
God is known as the God whocares for the poor.
This is the God of the Bible.
Then you get to the book of Luke.
Hold your place here in Luke 16and go back with me to Luke,
chapter four.
Let me show you how Jesus isthe personification of this when
we see him come on the scene inthe New Testament.

(25:01):
Jesus responds to the needs ofthe poor with compassion.
I want to show you Luke,chapter 4.
We're going to start in verse17.
This is the very beginning ofJesus' ministry in the book of
Luke.
This is how Jesus is introduced, right after the temptation.
This is his introduction of hisministry.
And I want you to hear how Lukeintroduces Jesus to his
audience Verse 17.

(25:23):
The scroll Jesus is in thesynagogue.
At this point, the scroll ofthe prophet Isaiah was handed to
him.
Unrolling it, he found theplace where it is written Of all
the places that Jesus couldpoint to in this very beginning
part of his ministry.
He quotes from Isaiah 61, verse1.
The Spirit of the Lord is on mebecause he has anointed me to
preach good news to the who, tothe poor.

(25:45):
This is Jesus' introduction.
This is who I am.
I preach good news to the poor.
This is who I'm defined by.
He has sent me to proclaimfreedom for the prisoners and
recovery of sight for the blind,to release the oppressed, to
proclaim the year of the Lord'sfavor.
Then you get over to chapter 6.
Look at chapter 6 in Luke,verse 20.
I'm here to preach good news tothe poor.

(26:05):
What is he preaching to them?
Look in verse 20, luke, chapter6, looking at His disciples, he
said blessed are you who arepoor.
This is the despised in thatculture Poor, impoverished,
despised, looked down upon.
Blessed are you who are poor,for yours is the kingdom.
The poor, the impoverished.

(26:26):
This is who Jesus came for.
In fact, you get over one morechapter to Luke, chapter 7.
Look with me at verse 20.
Look with me at verse 20.

(26:50):
What happens here is some folksfrom John the Baptist come to
ask Jesus some questions to findout whether or not Jesus is the
promised Messiah.
Listen to this in verse 20.
When the men came to Jesus,they said John the Baptist sent
us to you to ask are you the onewho is to come or should we
accept someone else?
And this is how Jesus responds.
At that very time, jesus curedmany who had diseases,
sicknesses and evil spirits andgave sight to many who were
blind.
So he replied to the messengersthis is how Jesus attests to

(27:13):
the fact that he is the promisedMessiah.
Go back and report to John whatyou have seen and heard.
The blind receive sight.
The lame walk, those who haveleprosy are cured, the deaf hear
, the dead are raised and thegood news is preached to the who
, the poor.
This is how you know Jesus isreal, because he's preaching to
the poor.
Jesus picks up on the picture ofGod's compassion, the needs of

(27:36):
the poor, in the Old Testamentand he continues it into the New
Testament.
This is the reality.
The poor, ladies and gentlemen,the poor have God as their
helper.
The God who is worshipped inthis room responds to the needs

(27:56):
of the poor with deep compassion.
Now here's the contrast that wesee in Luke 16.
God responds to the needs ofthe poor with compassion.
God responds to those whoneglect the poor in a very
different way.
He responds to those whoneglect the poor with

(28:20):
condemnation.
This is how God responds tothose who neglect the poor.
Now I want to emphasize thatpicture Neglect the poor.
Go back to what we said just asecond ago.
Scripture is not teaching herethat people go to hell because

(28:42):
they have money.
We know this man had money inLuke 16.
We know from the things that hedressed in and the things that
he ate lived in luxury.
This is the picture.
But what's the reason he's inhell in Luke 16?
Not because he had money.

(29:03):
We're going to talk about thisin the days to come.
Money and possessions in and ofthemselves are not inherently
evil.
Wealth is not inherently evil.
That's not the picture we'reseeing here.
What we're seeing is we'reseeing a man who used his money
to indulge himself and ignorethe poor, and God sends people

(29:28):
like that to hell, to those whoindulge themselves and they
ignore the poor.
Those people will standcondemned before God.

(29:54):
I want to point out at thisjuncture what I believe is
obvious as we study this texttogether.
Ladies and gentlemen, we arethe rich man.

