While driving back to the office with my boss after meeting with a prospective client, we stopped at a long red light. Suddenly, a haggard-looking man timidly came to my window with a cardboard “will work for food” sign. The highway was under construction, and traffic had slowed to a crawl, so I put my window down and slipped him five dollars. The man nodded, thanked, and blessed me, then moved on.
As I was putting my window back up, my boss turned to me and said, “That man isn’t homeless. He’s actually quite well off, due in no small part to panhandling guys like you.” I asked how he knew this, and my boss said, “Oh, they did a story about it on one of the news stations a while back.”
Well, that just didn’t make sense to me. “How could this man still be out panhandling if he had been exposed as a fraud?”
As I sat there processing what my boss had just said, I couldn’t help but feel a mix of emotions. On one hand, I felt embarrassed and foolish for giving money to someone who might not actually need it. On the other hand, I felt angry that someone would deceive others like this for personal gain. While these emotions were churning within me, a verse from Scripture suddenly came to mind:
“Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn from him who wants to borrow from you.”
Was this the Holy Spirit trying to reassure me that my actions were still in line with His will, despite the possibility that the man might have been a fraud? Or was my mind trying to rationalize the situation and ease my discomfort in front of my boss?
As I reflected further on the situation, I remembered the parable of the talents and how we are called to be “good stewards” of what God has entrusted to us. And didn’t Jesus also tell His disciples to be wise as serpents and innocent as doves as He sent them out into the world? Had I dropped the ball by not being discerning enough in my giving?
Testing the Spirits
I needed to know for certain, so I looked up the verse and studied it in context to try and discern whether I had indeed received a message of assurance from the Lord. The verse is found in the conclusion of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount:
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you not to resist an evil person. If someone slaps you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also; if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well; and if someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who spitefully use you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Therefore, you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:38–46)
Okay, so what is Jesus saying here, and does it apply to the situation I just described? Jesus instructs us to love and bless our enemies. While I don’t see beggars as enemies, my boss accused this guy of being an opportunistic swindler. I found nothing disparaging about the man in the local news archives, but then again, would it have mattered if I did?
Since God blesses the just and unjust alike with rain, if we are truly His children, does it not behoove us to bless the poor, misfortunate soul as well as the thief? Even if this vagabond misrepresented himself and is, as my boss would have me believe, my enemy, Jesus told us to love our enemies. Charitable giving is love in action.
To Give or Not to Give
I’m not convinced there is a patent answer to the question of whether to give in every situation. The circumstances and the unction of the Holy Spirit can vary from case to case. Thus, matters of spiritual discernment and conscience are best left to the individual.
However, if you feel led to give and someone questions your giving because they believe the recipient is defrauding you in some way, take them to the Sermon on the Mount. Read them the part where Jesus talks about blessing our enemies, not just our friends. Show them how He emphasizes this by pointing out that God in heaven “causes rain to fall on both the just and the unjust.” Then compare all of that to Jesus’ example.
This High Priest was and is no hypocrite. He, the Christ, the spotless, perfect Lamb of God, shed His precious blood and laid down His life for us “while we were yet sinners”—that is, His enemies, TOTALLY UNDESERVING of His most priceless gift.
In doing so, you may help lead that person to a saving knowledge of Christ.
If you gave in good faith and later found yourself questioning whether you were misled, take heart. Even when our judgment is imperfect, God is not. What is offered in love is seen by Him, honored by Him, and never wasted:
“Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (Luke 6:38)
A charitable act is not diminished by any misrepresentation or other deceit on the part of the recipient, nor is it any less a blessing for the soul of a cheerful giver.
“Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” (2 Corinthians 9:7)
“Or do you despise the riches of His kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?” (Romans 2:4)