Plead the Cause of the Poor

Three times in Doctrine and Covenants 124 the Lord spoke about helping the poor. In the first the Savior said this about George Miller, “I therefore say unto you, I seal upon his head the office of a bishopric, like unto my servant Edward Partridge, that he may receive the consecrations of mine house, that he may administer blessings upon the heads of the poor of my people, saith the Lord” (v21). I love that idea of “administering blessings” on the heads of those in need. The Lord didn’t say, “Give them a handout” or “pass along some spare change.” He said to give them blessings, which may or may not include actual financial assistance. An organization that we have been grateful to support here in Utah is One Refugee, and to me they indeed “administer blessings” to those in need. They have been helping those with refugee backgrounds get an education for many years. They provide mentorship, career development, internship placement, financial assistance for tuition and housing, and a supportive community. They have helped almost 500 students from refugee backgrounds to graduate with 85% of those employed afterwards within six months. One graduate described, “I wouldn’t have done it [graduate from college] without 1R. What could be a better gift than the gift of education? That’s what 1R gave me.” They indeed administer blessings to those refugees trying to make a better life for themselves and their families.  

In the second injunction to help the poor in the section, the Lord said this about Vinson Knight, “And let him lift up his voice long and loud, in the midst of the people, to plead the cause of the poor and the needy; and let him not fail, neither let his heart faint” (v75). This is another way that we can bless the poor—to remember their cause and remind others with a voice that the poor need our help. This week my wife and I chatted with a dear friend who works for the Good Samaritan Foundation, and to me she is a powerful example of being a voice for those in need. She described with great feeling to us the plight of so many presently facing very difficult situations which very few of us with comfortable lives ever see. She is an advocate for those in need, especially children and told us stories that we were shocked to hear could really be happening in the United States. She reminds me of a talk given by President Oaks over a decade ago titled Protect the Children. In it he urged us, “We are speaking of the children of God, and with His powerful help, we can do more to help them. In this plea I address not only Latter-day Saints but also all persons of religious faith and others who have a value system that causes them to subordinate their own needs to those of others, especially to the welfare of children.” He lifted up his voice for children in need just as our friend does, and we can surely each do more to follow the Lord’s counsel to Vinson Knight.

The third reference to helping the poor came to William Law: “If he will do my will let him from henceforth hearken to the counsel of my servant Joseph, and with his interest support the cause of the poor, and publish the new translation of my holy word unto the inhabitants of the earth” (v90). He was to use his “interest” to support the cause of the poor, which I think meant that with his financial means he was commanded to help those in need. It is fitting to me that in the same sentence the Lord asked him to give of his substance to the poor and to help publish the word of God to the inhabitants of the earth. Both are key to the mission of the Savior Jesus Christ. All three of these passages in section 124 of the Doctrine and Covenants remind us that a critical part of our discipleship is to help those in need. The Lord summed it up best perhaps in an earlier revelation: “And 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” (Doctrine and Covenants 52:40).