(30:14):
We are the rich man.
This is a mirror.
Here's the scene in this room,we have gathered together in our

(30:37):
fine linen in a multi-milliondollar building Outside, in this
parking lot.
Today, there will be literallytens of millions of dollars
worth of cars.
After we have finished ourroutine, we will get in those

(31:07):
cars, pay thousands of dollarson the way home on food for
ourselves, where we will come toliterally hundreds of millions
of dollars worth of homes wherewe will be safe the rest of this

(31:34):
week and the majority of usliving in the wealthiest county
in Alabama with the best schoolsystems wealth can buy and we
will come back together againnext week, together again next

(31:56):
week.
Meanwhile, there's poor at thegate.
They're here and around theworld.
You don't have to go very farnorth or south from here to find

(32:17):
people who have no plumbing, nokitchen scraps for food.
Expand that around the worldand you will find hungry people
at our gate.
In just the time that we havegathered together in this room,

(32:51):
approximately 1,000 childrenhave died because they didn't
have food.
30,000 of them will die today,either of starvation or a
preventable disease.
The reality is, if our childrenwere at the gate, they'd all be

(33:22):
dead right now All of them.
But the good thing is we canflip the channels on our big
screen TVs so we do not have tosee these realities and we can

(33:54):
ignore these realities.
We are ignoring these realities.
We are throwing scraps to thepoor outside the gate and while

(34:16):
millions of them, powerless andsilent, hover on the edge of
starvation, we live like theydon't even exist.
And the God of the Bible caresfor the poor and he condemns the

(34:41):
rich who neglect them.
This is a warning passage tothe religious affluent of the
first century, and it's awarning passage not just this
passage.
It is all over Scripture.

(35:06):
It's not an isolated incident.
I want to show you we need tosee this.
We need to see this.
We need to see this honestly.
I want to show you whatScripture teaches about how God
responds to those who indulgethemselves and ignore the poor.
Deuteronomy, chapter 15.

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Turn with me there, I'll showyou.
I want to show you thesepassages, maybe encourage you to
underline them in your Bible.
Deuteronomy, chapter 15, verse 7.
I want to show you the picturehere.
I want you to see.

(35:46):
We're going to look, just goahead and warn you.
We're going to look at somestartling words from God that
we're going to wonder.
We're going to wonder if theGod who's being worshipped in
this room really says thingslike this to his people, and he
does.
These words give us a glimpseinto his character.
We'll start foundation.

(36:07):
Deuteronomy 15, verse 7.
This is the law, leviticus andDeuteronomy.
This is one place amidst thelaw.
It's all over the place ofGod's provisions for the poor.
I want you to listen to what hesaid to his people, verse 7,.
If there is a poor man amongyour brothers, in any of the
towns of the land the Lord, yourGod, has given you do not be
hard-hearted or tight-fistedtoward your poor brother.
Rather, be open-handed andfreely lend him whatever he

(36:29):
needs.
Skip down to verse 10.
This is God speaking to hispeople about the poor.
Give generously to him and doso without a grudging heart.
Then, because of this, the Lord, your God, will bless you in
all your work and everything youput your hand to.
There will always be poorpeople in the land.
Therefore, I command you, Icommand you.
You know it's interesting.
Sometimes people say you starttalking about poverty and they

(36:52):
say, well, there's always goingto be poor people.
That's just the way it is.
We use that as an excuse to notgive ourselves to the poor.
God uses that as the basis fora command.
I command you to be open-handedtoward your brothers and toward
the poor and needy in your land.
This is a command from God.
You give to the poor.
You be open-handed to the poor.
You be liberal and generous inyour giving to the poor and

(37:16):
needy in your land.
That was the command.
Now, what happened?
This foundation laid inLeviticus, deuteronomy.
People of God began to ignorethis command and to leave it
behind.
Fast forward with me to Isaiah,chapter 3.
I'm just going to show you afew of the places in the
prophets.
They're all over the place inthe prophets.
I want to show you a few ofthem.
Isaiah, chapter 3.
What happened was the people ofGod had this command and

(37:43):
instead chose to indulgethemselves and ignore the poor.
And this is what God says tohis people when they indulge
themselves and ignore the poor.
This is what he says.
Isaiah, chapter 3.
Look with me at verse 13.
Verse 13.
Listen to this.
Listen to how God addressestheir affluence.

