Love Like Jesus
Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked them: “Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear? And don’t you remember? When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?” – Mark 8:17-19
Almost daily we are assaulted with political diatribe directed toward illegal immigrants crossing our southern border. Politicians are good at pointing fingers; not so good at solutions that actually work. Party divisions are rampant. Yet it seems as though everyone is missing the obvious, especially those who wear the badge of conservative Christian.
Don’t get me wrong. We’ve got a problem and we need to take action. But we need to do that in accordance with what the Bible says to do. Welcome the foreigner. Love everyone. Do good to widows and orphans. Open your hearts to the least of them. In other words, live like Jesus.
Every single person who crosses the border was created in the image of God. Just like you and I. Every person has a name. God knows their name. Every person has a story and God knows and understands what it is. We don’t. We are too busy condemning them for daring to enter our borders illegally that we don’t bother to ask.
A woman and her two children recently drowned while trying to reach our country. We barely heard about them for the outcry of the jurisdictional power struggle between the state of Texas and the U.S. Border Patrol. Three people died! Did anyone mourn their loss?
Oh, how I wish we lived in a time when political leaders were actually statesmen more focused on doing what’s right than on what’s politically designed to boost their power and poll numbers. I long for the days when Christian leadership wasn’t afraid to actually preach God’s Word and guide us to action that aligns with the Bible we claim to love.
Why waste money building a wall that won’t keep people out? Spend that money on hiring more workers to review applications and reduce the amount of time for reviewing immigrant applications to months rather than years.
Stop shipping immigrants to other cities as though they are unwanted cattle. Use that time and money to organize a true plan for caring for God’s people. And they are God’s people. Create a joint plan that includes government workers and churches, synagogues and other religious groups. We are ALL called to care for the least among us. If we all do our part there will be plenty for everyone, including us.
Jesus’ disciples couldn’t understand about bread and yeast. They obviously didn’t even understand how Jesus multiplied meager offerings so that thousands could be fed. We don’t understand either. Our hearts are so hard and we cling so tightly to God’s blessings, that we miss the meaning of it all.
Love like Jesus. So simple and yet, perhaps, the hardest thing we could ever do.
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