Sermon

In all my life I have only heard 1 sermon on the subject I will speak to you about today. I believe that this subject is very close to the heart of God, but sadly many preachers stay away from this subject beacuse they are desperate to hold on to the money coming into their church for operating expenses and building costs. If they could only underdstand that God's abundance is released into our personal lives and into our ministries when we believe and obey the Lord concering the care of orphans & widows. I firmly believe that it is vitally important to our financial lives both personally and corporately, because after all, God is our provider and it is His command to care for those who can't take care of themselves. So when we obey Him by releasing our finances and possessions, our Provider takes care of us.

According to international agencies that deal with tracking the orphan situation in the world, there are approximately 100,000,000 abandoned, neglected and orphaned in the world today. If they held hands the line would circle the earth 3 times!

A child dies every 3 secs. under the age of 5 from neglect, starvation, exposure. 30,000/day that’s 11,000,000 every year.

In Africa, ”By the end of this decade it would take 80,000 orphanages, holding 500 orphans each, just to house the children orphaned by AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa alone.”-Time Magazine

According to these agencies, Mexico City has well over 1,000,000 street children and over 250,000 are abandoned or orphaned.

This is a very serious matter to God. One that He expects His children to take care of.

Importance in scripture:

Virgin birth - 2
Missions - 12
Sanctification - 72
Repentance - 110
Baptism - 80
Caring for the orphans, widows, & poor - over 118 times, 44 for orphans

I don’t think most of us realize how important caring for orphans and widows is to God.
Psalms 68:5 - God is to be a Father to the fatherless; & a Defender of widows
This very nature of God has been imparted to the church and is a very vital part of our responsibility as children of God.

I want to set a foundation by showing you how some of the patriarchs treated orphans and widows according to the mandate of God.

Job:

Job teaches us what God’s standard for righteousness. In both the Old & the New Testaments, we are told that we must “put on” righteousness and this righteousness is not ours - it must be the righteousness of God. Job shows us the standard for this righteousness in the Old Covenant and then when Jesus came to establish the New Covenant, he carried on, bringing this standard of righteousness forward to us as Christians. In other words, he did not do away with what was told to Job and the other patriarchs and prophets of old.

Job 29:11 When the ear heard, then it blessed me, And when the eye saw, then it approved me;
Job 29:12 Because I delivered the poor who cried out, The fatherless and the one who had no helper.
Job 29:13 The blessing of a perishing man came upon me, And I caused the widow's heart to sing for joy.
Job 29:14 I put on righteousness, and it clothed me; My justice was like a robe and a turban.
Job 29:15 I was eyes to the blind, And I was feet to the lame.
Job 29:16 I was a father to the poor, And I searched out the case that I did not know.
Job 29:17 I broke the fangs of the wicked, And plucked the victim from his teeth.

This was what Job described as putting on righteousness - vs; 14

He further states in Chapter 31 that there were sins he was not guilty of.

Job 31:16 "If I have kept the poor from their desire, Or caused the eyes of the widow to fail,
Job 31:17 Or eaten my morsel by myself, So that the fatherless could not eat of it
Job 31:18 (But from my youth I reared him as a father, And from my mother's womb I guided the widow);
Job 31:19 If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, Or any poor man without covering;
Job 31:20 If his heart has not blessed me, And if he was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep;
Job 31:21 If I have raised my hand against the fatherless, When I saw I had help in the gate;
Job 31:22 Then let my arm fall from my shoulder, Let my arm be torn from the socket.

He says that NOT doing these things are sins:
Ønot caring for the poor
Ønot caring for the widow
Øeaten food that I should have shared with orphans
Ønot treating orphans as his own children
Ønot clothing anyone who is without clothing
He even says that if I meet an orphan and my arm does not strengthen him - bless him - then may it fall from it’s socket!!!

Can you or I say these things? Is our standard of righteousness as high as his? Has God’s standard for righteousness changed for us in the New Covenant?

