Jesus the Socialist?

           Jesus Christ taught and did many things during His life. But did He teach social justice?  What do we mean by social justice?  Social justice is giving each person what is rightfully theirs.  Most people would put say “It is helping those in need get the things they need.” Social justice is a hot topic both in the political and Christian realms.  Depending on who is talking, you may hear the terms redistribution of wealth, socialism, entitlement and communism.  I will not attempt to deal with whether food, clothing, shelter and healthcare are entitlements or whether or not it is the government’s role to fulfill these shortfalls. I will focus on the teachings of Christ in regards to the poor, the sick and taxes. In the synoptic gospels, there are over ten recurring records of teaching on the poor and over twenty on healing. The book of John contains similar passages. Clearly, Jesus had an opinion on these topics.

The Poor

            “So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions” (New American Standard Bible, Luke 14:33).

            “…sell all that you possess and distribute it to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me” (NASB, Luke 18:22).

            These are quite the startling statements by Christ!  This sure sounds like the redistribution of wealth.  Without the proper context, these verses would prompt everyone to be homeless and beggars themselves. So what is Christ saying here?  In chapter 14, Jesus was teaching on the high cost of being His disciple.  In verse 27 He says, “Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple” (NASB). Jesus’ contemporaries were well aware of the crucifixion death penalty. Those who were condemned to be crucified would literally carry their own cross to the crucifixion site.  Jesus wanted to weed out the shallow followers. Death could be the ultimate cost for following Him.  Jesus then continues.  A builder must weigh the cost of a building before he begins.  A king must count the cost of his troops before a battle.  How much more important is it to count the cost of following Christ?  In comparison to death, giving up one’s possessions is small price to pay.  As disciples of Christ, we must be willing to loosen our grip on our assets, not automatically dispose of them. Eduard Schweizer puts it this way, “Of course not all are called in the same way to the same form of discipleship. But it is equally sure that there is no such thing as a totally middle-class discipleship where there is only preservation of one’s heritage and radical renunciation can never flower.”

            In Luke 18:18-30, Jesus is asked a question from a rich, young man. He inquires what he must do to get to heaven.  He states he has kept the commandments, but Jesus responds that the man must sell his possessions and give them to the poor.  Jesus shares the difficulty of the wealthy entering heaven.  This is because success and power often blind people of their true powerlessness and a need for a savior. Jesus then encourages the disciples that the focus should not be the sacrifice but the gain to come from God. Christ is not commanding us all to sell everything we own and redistribute the wealth. Rather, if called by God, we should sacrifice our resources for the sake of Christ. 

 “If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful” (NASB, Luke 6:32-36).

“And He also went on to say to the one who had invited Him, “When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, otherwise they may also invite you in return and that will be your repayment. But when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, since they do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous” (NASB, Luke 14:12-14)

Luke 6:20-49 mirrors Matthew 5-7. These passages are the well-known Sermon on the Mount. This was the first major instance that Jesus taught in detail about the positions his followers should have toward worldly wealth. Craig Blomberg’s book Neither Poverty nor Riches states “Jesus is speaking first of all to those who already are disciples, and he is speaking to them in community."  Why would we lend to those who we are likely to be unable to repay us?  Matthew Henry says “Here are two motives to this generous charity. It will redound to our profit; for our reward shall be great, v. 35. What is lent and lost on earth, from a true principle of charity, will be made up to us.”

In Luke 14:7-12, Jesus teaches about two things.  First, He spoke to the guests about not seeking public honor. Service is better than high position. Second, He spoke to the host about not being discriminatory about who he invites. This is true of God and Heaven. God’s offer of grace is free to anyone who accepts it.

In Christ’s time, the culture worked in a patronage system.   That is, people of influence and wealth would use their resources on people.  In return they would expect to receive business and political opportunities, and watch out for their partner’s well-being. As is common in our culture, dinners and networking events were necessary.  That is why Jesus’ command is so shocking to his contemporaries.  These suggestions were financial and influential insanity!

It is obvious; Jesus ate dinner with his family, disciples, and friends.  In Generous Justice Timothy Keller puts it this way: “…in a more modern context-he is saying that we should spend far more of our money and wealth on the poor than we do on our own entertainment, or on vacations…and socializing with important peers.”  Jesus and His followers helped the poor to lessen despair. Jesus knew that everything they had and we now have is God’s. Our possessions are on loan from Him. 

