When Jesus said to love the poor, I think He meant it

Not too long ago, I was reading in Galatians for a bit before I went to sleep. I wasn’t studying any particular passage or looking for anything specific, but as I was reading there was this one verse in chapter 2 that caught my attention.

Beginning in verse 11 of chapter 1, Paul writes of how he received the gospel directly from God and not from any man. He writes of his depraved life before Jesus and of his coming to Jesus by the grace of God. He then says that, after he received salvation, he went directly into Arabia and Damascus to preach. He didn’t consult with anyone. He didn’t go to Jerusalem and get permission from the other apostles. He knew he received His calling directly from God, so he went out without hesitation and fulfilled it.

After 14 years of preaching the gospel, Paul finally went up to Jerusalem and met the other apostles. He says in verse 6 of chapter 2 that when he talked with them they had nothing to add to what he was preaching; they immediately saw that Paul was commissioned by God, and they recognized his preaching as the gospel of their Lord and Savior. They saw God’s grace on his life, and they trusted it.

Then I got to verse 10, where Paul says, “Only, they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.”

It struck me as amazing that the only thing the other apostles encouraged Paul to do was to remember the poor; and he was already eager to do it! Ministry and service to the poor was important to them, and they wanted to make sure Paul would include that in his ministry as well.

Not long after I was reading that passage, I began a minor study in Amos. I didn’t know much about the book when I began, and I’m honestly not even sure if I’d ever read it before. Regardless, it fascinated me. It begins with a series of judgments on the nations, all leading up to the judgment of Israel. Finally, when God does get to Israel, He holds them to a greater standard than He does the other nations because they were His chosen people—they had the Law.

And what would you know, one of the reasons God was punishing Israel was for their lack of care for the poor and for the needy. Amos 2:6-7 reads:

Thus says the LORD:

“For three transgressions of Israel,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,
because they sell the righteous for silver,
and the needy for a pair of sandals—

those who trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth
and turn aside the way of the afflicted;
a man and his father go in to the same girl,
so that my holy name is profaned.”

This was Israel, the Lord’s beloved nation, and He was punishing them partially for neglecting the poor and the needy that were around them. More than that, they were neglecting the poor for their own gain, which is something I know I’m guilty of doing. I know I’ve wrongfully ignored the needs of others so I could satisfy my own.

And then, of course, we have Jesus’ own teaching on the matter. In Luke 4, Jesus says to the people that He came to bring good news to the poor. And near the end of Matthew 25 Jesus speaks about the final judgment day when He will separate His own from the world—those meant to inherit the kingdom of God from those damned to hell. What is the difference between the two groups of people? Those belonging to Jesus were marked by their care and attention to the hungry, the thirsty, the outcast, the naked, the sick, and the imprisoned; and those not belonging to Jesus neglected all those things. “Truly, I say to you,” said Jesus, “as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me” (Matthew 25:30).

We also see this modeled in the early church. In Acts 2, all the believers joined together and sold all they had, giving freely to others as needs arose. This kind of generosity was normal for them, and I can only imagine it was done out of sincere love and joy for Christ and for the people around them.

Last week I was helping out the campus ministry I’m a part of. We set up a table in the FSU union, and we had a lot of really great conversations with people about Jesus and about what we do to make Him known. One question almost everyone asked me, though, was “What do you guys do to help serve?” And it hit me then that one way the world sees Jesus’ love is by His Bride’s service and love for other people, especially for those in need. Our service and sacrifice makes Jesus’ love tangible to those who’ve never really experienced it before.

Little by little, the Lord keeps showing me all these things concerning the poor. I don’t think it’s because He wants me to drop anything and just go minister to them 24/7, but I think it’s to challenge my selfishness. I honestly believe that’s one reason God allows poverty and need: so we, His people, would learn to be like Jesus to others.

As I’ve been praying about it, God’s just been convicting me of my self-centered, indulgent lifestyle and of my selfish habits. The main thing He keeps speaking to my heart is simply this:I will be held accountable for hoarding the abundance He has blessed me with. More and more the Lord is showing me that He didn’t place me where I am, in the midst of abundance, in order to be selfish; He placed me here to serve others and to give freely of what I do have.

The culture I live in doesn’t make it easy for me to give freely and to serve. Everything here teaches me to focus on me and on my interests. Everything here teaches me that I’m the most important person in my life, and that my happiness and comfort are what matter most. Everything here teaches me that I deserve to treat myself to whatever I want. In reality, I deserve the wrath of God. In reality, I already have better than I deserve because I have Jesus, and He’s the most precious prize I could ever attain.

Still, I really feel like God is wanting to rework a lot of my priorities. I feel like He’s calling me to absolute servant-hood in every area of my life: my time, my resources, my energy, my finances. Ultimately, our Father wants us to be like His Son, and His Son was a servant who gave all He had for broken, lost, needy people who didn’t deserve any of it. I don’t know what all that is going to look like, but I know I won’t be investing in things quite the same way I have been.

What do you all think, though? How do you think God would have His church serve in this capacity?

Let That Be Enough

And all I see, it could never make me happy.
All my sandcastles spend their time collapsing.

