The Least of These- Day 3

Greed. 

It fuels our society.  Money talks, and in our world today, sometimes it yells.  The "American Dream" is characterized by financial success, and the implied happiness that follows.  We are never satisfied with what we have.  We want to "super size" everything and are always looking for the best deal or bargain.  More... we are always looking for more.

But what about believers?  Should we allow greed to be a motivating factor in our lives?  And if not, what is the cure for our human nature that is always wanting more?

"Then the Lord said to him, "You Pharisees are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy- full of greed and wickedness!  Fools!  Didn't God make the inside as well as the outside?  So clean the inside by giving gifts to the poor and you will be clean all over.  What sorrow awaits you Pharisees!  For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore justice and the love of God.  You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the important things."
Luke 11:39-42

The Pharisees were super-religious.  They were the crew that went to church every Sunday and followed all the rules... and there were a lot of them.  They were admired and esteemed.  People looked to them for guidance and as examples of godly men.  But Jesus saw through their act.  He knew their hearts, and what else did he see but GREED.  They were greedy.  They loved money.  Oh, of course they paid their tithe like they were supposed to.  But tithe is meant to be a minimum that we should give to the Lord. It's what was done out of obligation, not out of love.

Here Jesus addresses their greed and their belief that following rules was more important than justice and mercy.  Jesus wanted to make sure that they understood that to be true children of God, our lives will be impacted by His love.  He wasn't saying that giving to the poor would be what makes you a believer in God.  He was saying that generosity that flows from the heart is a sign of a true believer.  When generosity to the least of these fuels where our money and energy go rather than greed, our focus is shifted off of "self" and onto justice, mercy and compassion- the "important things". 

Whether or not you have a lot of money right now, the choices you make about what you do with what you have are a good sign of whether you are motivated by greed or by love.  Following religious rules won't get you anywhere.  Living a life of love and generosity will lead you straight to the heart of the Father.

The Least of These- Day 2

"What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing,  and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?  So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless."  James 2:14-17

William Wilberforce once said, "You may choose to look the other way, but you can never say again that you did not know."  How many injustices happen in the world that we are aware of, yet we do nothing about?  How many people in our own neighborhoods, schools and communities are mistreated and hurting that we come in contact with, yet we wish them well and pass them by?  

The Scriptures are clear- good works don't save us.  We can't earn our way into heaven.  No one can ever be good enough to achieve salvation on their own.  But the scripture above clearly says that if our faith in Jesus Christ doesn't produce good deeds, it isn't really authentic faith.  It's actually dead.  What this means is that true faith in Jesus will result in a desire to do good to our fellow man.  If we are truly followers of Christ, we will be his hands and feet extended to the world around us.  

Reflect on your life right now- how do your faith and deeds measure up?  Are they lopsided?  If you have faith but no deeds, you may need to re-evaluate the level of your commitment to Jesus and His commands.  If you do a lot of good things but your faith is weak, take some time to think about why you're doing what you're doing.  Are you trying to earn something that can't be earned?  Rest in knowing that God loves you as you are and any good thing you do should only be in response to His love. 

Take a moment today to follow this link and watch some news coverage about something happening in our world right now that shows how even the media can play a part in social injustice.  

http://reliablesources.blogs.cnn.com/2014/05/04/undercovered-nigerias-kidnapped-schoolgirls/

The Least of These- Day 1

My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people over others? For example, suppose someone comes into your meeting dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in dirty clothes. If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, “You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor”—well, doesn’t this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives?  Listen to me, dear brothers and sisters. Hasn’t God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith? Aren’t they the ones who will inherit the Kingdom he promised to those who love him?  But you dishonor the poor! Isn’t it the rich who oppress you and drag you into court? 7 Aren’t they the ones who slander Jesus Christ, whose noble name you bear?  Yes indeed, it is good when you obey the royal law as found in the Scriptures: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin. You are guilty of breaking the law.

James 2:1-9

Discrimination.  Usually when we hear that word we think of race, gender, or sexual orientation.  Those are the three types of discrimination we hear about most often in our culture.  It makes us mad when people discriminate because of their skin color.  People get upset when women are treated unfairly in the workplace.  The news media has a hayday when companies or groups discriminate against people who choose a homosexual lifestyle.

But how often do we think about discrimination when it comes to the poor?  Have you ever really thought about what it would be like to be poor, oppressed, homeless or struggling and have people look at you, passing judgment constantly?  Think about if we had two guests walk into our youth group one night.  One was dressed in trendy clothes and was friendly and attractive.  The other was dressed in secondhand clothes, looked a little disheveled and seemed shy and intimidated.  Who would you gravitate towards?  Who would feel more welcome? 

In these scriptures, James is calling us Christians out in the way we favor some people over others.  He says, "if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin."  It's not enough just to be nice to everyone.  If favoritism is in the picture at all, it's sin.  

Take a moment today and reflect on the way you view others: at school, at church, at work.  Do you discriminate against the poor?  Do you make fun of them?  Do you pass judgement on them?  Or do you love and treat them just like you would someone who was wealthy and popular?

Check out this video about a resource called "The Locust Effect" to learn more about the poor and their struggle to get out of poverty.

New Blog Series Coming Soon!

Alright, guys...we took a break from the blog for a while but we're back and ready to start things up again next Monday with a devotional series called "The Least of These."  We will be digging into Scripture to see what God has to say about how we treat others in our world, especially the poor, broken and hurting.  We will also be highlighting some different ministries that are actively reaching those people and encourage you to start thinking more about what you can do right where God has placed you.

For now, take a moment and read Matthew 25:31-46 and answer these questions:

- Right now, at this place in your life, would Jesus consider you a "goat" or a "sheep"?
- Salvation isn't about works, it's about the grace of God.  But scripture also tells us that we are not truly followers of Christ if we don't love others.  How does this verse change the way you think about what it means to be a Christian?
- What is a common excuse we give not to serve and love people in need?  What could we say instead?

Join us on Monday and be a part of the conversation by commenting below!