In our study of Mark we are in Mark 10:21-22 where Jesus tells the rich man to sell his possessions, give them to the poor and follow Him.
Based on this we took up a study of the doctrine of the poor and last time we left off with some of the curses that God places on those who take advantage of or who profit from those who are in a weaker position.
Prov 22:16; He who oppresses the poor to make more for himself Or who gives to the rich, will only come to poverty.
This is the curse the government is under because they stole from the people by printing money, bailed out the banks and corporations in the derivative economy and did not help the people in the real economy so now we have the lowest labor participation rate ever recorded.
Prov 28:3; A poor man who oppresses the weak is like a driving rain which leaves no food. (A hurricane or a tornado) Net notes 8 and 9
We see from this that God curses anyone who takes advantage of another person. James 1:17;
God can raise the poor out of the poverty of their circumstances. 1Sam 2:8; Psa 113:7. "He raises the poor from the dust; and God lifts the needy from the ash heap."
The principle of God's provision for the poor is taught in Psa 112:9; and quoted in 2Cor 9:9; "He (God) has given freely to the poor..." His ultimate gift of course is Jesus Christ and spiritual life.
These verses describe God's provision for spiritual poverty ( spiritual death) that is the status of all mankind in their natural state (in Adam). 1Cor 15:22; Paul then goes on to describe the connection between God's remedy for spiritual poverty that leads to His remedy for temporal poverty.
2Cor 9:10-11; Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness;
v11 you will be enriched in everything for all liberality, which through us is producing thanksgiving to God.
God not only delivers the poor from their temporal poverty but they often recognized the need for salvation and respond to the Gospel because of their temporal poverty under the principle of Gen 50:20;
In Acts 16:28-31; The jailor's poverty was his fear of being executed by the Romans because the prisoners in his jail had escaped. He was really asking for temporal salvation but Paul told him about spiritual salvation that is more important.
Many people will not face reality about eternal things when things are going well and they have material wealth so God uses temporal adversity and poverty to create humility and matches it with positive volition with God consciousness and Gospel hearing.
The Gospel therefore is God's response to the cries of the poor. Psa 72:12-14; Matt 11:5; Luke 4:18; Luke 7:22; "The Gospel is preached to the poor" was a sign that Jesus was Messiah.
The Gospel is God's solution for poverty and that means it is the only real solution to poverty the grace pipeline established with spiritual life and spiritual prosperity from the PMA of God's Word precedes and creates temporal prosperity.
Paul describes God's process for reversing the downtrends of history that create poverty in 1 Corinthians.
God's plan for everyone including the poor in the Church Age reverses the downtrends of history. This happens anywhere there is spiritual leadership and the formation of a pivot of mature believers from positive volition to the categories of God's Word.
The believer's attitude toward God's Word under the principle of as goes the believer so goes the client nation determines the course of history throughout the Church Age. 2Chron 7:14;
Believers come from all callings in life including very humble origins and inferior natural ability, but believers are not classified as lowlife scum of the earth, except when they prolong their stay in the Satan's cosmic system and become his useful idiots.
During the Church Age, the church, the royal family of God, determines the course of history by their attitude toward Bible doctrine and the plan of God as it relates to the use of God's power through the application if His Word under the ministry of God the Holy Spirit.
This means that Jesus Christ who controls history Col 1:17; Heb 1:3; has delegated some control of history to believers. That control is a function of their volition toward God's Word. Negative volition results in things getting worse, positive volition results in things getting better.
This means that the believer's attitude toward God's Word produces prosperity and blessing or discipline and adversity for their nation.