I’m not yet sure if God means “there will always be poor people in the land” objectively (e.g. it’s impossible to end poverty) or subjectively (e.g. poverty can be ended but it won’t because of sin). What I do know is that he commands us to help the poor and needy.

That prespective is very important, when dealing with poverty.

On Acts. 4, I agree with the other commentator. That was a local church in Jerusalem, where the believers shared everything and there was no poverty within that local church. I would think that within the USA and even churches in some of the developing countries, you could see that same situation. As a matter of fact, you could almost say that in a Compassion project, you have that situation, since the children are all being taken care of. That doesn’t mean that there isn’t poverty all around that project. So, no contradiction there.

On Jesus not being with them. I would say that there is a difference there regarding Matt. 28 and what Jesus said in John 12. He would not be with the disciples much longer physically. In Acts. 1, He ascended on high. Yet, being God, He is with us. He lives within us. So, those two passages are not contradictory. They are talking about different things.

Having said that on a totally different note. I’m looking for someone, who could sponsor a little girl named Janneth from Bolivia. She is 10 years old and attends the BO181 project, which is an amazing place in Alto Lima. I sponsor 3 children in that project and I’ve been there and the staff is just really good!

If you know of someone, who could sponsor her, please, contact me at: (310) 933-4284.

Blessings,

Kees

The Bible is not a code book to puzzle over and to tease out hidden wisdom. It’s all there in black and white. A present day expositor sums biblical interpretation up quite simply. The “main things” are the “plain things” and the “plain things” are the “main things”.

So, what do we gather from this? That poverty will not end unless people truly come to Christ, and poverty will not end while we hold onto the financial systems of the world.

This also has to be read within the framework of John (“I am going away,” “Where I am going you cannot come (now),” “I go to prepare a place for you”, “Walk while it is yet day”). It would then appear that this is not a warning or threat to Judas.

Only then is it reasonable to say, “How do we understand these things in the light of Matt 28?” Then we are free to look to the promise of another Comforter, and the promise that “I will be in them” in John. (See 17:11-13.)

One might instead consider, “There will always be people who will need your help.” “There were no poor among them” might not mean that everyone was self-sufficient: it suggests that the sharing was such that the people in need (“the poor”) were not left to beg, to starve, to die of exposure. Take away the wage-earners and “rich”, and only the formerly-poor who have had time to learn new skills, amass a few resources, and heal from their diseases were likely to stay afloat. The “poor” were still there: but the blessing of God on his church was such that they were cared for.