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Originally Posted by JJ
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Yes, in addition to being "eager" to help the poor of Jerusalem in Galatians 2, we see his lengthy discourses in 2 Cor 8 and 9, and this section in Roman's 15:
25 Now, however, I am on my way to Jerusalem in the service of the Lord’s people there. 26 For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the Lord’s people in Jerusalem. 27 They were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in the Jews’ spiritual blessings, they owe it to the Jews to share with them their material blessings. 28 So after I have completed this task and have made sure that they have received this contribution, I will go to Spain and visit you on the way. 29 I know that when I come to you, I will come in the full measure of the blessing of Christ.
And then you have his public declaration in Acts 24:17 that he'd returned bringing alms for his people. Paul was not merely a man of his word, but clearly believed that he was keeping the commands of the Lord, as did all the apostles. So why isn't that God's economy?
Conversely, how can the wordsmiths of Anaheim show us that their version of God's economy is instead the correct interpretation, versus this or any other? Other than that their version was perhaps more effective in luring naiive young people, or "good building material", versus actually going out and helping others who couldn't repay you in this age? Jesus taught that if you do this, your reward would be great in heaven.
Or is Jesus' word, and Paul and Peter and James and John's obedience to this word, merely a "low gospel" which has been superseded by abstractions culled from snippets here and there? Lee would give us things like 1 Corinthians 15:45 "b" - I just gave 5 verses from Romans 15, plus all those other verses. Read 2 Corinthians 8 and 9 sometime. It's spelled out in great detail what Paul is doing. Again, the money is not going for Paul or his cohort, or 'guanxi network' - it's going to the poor. Same thing with Peter and John in the first chapters of Acts, with Paul and Barnabas in Acts 12:25. It's a dispensing quite different from the one Witness Lee was presenting us.
It's something to consider. But in the LC, consideration wasn't encouraged. Instead, blind thoughtless obedience to the ministry was encouraged. So I'm presenting an alternative, if anyone is interested. And I'm glad to see folks like Jo Casteel and Jacob Howard publicly speaking up.