The Second Commandment

"We shall find that we are more frequently influenced by the desire of getting rid of the importunities of a disgusting object than by the pleasure of relieving it. We wish that it had not fallen our way, rather than rejoice in the opportunity given us of assisting a fellow creature."
-Thomas Robert Malthus, An Essay on the Principle of Population, as reprinted in The Fear of Beggars: Stewardship and Poverty in Christian Ethics, by Kelly S. Johnson

How easy it is to see a homeless person and walk away quickly so that we can forget the sight and avoid having to interact with them. If we as Christians had no obligation to show love to others that might be an appropriate response. However, the God-given command to love our neighbors creates a moral obligation on us that demands that we do more than worry about self-preservation or mental happiness.

There are at least two passages of Scripture that indicate that turning away from beggars and the poor is not an appropriate response for us as Christians to have. Jesus tells us in Matthew 22:39 and Mark 12: 31 that we must love our neighbors as ourselves. This commandment is second only to a commandment to love God, and every other commandment comes out of these two. See Matthew 22: 35-40, Mark 12:28-31. As long as the poor and homeless are our neighbors, then we as Christians are obligated to show them love.

The question that must be answered then is: Are the poor and homeless our neighbors? Most of us would readily agree that under Scriptural principles, the poor and homeless should be considered our neighbors. Our basis for this answer is the parable of the Good Samaritan found in Luke 10. Scripture even indicates for us that the parable is intended to help us understand what Jesus means when He says we are to love our "neighbors." In this passage, He has been speaking with a lawyer who was trying to test Him. The lawyer repeats Jesus' position that the two greatest commandments are to love God and love our neighbors, and then "desiring to justify himself" he asks who is his neighbor. It is in direct answer to this question that Jesus' tells the parable.

We all know the answer that Jesus gives: even strangers that we meet along the road are our neighbors, even if that stranger would despise us under other circumstances. See John Darby's Synopsis of the New Testament, http://bible.crosswalk.com/Commentaries/DarbysSynopsisofNewTestament/dby.cgi?book=lu&chapter=010, and Matthew Henry's Completel Commentary on the Whole Bible, http://bible.crosswalk.com/Commentaries/MatthewHenryComplete/mhc-com.cgi?book=lu&chapter=010.

We all know that we should show love to the poor and homeless rather than turning away as quickly as possible. Yet how often, we act like the lawyer in this case, desiring to justify our actions, use excuses to turn away, trying to forget what we have seen as quickly as possible.