Piper wisdom on biblical basis for helping the poor

Put Strong Pillars Under Your Case for the Unbelieving Poor

Piper and the Prosperity Gospel

I came across this response to the prosperity gospel by John Piper. There's no escaping the anger in his voice as he talks about the lies that have come from America (the West) that are being planted into the hearts and minds of people in developing states.

As far as I'm concerned, the prosperity gospel doesn't even fall on the mission spectrum. It is way beyond anything that the bible teaches about the blessings that will come when you become a follower of Christ. I get Piper's anger and vehemence, because the prosperity gospel increases people's pain and poverty, and turns them away from the gospel instead of the converse.

Last time I was in Uganda, I overheard a sharply dressed man preaching to a group of women who were unable to have children and telling them that 'if they increased their faith, they would be blessed with a baby', 'if they prayed more, they would be blessed with a baby' etc. And at the end of the meeting, when he drove off in his shiny car, I am sure that his well lined pockets gave him the assurance that the health and wealth gospel really does work.

The sad thing about it, is that even though we know that it doesn't, it looks like it works. When you see these huge churches and well dressed leaders with nice cars and you have absolutely nothing, you can understand why people fall for it so easily. However, the money behind these things isn't the result of abundant blessings from God, but comes from overseas, namely America. People who have barely anything to begin with, are being exploited because they are vulnerable, they are desperate to be released from their poverty and so, of course, they will believe someone who tells them that they used to be poor, but now they rich - and the evidence is tangible.

What can we do to combat this destructive teaching as we sit in the comfort of our homes? The first thing, is to pray that God would silence the mouths of the these false teachers and open the minds of the hearers to be able to discern what God really says about blessings and hardships. We also need to get behind those who are involved in training ministers who will have to preach against these sorts of false teachings. My college (Oak Hill), supports a theological college near Kampala called Uganda Martyrs Seminary which trains men and women in this way. Having been there twice, you see how tempting it must be for these ministers to get be lured away from sound doctrine, because they too are poorly paid.

So let's pray for these people and try to support places that teach sound doctrine and not a gospel that is baseless and false.

Book review: The Shackled Continent by Robert Guest.

My recent (yet brief) trips to Uganda this year sparked an interest in the economic difficulties faced by developing countries. TGC recommended Robert Guest's 'The Shackled Continent' as good one to read, so I did.  I'm no expert on economics or fiscal policy or any of that stuff (hence the comment from my Dad 'what made you read that?!'), but thankfully this book is intelligible.  Robert Guest is currently Business Editor of The Economist and has spent many years living and working in a variety of African countries.

I felt that Guest was empathetic, yet not afraid to highlight and critique some of the obvious failures made by African politicians and African people.  For example, he points out the flaws in the ANC's policy of (what I will crudely describe as) positive discrimination which has resulted in the mass exodus of the wealthy whites and their money, leading to a potentially negative effect on the economy.  He also explicates the frustrating red tape culture of governments, which effectively repels foreign investment because it becomes too costly for them to operate in these areas.  Guest also describes how foreign aid hasn't really made the difference that it could have, because of the way it's distributed.

I think it would be a fair summary to say that the gist of the book is that; Africa must help itself and remove its own roadblocks if it's ever going to catch up to developing countries elsewhere in the world.

Because the book was first published in 2004, I wondered what changes the author would make if he were to update it.  I was also interested to know whether Guest had any thoughts on how Christianity had impacted the economic situation in Africa.  I was able to contact him and received the following response:

"I think quite a lot of things have changed since I wrote it. Here are four, in no particular order: 

--There has been a surge in the price of oil and minerals, which has caused big but probably not sustainable economic booms in countries such as Nigeria and Angola. 

--There has been a huge influx of Chinese investment into Africa in the past decade. The Chinese government is anxious to secure supplies of oil, minerals and food, so it has been doing long-term deals with African governments to pump oil, dig up copper (etc) and hire huge patches of farmland. In return, the Chinese government has offered big loans to African governments and sent Chinese workers to build ports, railways and roads in Africa. I missed this development completely in my book, as it was just starting when I wrote it. 