NO - James 1:27 Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.

The word for religion is thre¯skeia. Another translation of this Greek word is “worship”, and the word for “visit” is “episkeptomai” which means “to go look after and care for”. You have to “go” to visit so this means we are to seek out the orphans and widows to care for them.

So we can say that “pure and undefiled “worship” is to go look after and care for orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world. God calls this type of ministry to others as “pure and undefiled”. So obviously God’s standard for righteousness has not changed for us.

Moses

In the law of Moses we see that God has built into the Law, the care of orphans, widows and the poor. It was not a suggestion, if you felt like it and you had some left over after you took care of all your needs. He demanded it.

Deu 14:28 "At the end of every third year you shall bring out the tithe of your produce of that year and store it up within your gates.
Deu 14:29 And the Levite, because he has no portion nor inheritance with you, and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow who are within your gates, may come and eat and be satisfied, that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hand which you do.

Here the tithe was to be used for the care for three groups:
1.The Levites
2.The stranger - the poor, unknown in their midsts
3.Orphans & widows

Caring for orphans and widows was actually built into their whole life system. It was not a side issue. As an Israelite, you could not be fully obedient to the Law if you didn’t provide for the orphans and widows. God was and still is, very serious about caring for the orphans, widows and the poor.

David

David wrote about how God feels about the orphans and the widows;

Psa 68:5 A Father of the fatherless and a judge and protector of the widows is God in His holy habitation.

Psa 146:9 The Lord watches over the strangers; He relieves the fatherless and widow; But the way of the wicked He turns upside down.

Solomon

Solomon, whom the Bible describes as the wisest man to ever live on the earth, had several warnings about ignoring the poor and the weak.

Pro 21:13 Whoever stops his ears at the cry of the poor will cry out himself and not be heard.

Pro 28:27 He who gives to the poor will not want, but he who hides his eyes [from their want] will have many a curse.

The Prophets

If you study the writings of the prophets you will see that were three main sins that the prophets were warning the people about.

1.Idolatry
2.Adultery
3.lack of concern for the orphans, widows & the poor

Now we know that Idolatry and adultery are terrible and we are shocked at these sins in the church - BUT - are we shocked at the 3^rd one? God puts indifference to the defenseless and poor in the same category as idolatry and adultery.

Here is what God tells the children of Israel in order to put on His righteousness:

Isa 1:16 "Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes. Cease to do evil,
Isa 1:17 Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke the oppressor; Defend “or relieve” the fatherless, Plead for the widow.

He goes on to tell them how they will be rewarded for doing these things:

Isa 1:18 "Come now, and let us reason together," Says the Lord, "Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool.
Isa 1:19 If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land;
Isa 1:20 But if you refuse and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken it.

There is great promises for doing the things had commanded them, included in that list was the care of orphans and widows, however HE tells them that if they do not, then they would be devoured by the sword.

Later He rebukes the leaders of the time; notice what it is He is angry about.

Isa 1:23 Your princes are rebellious, And companions of thieves; Everyone loves bribes, And follows after rewards. They do not defend the fatherless, Nor does the cause of the widow come before them.

Again He includes the indifference to the orphans and widows as a reason for His anger. He withholds blessings from them because of this.

In Isaiah 58 we find one of the most powerful scriptures in the Old Testament - It is called the True Fast. I believe in fasting but in Isaiah 58 we find that God says there is a lot more to fasting than just going without food.