(38:06):
Verse 13.
The Lord takes his place incourt.
He rises to judge the people.
The Lord enters into judgmentagainst the elders and leaders
of his people.
It is you who have ruined myvineyard.
The plunder from the poor is inyour houses.
Poor outside, you're indulgingin houses with all kinds of

(38:30):
stuff.
The poor need food.
The plunder of the poor is inyour houses.
What do you mean by crushing mypeople and grinding the faces
of the poor, declares the LordAlmighty.
So this is how he responds.
The Lord says the women of Zionare haughty, walking along with
outstretched necks, flirtingwith their eyes, tripping along
with mincing steps, withornaments jingling on their
ankles.

(38:50):
Therefore, the Lord will bringsores on the heads of the women
of Zion.
This is the people of God,women of God.
The Lord will make their scalpsbald and that day the Lord will
snatch away their finery.
The bangles and headbands andcrescent necklaces, the earrings
and bracelets and veils, theheaddresses and ankle chains and
sashes, the perfume bottles andcharms, the signet rings and
nose rings, the fine robes andthe capes and cloaks, the purses

(39:11):
and mirrors, and the linengarments and tiaras and shawls
all the stuff.
I'm going to snatch it away.
Instead of fragrance, therewill be a stench Instead of a
sash, a rope Instead ofwell-dressed hair, baldness
Instead of fine clothing,sackcloth Instead of beauty
branding.
Your men will fall by the sword.
Your warriors in battle thegates of Zion will lament and

(39:34):
mourn.
Destitute, she will sit on theground.
These are strong words from Godto people who are indulging
themselves and ignoring the poor.
Keep going to the right.
Jeremiah, very next book afterIsaiah.
Jeremiah, chapter 5.
Jeremiah, chapter 5.
I want you to listen to whatthe prophet says there.

(39:55):
These prophets were not popularguys.
Nobody likes to hear thesekinds of words.
This is what God is saying tohis people.
Jeremiah, chapter 5, look atverse 26.
Listen to this.
God says among my people arewicked men who lie in wait like

(40:20):
men who snare birds and likethose who set traps to catch men
, like cages full of birds.
Their houses are full of deceit.
They have become rich andpowerful and have grown fat and
sleek.
Their evil deeds have no limit.
They do not plead the case ofthe fatherless to win it.
They do not defend the rightsof the poor.

(40:42):
Should I not punish them forthis, declares the Lord.
Should I not avenge myself onsuch a nation as this?
I punish things like this.
God says Keep going to theright.
You'll come to Ezekiel.
Right past Jeremiah.
You come to Lamentations.
You'll come to Ezekiel.
Right past Jeremiah, you cometo Lamentations.
The next book is Ezekiel.
Ezekiel, chapter 16.
Now I want to be careful here.

(41:03):
We're not making a directcomparison between the people of
God in the Old Testament and ustoday.
However, we are seeing how Godresponds to people who neglect
the poor in the Old Testamentand we're going to bring that in
to New Testament in just amoment.
Ezekiel, chapter 16.
This is particularlyinteresting because remember
Sodom and Gomorrah in the OldTestament Destroyed, annihilated

(41:26):
.
Does anybody remember why theywere destroyed or annihilated?
The first thought that comes toour minds.
If we've read that story, thefirst thought that comes to our
minds is because of sexual sin,homosexuality.
That whole picture in Sodom andGomorrah was so abhorrent and
God destroyed them.
We addressed this a little bitwhen we talked about the gospel
and homosexuality and we thinkof sexual sin.

(41:49):
I want you to look at whatEzekiel says.
Ezekiel, chapter 16, verse 48.
He's talking about Sodom.
As surely as I live, declaresthe sovereign Lord, your sister
Sodom and her daughters neverdid what you and your daughters
have done.
In other words, you're doingworse than that.
Listen to what he says, verse49.
This was the sin of your sisterSodom.

(42:10):
She and her daughters werearrogant, overfed and
unconcerned.
They did not help the poor andneedy.
This was the sin of Sodom.
Not that the other wasn't there, it was there.
Scripture points to that, butthis was there.

(42:31):
This flies right in the face ofour selective moral outrage.
The majority of people in thisroom are appalled at
homosexuality or same-sexmarriage, and Scripture speaks
clearly to those things.
At the same time, where is thechurch that is appalled at
neglecting the poor and theneedy?
I would point the finger.

