As I start writing this article, I just want to warn you that some Christians may not like what I am expressing this week. However, if you choose to finish or even if you stop before the end, I am just asking that you check your heart to make sure it is in line with God’s heart and His thoughts. Unfortunately, many of us as Christians may have varying thoughts and opinions which may not conform to God’s Word or His heart.
After He had removed him, He raised up David to be their king, concerning whom He also testified and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My heart, who will do all My will.’ Acts 13:22
David was a man after God’s heart because he did His will. And the times in which he didn’t do things God’s way, he was ready to repent. On the other hand, God removed Saul from his position as king because he was not obeying Him. The prophet Samuel told him that obedience is better than sacrifice.
How many of us are ready to sacrifice for God instead of obeying Him? Doing what God wants is different than doing what we want for God. And if we love God, we will obey Him (see John 14:15) and we will love others. Too many people in our churches are busy doing ministry while the brother or sister sitting beside them may be hurting. But they are too busy to take time to converse with them. Also, sometimes the busyness is to cover over undealt with hurt that God wants to heal if we are ready to confess. There are hugs and kisses in the family of God, but many times these are just facades to hide the sad truth. There are many lonely people in our churches, even though God puts the lonely in families. Yet, it seems somehow the family may be dysfunctional, and we wonder where all the love has gone when so many have a variety of needs in our churches, but their needs are overlooked in our busyness.
If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. 1 John 4:20
Many people in churches go unseen as we may focus on catering to the desires of the more prominent in our congregations. We may say we do not hate the poorer brothers and sisters, but many times a lot of us Christians prefer the ones who have influence and affluence over the “least of these”. This is definitely not of God, who wants us to take special care of the most vulnerable in our community.
And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.” Luke 4:17-19
I look at what Jesus came to do and then examine the Christianity I am seeing on public display, and I am appalled. Jesus did not come to preach the prosperity Gospel or to make people feel good about themselves. On the contrary, time and time again the Son of Man who had no place to lay His head told us we would suffer. He told us that just as He was persecuted, we would be persecuted. And no, persecution is not you going to work late because you had a prayer meeting at church early in the morning and now your boss is upset with you. It is really suffering for Jesus’ sake as we take up our own cross.
The Gospel that Jesus preached was one of repentance as did his cousin John the Baptist. While John was in the wilderness baptizing people and telling them to confess their sins to receive forgiveness, he was dressed in camel’s hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. I don’t think he would be a popular preacher of our day, some of whom brag about their private jets and lavish mansions while making you feel that you are not truly inheriting the kingdom of God if you do not have the luxuries of life. They twist Scriptures to manipulate devotees, some of meager means, to give more to be supposedly blessed exponentially. The Kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (see Romans 15:17). Jesus said it would be easier for a camel to get through the eye of a needle than a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God (see Matthew 19:24, Mark 10:25, Luke 18:25). Thankfully, nothing is impossible with God. But we must be ready to care for who and what He cares about.
“Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink; I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.’ Then they themselves also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?’ Then He will answer them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” Matthew 25:41-46
This is the Word of the Lord. We may speak about love a lot in our churches. However, we need to be showing love and loving is not easy. Love is more than just doing what we believe are good Christian deeds. We can give to someone in need, but they still do not feel loved by us. People will know we are Christians by our love. But unfortunately, many are looking at Christians and they are asking, “Where has all the love gone?”
If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing. 1 Corinthians 13:1-3
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