Isa 58:5 Is it a fast that I have chosen, A day for a man to afflict his soul? Is it to bow down his head like a bulrush, And to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Would you call this a fast, And an acceptable day to the Lord?
Isa 58:6 "Is this not the fast that I have chosen: To loose the bonds of wickedness, To undo the heavy burdens, To let the oppressed go free, And that you break every yoke?
Isa 58:7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, And that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out; When you see the naked, that you cover him, And not hide yourself from your own flesh?
Isa 58:8 Then your light shall break forth like the morning, Your healing shall spring forth speedily, And your righteousness shall go before you; The glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
Isa 58:9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; You shall cry, and He will say, 'Here I am.' "If you take away the yoke from your midst, The pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,
Isa 58:10 If you extend your soul to the hungry And satisfy the afflicted soul, Then your light shall dawn in the darkness, And your darkness shall be as the noonday.
Isa 58:11 The Lord will guide you continually, And satisfy your soul in drought, And strengthen your bones; You shall be like a watered garden, And like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.

This is the way to get everything in this life that you need from God.
> It guarantees that your prayers will be answered.
> It guarantees that your healing will come quickly.
> It guarantees that the glory of the Lord/ the Holy Spirit will be your rear guard
> It guarantees that when you call, He will answer “here am I”
> It guarantees that your light - your joy, peace happiness - will break forth in the middle of crisis and problems -no darkness can overcome you
> It guarantees that the Lord will guide you continually
> It guarantees that even in drought - even if all the financial kingdoms of the earth are failing, you will be satisfied - you will not be brought to ruin
> It guarantees that your body will be strengthened
> It guarantees that you life will be an ever-flowing spring of life that never fails.

What is He telling that we are to do to tap into this amazing abundance of God’s blessings?

> Share your bread with the hungry
> don’t hide from your own flesh - don’t avoid caring for those in your own household of faith
> House the poor - the orphans & widows who have no home
> Clothe the naked
> Take away the yoke from your midst’s - relieve oppression wherever you find it
> Stop pointing your finger in scorn at those who are oppressed or in sin
> Stop gossiping and slandering your brothers and sisters
> Care for those that are afflicted or sick.

It’s not a hard thing to do to fulfill these commands of God in order to receive the promises of God. If you have unanswered prayers in your life, check this short list to see if you are complying with these things that God desires of you -

Sodom & Gomorrah

If asked, “what was the Sin of Sodom and Gomorrah that caused the wrath of God to destroy them? Most would say homosexuality or sexual perversions. But let’s look at what the Bible says:

Eze 16:49 Look, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughter had pride, fullness of food, and abundance of idleness; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.
Eze 16:50 And they were haughty and committed abomination before Me; therefore I took them away as I saw fit.

God says He destroyed them for 4 abominations:
> Pride
> Overabundance of food / gluttony and wastefulness
> Idleness
> Indifference to the poor - the orphans and the widows

It doesn’t even mention sexual abominations here in the reasons for destruction. I believe that when a society has these behaviors present in their lifestyle, that sexual sins of all kinds are not far behind. I other words, the sexual decay is a symptom of the real disease. Look at the US and Europe and Japan - they are experiencing moral decay and they are displaying much of the root behaviors that God called abominations in the cities of Sodom & Gomorrah.

Jesus

Let’s look at some of the things Jesus had to say about taking care of those who can’t take care of themselves.

Luk 3:9 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."

God is saying here that it is not just that you don’t commit sin - that you don’t just abstain from actions that are wrong, but you must bear good fruit. So read further what He calls good fruit.

Luk 3:10 So the people asked him, saying, "What shall we do then?"
Luk 3:11 He answered and said to them, "He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise."

It is acts of caring and compassion for those who are unable to care for themselves. It is clothing the naked and feeding the hungry.

In Matthew Jesus has strong words for those who do not obey Him concerning the orphans, the widows and the poor.

Mat 25:41 "Then He will also say to those on the left hand, 'Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels:
Mat 25:42 for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink;
Mat 25:43 I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.'
Mat 25:44 "Then they also will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?'
Mat 25:45 Then He will answer them, saying, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.'
Mat 25:46 And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."

This is the parable of the sheep and goats. Jesus is saying at the end of time, He will judge the nations of the earth and they will be put into 2 categories. The righteous and the unrighteous. The righteous go into eternal life with Jesus and the unrighteous will go into everlasting punishment. Again we see that the righteousness we walk in is the determining factor. What had the unrighteous done that was so wrong?

