'Elijah was there to give, not to take'
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The true measure of sacrifice isn't so much what one gives to sacrifice — but what one sacrifices to give, said Elder Lynn G. Robbins.
"Faith isn't tested so much when the cupboard is full as when it is bare," said Elder Robbins of the Seventy on Saturday afternoon. "In these defining moments, the crisis doesn't change one's character — it reveals it. The crisis is the test."
Sacrifice is never convenient for the "natural man." Instead, the natural man thinks only of himself, Elder Robbins said. A willingness to sacrifice has defined the Lord's faithful from the beginning. "Among those who do not sacrifice there are two extremes: one is the rich gluttonous man who won't, and the other is the poor destitute man who believes he can't."
Elder Robbins asked how a destitute family can be expected to pay tithing. In answer, he told the Old Testament story of the impoverished widow of Zarephath who followed the prophet Elijah's urgent request for food despite her exhausted provisions. Because she faithfully followed God's prophet, the widow of Zarephath was blessed and her family had plenty to eat during a time of famine.
"Elijah understood the doctrine that blessings come after the trial of our faith," Elder Robbins said. "He wasn't being selfish. As the Lord's servant, Elijah was there to give, not to take."
Elder Robbins asked: "If the Lord expects even the poorest widow to pay her mite, where does that leave all others who find it is not convenient or easy to sacrifice?"
No bishop or missionary, he added, should ever lack the faith to teach the law of tithing to the poor. "The sentiment of 'they can't afford to,' needs to be replaced with, 'they can't afford not to.' One of the first things a bishop must do to help the needy is to ask them to pay their tithing. Like the widow, if a destitute family's decision is to pay their tithing or eat, they should pay their tithing. The bishop can help them with food."
Elder Robbins spoke of President Gordon B. Hinckley's visit to Central America in 1998 in the aftermath of Hurricane Mitch. Many hurricane victims had lost everything. President Hinckley, like Elijah, asked the destitute members to sacrifice.
"President Hinckley knew that the food and clothing shipments they received would help them survive the crisis, but his concern and love for them went far beyond that," Elder Robbins said. "As important as humanitarian aid is, he knew that the most important assistance comes from God, not from man. The prophet wanted to help them unlock the windows of heaven as promised by the Lord in the Book of Malachi."
