The Wrong Question

If God is all powerful, then why doesn't He feed the poor? Why doesn't He stop all the wars? We're asking the wrong question.

Of course, God could stop all of the wars and end hunger. He's God! The REAL question is "why don't WE?"

The first verse that comes to my mind about this topic was when Jesus said, "The poor you will always have with you." - Matthew 26:11. Why? Why will we ALWAYS have the poor with us? It's because WE are the ones who are supposed to care for them. WE are the ones who are failing to feed the hungry.

Of course, Jesus is really talking about the 'spiritually' poor. And Jesus was right. They have always been with us.

The statement "the poor you will always have with you" is an all-knowing God knowing that we will never accomplish what He wants us to do, because of our sinful nature. Our desire for our own material possessions and 'looking out for number one' outweighs our desire to help and to love others.

A better question should be "Lord, what can I do to help the poor?" To feed the hungry. To cloth the naked.

Lord, show me what you would have me do. Lord, teach me, that I might use my knowledge to feed those who are hungry, house those who have no home, to clothe those who are naked.

We keep asking all of the wrong questions. We have the capability and financial resources to do everything God wants us to do, but we don't. It's not God we should be questioning. It is ourselves and our own free will decisions.

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ - Matthew 25:34-40