The Disciples Ambition

When have I done enough? When have I given enough? These questions tore through my mind as I looked at a picture of a starving child without clothing. The child’s skin was stretched tightly over their ribs and their arms and legs were thin and weak. The day before I had been convicted by the thought of how little I gave to those in need and so I had begun searching for answers and ways to help.

I looked at the child and then tried to imagine that it was one of my little brothers or sisters. I put myself in the shoes of the parents, and the siblings, and even in the shoes of the child himself and I was horrified at how disgusting my life would have looked to them. Here I was living in my heated and cooled house, with all the food I need, cars to drive, running water, electricity, a phone, good education, and a hope for my future, and yet I did nothing to save that child.

It made me sick to realize that this child was dying but I lived in wealth they could hardly imagine having. I began running numbers like crazy and what I found made me feel even worse. I found that every 10 seconds a child dies from starvation. I found that every day 25,000 people die every day due to lack of nutrition.

I then ran numbers looking at how my income looked compared to those who lived in poverty and found out just how rich the poorest of us are. If I made only $10,000 a year and I lived on my own I would literally be in the top 5% of the worlds earners. In America $10,000 is seen as a pitifully low salary but it makes me richer than 95% of the world. That’s insane.

The average income on a daily basis for humans on earth is $2-3 a day. Now running the math, if you make $10 an hour and only work an hour a day, you’ve already made 5x what a normal person makes for a full day’s work.

As I searched for answers I spoke to many people about my convictions and about what I had seen. I was expecting people to be as convicted and as moved as I was, but instead I got a lot more pushback than I thought possible. I am surrounded by very godly people who love the Lord, but even then I was still receiving half-hearted response to my thoughts.

Many felt bad about the situation but didn’t really seem worried enough to take action. Some just didn’t really care at all. Now I was not judging anyone because of their lack of compassion for these hurting people, because I have been in the same boat. Unfortunately its the norm in our culture. We all do it, but that doesn’t make it right.

I’ve heard some people say, “Well you have to think about how much stuff costs for us compared to people in other countries. expenses in America are just way higher than the expenses for someone living overseas in poverty infested areas!” My response for such a claim is, “If you lived in a mud shack with one shabby, dirty outfit, and you hauled your own water, had no plumbing or electricity, and only ate a small handful of rice and beans a day, then you could live off of $2 a day. Its possible but most of us aren’t willing to take that step because it’s difficult and if we are being truly honest, most of us are too busy thinking about how others would view us if we lived like that.

I say this with no judgment against anyone, but with full transparency that I don’t want or know how to give that much. It requires careful prayer and contemplation for each of us as to how God would have us live in light of these truths. 

What does the Bible say?

Before we can just rush into doing something we must first look at what the Bible says and follow that. The Bible should be the ultimate authority on such issues and should be the only opinion that truly matters, excluding the conviction of the Holy Spirit Himself, but even that conviction should be viewed through the lens of scripture.

“Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality. At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. The goal is equality, as it is written: “The one who gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little.”

2 Corinthians 8:13-15

What can I add to a verse like that? Forget about the poor in other countries right now, and think just about your own church. Do all of the believers live in equality? Why is our goal in our churches not the same as that of the early church? What would it change if we did live with this sort of equality in the church?

“All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need.

Acts 4:32-35

Those are some pretty heavy passages and again, even just forgetting about those outside of our churches, most of us aren’t sure we really want to accept the call to give to those around us that much!

If I’m being honest, I like my stuff too much. I am an avid outdoorsman and the thought of giving up my hunting and fishing gear, of selling my kayak, or of selling my gun or bow is a tough one for me to swallow, but if I truly desire to live a life devoted to Christ and His Church, then I have no choice but to give up these things.

Obviously this doesn’t always mean that God wants me to sell everything I have and give everything to the poor, but what if that is exactly what He wants? That’s exactly what he wanted the rich young ruler to do so why do I just immediately think that my own life is an exception?

“You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

Luke 18:22

When I read a passage like this, I almost immediately shut down any thoughts that might lead me to selling everything. I am scared of giving to that extent and so I just try to tell myself that God would never ask me to do that, when in reality, He very easily could.

What to do about the Problem:

So then comes the question: What should we do about it? How should I respond to these thoughts? As an American Christian with more money and hope for our futures than most people would even dream of having, when can I quit giving?

“I do not believe one can settle how much we ought to give. I am afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare. If our charities do not at all pinch or hamper us, I should say they are too small.”

C.S. Lewis (Mere Christianity)

Knowing how to respond to this issue is complicated and there is no specific set of guidelines in scripture that we must follow, so it can be difficult to know what to do. As C.S. Lewis said, ‘the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare.” We must give and expect that God will come through for us. It takes faith and sacrifice to live a life devoted to Christ.

Living radically for Christ is hard and it is not always fun. Jesus calls us to leave everything behind in the pursuit of Him. It is no use holding back and trying to save our lives because in that very moment of trying to pursue our own selfish desires, we pull ourselves from Christ and end up falling into a vicious downward spiral of selfishness and self-preservation.

God calls each of us to something different and so it will look different for every person. For some they are called to sponsor children, for some they pay to drill wells. For some they invest in schooling for children and for others they give their time to foster children. There are many needs in the world for people to live out their faith, but no matter how you choose to give, do it for the glory of God. Make it your ambition to follow Christ wherever He leads you.

Conclusion:

I would encourage you to take a look at your own life and evaluate where your heart is at and where God wants you to be in your giving. Don’t rush into thinking, “Oh I think God wants me to do this.” And also don’t just rush to say “Oh I’m giving enough.”  Instead ask Him what he wants and actually wait for the response.

No single person can do this well and each one of us falls into the trap of selfishness, but through Christ we can hope to enter through the narrow gate that leads to salvation and we can find ourselves surrendered to the will of God. It is truly a battle to stay on the straight path. Often times we stumble, but we must get back up when we fall, and continue to push through until we enter the narrow door.

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