Benevolence

I have opened up this blog as a way to give. To give one of the most precious treasures any one could receive. Many charities are set up around the world to help the poor, the hungry, the weak, etc. But there is something man needs that is of far more importance than food, water, shelter, money and that is the Lord Jesus. In this blog I would like to post items I have read, heard or happened to come by that point to Jesus, His work on earth and in heaven, and how we can live in His example.

With my senior young peoples group we are studying a book called My Brothers Keeper by James W. Alexander. Last class we came to the chapter that is titled Benevolence. And I thought that posting this chapter would be an appropriate way to start this blog as it emphasizes Christian charity and having a giving spirit.

Here are several questions to think about at you read through it

1.What are good works?

2. How can we ourselves show Christian charity?

If I were to send you ten dollars to spend as you chose, after you had purchased such things as you need, what would you do with the remainder? I am sure you take much more pleasure giving it to some poor, starving family, than in laying it out upon toys and food. The satisfaction would last much longer. When miserable sufferers thanked you, it would give you delight; your own conscience would tell you that you had done right; and whenever you had thought of it afterwards, it would be with pleasure. But besides all this, there is the satisfaction in the very act of doing good. There is something delightful in the very feeling of love.

I wish you to think a little about this. The feeling of which I have just written is called benevolence, or good-will. It is the disposition to do good – to make others happy. It is what the Bible calls charity. And it always gives pleasure, for we cannot love any one sincerely without a degree of happiness for the moment. Just think of the times when you have felt most affectionate toward your dear parents. Was it not a delightful feeling? And when a kind mother presses her baby against he, does she not enjoy this ore than if someone did a favour for her? It is always so. And therefore, the more benevolent you are, the more happiness you will have. If you wish to be peaceful in your mind, do as much good as you can.

This is a great part of true religion. “thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself” And whenever this love or benevolence is in any one’s heart, it will make him do good. He will try to be useful, and to make everyone happy around him. Religion begins in the heart, but it does not end there. It leads persons to act. People may talk about religion, and tell how many good feelings they have, but if they never do good, if they are not active, there is reason to fear that they have no religion at all. And therefore the Scripture always makes this a mark of true piety. The Apostle James says, “pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit the fatherless and the widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.” Is it not a contradiction to speak of a pious man who does no good? You see at once that it is. An idle Christian is no true Christian. We are all sent into the world to honour God, and we do this whenever we perform what is good.

Young persons ought to begin as soon a possible to put this into practice. There is such a thing as learning to do good, and forming a habit of doing good; and we cannot begin to soon. Perhaps you will say that you do not know where to begin. I will tell you. Begin with the very next person you meet; with those who are around you now; with your relatives and companions. Try to make everyone happy to the utmost of your power, Avoid everything, in your actions, your words, and your very looks, which could give unnecessary pain. Keep this up at all times. Thus you will constantly be cherishing an benevolent temper. If you are kind and affectionate in small matters, I am sure you will be so in those which are more important. There is an old saying about money matters which you may have heard, take care of the pence and the pounds will take care of themselves. The meaning of this is, that people lose more by neglecting smalls sums of money, then by losing larger ones. Almost any man will take care of a hundred dollar note. He will carry it in is wallet for months, without losing it. But during the same time he will perhaps squander away so much little by little. If he had taken good care of these small sums, he might have saved a good deal. So it is with respect to benevolence. Almost any man will be benevolent when their is any dreadful suffering which he can relieve, or any great act of charity which he can do. But perhaps this very same man will all the time be unkind and irritable with his family, and will make every one near him feel unpleasantly. But if you begin with these little things, which are occurring every day and every hour, you will preserve a benevolent disposition the whole time, and will be more ready to do some greater act of charity when it is called for.

There have been some men so benevolent, that they have spent almost all their lives in trying to relieve the distressed. One of the most remarkable of these was John Howard, who for this reason is usually called the philanthropist, that is the “lover of mankind”. Howard was born in Clayton, in England, in the year 1727. His father left him a large estate, but his health was so frail during his youth, that he did not engage in much active business. He was a man of a kind and tender heart, and was always seeking to do good. When the dreadful earthquake took place which overwhelmed the city of Lisbon, he was so touched with pity that he undertook a voyage to Portugal, in 1755, to see if he could give any relief to the inhabitants. But he was taken captive by a French ship, and carried into Brest, where he remained some months as a prisoner. Here he began to learn firsthand how man distresses were suffered by those who are confined in jails, and his benevolent spirit longed to relieve them. When he returned to England, he made many inquiries on this subject, and began to examine all the prisons in England in order to reform them. He wrote books about this, and procured new laws to be passed by the Parliament.

But Howard was not content with lessening the sufferings of prisoners in England, He knew that their case was worse in other countries, and he determined to visit the continent of Europe. In this work he spent 12 years. Between 1775 and 1787 he went four times to Germany, five times to Holland, twice to Italy, besides visiting Spain, Portugal, Turkey, and the north of Europe. He often traveled night and day, visiting all the principal hospitals and prisons. He did not regard expense or danger, for his whole soul was taken up with the desire to do good. At Valladolid, in Spain, he became a prisoner himself for a month, in order to know the real truth of the conditions. And when he returned home, he published a large work, in which he gave an account of what he had seen. An in this way he did more than was ever done before, to render the condition of prisoners less miserable.

But this benevolent heart was not satisfied with this. The plague that was raging in many parts of Europe. This dreadful illness was worse than the yellow fever, and often destroyed thousands in a few weeks. Howard resolved to learn all about it, and find out how it might be cured. He had studied medicine in his youth, and he traveled, as a physician through various countries. In 1985 he went to Marseilles. Then he visited hospitals in Italy and Turkey, exposing himself to the greatest dangers. Whenever it was possible, he gave relief. In 1789 he published another work, giving an account of the plague. The same year he set out upon another journey to the eastern countries, but was seized with fever in the Crimea, and died in 1790.

Now, is not this a noble example? How much more does Howard deserve the name of a great man than Alexander, Caesar or Bonaparte! I wish you to think on these things, and earnestly to pray that you may be disposed to imitate such a course of life

Your affectionate brother
James

Some Bible passages that speak on Christian charity

- I Corinthians 13:4-8

- Romans 12:10 - 16

- II Peter 1:3-7