Deep Pockets of Grace: the Call to Generosity

“A good man sheweth favour, and lendeth: he will guide his affairs with discretion.
Surely he shall not be moved for ever: the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance.
He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord.”
~ Psalm 112:5-7

In Psalm 112 God describes for us some of the attributes of what He defines as a “good man”. Our text, vv. 5-7 of that Psalm 112, tells us how a “good man” treats people who need help: a “good man” shows favor and lends money to those in need.

God says a lot in His Word about how we should treat our fellow man. However, one stark aspect of God’s description of a “good man” is the absence of “qualifications” or “caveats”. No mention is made of whether the “good man” has recently lost his job, or whether the “good man” is sick, or if the “good man” was low on funds.

There is also nothing said about who the “good man” is lending to: Is it a friend? Is it an enemy? Is it someone the “good man” likes or dislikes? Is the beneficiary from the same tribe/race/nationality/class? God makes no distinction. The “good man” simply “shows favour, and lendeth”, in good times or bad; and to good people and bad people.

To be clear, the Lord’s “good man” is not a fool, he is not a “patsy”; for the second clause in v. 5 tells us that the “good man” “will guide his affairs with discretion”: The “good man” knows who the needy are, he knows those who really need help and those who just need to look for a job and/or make wiser decisions.

The Lord’s “good man” uses discretion to distinguish those who need money for food from those who need money for alcohol/drugs. He uses discretion to separate those who need clothes for covering from those who need clothes for impressing.

In the following two sections, we will explore the reason why a “good man” lends and the impact of his lending on the community/society in which the good man lives.

Lending: The Lord and the Lender

The last two clauses in v. 7 give us the reason why a “good man” lends: “his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord”. For the Lord’s “good man”, lending is never about the relationship between lender and lendee; nor is lending about the lender and (his) luxury/liquidity. Rather, for a “good man”, lending is about his relationship with The Lord.

A “good man” sees God as his provider: Jehovah Jireh. He recognizes that any money, any wealth, he has (justly gained) is from God. He knows that his income (whether large or small) comes from God’s provision. Moreover, he knows that God’s provision is endless. God, who gave him bread today, will give him bread tomorrow: he is “trusting in the Lord”. God, who supplied ALL his needs today, will supply ALL his needs tomorrow: he is “trusting in the Lord”.

“But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” ~ Philippians 4:19

“Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” ~ Matthew 6:31-33

Therefore, a “good man” does not worry about tomorrow, and so he can lend.

The truth is that most of us do not lend most of the time because we are unsure about having enough for ourselves tomorrow. We often worry:

“How can I survive until the loan is paid back?”

“What if the person does not pay me back in time?”

“What if I am not paid back at all?”

Those are legitimate concerns: lending to someone is a risk. Indeed, it is such a great risk that you can study it in universities and the whole banking industry is based on it. But those questions arise in us because we do not trust God, who tells us:

“He [the “good man”] that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the Lord; and that which he hath given will He [The Lord] pay him again.” ~ Proverbs 19:17

It is our trust in God that allows us to show favour and lend, it is our trust in God that allows lending to be risk free for the Believer. The banks need collateral, credit and cosigners to lend. But the Believer only needs the Lord! Jesus underscores this point further when He issued the following challenge:

But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for He is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.” ~ Luke 6:35-36

Jesus not only commands that we lend, He also tells us not to expect anything back: “hoping for nothing again”. And that is as it should be, because we must look to God for our provision. It is God who determines how He provides for us; His provision may come through the repaid loan, or not. Either way, it is He who decides, so LOOK to Him: we must put our hope in Him ALONE and nothing else.

“My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber.” ~ Psalm 121:2-3

Whether we lend or not, it is God who sustains us: we live according to His provision, not ours. We are free to lend, to take care of the needs of the poor because it is God’s provision anyway. Whatever we give comes from God’s storehouse, and there are lots more. God will provide for our needs.