“For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me…Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.” (NASB, Matthew 25:35-36, 40).

In verses 31-46 Jesus is giving a metaphor for the final judgment of mankind.  A common picture of the shepherd and his flock.  Christ is the shepherd. The flock is broken into sheep, the Christians, and the goats, the unsaved.  First we see he calls those blessed who are the heirs of His kingdom.  He lists some of the actions of a Christian: feeding the hungry, giving refreshment to the thirsty, clothing the naked, and visiting the secluded.  Matthew Henry notes “We cannot hence infer that any good works of ours merit the happiness of heaven…Now the good works here mentioned are such as we commonly call works of charity to the poor, and it teaches us this in general, that faith working by love is all in all in Christianity.”  He then moves to those who did not serve those in need.  And as they denied those who were in need, they denied Christ. The self-consuming lifestyle of the unbeliever and ultimate rejection of Christ results in eternal punishment in Hell forever.

A key element of this passage is verse 40.  “To the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to me.”  Who are the “brothers?”  Who are the least of these brothers?  That is has been debated for years.  Brothers is the transliterated Greek word “adelphos” means brother by blood, any fellow, or brethren of Christ.  “The least of them” is the transliterated Greek “elachistos.” It refers to size, authority, rank or estimation of men.  Craig Blomberg shares two central interpretations.  “The majority perspective…refer to spiritual kin as the term does elsewhere in Matthew in every instance which biological siblings are not in view…’the least’ is the superlative form, also without exception in Matthew refers to disciples...Today, however, the prevailing interpretation is teaching about the need to help the dispossessed whether or not they are Christian.”.  John MacArthur references Luke 10:29 “Who is my neighbor?” John believes the point is that we should love all people and serve anyone.

The Sick

“Jesus replied and said, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went away leaving him half dead. And by chance a priest was going down on that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.  Likewise a Levite also, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.  But a Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him; and when he saw him, he felt compassion,  and came to him and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them; and he put him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn and took care of him.  On the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and said, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I return I will repay you.’ Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the robbers’ hands?”  And he said, “The one who showed mercy toward him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do the same.” (NASB, Luke 10:30-37).

            We are all familiar with the parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25-37.  Jesus was teaching when He was asked a question by an expert of the law.  The question was about receiving eternal life.  Jesus then asks “What is written in the Law?” The expert knew the Biblical moral code was based on Mosaic Law.  He said “to love God with all your heart and to love your neighbor.”  Jesus says “Yes.  Do it and you’ll have eternal life.” The expert then asks “who is my neighbor?”  In other words “What does that mean?  Who does that mean?”  Jesus answers in a parable.

The Jewish man is coming down the road and is robbed, beaten and left “half dead.”  First a Jewish priest and then a Levite, probably someone who assisted the priest, came upon him and passed him by.  These men were both Jews and should have stopped to help him.  Instead they ignore the dying man!  We do not know why they passed him, but they did. Last a Samaritan came by and helped the man!  Jews and Samaritans were enemies. Samaritans were viewed as half-breeds.  We see in the parable that the Samaritan does not only come upon the man but had sincere concern for him.  The Samaritan dressed the Jew’s wounds and took him to an inn.  Did he stop there?  No!  He gave the inn keeper a blank check to care for the man. 

Jesus then asks the expert of the law “So, who was the neighbor to this hurt man?”  “His enemy showed him mercy”, the expert replied.  “Go and do the same thing” Jesus concludes.

Throughout the Gospels, Christ cleansed men of leprosy (Matt. 8:2-4, Mark 1:40-45, Luke 17:11-21), healed the crippled and paralyzed (Luke 5:17-26, 6:6-11, John 5:1-9), restored sight and hearing (Mark 8:22-26, John 9:1-7, Luke 18:35-43) cast out demons (Mark 1:32-34, Mark 5:1-20), healed miscellaneous ailments (Matt. 8:14-17, 9:18-22, 14:34-36), and raised the dead (Luke 7:11-17, Mark 5:35-43, John 11:17-44). This was a large part of His ministry.  He had great compassion to help those become physically (and more so spiritually) restored.

