Maggie's Farm

The Times' article on pay it forward is clearly positioned as a pro-government piece. It's interesting to read, because while it praises people who make a choice, and actually engage in an act of kindness they chose to initiate, it hints around at how politicians are being 'unkind' to others who benefit from a forced 'kindness' from society as a whole.

I've often had liberals (liberals who, coincidentally don't know the Bible and usually hold it in disdain) quote the Bible to support their view that government should help people.

They point out Jesus, if alive today, would be a 'liberal' and support government assistance. Given we have absolutely no idea what Jesus' politics may or would be - that's actually quite absurd and I reject it on the basis of several parts of the Bible.

First, nowhere in the Bible does God or Jesus say government should help the poor. Indeed, the closest examples are Joseph in Egypt, suggesting the king save grain for seven years of famine. However, the idea behind this is less one of 'tax the people to help them live better today' and one of 'promote personal savings for time of need'. This is an idea entirely different than Social Security, which is pay as you go. Another example might be the reign of Solomon, but there still is no clear evidence that Solomon used his position to force people to be good. In fact, Solomon (as wise as he was) overtaxed his people and made them bitter, and gave towns to his enemies in order to support his spending. (Shades of Obama?)
Second, 1 Samuel 8 is the best evidence God opposes government. While He was fine with the Judges (and we'd all agree the judicial system and property rights are important), He felt the kings would enslave the people. He was right - Israel collapsed after Solomon.
Third, Jesus was very clear that you give to Caesar that which is Caesar's and give to God that which is God's - implying that giving here on earth, for any reason (good or otherwise) is meaningless, as you must give of yourself in some way to make your life and actions mean something. He was very clear government does NOT promote that, particularly when he tossed out the tax collectors and money lenders from the Temple.

There are other examples of choice which are in the Bible, making it clear that being forced to be good may not be a negative for people in general, but for the individual it brings no benefits. God is more concerned about the individual - the crafting and development of a soul - because in that a happy and well-developed society can grow.
I once pointed out to a liberal who was using the Bible that Jesus said the poor would always be with us. He is right. Jesus realized that scarcity in so many things is rampant. There will always be some who 'have' and those who 'have not' - it's a relative valuation at any given time (I'm sure many kings of the 1600's would love to live the life of a poor person in the US today! Cellphones, computers, etc.)

Pay it forward is a pleasing thing, worth doing. But it does not work in government, nor should it be used as a guide to governance. It is a choice of an individual to do God's work in small ways. For if you do something good, usually it doesn't seem like you've done anything at all.