On My Mind- Bono, Social Justice and the Church Part 2

"He who is gracious to a poor man lends to the LORD, and He will repay him for his good deed."

Proverbs 19:17

Start with Part 1 of this post if you haven't read it already.

Many teachers and apologists that I've read lately are sounding the alarm against the "social gospel." This is certainly understandable since influential emergent church leaders like Brian McLaren and Rob Bell are trying to convert us to their re-painted version of it. However, I fear that some people's refutation of the social gospel causes them to neglect giving to the poor, caring for the sick, etc., to the extent that God would like them to. It would serve us well to look at Matthew 23:23 and put it into the context of this debate. I can almost hear Jesus now, "You've got your theological i's dotted and your t's crossed, but you've spent more time pointing out people's bad teaching than you have living out my teaching about justice and mercy. You should have practiced the latter without neglecting the former."

Some argue that Matthew 25, which Bono quoted in the video, isn't about the poor in general, but about caring for believers in need (specifically Jesus' disciples in that context). Okay sure. And Bono's comment based on the Lord's prayer about bringing heaven to earth, if he actually means trying to create a utopia (like Walter Rauschenbusch taught), is not what that passage means either. But despite questionable exegesis of specific passages, you can't look at all the scriptural examples here and tell me that Bono is totally off base in his understanding of God's heart for the poor and oppressed. It is absolutely a tragedy when we use the Bible to argue against meeting the needs of those we have the ability to help.

The parable of the Good Samaritan won't let us ignore the people that Bono is advocating for. The Samaritan responded immediately to the plight of the robbed and beaten jew, he didn't waste time reasoning whether he was obligated to or not. He got his hands dirty cleaning wounds, he invested time and money, and he saw the recovery through to completion by partnering with the inn keeper. All this for a stranger and cultural/religious enemy. I would argue that in the 21st century, with all of the resources, technology and global organizations out there, people on the other side of the world who are suffering now fall into the category of "neighbor" for us. The command says love your neighbor as yourself. Take it at face value. You wouldn't let your child die of starvation right? Then help your neighbor in Africa keep her child from starving too, even if it means cutting back on your starbucks or choosing a cheaper cable TV plan.

If we're concerned about giving to the ONE campaign because of it's lack of focus on sharing the gospel, we can still respond to this challenge by giving to and working with organizations like Compassion, World Vision, Gospel for Asia, or Samaritan's Purse. The work still needs to be done, it just needs to be coupled with meeting the underlying spiritual need for Jesus that all these people have as well.

Rather than fight with false teachers of the social gospel or secular humanism, let's outdo them all with our response to these challenges, "that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." Let our actions prove that we follow the God who "secures justice for the poor and upholds the cause of the needy" (Psalm 140:12).