Have you ever looked into the mirror and not recognized the person looking back at you? I have been growing a beard and my hair out for the last month in an attempt to stay warm in the cold weather. As I looked at myself in the mirror at work today, I marveled at how easily I could be mistaken for a bum. This could be seen as comical in some ways but to me it opened my eyes to how we could all be one step away from the person on the street. Every person on the street has a story. I would even venture to guess that most of the people on the street had a normal life during an earlier stage of their life.
For many of us, this is a hard reality to accept. It is much easier to believe the lie that all bums are there because they choose to be. We can help develop our apathy towards people on the street by telling ourselves that they would just use the money for alcohol and drugs anyway. Maybe you have even told yourself that giving a homeless person money would just be perpetuating a lifestyle. Though all of these statements may be true at any given time, there is nothing in the Bible supporting the belied that we shouldn't love them anyway. Jesus said, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, 'I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.' For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners."
Do we as Christians desire to teach, minister, and reach out to the sick today or do we prefer the healed who have it all together and have something to offer us? Those who are sick, jobless, and/or unsaved are messy. They have baggage. They need extra support, extra love, and extra attention. I find that many of us today, including myself, want to just be around the people who lift us up, who affirm us, and who make our lives easy and peaceful. Dealing with the "sick," as Jesus put it, is difficult. Jesus demonstrated he cared very much about the less fortunate. This is best seen in the parable of the sheep and goats told by Jesus in Matthew 25:31-46. The goats who did not care for "the least of these" were cursed to Hell. I don't know about you but this parable brings me pause because I know there have been many times in my life I turned my back to the least of these.
As I stared in the mirror at the man before me, I realized that I'm closer to the "least of these" than I allow myself to believe. The Lord showed me that the outside appearance does not reflect the inner heart. The sheep before being sheared appears mangy and unkept to the world but the shearer knows that underneath that mangy wool is a beautiful innocent lamb. We are each lambs of Jesus and he loves each one of us greatly. Jesus looks past our outward appearance to our hearts. As "little Christ's," we should also take the time to see past people's appearance to their heart. I hope today you will walk with a new perspective and compassion for the different people you encounter.
Blessings,
Greg
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