The Church and Benevolence

I. Text: Galatians 6:1-10

II. Defining the issue

III. The issue is not: (Chart 1)

IV. Does the church have responsibilities in regards to taking care of some who are needy?

V. Do the members of the church love orphans and widows?

VI. The answer to both questions is yes.

VII. The issue is: (Chart 2)

VIII. How can individuals and the church fulfill their mutual responsibilities?

IX. Can churches pool their resources together and form an organization to administer the need?

X. How did the early church meet these needs? (Chart 3)

XI. Needy saints when the church was established

XII. Acts 2:44 – Sold possessions to any who had need (Chart 4)

XIII. Acts 4:32-36 – Sold possessions to help their needy (Chart 5)

XIV. Needy saints during the famine in Jerusalem

XV. 1 Corinthians 16:1-3 – Money for needy saints (Chart 6)

XVI. Romans 15:25-31 – Jerusalem saints to be helped (Chart 7, 8)

XVII. 2 Corinthians 8:4 – Minister to saints

XVIII. 2 Corinthians 9:1-13 – Saints needs were met (all men-discuss)

XIX. Widows in the daily distribution

XX. Acts 6:1-4 – Controversy regarding Hellenist/Hebrew widows (Chart 9)

XXI. Subordinate to preaching the gospel

XXII. Widows indeed (Chart 10)

XXIII. 1 Timothy 5:3-10 – Paul’s admonition regarding widows (Chart 11)

XXIV. Church is limited in responsibility

XXV. Individuals have first responsibility (Chart 12)

XXVI. In all these situations, saints were helped by the church directly (Chart 13)

XXVII. No organization was formed to meet immediate needs

XXVIII. No organization was formed to relieve future needs

XXIX. Men have tried to form organizations to do the work of the church or individuals

XXX. Sponsoring church arrangement (Chart 14)

XXXI. In the New Testament, churches sent money directly to the brethren in need and when the need was met, the money stopped.

XXXII. In the sponsoring church, the sponsoring church creates a need then solicits money from other churches to meet that need.

XXXIII. Funds are collected on an ongoing basis.

XXXIV. Sponsoring churches compete with one another for funds for their organizations.

XXXV. The elders of the sponsoring church oversee the work, not the contributing churches

XXXVI. There is no scriptural pattern or command for the sponsoring church.

XXXVII. In institutionalism, the institution creates a need then solicits money from other churches to meet that need. (Chart 15)

XXXVIII. Funds are collected on an ongoing basis.

XXXIX. Institutions compete with one another for funds for their organizations.

XXXX. A board of directors oversee the work, not the contributing churches

XXXXI. There is no scriptural pattern or command for the institution.

XXXXII. The scriptures often used to support brotherhood orphan homes

XXXXIII. James 1:27 (Chart 16)

XXXXIV. The word visit, according to Greek scholars, means to investigate and take oversight of the situation

XXXXV. Definition (Chart 17, 18)

XXXXVI. If James 1:27 and the command to “visit” authorizes the church to build orphan homes, it would also authorize the church to build hospitals and jails (Matthew 25:36, 43). –A.C. Grider (Chart 19)

XXXXVII. It is clear that this is an individual’s responsibility

XXXXVIII. Commands in this verse and the previous verse are directed at individuals (Chart 20)

XXXXIX. Whoever is to do the visiting, is to do the keeping.

XXXXX. We cannot take a passage directed towards individuals and shift the responsibility to the church

XXXXXI. A.C. Grider quote on James 1:27 (Chart 21, 22)

XXXXXII. Galatians 6:10 (Chart 23)

XXXXXIII. Another passage about individual responsibility

XXXXXIV. The whole chapter addresses individual responsibility (Chart 24)

XXXXXV. Individuals can help whoever they want to with their money

XXXXXVI. The church is limited to helping saints

XXXXXVII. 1 Corinthians 16:1 – Churches of Galatia to help saints

XXXXXVIII. It is an inexpedient use of the Lord’s money (Chart 25)

XXXXXIX. Divisive

XXXXXX. All agree that the church can help qualified needy saints.

XXXXXXI. The division came when brethren introduced organizations that the scriptures do not authorize.

XXXXXXII. Ineffective use of money (Chart 26)

XXXXXXIII. Institutions invest the money in enterprises (oil and gas leases, farms, etc.) that no one would dare use for the church money.

XXXXXXIV. Many were posting profits in the 70’s; the Boles Home taking in $154, 104 MORE than was needed for its expenses.

XXXXXXV. An orphan’s home in Arkansas loaned a church $40,000 (in 1969) to build a new church building.

XXXXXXVI. There is no dollar for dollar benefit for the children because of overhead, advertising, salaries, etc.

XXXXXXVII. It cost more per child to run an orphanage than for the state to keep children in foster care. (Chart 27)

XXXXXXVIII. In 1991, the Boles home had 52 children.

XXXXXXIX. They received $507, 199 through fees, rent, investment income, and other. They received $699,915 from churches.

XXXXXXX. Subtracting overhead, they spent $22, 975 per child for the year

XXXXXXXI. The Tennessee Children’s home cost $16,779 per child for the year

XXXXXXXII. The State of Alabama spent $2,400 plus medical per child for one year and put the children in foster homes, with parents to take care of them.

XXXXXXXIII. Sociologists teach that orphan homes are an ineffective way to take care of the children and are, in the long term, detrimental. (Back to Chart 25)

XXXXXXXIV. Many families are waiting to adopt and were during the debates over orphanages.

XXXXXXXV. Sociologists as early as the late 1800’s acknowledged the detrimental care in orphan asylums and recommended their use only for training children to be placed in permanent homes.

XXXXXXXVI. How can we fulfill the command? (Chart 28)

XXXXXXXVII. If a need presents itself, we must take care of the need.

XXXXXXXVIII. If a child’s parents were killed and there was no family to take care of them, surely brethren would take the children into their homes.

XXXXXXXIX. The church could assist the family in taking care of the children or helping a widow who meets the qualifications of 1 Timothy 5.

XXXXXXXX. We would meet the need, I am confident of this, whether from our own pockets, or, if scripturally authorized, from the treasury. I have seen it again and again.

XXXXXXXXI. The Universal and Local Church: Benevolence