Which One of These Things is Not Like the Other

A little Bible quiz: Which one of these four sayings isn’t from the Bible?

• “Do to others as you would have them do to you.”
• “God helps those who help themselves.”
• “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”
• “When you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.”

Not so easy, is it? The correct answer—the adage that’s found nowhere in the Bible—is “God helps those who help themselves.” It’s usually attributed to Benjamin Franklin, who published it in Poor Richard’s Almanac, although the 16^th century poet and Anglican priest George Herbert said something similar: “Help thyself, and God will help thee.”

Surprised? A great many Americans are, when they learn “God helps those who help themselves” isn’t in the Bible. Somehow they just assumed it had to be in there someplace. “God helps those who help themselves” is a beloved tenet of American secular religion, but not of Christianity. It reflects the breezy optimism that, with hard work, anyone can make it in our society.

It’s a nice thought, but the real world is just a little different. And, the greatest part of Christianity is totally different. God reaches out to help us exactly because we can’t help ourselves and doesn’t expect us to. Rather, he calls us to rely totally on Him. Now that’s good news!