Dear Church…

Grace and peace to you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I write to you as a fellow member of the Body of Christ—called, like you, to actively live out our faith in love, truth, and justice. Right now we find ourselves overwhelmed, grieving, exhausted, and anxious. As you know, a bill has recently passed that significantly cuts funding for Medicaid and other services that offer vital support to the poor, the sick, the elderly, and the disabled in our land. As someone who serves a congregation and health ministry that walks alongside these populations daily, I’m very concerned. I’m concerned about the impact this will have on so many people that have already fallen through the cracks of our public support and health care systems. Those cracks are about to widen causing even more people to fall through without any options for care.

Although this bill was decided in the seat of political power, I’m not writing to you today from a partisan perspective. In fact, I hold no loyalty to or membership in a political party. My hope isn’t in a political party, but rather in Jesus. I write because I believe that the Gospel has something to say regarding this.

From the beginning of Scripture right through its end, God’s heart beats with compassion for the poor. God rescued the Israelites from slavery, instituted gleaning of fields where the edges of the field were left for the hungry, and established laws so that the vulnerable would not be crushed by those in positions of power or by the wealthy. Time and again, the prophets warned against a nation that tramples the poor, hoards wealth, and turns away from justice.

“You trample on the poor and take from them levies of grain…
You have built houses of hewn stone, but you shall not live in them.”
(Amos 5:11)

God has always sided with those pushed aside, with those on the margins of society.

When Jesus stood up in his hometown synagogue, he said,

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.” (Luke 4:18)

What is good news to the poor? It’s a message that lifts people out of poverty, suffering, and want of basic necessities like food and shelter. It’s a message that recognizes how exhausting being poor is just to survive and says there is another way. It’s a message that transforms the economic and political systems of a society so that all people are shown dignity, have an opportunity, and have barriers removed that cause them to struggle to survive.

Jesus wasn’t only talking about spiritual poverty – an attitude of humbleness. The good news to the poor that he preached and brought had real consequences for the poor. He fed the hungry, healed the sick, touched the untouchable, and welcomed those the world had cast off. Jesus did not ask who was deserving. He simply responded to need.

He didn’t ask when he had done enough. He kept on serving, caring, and loving. Because these acts were the living out of God’s shalom in the world – a subversive resistance to the empires of the world and their ways founded on a creed that declares that might makes right, that only the strong survive, and where the ends justify the means.

The early church followed Jesus’ lead. When Paul met with the apostles in Jerusalem, they gave him just one instruction:

“Remember the poor” (Galatians 2:10)—
and he was eager to do it. Care for the poor was not an afterthought for Paul. It shows up again and again in his letters.

Paul reminded the church in Corinth, through a collection for the poor in Jerusalem, that the point is not that some are burdened and others are comfortable, but that there might be equity. (2 Corinthians 8:13–14)

Today, we see a different story unfolding in our nation. Budgets and tax bills are being paid for on the shoulders of the poor. A heavy yoke is being placed on the poor. A costly yoke that will have serious consequences for many. Programs that help families afford medicine, care for their children, and access food are being cut in the name of “efficiency” and combating “corruption.” These are not dehumanized abstract numbers. These are lives. And each person has a name and a story.

Cutting people off from these vital services without warning and without an alternative will accomplish neither of the stared goals. It will end up costing us far more.

This is not the way of Jesus. This is not in alignment with what it means to care for the poor and marginalized. This is not what it means to be faithful.

This is not the way of the Kingdom Jesus announced. The Kingdom of God is not survival of the fittest—it is good news to the poor, healing for the broken, and freedom for the oppressed. It is shared bread, open tables, and community that lifts each other up.

God doesn’t call on us to only care for the poor in private, individual acts of charity. That alone will not work. God speaks through the prophets numerous times of the responsibility nations and their leaders have to care for the least in a society.

This is not about partisan politics. This is about faithfulness and following Jesus.

I call on you church—not to choose sides in the unending partisan ideological war that our nation is addicted to, but rather to choose love. Not to repeat the throwaway talking points of political parties and politicians, but to repeat the good news to the poor that Jesus was all about. Not to shout louder and see only enemies, but rather to listen deeply to the cries of the poor, the sick, and the forgotten. To be like the early church that held all things in common. To be like Jesus, who gave himself fully so that others might live.

It may feel hopeless, like there is nothing we can do. But I say there are things we can do – practical steps that make an impact. Things that encourage our neighbors and give an opportunity to participate in what God has always been up to. So, what can we do?

• Speak up—Your voice matters. You are not alone. Silence means that harming the poor and vulnerable is acceptable. It is not. This needs to be said often and publicly. Our elected officials need to hear this message over and over again. Normalize care for the poor and outcast. Normalize rejecting greed, oppression, and injustice. Let our voices come together in a chorus of good news to the poor.
• Give generously—There are numerous organizations and churches in your locality that accompany the poor, that sees the image of God in others, and that offers dignity and more. They need your support now more than ever. Since the beginning of the year these organizations have seen an increase in the need they are addressing. And that increase is not slowing down. Cuts to programs serving the poor doesn’t make poverty go away. It pushes the poor to desperation. The church and other social service organizations meet people in their desperation. Your generosity will have a real impact.
• Do Advocacy—Advocacy is discipleship. Advocacy is about speaking on behalf of and amplifying the voices of the poor and outcast. Advocacy is about the common good. It is faithfulness in action. It’s about recognizing that when one person is hurting, we all hurt.
• Be an Example—Don’t wait for someone else to start. Start. Don’t look for perfection – just start. Live in such a way that others see your hope and peace. Live as if the kingdom is already here – because it is – it’s within you. Live it so that it spreads to others.

I see you. I hear you. You are not alone. There is hope. Let’s go! That is our message.

We serve a God who raises up those who have been cast down and who brings life from death. A God of hope. A God of promise. A God of liberation. A God who acts subversively to bring about good news and new life into reality. We will not be silent. For the gospel compels us to speak and to action – to love our neighbor in real and practical ways.

“Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.” (Amos 5:24)

God invites us to be the stream. We are the hands and feet of Christ. Let us remember the poor, whom God remembers always.

With hope, holy urgency, and love,
Rev. Matthew Best