(42:52):
Look at what's going on in ourculture.
Look inside, brothers andsisters, look inside our hearts
at what's going on in ourculture.
Look inside, brothers andsisters, look inside our hearts
at what is going on here.
Keep going to the right.
Come to Amos, daniel, hosea,joel, then Amos, hosea, then
Joel, then Amos.
I want you to look with me atAmos, chapter 2.
This is the last prophet we'lllook at.

(43:14):
Look at a couple differentplaces in here.
Amos, chapter 2.
This is the last prophet we'lllook at.
Look at a couple differentplaces in here.
Amos, chapter 2, verse 6.
Another unpopular prophet 2, 6.
This is what the Lord says Forthree sins of Israel, even for

(43:34):
four.
I will not turn back my wrath.
They sell the righteous forsilver and the needy for a pair
of sandals.
They trample on the heads ofthe poor as upon the dust of the
ground and deny justice to theoppressed.
This is who God is speaking to.
So go over to the next chapter,chapter four.
Look at chapter four, verse one, and listen to what he says,

(43:58):
what he's going to do.
Chapter 4, verse 1.
Hear this word, you cows ofBashan on Mount Samaria, you
women who oppress the poor andcrush the needy, and say to your
husbands bring us some moredrinks.
In other words, those of youwho say I want more, I want more
.
While the poor are crushed andthe needy are forgotten, the
sovereign Lord is shorn by hisholiness.

(44:19):
The time will surely come whenyou will be taken away with
hooks, the last of you with fishhooks.
You will each go straight outthrough breaks in the wall and
you will be cast out toward harmand declare this is how God is
speaking to his people.
These are astounding words.
One more place in Romans andAmos here.

(44:41):
Amos, chapter 8.
Look at Amos, chapter 8.
, verse 3.
Listen to these words.
This is the God who's beingworshipped in this room.
His words we're listening to,verse 3.
In that day, declares thesovereign Lord, the songs of the
temple will turn to wailing,religious people singing all the
time like everything's great.

(45:01):
Your songs will turn to wailing.
Many, many bodies flungeverywhere, silence.
Hear this, you who trample theneedy and do away with the poor
of the land, saying when willthe new moon be over?
That we may sell grain and theSabbath may be ended, that we
may market wheat?
Skimping the measure, boostingthe price and cheating with
dishonest scales.
Buying the poor with silver andthe needy for a pair of sandals

(45:22):
, selling even the sweepingswith the wheat.
The Lord has sworn by the prideof Jacob.
I will never forget anythingthey have done.
Will not the land tremble forthis and all who live in it
mourn?
The whole land will rise likethe Nile.
It will be stirred up and thensink like the river of Egypt.
And that day, declares thesovereign Lord, I will make the
sun go down at noon and darkenthe earth in broad daylight.

(45:42):
I will turn your feasts,religious feasts, into mourning
and all your singing intoweeping.
I will make all of you wearsackcloth and shave your heads.
I will make that time likemourning for an only son and the
end of it like a bitter day.
God says this is what I'm goingto bring on you as you feast on

(46:06):
your indulgences and you ignorethe poor.
This is the Old Testament.
Is this a New Testament deal?
Absolutely.
Come back with me to Luke.
Look at Luke, chapter 6.
Deliberately read just a coupleof verses in this chapter a

(46:28):
minute ago about how Jesus cameto show compassion for the rich.
This is a picture of thecontrast here.
Don't miss the contrast.
Luke, chapter 6, verse 20.
We read it a second ago.
Looking at his disciples, jesussaid remember God responds to

(46:48):
the needs of the poor withcompassion.
Blessed are you poor, for yoursis the kingdom of God.
Blessed are you who hunger now,for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who weep now,for you will laugh.
That's what God says to thepoor.
Listen to what he says down inverse 24.
But woe to you who are rich,for you have already received
your comfort.

(47:09):
Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will go hungry.
Do you see this picture?
This contrast with how Godresponds to the needs of the

(47:30):
poor, and those who neglect thepoor to indulge themselves,
neglect the poor to indulgethemselves.
The neglect of the poorinfuriates God and condemns man
to hell.
That's what Scripture'steaching.
This is a warning to us.