Taxes

“And He said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” And they said to Him, “Caesar’s.”  And Jesus said to them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” (NASB, Mark 12:16-17)

In Mark 12:13-17, the religious leaders are questioning Jesus about paying taxes.  Like today, there were harsh penalties for not paying taxes.  The tax money was used for infrastructure, but also pagan temples and the funding of the patronage system for the upper-class.  They questioned Jesus, “Should you pay taxes to the government?”  They thought they had the perfect question to trap Jesus.  He knew how to respond.  “Look at the coin. Who’s picture is on it?”  “Caesar’s”, they replied.  “Then pay your taxes.  The money has the government’s name on it.  However, you are the imago dei.  You bear the image of God.  You give yourself to God. 

“When they came to Capernaum, those who collected the two-drachma tax came to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the two-drachma tax?”  He said, “Yes.”…Jesus said to him…” give it to them for you and Me.’” (NASB, Matthew 17:24-25, 27).

This passage Peter finds a coin in a fish’s mouth. He uses the coin to pay a tax.  In Jesus’ day, all Jewish males were mandated to pay a temple tax. Jesus was God and God owns all things.  So Jesus was exempt from paying this tax.  But Jesus did not want to offend them and disregard the custom. They were not aware of the deity of Jesus.  Though they did not have the money, God provided it in an unlikely way. .

My Two Cents

            So was Jesus a socialist?  Did He promote the redistribution of wealth?  No, he was not a socialist.  As we can see from the His teaching and action, He cared deeply for the poor, the needy, the crippled, the sick, and even the dead!  He taught in parable and lecture that we should tend to the needs of the poor. Feed those who cannot buy food. Clothe those who cannot buy clothes.  Spend time with those who have no one to rely on.  Hold fast to God and not on our own resources.

            What about us?  What should we do as Christians?  We should imitate Christ. We should live out His teaching of dying to self with our time and resources. We should serve with humility.  A life subject to Christ is one of generous and joyous giving. Proper stewardship will sometimes call for giving up the excess resources of time, money and talents.  But this does not mean we are to sell all our possessions and join a commune.  We should rely on God to meet our needs.  When He blesses us, it is okay to prepare for the future and buy discretionary items. But when outward need arises, we should not be so attached to ourselves our possessions. 

            Who is our brother?  Who should we help?  Anyone we encounter. First, we should be devotedly aware of and act within our Christian community. When a Christian has a financial shortfall, we should help them.  If they have physical impairments, we assist them as needed.

When we hear of a non-believer in need, we should look for a way to help.  Does help always mean money?  No. It could be helping with medical bills or buying groceries when there is a monetary shortfall. But sometimes it could be job training, babysitting, yard work or any other type of need.  There are so many opportunities to show Christ’s love and compassion.

            In regards to the sick, most of us (if any) are not able to cure disease, restore sight, make the paralyzed walk or raise the dead. But we can help those with medical bills, medical debt and healthcare.  There is not one of us who does not know someone with cancer or some other illness.  We probably cannot heal them, but we can help lighten the financial, emotional or spiritual burden.

            In regard to taxes, in the recent months we, as a government, have enacted a national healthcare bill.  For the purpose of this paper, I will not comment on the government’s role to provide healthcare, social services or any other “entitlement.”  But what we can learn from Christ is that we must pay what is owed.  We may or may not agree with the funding abortion, Medicare, Medicaid, socialized healthcare, or a vast number of other programs and policies.  But Christ was sensitive to the world in which He lived. We should be a voice for the Lord. We should speak out against policies that are offensive to God.  And we should not cheat the government. If we as Christians increased our giving to those who are in need, the government would not have the need to provide such benefits.

            I want to share two examples of Christ’s teaching in practice. When my youngest son, Landon was battling tumors and going through chemotherapy, we realized the immense financial need for the parents of patients at Children’s Hospital.  We engaged our community of believers to help those people.  During the month of November in 2009, the Lord provided over $4,700 to pay for their medical bills. 

            Shane Claiborne in his book Jesus for President shares that twenty years ago a small congregation experienced a major event.  The pastor had an accident. He didn’t have any health insurance.  The church attendees and members raised money to help pay his medical bills.  The pastor said “If you can do that for me, we can do that for each other.”  They started a fund to pay for the medical needs of the congregation.”  

            In closing I wan to end with a quote from author and pastor Warren Wiersbe. “One act of ministry, motivated by Christian compassion, not only pleases the Lord and helps the needy-it also blesses the one ministering…the old familiar poem is true:

‘Only one life,

‘Twill soon be past;

Only what’s done for Christ

Will Last.”