If there’s one lesson I feel like I’ll be learning over and over until the day I die, it’s that none of the things in this world can satisfy me. None of the temporal things I pursue will ever satisfy my soul. All of my selfish ambitions and indulgences will leave me empty if I put my hope in them.

And yet, my heart is an idol factory. Day after day, I manage to find something or someone to love more than I love my Lord. I habitually pursue things I know won’t bring my joy because I believe they’ll satisfy some temporal, sinful desire.

But Jesus, my sweet Savior King, is the only one who satisfies, and He’s constantly having to remind me of that. Day after day I find I have to tell myself that. Day after day I have to consciously choose to stop chasing the things of this world; I have to consciously chase Him.

Because I’m only alive in Him.
I’m only complete in Him.
I only know love in Him.

Ultimately, it’s the love of God that changes us. When you understand who He is, and when you fear Him, you understand how radical and crazy His love truly is. It’s unconditional, and it makes absolutely no sense.

But it’s the love of God that brings us to our knees. It’s the love of God that inspires obedience. It’s the love of God that cultivates holiness. It’s the love of God that satisfies.

I want to know His love, and I want that to be enough for me. I want it to be all I need. I want it to be all I want.

Let me know that You hear me.
Let me know Your touch.
Let me know that You love me.
Let that be enough.

- Switchfoot

Free Music – Come&Live!

I don’t about you, but I like free music.

I also like good music.

And music that glorifies God.

Come&Live! offers free, good, God-glorifying music.

From their website:

Come&Live! is a 501(c)3 non-profit community dedicated to proclaiming the good news of Jesus.
By joining hands with artists {musicianaries}, we provide them with guidance, direction and accountability to model a life of genuine faith. Our focus is in promoting the only true enduring treasure – loving others and living like JESUS. We choose to share music and profit as a humble example of radical generosity. We live simply to give generously, encouraging others to do the same. Our prayer is that God would use us to Give. Love. Share. and Revive.

The I Am Living, Vol. 1 album includes songs from various artists on the Come&Live! record label (and the first song includes an introduction by John Piper!). The rest of the downloads are full albums and EPs from those artists.

My favorites are Ascend the Hill, Daniel Bashta, The Ember Days, The Frozen Ocean, Holding Onto Hope, Sons of God, and So Long Forgotten, though I like most everything there.

But you should check it out for yourself!

And hey, while you’re at it, follow them on Twitter!

Enjoy!

The Full Reward of His Suffering

There is a story of two Moravian young men who, when they came of age, sold themselves into slavery so that they could travel to an island to minister and witness to the slaves there who had no other means of hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ.

There was no turning back for them. There was no, “I don’t feel led to do this anymore.” There was no, “This isn’t comfortable anymore.” They were slaves; bound to the mission they began, even unto death.

When the two men were departing on the boat, they looked back to see their church family and physical families standing there on the docks weeping for them as they left. They both knew they would never see them again, yet they both knew they were fulfilling the callings of the Lord in their lives. In a final parting one of the young men looked back and shouted to those standing, “Shall not the Lamb have the full reward of His suffering!”

What is the full reward of His suffering?

My mediocrity?
My hypocrisy?
My laziness?
My selfishness?
My passivity?
My procrastination?

What is the reward of the suffering of Christ? Did He die so that I could live in fear and shame of bearing His name? Did He suffer the wrath of the living, holy, just God so that I could waste my life away indulging in entertainment and selfish gain? Was He bruised and crushed so that I could serve myself and my supposed best interests?

Was Jesus’ physical suffering and death, separation from the Father and endurance of the cup of God’s wrath on my behalf enough to inspire my to live as dead to the world?

The full reward of His life is my life in turn. Christ says I must deny myself, carry my cross and follow Him (Mark 8:34), that I must love without insisting on my own way (1 Corinthians 13:5), that I must crucify my flesh (Galatians 5:24), and that I must present my body as an instrument of righteousness (Romans 6:13).

There is no room for any selfishness. There is no room for seeking after my interests. I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live. Rather, He lives in me (Galatians 2:20). I am not my own, for I was bought with a price (Galatians 5:19-20).

God has been convicting me of my idleness and passivity. I definitely do not steward my time in a manner that brings Him glory. As petty as it may sound, media, social networking, and entertainment have swallowed up large portions of my time lately. And all the while, I’ve needed more time.

I need more time to pray because I need to talk to my Dad.
I need more time to read Bible because His word is life for my soul.
I need more time to serve because it helps to rid me of my self-serving nature.
I need more time to share the Gospel because I have no right to keep such truth to myself.

I suppose this is my farewell to not giving Jesus the full reward of His suffering.

He deserves every moment for the love He has shown me.

John Wayne Gacy Jr.

“And in my best behavior, I am really just like him.”

John Wayne Gacy Jr. was a serial child rapist and murderer.

I’m no better.

Even in my best behavior, I was no better inside than He was. My good works were as filth before the Lord. And God didn’t see me any differently than He did Mr. Gacy.

Then Jesus loved me, saved me, and clothed me in His righteousness. Now He can work in me to change me. Now I am justified before God.

Really, though, outside of Christ we all deserve to be thought of with the same disgust with which we think of John.

Romans 3:21-25a – But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.