(47:58):
One writer said the story of therich man and Lazarus ought to
explode in our hands when weread it, sitting at our
well-covered tables while thethird world stands outside.
That's the point it shouldexplode in our hands.
We've been talking the lastcouple of weeks about those who
are headed to a road that leadsto an eternal hell, and now we

(48:22):
come to this passage and we seethe danger here that you can be
spiritually deceived andreligious people and be headed
down the exact same road.
That's the point.
Contrast leads to consequence,and eternal consequence here.
This is the picture Luke 6 hereand then over in Luke 16.
There is a reversal doctrinethat is being displayed here.

(48:45):
There is coming a day when thisupside-down world will be
turned right-side up and formany, the conditions we've lived
in in this world will becompletely reversed.
That's the whole picture herein Luke 16.
There's coming a turn and thewise will spend their lives here
preparing for the turn.

(49:05):
There is an eternal consequencehere.
Scripture is teaching veryclearly if we indulge ourselves
and neglect the poor, don't missit.
Earth will be our heaven.
It's what Luke 6 just said.
It's what Luke 16 says.
Luke 16 tells us about all thefine things this man had.
The rich man had while he wason the earth Blessed.

(49:26):
Are you who are rich nowBlessed?
Are you who have food nowBlessed?
Are you who have these thingsnow?
Earth will be our heaven.
You will have things.
This is just exactly what Jesuswas talking about in Matthew,
chapter 6, when he says if youwant man's praise as your reward
, you will get it.
Enjoy it while it lasts,because that is your reward.

(49:48):
If you want stuff and luxury onthis earth and this community,
you will get it and enjoy it.
Enjoy it now, because earthwill be your heaven and eternity
will be your hell Hades, theplace of the dead.
Four times in Luke 16, the wordtorment is used.

(50:11):
This is the picture used.
This is the picture those whoneglect the poor, ignore the
poor and indulge themselves willfind themselves separated from

(50:37):
an uncrossable, unbridgeablechasm forever and ever and ever.
This is what is so frighteningabout this passage, because the
rich man here is pleading forgrace and mercy.
He's pleading for it, and thetime for grace and mercy is gone
, it's passed.
There comes a day.

(50:59):
There comes a day, ladies andgentlemen, when neglect of the
poor, when indulging in selvesand ignoring the poor, when it
is no longer forgiven, it, ispunished.
It is eternally punished.
Does this cause us to tremble?
Can we really look at our livesand our culture and our

(51:23):
community, our religiouscommunity?
Can we really look at it andsay that we are being obedient
to God's command to care for thepoor and not to indulge
ourselves?
Absolutely not.
We could not say that in mylife, in our lives, in this
church.
We cannot say these things inthis community.
We could not say these things.
Then how can we believe that wewill spend an eternity under

(51:45):
His love instead of eternityseparated under His judgment?
I know that at this pointpeople get really uncomfortable,
thinking well, are you sayingthat my salvation is dependent
on how much I give to the poor?
That's absolutely not whatScripture is teaching.
Not at all what Scripture isteaching.

(52:05):
But here's the picture.
It leads to that last part ofyour notes, a clear choice.
There are two choices here.
I want you to follow with mehere.
A clear choice.
Choice number one, optionnumber one one is to continue in
hollow religion that neglectsthe poor.
This is an option that isbefore the hearers in Luke 16,
and it's an option before us inthis room.

(52:26):
Continue in hollow religion thatneglects the poor.
Don't miss it.
This is a religious man in hell.
It's a religious man in hell inLuke 16.
He calls out Father Abraham.
Abraham says son, this is a manthought he was in the people of
God.
He thought everything was okay.
He was a deceived religious manthinking everything was okay,

(52:49):
but he lived his life ignoringthe poor and indulging himself
Hollow religion.
Now, the mistake we would makeat this point is to think that
if he would have given this muchto the poor, then he would have
been in heaven, because thatwould make heaven dependent on

(53:10):
how much he'd given to the poor.
And that's not what Scriptureis teaching.
Don't miss it to the poor.
And that's not what Scriptureis teaching.
Don't miss it.
Caring for the poor is not anoptional extra in salvation.
Caring for the poor is not anoption.
Spending our money and ourpossessions for the sake of the
lost and the poor is not anoptional extra in salvation.

(53:34):
It is not a possibility forfollowers of Christ.
Instead, caring for the poor isnecessary evidence of salvation
.
It's necessary evidence ofsalvation.
Let me show you this in twoplaces.
Luke 19.
Turn over a couple chapters.
Luke 19.
There's a guy named Zacchaeus.
He is a wealthy tax collector.

