beggars throughout eternity?
I don't know if there's any solid Biblical basis to the last sentence of this quote. But since I first read it a few months ago, it keeps coming back to haunt me.
“I fear there are some Christians among you to whom Christ cannot say well done good and faithful servant. Your haughty dwelling arises amidst thousands that have scarce a fire to warm themselves and have but little clothing to keep out the biting frost. You heave a sigh perhaps at a distance, but you do not visit them.
Ah, my dear friends, I am not concerned for the poor but more for you, I don’t know what Christ will say to you on the great day. You seem to be Christians yet you don’t care for his poor. What a change will pass upon you as you enter the gates of heaven. You will be saved but that will be all. There will be no abundance entrance for you. He who soweth sparingly reaps sparingly and I fear there may be many hearing me that now know they are not Christians because they do not love to give.
To give largely and liberally not grudging at all requires a new heart. An old heart would rather depart with its life blood than its money. So friends, enjoy your money, make the most of it, give none away, for I can tell you, you will be beggars throughout eternity.”
~Robert Murry McShane, 1838
In a way, the words here feel like a bludgeon--a guilt-inducing bludgeon. I don't believe that guilting people into caring about the poor is a sustainable motivator of giving, though we absolutely need frequent reminders lest we settle nicely into a contented haze of self-centred consumerism.
But perhaps it'd be helpful to balance Rev. McShane's severe statement with a reminder that when we understand God's free-flowing, never-ending generosity to us--we will gladly give.
“I fear there are some Christians among you to whom Christ cannot say well done good and faithful servant. Your haughty dwelling arises amidst thousands that have scarce a fire to warm themselves and have but little clothing to keep out the biting frost. You heave a sigh perhaps at a distance, but you do not visit them.
Ah, my dear friends, I am not concerned for the poor but more for you, I don’t know what Christ will say to you on the great day. You seem to be Christians yet you don’t care for his poor. What a change will pass upon you as you enter the gates of heaven. You will be saved but that will be all. There will be no abundance entrance for you. He who soweth sparingly reaps sparingly and I fear there may be many hearing me that now know they are not Christians because they do not love to give.
To give largely and liberally not grudging at all requires a new heart. An old heart would rather depart with its life blood than its money. So friends, enjoy your money, make the most of it, give none away, for I can tell you, you will be beggars throughout eternity.”
~Robert Murry McShane, 1838
In a way, the words here feel like a bludgeon--a guilt-inducing bludgeon. I don't believe that guilting people into caring about the poor is a sustainable motivator of giving, though we absolutely need frequent reminders lest we settle nicely into a contented haze of self-centred consumerism.
But perhaps it'd be helpful to balance Rev. McShane's severe statement with a reminder that when we understand God's free-flowing, never-ending generosity to us--we will gladly give.
posted by Duncan and Jen | 9:08 PM
1 Comments:
That's a good quote, incredibly convicting, and more than a little familiar...
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