Duty vs Charity

In the parable of the sheep and the goats Jesus makes it very clear that we are to care for those who need our help. He promises heaven for those who perform the corporal works of mercy while awarning that hell waits for those who refuse a person in need. To review, the corporal works of mercy are:

• To feed the hungry.
• To give water to the thirsty.
• To clothe the naked.
• To shelter the homeless.
• To visit the sick.
• To visit the imprisoned, or ransom the captive.
• To bury the dead.

For a Christian, this means doing more than just handing some cash to the homeless guy on the corner holding a cardboard sign. We have forgotten the difference between duty and charity. Duty is something we are obligated to do. Charity is something we do out of love. Suffering is the currency of love, so true charity involves suffering and sacrifice.

We have the duty to care for someone when we are able. For example –

You see a homeless man shivering in the cold without a coat. You remember that you have a spare coat in your closet at home that you are not using. You go home, get the coat, and give it to the man.

Although you may be feeling charitable for doing this, it is not charity. This is a duty we are obliged to do. We have something extra that someone who needs it does not have. We are giving from our abundance. The devil wants us to feel charitable because the more charitable we feel the less charitable we are willing to be. God does not want us to feel charitable. He wants us to be charitable.

True charity involves suffering and sacrifice. Charity does not rely on a feeling or look for anything in return. Charity is only concerned about the good of another. It is charitable when you give a homeless man the coat off your back, knowing that he needs it more than you do. You will have to suffer for a time until you can replace the coat for yourself.

It pleases God when we are willing to suffer for one another. We have been given this life to learn to love how God loves, which is sacrificially. The more we love without limit the more we reclaim the image that we were created in.

As Christians, we are called to be both dutiful and charitable with others. It does not matter who they are, where they came from, their orientation, they way they vote, immigration status, or any other reason you can conjure up. As Jesus says in the parable, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”