(53:54):
Jesus is hanging out withZacchaeus, getting a lot of
grief for hanging out withZacchaeus.
I want you to listen to whathappens.
Look at this.
Luke, chapter 19, verse 8.
Zacchaeus stood up and said tothe Lord look, lord, here and
now I give half of mypossessions to the poor and if

(54:18):
I've cheated anybody out ofanything, I will pay back four
times the amount.
Can you imagine right now juststanding up and saying half my
possessions I give away, half myassets, everything, half of it
I give away.
Anybody I've wronged four timesas much.
So Zacchaeus says and listen tohow Jesus responds.
He says today, salvation verse9,.
Jesus said today salvation hascome to this house.

(54:42):
Did his giving away hispossessions earn him salvation?
Absolutely not.
His giving away his possessionsat that moment was clear
evidence that something hadhappened in his heart that had
radically changed things.
It was evidence.
Same picture.
Go back with me to things.
It was evidence.
Same picture.
Go back with me to Matthew.
You've got to see this.
Matthew, chapter 25.
Matthew 25.

(55:03):
Please don't miss this.
Matthew, chapter 25.
We'll start in verse 31.
I want to read this picture.
This is not just an isolatedincident in Luke 16.
This is Jesus speaking to hispeople, to religious people.
Listen to what he says.
Matthew, chapter 25, verse 31,and follow along with this

(55:26):
picture.
When the Son of man comes inhis glory, and all the angels
with him, he will sit on histhrone in heavenly glory, all
the nations will be gatheredbefore him and he will separate
the people.
There is coming a day, ladiesand gentlemen, when Jesus will
separate the people one fromanother, as a shepherd separates
the sheep from the goats, hewill put the sheep on his right
and the goats on his left.
Sheep on his right, goats onhis left.

(55:48):
Here's how it's determinedwhich one you're a part of.
The king will say to those onhis right Come, you who are
blessed by my Father, take yourinheritance.
The kingdom prepared for yousince the creation of the world.
For I was hungry and you gave mesomething to eat.
I was thirsty and you gave mesomething to drink.
I was a stranger and youinvited me in.
I needed clothes and youclothed me.
I was sick and you looked afterme.

(56:08):
I was in prison.
And you and the righteous willanswer him, lord, when did we
see you hungry and feed you, orthirsty and give you something
to drink?
When did we see you a strangerand invite you in, or need
clothes and clothe you?
When did we see you sick or inprison and go to visit you?
And the king will reply I tellyou the truth whatever you did
for one of the least of thesebrothers of mine, you did for me

(56:29):
.
And then he will say to thoseon his left the goats depart
from me, you who are cursed intothe eternal fire, prepared for
the devil and his angels.
For I was hungry and you gaveme nothing to eat.
I was thirsty and you gave menothing to drink.
I was a stranger and you didnot invite me in.
I needed clothes and you didnot clothe me.
I was sick and in prison andyou did not look after me.
They also will answer, lord,when did we see you hungry or

(56:52):
thirsty or stranger and eatingclothes, or sick or in prison
Did not help you?
And he will reply I tell youthe truth Whatever you did for
one of the least of these, didnot do for one of the least of
these, you did not do for me.
Then they will go away toeternal punishment, but the
righteous to eternal life.
Now we don't have time to studythis whole passage today.

(57:15):
Likely, jesus is speakingspecifically, not just generally
, about those who are poor orhungry or sick or in prison.
He's likely speaking about hisdisciples.
So this is a passage that'slikely pointing us specifically
to brothers and sisters of ourshere and around the world who
are poor and sick and hungry,regardless picture.

(57:36):
In the whole New Testament it'sclear that we love the
righteous and the unrighteous.
Don't miss it.
Jesus is saying here that if youdo not give to the poor and the
hungry, whether they'reChristians or not, then you will

(57:58):
go to eternal punishment.
Why?
Because you didn't earn enough?
No, because that's clearevidence that Christ is not in
you.
That's clear evidence that youhave not been saved.
This is the thing that hauntsme.
This is why, as I shared withyou a few weeks ago when the
series began, I've beenwrestling through these things,
kind of a crisis of faith andbelief moment, because these are
basic things.
This is not a mature believerin Zacchaeus in Luke, chapter 19

(58:21):
, who's giving away all of hispossessions.
This is the first thing he does, because it makes sense, it's
obvious.
It's obvious evidence of hissalvation that he would do this.
It's the picture here inMatthew, chapter 25.
Those who do not give to thepoor and the hungry are
obviously not followers ofChrist and will obviously be
thrown into eternal punishment.

