Take Care of the Poor Not the Lazy
The lazy need a good swift kick in the buttocks
All of us are faced with the dilemma of whether or not to give a street person money. The quandary comes about because we don’t want to contribute to the possible drug or booze addiction the person may have.
I wrote about how I felt about the predicament.
The Bible has a lot to say about taking care of the poor. And it has much to say about lazy people. Let me clarify that I’m talking about adults here.
Let’s consider the lazy first.
Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest. How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man. (Prov 6: 6–11 ESV)
A sluggard is someone who is habitually lazy, idle, and inactive. (Webster 1828 dictionary). The Lord warns that such a person will be poor, in general, and will lack the basics of food and shelter, unlike the ant who is wise and prepared. The implication here is that a lazy person is a fool.
Scripture cites other consequences of laziness:
Through sloth, the roof sinks in, and through indolence the house leaks. (Ecc 10: 18 ESV)
Slothfulness casts into a deep sleep, and an idle person will suffer hunger. (Prov 19:15 ESV)
I don’t want to be too hard on the lazy. Sometimes laziness is due to something like depression which is a medical condition.
It is important to clarify that the Bible is talking about people who are unwilling to work not people who are unable to work. These are healthy people, of sound mind and body, who are just plain lazy.
About the poor
The Lord warns us time and again about being indifferent to the plight of the poor.
Whoever closes his ear to the cry of the poor will himself call out and not be answered. (Prov 21:13 ESV)
Whoever gives to the poor will not want, but he who hides his eyes will get many a curse. (Prov 28: 27 ESV)
Yikes!
Jesus warns us in Matthew 25: 35-46 when he differentiates between and separates the sheep and the goats. The sheep are commended for taking care of the poor, the sick, and the imprisoned. The goats, on the other hand, are chastised for their lack of concern and action toward the less fortunate and the incarcerated.
The goats went away to eternal punishment and the sheep, the righteous, into eternal life.
Again, yikes!
As an aside, your works don’t save you. Works show the fruit of your salvation. But that’s another article.
What do we do with that person on the street?
Are they lazy?
Is that relevant?
As I said before, the Bible rebukes people who are unwilling to work not unable to work. Mental illness is a big reason why many are on the street: veterans with PTSD, mental breakdowns due to broken marriages, kids who were kicked out of the house for whatever reason, etc.
I prefer to err on the side of compassion. If they’re on the street, they need help. Only you can decide how you are going to help.
What do you do with a lazy person?
They might be a family member or someone in your circle of friends.
If you’ve got a mooch and you’re helping them out by always giving them money, or a place to stay, or bailing them out of jail, then you’re doing them a disservice.
They need a swift kick in the pants.
Or if they want help, there are ways to inspire them:
- Find out when it was that they weren’t lazy. What were they doing?
- Maybe they’ve just lost their way. Find out when that happened and get them back on track.
- Words of encouragement are always a big boost for me. When they do something well, like get off the couch, praise them. You never know.
- What gets rewarded, gets done.
Or they can check out this article for inspiration.
Ultimately it is up to them. If the soft touch doesn’t work, then you have to get tough, up to and including kicking them out of the house. Let me remind you that I’m talking about adults. Many people have ‘recovered’ once they hit rock bottom and came to the end of themselves.
Conclusion
We shouldn’t enable laziness. Lazy people can become pests, someone you don’t want around.
Many don’t want the help that is offered to them. If that is the case, then it isn’t up to you to sustain them. You will only end up resenting them and it will end up negatively affecting your emotional health.
Not all poor people are lazy. If you don’t know, assume they’re not. Help them. Give them your spare change, or buy them a meal, or give them your coat.
When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge, neither shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest. And you shall not strip your vineyard bare, neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard. You shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner: I am the LORD your God. (Lev 19: 9–10 ESV)
The Lord knows that we like to hold on to our hard-earned money so he had to tell us what to do with it, especially regarding the poor. If you want to positively affect your mental health, give of your time and resources to help the poor. You won’t regret it.
The rich and the poor meet together; the LORD is the Maker of them all. (Prov 22: 2 ESV)
We’re all in this life together. It works better when all who can are doing their part.
Amen.