Tuesday, January 22, 2008

RL2: Think on this. . .

I was just reading Missy's post on Red Letters. She quotes from the book of Matthew saying, "

31"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will
sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32All the nations will be gathered before
him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates
the sheep from the goats. 33He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on
his left. 34"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are
blessed by my Father
; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since
the creation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat,
I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you
invited me in, 36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked
after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'37"Then the righteous will
answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give
you something to drink? 38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or
needing clothes and clothe you? 39When did we see you sick or in prison and go
to visit you?'40"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did
for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

Did you notice the part in BOLD? I did. . for the first time. He didn't say, "Come, you who blessed my Father" but "come you who were blessed by my Father." Then he goes on to share what those people's lives were like. We so often think of feeding the poor and hungry as ministry (which it is). . .I'm just wondering if we need to redefine this. We think of it as work. Worthwhile work b/c it blesses the heart of God. . .but, work nonetheless. In fact, some may be hesitating to even read this book or think on these issues b/c of what it may cost them or what God may call them to (I know I find myself at times wanting to put it down). Maybe my definitions are wrong. The KING said, "you who are blessed BY my Father" and described a life of service. The life of service IS a blessing! That's what the KING says. Is that how I think of it? I need to dwell on this a bit. . . .what about you?

6 comments:

Jamie said...

I need to order the book!

missy said...

I think I look at it this way. 2 of the major ways we are blessed by God are our salvation (the most important) and through our earthly blessings (ie wealth, place of birth, education...) God's word tells us that because of these blessings we are now required to respond to the rest of the world according to the riches bestowed upon us whether they be spiritual or physical. Our good works should be a natural outpouring of this. I find it sad that we all (myself right at the top of the list) have to put so much thought into it and weigh the cost so much.

See: James 2:14-17, Luke 12:48b

Does this make any sense at all?

Anonymous said...

Hey Brandi. I LOVE AFRICA, too!! : ) (I saw that little exclamation on your home page -- cute.) Yesterday I wrote a comment on your friend's blog -- I think it was Missy -- about her trip to Africa. So today I thought I'd write on yours!
I'm Hannah, Tom Davis's sister in law -- Auntie to his 6 kiddos. : ) He wanted me to thank you for being a fellow passionate advocate for orphans in Africa. He has probably said that to you himself, but I know he really means it. God's heart for these kids is growing in more and more of His people's hearts, and it's awesome!
Tom actually is flying out to Africa this morning, Swaziland precisely -- for 2 weeks. Anyhow, I am one of Tom's assistants here at Hopechest, so if you have any questions, I'm here!
With joy,
Hannah Chynoweth
hannah@hopechest.org

steffany said...

I finally started reading today. I love it. It speaks my heart. I often lack the right words for what is going on inside me, but the way he puts it all in perspective keeps me yelling outloud, "Yes, Amen!" So many times as Christ followers we become Christ quoter's instead of living the red letters we go around preaching it.

Julie Redman said...

brandi,
when i post i want to link to your blogs, can you PLEASE help out your computer illiterate friend!?
julie

annNEE said...

I need to be reading this book with you guys!!! I miss you!!! Guess what?! I am starting a blog for Mayem.

http://helpingmayen.blogspot.com/

We started emailing back and forth, and he just mailed me some pictures that I need to scan and put on the blog. I'll keep you posted and let you know when it's ready to be sent to people. I still need to get paypal set up so people can donate money to help him help his brother and sister. You can check it out now, though. Did I mention I love you?!!

~annNEE