(58:43):
And yet we live.
We live in a community and weare a part of a religious
culture that ignores thesethings.
We ignore these things.
These are not basic for us.
We indulge ourselves and weturn to deaf ear.
We give scraps to the poor.
And Jesus says you're not mypeople, no matter what you say
at 11 o'clock on Sunday morning,you're not my people if you

(59:03):
live like that, my people don'tlive like that, not people who
believe in me and have me intheir heart, they don't live
like that.
So there's a clear disconnecthere between claiming to have

(59:27):
this Christ in your heart andindulging yourselves and
ignoring the poor.
Indulging ourselves andignoring the poor.
You say, david, I am justifiedby grace alone, through faith
alone.
And I say absolutely, you'rejustified by grace alone,
through faith alone.
And I say absolutely, you'rejustified by grace alone,
through faith alone.
But it is a faith thatradically transforms a heart,

(59:49):
that transforms desires, wheredesires are not for stuff and
for selfish pleasures, desiresare for Christ and the lost and
the poor.
It's a radically differentchange and you will be able to
tell if that faith is real inyou by the way you live.
James, chapter 2, verse 14through 17.
What good is it, my brothers, ifa man claims to have faith but
has no deeds?
Can such faith save him?
Suppose a brother or sister iswithout clothes or daily food

(01:00:11):
and one of you says to him go, Iwish you well, keep warm and
well fed, which is exactly whatwe have said to our brothers and
sisters in third worldcountries with the way we
indulge ourselves in thiscountry.
Faith by itself, if it is notaccompanied by action, is dead.
It's dead.
Verse John 3, verse 17,.
He says how can anyone claim tohave the love of God in him and

(01:00:31):
not care for his brother?
Dear children, let us not lovewith words or tongue, but with
what Action sent.
In truth, christ is not evenreal.
You can't even claim to havethe love of God in God if this
is the way you live.
The reality is, you will beable to tell, with the way
people are giving to the poor,whether or not Christ is in them
.
And, ladies and gentlemen, theevidence in our community is

(01:00:52):
just not good.
It's frightening, and this is achoice that we have.
We can continue in hollowreligion that ignores the poor.

(01:01:15):
Second option is to turn inhonest repentance To care for
the poor.
This is where the dialogueshifts, at the end of this
passage, to the rich man talkingabout his brothers.
He's got five brothers.
Don't miss this.
This is hell crying out for usto listen to this text today.

(01:01:36):
This is people in hell cryingout for us to heed these words.
Don't ignore these words, don'tignore these words, don't miss
these words.
And the rich man says sendsomething miraculous, something
extravagant.
So they get it.
They're sitting there and theydon't get it.
My brothers don't get it.
He said send somebody to raisefrom the dead, just do something

(01:01:58):
miraculous.
And Abraham says they've gotthe power of the word right in
front of them and this is howthey will know if they hear this
word.
So Jesus says how do yourespond in repentance if they'll
do these things?
Number one hear the word humbly.
Hear the word humbly.
He says their hearts are sohard and this is the reality I

(01:02:20):
see in my own life.
The hardest part of dealing withour materialism is the fact
that we are so blind to it.
We don't know what it's likenot to be materialistic and our

(01:02:41):
bent is consumed by it and itleads to a hardness that hears
these texts, hears words likethis, and says that's not for me
, that attempts to justifyourselves.
Our mechanisms go up andthey're going up all across this

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room.
They go up in my heart when Iread what about?
This is not me, this is otherpeople, this is this or that I'm
okay and Jesus says.
He says you are the ones whojustify yourselves in the eyes
of men.
You justify yourselves bylooking at the culture around
you and thinking well, I'm sureit's okay.
But God knows.
God knows your hearts and knowswhat's really going on better

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than you know it or I know it.
What is highly valued among menis detestable in God's sight.
The ways of the world aredetestable in God's sight.
The wisdom of the Word hear ithumbly.
Do not listen to this word.
Justify ourselves.

