SHEPHERDVILLE COLLEGE
Talojongon, Tigaon, Camarines Sur
CHRISTIAN SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
THE MEANING OF CHRISTIAN SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
LESSON 1
Upon completion of this LESSON, the students will be able to:
1. Define Christian Social Responsibility.
2. Identify the types of Responsibility.
3. Identify the benefits of Christian Social Responsibility
4. Relate the Old and New Testament teachings with regards to Christian Social
Responsibility.
DEFINITION OF TERMS
1. Responsibility - is a duty to act and to answer for the results of your actions.
2. Christian - those who believe in Jesus or the religion that is based on Jesus’ teachings. Or
those individual who speaks of a deep personal relationship between Jesus Christ
3. Social responsibility- is an ethical framework and suggests that an entity, be it an
organization or individual, has an obligation to act for the benefit of society at large.
4. Christian social responsibility - Christian love requires not only fulfilling all specific
responsibilities toward others, but understanding and approaching the whole area of social
responsibilities in a specifically Christian way.
KEY VERSE:
John 3:14-15
14 We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other. Anyone
who does not love remains in death. 15 Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a
murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him.
INTRODUCTION
No responsible believer in Jesus Christ is happy about the presence of such social evils as
racial hatred, a spiraling crime rate, the liquor and drug traffic, slums and violence. He realizes
that such conditions as these have the potential to destroy his society and therefore ought to
be checked. But the problem facing the Christian and the church is their role in curing the ills
of society. What is the church's responsibility in the area of social problems? Should the church
involve itself in these problems? If so, to what extent? These questions are not easily answered
and debate goes on within the church.
I. MEANING AND BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE
Christian Social Responsibility (CSR) is a faith-based obligation to meet societal needs
through the demonstration of love that positively impacts communities and individuals.
Christian Social Responsibility (CSR) has its roots in Christianity and the Church is meant to
be an example for the world to follow Matt. 5:16. It is an initiative for community relations and
to partner with the government in achieving the Global Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs).
Christian Social Responsibility (CSR ) could be in the areas of provision of basic social
amenities, daily sustenance like food parcels to the needy in society, healthcare deliver
facilities, education, media, business support, art/entertainment governance, sports, etc. It
involves strategically assessing the needs of the community and developing appropriate
structure programmes to cater for them. Christian Social Responsibility . Christian Social
Responsibility (CSR) is a core part of the ministry of the Church. It is not a 21st century concept;
it has its origin in the Bible. For instance, Lev 19:9-10; 23:22 instructs us to always make
provisions for the needy out of our income. In Matt. 25:31-46, Jesus taught it as essential to
entering the kingdom of God. Furthermore, in Matt 14:15-21, He demonstrated the need for
CSR when He fed five thousand men (besides women and children). Also, the Christians in
the early Church distributed their wealth to take care of those in need Acts 2:44-45..Social
responsibility is a duty every individual has to perform so as to maintain a balance between
the economy and the ecosystems.
NEO-EVANGELICALISM VIEWS VS FUNDAMENTALISM VIEWS
Neo-evangelicalism has declared that the church must get involved in the problems of society
or lose its voice and impact in that society. It states that Fundamentalists have overreacted
against the social gospel of the old modernist, thus terribly neglecting the social area.
Fundamentalism, on the other hand, warns Neo-evangelicalism that it is taking a dangerous
step, which likely will lead to the watering down of the complete message of the Bible, and to
the further secularization of the church. The Fundamentalist believes that the church is to catch
fish out of the pond of sin, while the Neo-evangelical feels that something must be done to
clean up the pond as well.
SAQ 1: Answer the following questions:
1. What is Christian Social Responsibility?
2. How do Neo Evangelicalism point of view different from the Fundamentalism View?
3. Name some areas that Christian Social Responsibility were commonly involved.
II. Old Testament teachings:
The Old Testament and the New Testament had taught us about being responsible with
others. The following are the teachings found in the Old Testament by which particularly
speaks of Christian Social Responsibility shown in the following verse:
1. God cares about the poor and the oppressed (Dt 15:7-11; Ps 146:7-9), particularly
widows and orphans (Isa 1:16-17; Ex 22:22-24)
2. God acts by devising programs to reduce increasing inequality between the rich
and the poor, such as Jubilee year when everyone could return to their original land
which might have been lost (Leviticus 25:10-17).
3. God denounces the rich and the powerful for oppressing the poor (Isaiah 3:14-15;
Jeremiah 5:26-29; Ezekiel 16:49; Amos 2:6-7; 5:11-12). Oppressing a poor man
insults God (Pr 14:31; 17:5).
4. God encourages action by associating righteousness to one who promotes justice
and acts fairly in society (Ezekiel 18:5-9).
New Testament teachings:
1. The ministry of Jesus is a demonstration of evangelism and social assistance
hand-in-hand. In Jesus’ public ministry, He went about teaching as well as helping
the poor (Luke 18:22) and healing.
2. The social ministry of Jesus was followed by his disciples (Ac 3; 5).
3. Social assistance to fellow Christians is a priority (1Jn 3:17), but also to non-
believers (Gal 6:10).
SAQ 2: ANSWER THE FOLLOWING WITH DILIGIENCE
1. Pick one verse from the Old Testament and new Testament by which God has
commanded regarding our Christian Responsibility to others and explain . (20 points)
BENEFITS OF CHRISTIAN SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
The benefits of Christian Social Responsibility to the Church and the world are numerous:
1. It enables people to see and know the meaning of the love of God 1 John. 3:16-18.
2. It meets the needs of the less privileged in the society.
3. It promotes evangelism and entrenches the Church of God in the hearts and minds of the
people we come across Matt. 5:16.
4. It embraces responsibility for sustainable actions and encourages a positive impact on the
environment Mk. 12:33.
5. It compliments government’s efforts in improving and sustaining the standard of living of
people in their immediate community Jam. 2:14-16.
6. It will enable the church to build a good relationship with the community Gal. 6:10.
7. It helps the believer to represent Jesus physically in their community Prov. 13:17; 2 Cor.
5:20.
8. It can open the door for the individual Christian and even the Church to share the Gospel
of Jesus and thus win people to the kingdom.
SAQ No.3 Answer the following
1. Pick out three (3) benefits of Christian Social Responsibility and explain its
significance. (15 points)
SUMMARY:
To be responsible is to be able and required to give account to someone for something. The
idea of responsibility, with the freedom and obligation it implies, has its place in the context of
social relations. To be responsible is to be a self in the presence of other selves, to whom one
is bound and to whom one is able to answer freely; responsibility includes stewardship or
trusteeship over things that belong to the common life of the selves. The question about the
one to whom account must be rendered is of equal importance with the question about
the what for which one must answer. The responsibility of rulers in political society varies not
only with the number of functions they exercise but also with the sovereign to whom they must
account for their rulership.
Christian Social Responsibility is not to seek commendation from men but to show the love of
Christ and be a blessing to our community.
The true objective must be kept in view: not to establish the kingdom on earth, but to do what
can be done within an integrated Christian life to promote the kingdom, which is not of this
world. In so doing, one also will make the most authentic possible contribution to overcoming
injustice or at least mitigating it, and building a better world.
REFERENCES:
https://steemit.com/christian/@sirdeza/christian-social-responsibility Christian Social
Responsibility
Paul Benware
The Social Responsibility of the Church
