True Saints Impart of Their Substance to the Poor
2 Corinthians 8:1–8
1 Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia;
2 How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality.
3 For to their power, I bear record, yea, and beyond their power they were willing of themselves;
4 Praying us with much entreaty that we would receive the gift, and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering to the saints.
5 And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God.
6 Insomuch that we desired Titus, that as he had begun, so he would also finish in you the same grace also.
7 Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also.
8 I speak not by commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness of others, and to prove the sincerity of your love.
President Dieter F. Uchtdorf said:
“In the Lord’s plan, our commitment to welfare principles should be at the very root of our faith and devotion to Him.
“Since the beginning of time, our Heavenly Father has spoken with great clarity on this subject: from the gentle plea, ‘If thou lovest me . . . thou wilt remember the poor, and consecrate of thy properties for their support’ [D&C 42:29–30]; to the direct command, ‘Remember in all things the poor and the needy, the sick and the afflicted, for he that doeth not these things, the same is not my disciple’ [D&C 52:40]; to the forceful warning, ‘If any man shall take of the abundance which I have made, and impart not his portion, according to the law of my gospel, unto the poor and the needy, he shall, with the wicked, lift up his eyes in hell, being in torment’ [D&C 104:18]. . . .
“. . . While it is important to have our thoughts inclined toward heaven, we miss the essence of our religion if our hands are not also inclined toward our fellowman. . . .
“. . . Our spiritual progress is inseparably bound together with the temporal service we give to others. . . .
“This very hour there are many members of the Church who are suffering. They are hungry, stretched financially, and struggling with all manner of physical, emotional, and spiritual distress. They pray with all the energy of their souls for succor, for relief.
“. . . Please do not think that this is someone else’s responsibility. It is mine, and it is yours. We are all enlisted. . . . In the Lord’s plan, there is something everyone can contribute.”
(“Providing in the Lord’s Way,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2011, 53–54.)