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Hear the word humbly and obeythe word quickly.
We're going to talk more aboutthis next week, but we must act.
Sentiment is not enough here.
This is a repentance, it's achange.
We need to change brothers andsisters.
We need to change the way webudget and the way we live and
the way we spend.
If this is true.

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If it's not true, we go on andwe continue with business as
usual.
But if this is true and if thisword determines our life and
determines the church, we needto hear these warnings, not only
for the sake of the lost andthe poor, but for the sake of
ourselves and our own souls.
That's the picture here 30,000children, 30,000 Joshuas and

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Calebs Today, with no food orpreventable disease that will
cause their death, our brothersand sisters, millions of
Christian brothers and sistersaround the world who do not have
food today and have deformedbodies and deformed brains as a

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result.
Obey the word quickly, church.
Where are we going to stand?
This is the question.
Where are we going to standWith the poor and starving or
with the overfed?
Are we going to stand with thepoor man on his way to heaven or

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with the rich man on his way tohell?
Are we going to stand hoardingour treasures or are we going to
give ourselves to abandoningour treasures for the sake of
the lost and the poor?
Where are we going to stand?
How can we stand over here,with so many hovering in
spiritual and physical need andcall ourselves the people of God

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?
Now I want to be very, verycareful here.
This is the most important point, most important moment in light
of this text.
Please do not miss it.
It's the bottom line.
Most important moment in lightof this text.
Please do not miss it.
It's the bottom line.
We are not motivated to carefor the poor by guilt.

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We're not motivated to care forthe poor by guilt.
People will say you want to dothis or change this in your life
because you feel guilty.
No, we are not motivated tocare for the poor by guilt.
Follow with me.
We are motivated to care forthe poor by the gospel.
This is 2 Corinthians 8, verse 9.
You know the grace of our LordJesus Christ.

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Though he was rich, yet foryour sakes, he became poor so
that you, through his poverty,might become rich.
This is the picture of thegospel.
We need to see the warnings inOld Testament.
We need to see the warnings inMatthew 25 and Luke 16.
We need to see Jesus speakingstrongly about these things.
But don't miss it.
Please don't miss this.
We walk away thinking, well,that was quite a guilt trip.

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How do I cover from that missed?
I miss the point.
It's not the point.
What Scripture's teaching, andI pray that if anything I've
done has tried to communicatethat, I pray that it blocks that
out.
That's not the point.
The point is to see the gravityof these things and then to
realize we obey Christ notbecause we're guilty, but
because we are saved.
We obey Christ because we'renew creatures and we're redeemed

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and we don't need to indulgeourselves because we're living
for another world.
And so we gladly.
We gladly invest our lives andour possessions and our
everything and the lost and thepoor, and we forsake the
treasures of this world becausewe know there's coming a day
when this upside down world willbe turned right side up, and
the gospel guarantees us this.
This is why we obey these words.

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So I want to urge you today,people of God not this
individual in this circumstancepeople of God, let's repent.
We need to repent.
If this is the God of the Bible, if this is the God of the
Bible and this is what he says,then we are in danger and we

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need to repent.
These folks are going to comeup and they're going to lead us
in prayer, in a song of prayer,and I want to invite you all,
across this room, to pray.
I want to invite you to pray.
You can pray alone, but I wantto encourage you You'd be
willing to pray together, topray with your husband or wife
that's sitting next to you, yourfriend that you come with pray
with your children.
You can pray where you are.

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You can pray down here at thefront.
I want to open up this area atthe front.
I want to urge you to repent ofhollow religion of indulging in
ourselves and ignoring the poor.
I want to urge you not to beginthinking about how you're going
to indulge yourself when youleave this place.
It's not the point.

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The point is for us to seeourselves in the mirror of this
text and fall before him now andsay God, we need you to bring
the life of Christ in us in thisway alive.
Or maybe we need you to give usChrist for the first time in
many of our hearts, because it'sjust not a reality.
It's games and we don't want toplay games.
But if Christ is a reality tosay, I need you to remove my

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selfish indulging and I need youto give me grace to know how to
lay my possessions, my stuff,my life, my schedule, my
priorities on the altar for thesake of the poor.
We hope you've enjoyed thisweek's episode of Radical with
David Platt.
For more resources from DavidPlatt, we invite you to visit
radicalnet.