Almsgiving and Atonement for Sin

In layman's terms: "Don't be greedy, give to the needy."

Today, I will be covering one of the essential teachings of Christian ethics, which is the importance of giving to the poor. This is something that is highly revered in Orthodoxy/Catholicism, but is overlooked in the Protestant community, due to the fact that Protestants specifcally removed old testament books (Sirach and Tobit) which cover this topic. I will be cross referencing the Old and New testaments to show how we must all give to the poor, how it atones for sin, and it is something Jesus himself commanded us to do.

To get started, let's first watch a video to give us an overview of what will be covered:

(the book "Charity" in the video is offered as a PDF in the free downloads section of this site!)

New testament examples directly from scripture:

Luke 11:41

So clean the inside by giving gifts to the poor, and you will be clean all over.

Luke 19 8-10 (NLT)

8 Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”

9 Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.”

Mathew 6 24 (NLT)

24 “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.

Luke 12:33-34 (NLT)

“Sell your possessions and give to those in need. This will store up treasure for you in heaven! And the purses of heaven never get old or develop holes. Your treasure will be safe; no thief can steal it and no moth can destroy it. 34 Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.

Timothy 1 6:18 (NLT)

Tell them to use their money to do good. They should be rich in good works and generous to those in need, always being ready to share with others.

Luke 12:21 (NLT)

"Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God."

Galatians 2:9-10 (NLT)

9 In fact, James, Peter, and John, who were known as pillars of the church, recognized the gift God had given me, and they accepted Barnabas and me as their co-workers. They encouraged us to keep preaching to the Gentiles, while they continued their work with the Jews. 10 Their only suggestion was that we keep on helping the poor, which I have always been eager to do.

Mathew 25: 35-40 (NLT)

35 For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. 36 I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’

37 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? 39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’

40 “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’

Mark 10:21 (NLT)

21 Looking at the man, Jesus felt genuine love for him. “There is still one thing you haven’t done,” he told him. “Go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

Mark 23:25 (NLT)

23 Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God!” 24 This amazed them. But Jesus said again, “Dear children, it is very hard to enter the Kingdom of God. 25 In fact, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!”

James 2:14-26 (NLT)

14 What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? 15 Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, 16 and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?

17 So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.

18 Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.”

19 You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. 20 How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?

21 Don’t you remember that our ancestor Abraham was shown to be right with God by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete. 23 And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” He was even called the friend of God. 24 So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone.

25 Rahab the prostitute is another example. She was shown to be right with God by her actions when she hid those messengers and sent them safely away by a different road. 26 Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works.

Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus

Luke 16: 19-24 (NLT)

19 Jesus said, “There was a certain rich man who was splendidly clothed in purple and fine linen and who lived each day in luxury. 20 At his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus who was covered with sores. 21 As Lazarus lay there longing for scraps from the rich man’s table, the dogs would come and lick his open sores.

22 “Finally, the poor man died and was carried by the angels to sit beside Abraham at the heavenly banquet. The rich man also died and was buried, 23 and he went to the place of the dead. There, in torment, he saw Abraham in the far distance with Lazarus at his side.

24 “The rich man shouted, ‘Father Abraham, have some pity! Send Lazarus over here to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue. I am in anguish in these flames.’

Old testament examples:

Sirach 3:28 (NKJV)

Water will quench a blazing fire, and almsgiving will atone for sins.

Sirach 7:10 (GNT)

Never get tired of praying, and never miss a chance to give to the poor.

Sirach 4:3-5 (GNT)

3-5 And do not put off the gift of a man in need. Don't refuse to help a beggar who is in distress. Don't turn your back on a poor person or give him any reason to curse you. 6 If he becomes so bitter that he does curse you, his Creator will hear his prayer.

Tobit 4:7-11

7 “Give alms from your possessions. Do not turn your face away from any of the poor, so that God’s face will not be turned away from you. 8 Give in proportion to what you own. If you have great wealth, give alms out of your abundance; if you have but little, do not be afraid to give alms even of that little. 9 You will be storing up a goodly treasure for yourself against the day of adversity. 10 For almsgiving delivers from death and keeps one from entering into Darkness. 11 Almsgiving is a worthy offering in the sight of the Most High for all who practice it.

Sirach 29:8-13 (GNT)

Nevertheless, be understanding with those who are poor. Don't keep them waiting for your generosity. The Lord has commanded us to help the poor; don't refuse them the help they need. 10 It is better to lose your money by helping a relative or a friend than to lose it by letting it rust away under a rock somewhere. Use your wealth as the Most High has commanded; this will do you more good than keeping your money for yourself. Count among your treasures the fact that you give to the poor. It will save you from all kinds of trouble and will be a better defense against your enemies than the strongest shield or stoutest spear. Almsgiving will fight for you against your enemy.

Psalm 41:1 (NKJV)

Blessed is the one who considers the poor! In the day of trouble the Lord delivers him.

Proverbs 14:21

Whoever despises his neighbor is a sinner, but blessed is he who is generous to the poor.

Proverbs 14:31

Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is generous to the needy honors him.

Proverbs 22:9

The generous will themselves be blessed, for they share their food with the poor.

Psalm 37:2

The wicked borrows but does not pay back, but the righteous is generous and gives.

Proverbs 11:28

He that trusteth in his riches shall fall: But the righteous shall flourish as a branch.

Malachi 3:8-10

8 “Should people cheat God? Yet you have cheated me!

“But you ask, ‘What do you mean? When did we ever cheat you?’

“You have cheated me of the tithes and offerings due to me. 9 You are under a curse, for your whole nation has been cheating me. 10 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test!

Final thoughts:

In conclusion, it is extremely clear from the Old and New Testaments that faith without works is dead, Christians must all give to the poor, it actually atones for sin, and it is something Jesus himself commanded us to do. In the old testament, Jews offered animals as a sacrifice to the Most High, and similarly our monetary donations to the needy can be understood as an offering to God. As explicitly stated in Mathew 25: 35-40, if you remember the needy, you do it for Jesus himself. If you donate to the poor you receive a blessing, but if you hate and oppress the poor by ignoring them, you will be put under a curse- which will ultimately lead to damnation. This is stated in the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus, and even in Malachi 3:8-10. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed my detailed analysis of almsgiving in relation to Christian ethics!

My favorite organizations to donate to:

Almsgiving and Atonement for Sin

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