The Bible says that “The poor is hated even of his own neighbour” (Proverbs 14:20). In fact, his wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard (Ecclesiastes 9:16). His friends go far from him, and his brethren hate him (Proverbs 19:7). But this should not be the case amongst believers. Instead, believers should defend the poor (Psalm 82:3). They should open their ears to the cries of the poor (Proverbs 21:13) and deliver them in time of trouble (Psalm 41:1). Believers must realize that their treatment of the poor is directly related to their relationship with the Lord (Proverbs 19:17; Proverbs 17:5). Even in the New Testament, Paul was admonished to “remember the poor” (Galatians 2:10).
There are people everywhere who are not saved, no matter where anyone lives. In addition to that, there may also be those who do not even have the knowledge of God. Unfortunately, many believers take for granted that all those who live in certain developed nations of the world have heard the gospel of Christ. This simply is not true. As fewer preach and teach the gospel of God’s grace, the number of those ignorant of these truths continues to increase exponentially. In addition to this, those propagating damnable doctrines continue to muddy the message of salvation. These realities increase the responsibility of true believers to be better ambassadors for Christ. Paul expressed these truths when writing to the believers in Corinth. He told them about the ignorance of some in their midst and put the blame squarely upon those who knew the truth and refused to witness.
