“All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts.” (Acts 2:44-46)

“All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all. There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need.” (Acts 4:32-35)

“Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality. At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. Then there will be equality, as it is written: “He who gathered much did not have too much, and he who gathered little did not have too little.” (2 Cor. 8:13-14)

“Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” (Matt. 19:21)

Are all of these passages pointing towards communism (at least in some form or another)? “All the believers were together and had everything in common…No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had…Then there will be equality…go, sell your possessions.” Surely this has to point somewhere different than capitalistic America? I think it does. However, I do not believe it points towards communism.

The first step in unpacking these passages is to note the word “need“. Both passages from Acts state that the redistribution of wealth and propery was for anyone who had need. The passage from Corinthians carries a similar idea–one’s plenty is to cover the other’s need. Even Jesus’ command to sell everything is followed by the command to give it to the poor (or those in need). It must be understood that the primary motivation for these radical economic actions was not redistribution in and of itself, but instead was to cover any need that might exist.

The “equality” Paul speaks of in Corinthians was not equality for equality’s sake, but addressing that one part of the body of Christ had great need, while another part had plenty. The motivation is driven by the recipient’s need not the giver’s necessity for self-denial or redistribution. Not to be “hard pressed” because this is the best or holiest way, but to meet a real and tangible need of the fellow saints (who would be obligated to return the favor if roles become reversed).

The heart of these passages is that Christians with the means to meet needs of other believers have an obligation to do so. Nowhere is this idea more clearly stated than in 1 John: “But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?” (3:17) Simply put: if the love of God is within us, we must meet the needs of our brothers and sisters if we have the means to do so.

I do not believe these verses support a call to communism. Instead, it calls us to a heightened awareness of the needs of our brothers and sisters in Christ. That we would, like the early church, eagerly lay down all we possess so that a fellow brother or sister may not be in need.

Some other arguments against a biblical mandate for communisim are as follows:

- Giving in the New Testament is voluntary (as the result of a changed heart, not a changed society).

- Money is given to support the work of the gospel and meet the needs of others not for redistributive purposes in and of themselves.

- Giving is described in scripture as a personal decision not a political decision (from the heart not the law).

- Creation itself shows an array of diversity. God makes is clear in His creative design that unity in diversity is to be the theme of life, not uniformity.

In conclusion, Christ said: “My kingdom is not of this world.” While I believe that the scriptures do not instruct us to become a communisitic society, I would not go as far as to say that communism is inherently “unchristian”. The Bible does not endorse one economic theory above another (say capitalism). Instead, we are called to be Christ-like in whatever arena we find ourselves.

1. My summer schedule makes it hard to get into the routine of regular postings.

2. I am trying to wrap everything up on my second book:  Christ Centered Contentment: Claiming the abundant life He promised.

3. I am preparing to rollover to a new software for my site.

4. I am writing a Sunday School Curriculum for my church.

5. I desire to write quality posts worth reading.

So, check back soon.  I have decided to write one post a week.  That should be doable.

“If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount.  But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great.” (Luke 6:34-35)

Christ gave quite a surprising twist to generosity–expect nothing in return.  This got me thinking about what types of “expectations” we bring to the table of generosity. [Intro previously posted]

HEAVENLY

This post will highlight one often overlooked portion of the passages we have used throughout this mini-series.  Each portion of scripture we have looked actually tells us what our expectation should be:

“and your reward will be great.” (Luke 6:35)

“your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.” (Matt. 6:4)

“for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” (Luke 14:14)

The Bible instructs our generosity to be motivated by a desire for heavenly reward.  In a sense, we are only to “expect nothing in return” in this life.  However, the expectation of return in the next life should in fact be a passionate motivation.

What exactly heavenly reward is, is never fully described in scripture.  To a certain extent, we don’t really know what heavenly reward is.  I believe this is intentional in order to call us to live by faith.  The only thing that we know for certain is that Christ, the author of our salvation, instructs us to seek after it. 

Taking an honest look at your expectations for generosity (because believe me, you do have expectations of some kind) can free us to give as the Bible instructs, and ultimately, to reap a bountiful harvest in heaven.

Expectation Series: Part 1- Repayment, Part 2- Praise, Part 3- Heavenly.

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“If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount.  But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great.” (Luke 6:34-35)

Christ gave quite a surprising twist to generosity–expect nothing in return.  This got me thinking about what types of “expectations” we bring to the table of generosity. [Intro previously posted]

PRAISE

Accolade is another common expectation following a contribution.  People often, though perhaps not openly, expect praise for their generosity and philanthropy.

“So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men.  Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.  But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.” (Matt. 6:2-4) 

Christ spoke plainly against this sort of motivation.  He explains that the only reward of “praise seeking generosity” is just what you hoped for–praise from men.  At first it sounds reasonable to get what you expect, perhaps even legitimate.  But we cheat ourselves if all we seek is the recognition of men.

A couple handshakes, a letter of appreciation, or a plaque.  These are nothing compared to the recognition and reward of God.  Christ encouraged us to seek greater things.  We cannot let our desire for praise and recognition rob us of true generosity.  Take time to reflect over how much you anticipate praise, recognition or appreciation.  How do you react when a contribution isn’t met with these things?

One mark of of true Christ-centered generosity is a freedom from recognition.  In fact, such an action actually aspires to secrecy in order to avoid this all to common snare.

Expectation Series: Part 1- Repayment, Part 2- Praise, Part 3- Heavenly.

“If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount.  But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great.” (Luke 6:34-35)

Christ gave quite a surprising twist to generosity–expect nothing in return.  This got me thinking about what types of “expectations” we bring to the table of generosity.

REPAYMENT

“But when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, since they do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” (Luke 14:13-14)

As mentioned by Christ, the anticipation of “receiving back the same amount” destroys a pure-hearted sense of generosity.  When God’s people give or lend, it must be done with a certain level of detachment.  To a certain extent, we must separate ourselves from our contributions and credits.  This is how we love our enemies.  This is how we prove to the world that Christ is all we really need.  When we act in a manner completely opposite of the world, when we take the very paradigms of earthly existence and flip them upside-down, then we give weight to the idea that there really is something different about Jesus.

Before we let ourselves off of the hook too easily, we must think clearly about what type of “repayments” we expect for our generosity.  If we make a contribution to our church, do we expect certain services to be provided with the use of our money?  Do we expect certain “favors” to be called in by friends we have helped out in the past?  Do we expect a certain level of control in exchange for our contributions?

There are countless ways we expect repayment (other than a literal repayment of funds).  We are free from a moral standpoint to act as we choose, but Christ is speaking of something much deeper here.  He is speaking of a life lived for heaven (Part 3).

Expectation Series: Part 1- Repayment, Part 2- Praise, Part 3- Heavenly.

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