Matthew 26:11

For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.

This statement of Christ is true both in and out of its context. All the social schemes of all the ages have not changed the situation, nor will they ever do so. Men and nations may declare war on poverty; and, although Jesus' statement is a far cry from any derogation of any effort to relieve the afflictions of the poor and unfortunate, nevertheless, human nature being what it is, the fact of the ever-present poor remains century after century, and generation after generation. The reasons are in men themselves who indulge their pride, their appetites, their passions, and foibles without regard to consequences until poverty comes like an armed man upon them. In this place, Christ placed his own requirements above even the legitimate needs of the poor; and that too is a profoundly proper evaluation of the true values inherent in the situation. Elijah commanded the woman to make him a "little cake FIRST" (1 Kings 17:13).