Truths to Live By - One Day at a Time

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William MacDonald

“…do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great.” (Lu. 6:35.)

These commandments of our Lord refer to our behavior toward all men, converted and unconverted, but we shall be thinking of them particularly in regard to financial dealings among individual Christians. It is sadly true that some of the most serious conflicts among believers arise over money matters. It shouldn’t be so, but unfortunately the old adage still holds: when money comes in the door, love goes out the window.

A simple solution might be to forbid all financial dealings among the saints, but we cannot do this as long as the Bible says, “Give to every man that asketh of thee” and “…lend, hoping for nothing again” (Lu. 6:30, 35). So we must adopt various guidelines that enable us to obey the Word and yet avoid strife and broken friendships.

We should give to any genuine case of need. The gift should be unconditional. It should not obligate the other person in any way either to vote with us in a church meeting or to defend us when we are wrong. We must not try to “buy” people with our kindnesses.

The commandment to give to every man who asks has certain exceptions. We should not give to anyone to finance gambling, drinking, or smoking. We should not give to underwrite some foolish, get-rich scheme that caters to man’s covetousness.

When we lend for a worthy cause, we should do so with the attitude that we don’t care if the money is never returned. Nonpayment will not affect our friendship. And we should not charge interest on the loan. If a Jew, living under law, could not collect interest from a fellow-Jew (Lev. 25:35-37), how much less should a Christian, living under grace, collect interest from a fellow-believer.

If a case arises where we are not quite sure whether the need is genuine, it is generally better to seek to meet the need. If we must err, it is better to do so on the side of grace.

In giving to others, we must face the fact that recipients of charity often feel resentment toward the donor. This is a price we must be willing to pay. When Disraeli was once reminded that a certain man hated him, he said, “I don’t know why. I haven’t done anything for him lately.”

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Truths to Live By - One Day at a Time

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William MacDonald

“…to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.” (Isa. 61:3)

In this exalted passage, the Messiah is describing some of the marvelous exchanges which He brings to those who receive Him. He gives beauty for ashes, joy for mourning, praise for heaviness.

We bring Him the ashes of a life burned out with pleasure, the ashes of a body ruined by liquor or drugs. We bring Him the ashes of wasted years in the wilderness, or the ashes of frustrated hopes and shattered dreams. And what do we get? He gives us beauty, the beauty of a dazzling bridal diadem. What an exchange! “The poor wearied drudge of sin is honored by becoming the consort of the holy God” (J.H. Jowett). Mary Magdalene, controlled by seven demons, is not only delivered but becomes a daughter of the King. The Corinthians come to Him in all their degradation and are washed, sanctified and justified.

We bring Him the tears of mourning. These are tears brought on by sin, defeat and failure. Tears caused by tragedy and loss. Tears over shattered marriages and wayward children. Can He do anything with these briny, scalding tears? Yes, He can wipe them away and give us the oil of joy in their place. He gives us the joy of forgiveness, the joy of acceptance, the joy of His family, the joy of finding the reason for our existence. In short, He gives us “the joy of the bridal feast for heavy-footed woe.”

Finally, He takes from us the spirit of heaviness. We all know what this spirit is like—the burden of guilt, remorse, shame and humiliation. The spirit of loneliness, of rejection, of betrayal. The spirit of fear and anxiety. He takes them all away and gives us the garment of praise. He puts a new song in our mouth, even praise to our God (Psa. 40:3). The grumbler is filled with thanksgiving, the blasphemer with worship.

Something beautiful, something good,
All my confusion He understood.
All I had to offer Him was brokenness and strife
And He made something beautiful of my life.

(Gaither)

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