Does God help those who help themselves?

From the heart of Dr. Robert L. Taylor, Th.D., Bible Teacher & Expositor. I’ve always heard it said that “God helps those who help themselves.” I've heard it uttered dozens of times. Friends, family members, and strangers have looked at me and said, “Well, you know what the Bible says, ‘God helps those who help themselves.’” If you find that phrase in your Bible, it is only because it’s on the other side of your bookmark! Jay Leno once conducted a series of interviews with random people on the street and asked them to name one of the Ten Commandments. One of the most common responses was, “God helps those who help themselves.” That’s troubling because not only is it not one of the Ten Commandments, but it’s not in the Bible at all. Where did the phrase originate? This saying is attributed to Benjamin Franklin who was a deist. A deist is someone who believes, do good and God will intervene when necessary. This is not the God of the Bible! If God waited for us to do good, He never would’ve intervened on our behalf, and we’d still be lost in our sin. Actually, God helps people who can’t help themselves! Apostle Paul teaches, (6) “For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. (7) For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. (8) But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:6-8). This sacrifice was made while we were still weak, powerless, or helpless. In other words, God proved His love for us by acting first. He didn’t make arrangements with us ahead of time, or wait for us to become strong and godly and worthy of being saved. God loved us and took action to save us while we were still helpless to save ourselves because of our sin. In the end, the saying “God helps those who help themselves” falls short because it misrepresents the heart of God and the Gospel. The Bible teaches that we are not self-sufficient beings, capable of earning God’s favor through our own efforts. Instead, we are extremely deeply in need of His grace, love, and strength to do what we could never do on our own. Be encouraged!