We did a story about this in the Economist earlier this year;

http://www.economist.com/node/18586448?story_id=18586448

--AIDS drugs are much, ,much cheaper: $100 a year rather than $10,000. And not only do they keep people alive; they also make them less infectious, thus slowing the spread of the disease. So while AIDS has been a catastrophe for Africa and will continue to kill lots of people, the worst-case scenarios I sketched out are no longer likely to happen. 

We did a cover story about this in the Economist in June: 

http://www.economist.com/node/18774722

--I also failed to look at the possible impact of climate change on Africa, as information about this was very limited when I was writing. It's still very hard to say what will happen, but I take seriously the possibility that the rapid growth of the desert in places such as Sudan and Somalia could lead to wars over water. 



I recall that you specifically asked about the role of Christianity and Islam in Africa. I'm no expert, but you could try a book called "The Tenth Parallel", by Eliza Griswold. I haven't read it, but I met the author in Florida and she described it to me. She has travelled around the world looking at the regions where Christians and Muslims live side by side. There's a lot about  Africa."

http://www.amazon.com/Tenth-Parallel-Dispatches-Between-Christianity/dp/0374273189 


I'd definitely recommend this if you're in any way interested in how things work in Africa and how the economy (and subsequently, the poverty issues) could be transformed. It's easy to read and informative at the same time, however, bear in mind that it's completely secular and I guess I'd want to say that as Christians, we should see the gospel as the primary 'revolutionary' in Africa.

Daily bread.

I'm in the midst of organising a fundraiser for famine relief in East Africa. Estimates suggest that up to 7 million people will be affected as a result of the severe droughts that have hit the region over the past few months.

I feel wrong saying this, but I questioned my decision about whether it was right to raise money for something that deals with primarily a physical, and not a spiritual need. I think my doubts sadly reflect the unnecessary caution we sometimes have about doing things that don't directly involve word ministry from the outset. I am certainly not advocating a ministry that doesn't include propounding the word - in fact I guess that's a paradox.  My conclusion was that, I just couldn't justify doing nothing and mindlessly spending £3 on my bland latté, whilst millions of people who quite literally, have barely any possessions and minimal help from the governments responsible for them, are starving. How can we begin to tell people about Jesus if they are barely existing and we're not prepared to show them Jesus through our actions as well?

Thankfully, the money raised from the event will go directly to a Bishop in Kenya who provides aid relief. My hope is that, as they receive food and other provisions, the recipients will get a glimpse of the generosity of God (as displayed by his people) and turn to him, for their daily bread.

I-HEART: We're All In This Together - Trailer

This is the trailer to the Hillsong United film 'I-Heart Revolution'. Joel Houston really strikes a chord with some of the things he shares from his first hand experiences of global poverty. In particular, statements such as: "It's not fair that we can sit and watch the evening news from the comfort of our living rooms, and pity those who have lived where the storm hit, or where the ground shook, or where that water rose and simply feel sorry for them, and then change the channel and get on with supper", really make you squirm, because we know we do it.

I haven't worked out my stance on the I-Heart Revolution movement, I don't know enough about the motivations behind it to make a value judgement. What I do think, it that it's really easy to be critical of films like this and see them pejoratively, because we don't necessarily agree with the theological standpoint of the organisations behind them. However, having watched the film in whole, it really challenged me to think about what exactly I am doing to help those who are not in a position to help themselves. Whilst I don't know enough to be able to say categorically that Hillsong United lean more toward the mission than the evangelism approach, maybe we should be inspired by the way they use their prominence and worldwide success, to highlight the plights of the needy.

Next time I watch the news or see some injustices committed, I'd like to respond in the way God would want me to - with concern and compassion, instead of turning a blind eye.