One of the most dangerous and rewarding ways that we can Live Like Jesus is to step outside the walls of the church and serve people in the community. But stepping into the world around us means that things might get a little messy. We will have to interact with people that we would normally not hang out with. We will be confronted with the realities of this fallen world through the pain and suffering that people are facing in their lives.
One day an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking him this question: “Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?”
Jesus replied, “What does the law of Moses say? How do you read it?”
The man answered, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
“Right!” Jesus told him. “Do this and you will live!”
The man wanted to justify his actions, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Luke 10:25-29
That is the key question, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus goes on in the parable to expand our view of “neighbor” to anyone in need. In the book Ministries of Mercy by Timothy Keller, he states, “Our nation is becoming a mosaic of different groups, each with a unique complex of needs” (p.25). In the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37) Jesus describes how the Samaritan came upon a Jew who had been beaten and robbed. The Samaritan provided physical protection from any kind; a new attack, medical assistance by bandaging his wounds, transportation by putting him on his own donkey, and assisted financially by paying for his stay at the Inn. In short, the Samaritan met a whole range of needs for this person. One of our goals and callings in our Christian life is to identify needs in our community and meet them in a practical way. It is by meeting these practical needs that the world will know our love for God and His love for them.
When I heard that our Women’s Ministry was going to one of our local strip clubs simply to let the girls know they are loved; I was blown away. They go to the clubs on a Saturday evening and throw a party for the girls. They bring gifts and homemade cookies with no conditions attached. You can imagine the first few times they went that the girls didn’t immediately warm up to them but as they kept going the girls did open up. The girls have hurts, stresses and brokenness just like anyone. Our Women’s Ministry was able to go out and identify a need in our community and begin to reach out and now has an ongoing relationship with many of the girls. What about you? What needs do you see in our community? How can you reach out and meet those needs?