“The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way.
Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand.
I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.
He [the “good man”] is ever merciful, and lendeth; and his seed is blessed.” ~ Psalm 37:23-26

Like the “good man” let us “fix” our hearts, steadfastly trusting in God: knowing that we are free to share from His bounty, because He will never let us down: God will supply all our needs.

Lending: The Lord, the Lender and the Lendee

Why does God place such a premium on lending, on tending to the needs of the poor? One reason, discussed above, is that it is an objective and tangible measure of how much we trust Him. However, there is an additional reason; specifically, the testimony that “a good man” who “sheweth favour, and lendeth” is to those around him. To help us understand, let us consider the following passage of Scripture:

“The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.” ~ Proverbs 22:7

“If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates in thy land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother: But thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth” ~ Deuteronomy 15:7-8

This proverb serves as a clear warning: instructing Believers to carefully avoid being in debt because the borrower comes under the control of the lender. Nevertheless, as our text indicates, sometimes a ‘good man” is called upon to lend to someone in need. It is on that “side of the coin” that the above proverb reveals another pointed message. The borrower IS servant to the lender, irrefutably. But what if the lender is God’s “good man”? If the lender is God’s “good man”, the borrower has the opportunity to experience being a servant of GOD by proxy.

• Those who borrow from God’s “good man” will experience fairness; they won’t be gouged because they are in a weak position.
• Those who borrow from God’s “good man” will have mercy, they will (by discretion, see v. 5) get a second chance (and a third and a fourth…) when they slip up.
• Those who borrow from God’s “good man” will obtain forgiveness, when they fail.
• Those who borrow from God’s “good man” will be loved: treated as persons; not profit-opportunities and not just numbers in a spreadsheet.
• Those who borrow from God’s “good man” will have a chance to see what faith in God looks like;
  • They will see what it is like to be a part of the family of God:
  • They will see how God takes care of the needs of the righteous: those who put their trust in Him.
  • They will see how God’s “good man” copes with adversity and trials, how the travails of life press a “good man” ever closer within the arms of his Holy Father: for “He shall not be afraid of evil tidings” (v. 7).
  • They will see that “his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord” (v. 7).
  • They will see how different life could be with God as their master instead of the world.

“A good man” who “sheweth favour, and lendeth” is not just giving money or goods away. God’s “good man” is shining The Light of Christ into the lives of those in need: he is giving a testimony towards salvation.

“Surely [God’s good man”] shall not be moved for ever: the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance.” ~ Psalm 112:6

‘Click’ to read the heartwarming and hilarious testimony of a real-life “good man” who showed God’s favour and gave: an excerpt from “The Narrow Road” an exciting biography of Brother Andrew

God’s faithfulness I was experiencing continually, and I was also finding out something about His sense of humor. I had made a covenant with God never to run out of money for school fees. My covenant said nothing about running out of soap. Or toothpaste. Or razor blades.

One morning I discovered I was out of laundry soap. But when I reached into the drawer where I kept my money, all I could find was sixpence. Laundry soap cost eightpence.

‘You know that I have to keep clean, God. So will You work it out about the two pennies?” I took my sixpence and made my way to the street where the shops were, and sure enough, right away I saw a sign. “Twopence off! Buy your SURF now.” I walked in, made my savings, and strolled back up the hill whistling. There was plenty of soap in that box to last, with care, until the end of school.

But that very night a friend saw me washing out a shirt and shouted, “Say, Andrew, lend me some soap, will you? I’m out.” Of course I let him have the soap and said nothing. I just watched him pour out my precious Surf, knowing somehow that he wasn’t going to pay it back. Every day he borrowed a bit more”. of that soap, and every day I had to use just a little bit less.

And then it was toothpaste. The tube was really finished. Squeezed, twisted, torn apart, and scraped-finished. I had read somewhere that common table salt makes a good dentifrice. And no doubt my teeth got clean, but my mouth wore a permanent pucker.

And razor blades. I had not thrown away my used blades, and sure enough the day came when I had to resurrect them. I had no hone, so I stropped them on my bare arm. Ten minutes a day on my own skin: I remained clean shaven-but it was at a price.

