July 15 -- "Open Wide Your Hand"

 Today’s Reading: Deuteronomy 15

"Open Wide Your Hand"

Jesus often quoted from Scripture during His ministry here on earth.  Most often, He quoted from the Book of Deuteronomy.  By one count, He is recorded as quoting Deuteronomy 37 times in the Gospels.  During His wilderness temptations, each of His Scripture quotations was from Deuteronomy – “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone” (8:3) – “It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God” (6:16) – “It is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.” (6:13).

In Matthew 26, when Jesus was being anointed at Bethany, He quoted today’s key verse – or at least the first half of it. When Jesus said, “You always have the poor with you,” He was not trying to tell the disciples that they had no obligation to care for the poor.  In fact, He was telling them just the opposite.  By quoting the first half of Deuteronomy 15:11, He was nudging them to remember the entire verse which tells them they must “open wide your hand” to the poor and needy.

When confronted with poverty, the easy response is to draw back.  In fact, some people quote Matthew 26 by saying “Oh well, it’s not my job, after all we’ll always have the poor among us.”  But this response is not consistent with Jesus’ teaching.  So, how do you respond when you are confronted with the needy?  Do you withdraw and tell yourself that “poverty is too big of a problem”?

The truth is that God’s people are commanded (and yes, it’s a command and not a recommendation) to open wide their hand to those in need.  As people of faith, we are the ones commanded to live generously. It’s up to us to care for the poor. We are the ones called to intervene on behalf of those who need our help.

Who are the poor in your community? Have you been living with open or closed hands? If you’ve been tight-fisted, ask the Lord to forgive you and begin today to live with generosity and open handedness.  Ask Him to show you how to bless others with the resources you’ve been given. Pray that all of your actions and thoughts toward the poor in your community become a reflection of God’s love and care.