A panhandler held a black
cardboard sign with silver letters that read “Jesus Loves the Homeless.” I
understand the man’s endgame to be that he wants a handout, but that’s not
what the sign said. My head spun thinking of all different messages that can be
ascertained by those driving by and the usury of the Lord’s name. However, Paul
has a different thought process about those who preach Christ out of selfish
ambition, “But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way,
whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I
rejoice” (Phil 1:17-18a NIV).
1 comment:
Steve Corey has left a new comment on your post "Jesus Loves":
Gail;
-----What is love? Is a toy given to a child gone to bed hungry love? Is love merely the warmth and joy in your heart for someone special? I’ve come to consider love as the serving response to true needs. Which led me to wonder why a good man would not be utterly consumed by this world’s pitiful needs. And according to all the ballyhoo over Jesus' love and everything, I often wondered why His whole time on earth was not consumed with raising the dead, healing the sick, and raining food across the land. But eventually I realized that love serves need before want, and often ignores want for need of discipline. That’s when I realized Christ was completely consumed in filling the actual need of the entire earth: a way of escaping the wages of sin. On the cross, every last bit of His life was fed to the world’s need.
-----I was talking with a friend, yesterday, about the perplexing problem of which panhandlers are for real in need, and which are pulling our legs to get to our pockets. He told me the solution was simple. If the panhandler was in real need of a handout, a couple cans of food would certainly help. But if he was feigning, a Bible was necessary. So he carries in his car a few small bags of food with a Bible in each, which he gives to the panhandlers along the road.
-----I guess if love were a weapon that would be a shotgun with salt-loads.
Love you all,
Steve Corey
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