Throughout this time I sensed that God was playing a game with me. Perhaps He was using these experiences to teach me the difference between a Want and a Need. Toothpaste tasted good, new razor blades shaved quicker-but these were luxuries, not necessities. I was certain that should a real need arise, God would supply it.

And a true need did arise.

It was necessary for foreigners in Britain to renew their visas at periodic intervals. I had to have mine renewed by the thirty­first of December, 1954, or leave the country. But when that month rolled around, I did not have a cent to my name. How was I going to get the forms down to London? A registered letter cost one shilling-twelve pennies. I did not believe that God was going to let me be thrown out of school for the lack of a shilling.

And so the game moved into a new phase. I had a name for it by now. I called it the Game of the Royal Way. I had discovered that when God supplied money He did it in a kingly manner, not in some groveling way.

Three separate times, over the matter of that registered letter, I was almost lured from the Royal Way. I was, that last year, head of the student body and in charge of the school’s tract fund. One day my eye lit first on the calendar-it was the twenty-eighth of December-and then on the fund. It happened to contain several pounds just then. Surely it would be all right to borrow just one shilling. And surely not, too. Quickly I put the idea behind me.

And then it was the twenty-ninth of December. Two days left. I had almost forgotten how bitter salt tasted and how long it took to strop a razor blade on my arm, so intrigued was I over the drama of the shilling. That morning the thought occurred to me that perhaps I might find those pennies lying on the ground.

I had actually put on my coat and started down the street before I saw what I was doing. I was walking along with head bowed, eyes on the ground, searching the gutter for pennies. What kind of Royal Way was this! I straightened up and laughed out loud there on the busy street. I walked back to school with my head high but no closer to getting the money.

The last round in the game was the most subtle of all. It was December 30. I had to have my application in the mail that day if it was to get to London on the thirty-first.

At ten o’clock in the morning, one of the students shouted up the stairwell that I had a visitor. I ran down the stairs thinking that this must be my delivering angel. But when I saw who it was, my heart dropped. This visitor wasn’t coming to bring me money, he was coming to ask for it. For it was Richard, a friend I had made months ago in the Patrick slums, a young man who came to the school occasionally when he just had to have cash.

With dragging feet I went outside. Richard stood on the white­pebble walkway, hands in pockets, eyes lowered. “Andrew,” he said, “would you be having a little extra cash? I’m hungry.”

I laughed and told him why. I told him about the soap and the razor blades, and as I spoke I saw the coin.

It lay among the pebbles, the sun glinting off it in just such a way that I could see it but not Richard. I could tell from its color that it was a shilling. Instinctively I stuck out my foot and covered the coin with my toe. Then as Richard and I talked, I reached down and picked up the coin along with a handful of pebbles. I tossed the pebbles down one by one, aimlessly, until at last I had just the shilling in my hand. But even as I dropped the coin into my pocket, the battle began. That coin meant I could stay in school. I wouldn’t be doing Richard a favor by giving it to him: he’d spend it on drink and be thirsty as ever in an hour.

While I was still thinking up excellent arguments, I knew it was no good. How could I judge Richard when Christ told me so clearly that I must not. Furthermore, this was not the Royal Way! What right had an ambassador to hold on to money when another of the King’s children stood in front of him saying he was hungry. I shoved my hand back into my pocket and drew out the silver coin.

“Look, Richard,” I said, “I do have this. Would it help any?” Richard’s eyes lit up. “It would, mate.” He tossed the coin into the air and ran off down the hill. With a light heart that told me I had done the right thing, I turned to go back inside.

And before I reached the door the postman turned down our walk.

In the mail of course was a letter for me. I knew when I saw Greetje’s handwriting that it would be from the prayer group at Ringers’ and that there would be cash inside. And there was. A lot of money: A pound and a half-thirty shillings. Far more than enough to send my letter, buy a large box of soap, treat myself to my favorite tooth­paste-and buy Gillette Supers instead of Blues.

The game was over. The King had done it His way.