Of course men should be charitable because it is a duty and a pleasure. But even as a matter of policy, if you possess no higher incentive, you will find that the liberal man will command patronage, while the sordid, uncharitable miser will be avoided.
Solomon says: "There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty." Of course the only true charity is that which is from the heart.
The best kind of charity is to help those who are willing to help themselves. Promiscuous almsgiving, without inquiring into the worthiness of the applicant, is bad in a sense. But to search out and quietly assist those who are struggling for themselves is the kind that "scattereth and yet increaseth." But don't fall into the idea that some persons practice, of giving prayer instead of a potato, and a benediction instead of bread to the hungry.
I found it quite interesting that P. T. Barnum, the entrepreneuer to whom is attributed the phrase, "There’s a sucker born every minute…" (although experts on Barnum’s life say he said nothing akin to that) was given to quoting scripture. Even more interesting are the connection he makes to his famous statement and his perspective on what gets money.
This world is obsessed with getting money, but even more obsessed with keeping it. People have the idea that money must be always coming in and never going out. Of course, the variation on that theme is that whatever goes out must always provide something for myself; it must feed my insatiable appetite to obtain.
James wrote of this attitude in 4:1-3, "1What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your members? 2You lust and do not have; so you commit murder. You are envious and cannot obtain; so you fight and quarrel…you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures." Returning to the subject in verse 13ff, he continued, "13Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit’…15Instead, you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.’ 16But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil."
Note the following in the context of James’ comments:
Then, notice the attitudes and emotions that are connected to this ignoble list:
Contrasted to these lists of attitudes and results is something that someone like P. T. Barnum, as profit-drive person as ever lived upon this Earth, acknowledges when he says, "the only true charity is that which is from the heart." Rather than the efforts that feed our own coffers, we ought to think of how we can help others with what we have blessed from God.
In fact, Paul told Timothy to admonish the rich to do just that, "17Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. 18Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share…" (1 Timothy 6:17-18). When they do this, the rich will be "19storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed."
That said, we are back to P. T. Barnum’s point: If you really want to GET money, there’s only one real way to do it: People must have the perception that you are really giving, rather than just taking. Regardless of what your ultimate result is (viz. getting money-wealth-beyond comprehension), there must still be the perception that you are giving far more than you are receiving.
The only problem with that is it depends on the motive of the person who is giving (or scattering, in the figure used by Solomon), and consequentially is receiving (or increasing). If you are a truly liberal person, who thinks nothing of spending a bit longer on the job to insure that the customer receives the benefit for which she has spent money, then more business will come your way.
On the other hand, if you are so frugal and parsimonious as to do your business "on the cheap," with as little effort as you can possibly put for and as little money spent in the process, then you will soon be out of business.
Here’s the upshot: If you are really interested in getting rich, you can do so, but you must also include the perception of liberality toward others to generate the flow of goodwill income toward you. On the other hand, if you are really and genuinely liberal, though money may come to you, you will care more for what you can do for others than for what they can do for you. Is not that the spirit of Christ? Is not that the true essence of The Golden Rule? Is not that a higher, more noble attitude to have than the ignoble pursuit of just getting money?