He said they were unrighteous because…
You didn’t give me food when I was hungry
You didn’t give me water when I was thirsty
You didn’t give me shelter when I was homeless
You didn’t give me clothes when I was naked
You didn’t come minister to me when I was sick
You didn’t come to me when I was in prison

Their reply was “when did we see you hungry, thirsty, naked, sick, homeless or in prison - He said if you did not do it for those who seem to be insignificant or of least importance ;like the orphans, the widows and the poor, it was exactly like you didn’t do it to me.

Do you understand that caring for those who cannot care for themselves is an extremely important issue on the mind of God. Whether we obey or not has eternal consequences as well as consequences here and now.

George Mueller

A man named George Mueller, who lived in Bristol England in the early 1800’s, was called by God to care for orphans. He was an amazing man of faith. He read the scripture in Psalms 68:5 that says God is a father of the fatherless. He believed that if God was truly the father to orphans, all he had to do was to make himself available to care for the orphans and God would supply every need. So that’s what he did. He first opened his own home, and used what money he had to feed and clothe them. One morning, his wife told him that there was absolutely nothing in the kitchen for the children to eat. He gathered the children around the table for breakfast as he always did. The table was obviously bare, but he prayed to the Lord and thanked Him for the food that they would receive for breakfast. When he finished praying they all sat there for a few moments with their empty plates in front of them. In just minutes, there was a knock at the door. It was a man who owned a bakery. He told Mr. Mueller that before he had gone to bed the night before, the Holy Spirit told him that Mr. Mueller and the orphans had no food for breakfast, so he got out of bed at 4:00am and went to his bakery to bake fresh bread for the orphanage. Now while this conversation was going on, a milk truck passing by, suddenly broke down. The driver tried to fix the truck quickly but could not, so he went to Mr. Mueller standing on his porch to ask him if he could use some milk as he needed to unload the truck so that he work on it. So God miraculously provided. As God increased his faith Mr. Mueller built homes and cared for more and more children. At his death, he was caring for over 2,000 children everyday! Mr. Mueller never told anyone of his needs for his orphanage, his church, or his own personal needs. During his ministry he took in the equivalent of $2,500,000,000 pesos!! God will do what he says he will do. He will provide but we - His children must do our part.

Testimony: A pastor that I know tells of how he was desperate to build another church building as his weekend services were completely full and the church was growing so he needed more room. He had extra land to build on but he had very little saved to build with. He asked the Lord to show him how he was to obtain the money needed to build. He refused to go into debt. The Lord impressed upon him to give a large offering to an orphanage in Mexico. He emptied the account that held the building fund money. The offering was $100,000! After he made the donation everything seemed to fall apart financially but he remained in faith that God would honor his offering and obedience. Several weeks passed and no money came in. One Sunday before the service, he sensed the Lord telling him to speak to the congregation about making a special offering toward the building fund. This was the first time he had made such an appeal. The offering on that one day exceeded $2,000,000. In one day, after honoring the Word of God by caring for orphans, the Lord caused enough money to come in at one time to build the new building debt free!

Recap with the promises in Isaiah 58:

This is the way to get everything in this life that you need from God.
> It guarantees that your prayers will be answered.
> It guarantees that your healing will come quickly.
> It guarantees that the glory of the Lord/ the Holy Spirit will be your rear guard
> It guarantees that when you call, He will answer “here am I”
> It guarantees that your light - your joy, peace happiness - will break forth in the middle of crisis and problems -no darkness can overcome you
> It guarantees that the Lord will guide you continually
> It guarantees that even in drought - even if all the financial kingdoms of the earth are failing, you will be satisfied - you will not be brought to ruin
> It guarantees that your body will be strengthened
> It guarantees that you life will be an ever-flowing spring of life that never fails.

If you are sowing into the building of God’s house, He will see to it that your house is cared for.