“If you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday.”
(Isa. 58:10 ESV)

“Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered.”
(Prov. 11:25 ESV)

The two verses above express a powerful biblical principle; when you help others, you are helped, too!

A powerful turning point

A few years ago, my brother David came to live with us. He was very sick and extremely depressed, spending most of his time curled up in bed. During that time, our son John was volunteering with a ministry called Salt on the Street, where he handed out essential items to the homeless—on the streets and under bridges.

One day, as John was getting ready to head out, David happened to be nearby. John invited him to come along. David didn’t want to go, but I strongly encouraged him. He very reluctantly agreed.

When they returned later that day, I could hardly recognize David. His depression had completely lifted. He was genuinely happy he had gone. He had handed out socks and sandwiches to people in great need, many of whom thanked him personally. That experience became a turning point for David—and things only improved from there. Norman Vincent Peale explaned it well, “When you become detached mentally from yourself and concentrate on helping other people with their difficulties, you will be able to cope with your own more effectively. Somehow, the act of self-giving is a personal power-releasing factor.”

Help the Poor, the Weak, the Needy, Widows, and the Fatherless

As followers of Christ, helping others, especially those in need, is how we express God’s love to them.

Helping others is a command, not just a suggestion—every Christian must actively be about doing what God said, “For there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, ‘You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor, in your land.’” (Deut. 15:11 ESV)

“Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.”
(James 1:27 ESV)

“Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow's cause.”
(Isa. 1:17 ESV)

“And the crowds asked him, ‘What then shall we do?’ And he answered them, ‘Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.’”
(Luke 3:10–11 ESV)

“In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” (Acts 20:35 ESV)

“We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves.” (Roms. 15:1 ESV)

Warning

“Whoever closes his ear to the cry of the poor will himself call out and not be answered.”
(Prov. 21:13 ESV)

Therefore

“Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”
(Gal. 6:2 ESV)

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.” (Gal. 6:9 ESV)

“Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his deed.”
(Prov. 19:17 ESV)

Quotes

“The first question which the priest and the Levite asked was: ‘If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?’ But… the good Samaritan reversed the question: ‘If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?’” — Martin Luther King, Jr.

“You can have everything you want in life if you just help enough people get what they want in life.” — Zig Ziglar