Not to Fix or Save

If you learned that all Bibles would be burned tonight, but you were allowed to keep verse or passage what would it be?

This was a question posed to our group at the workshop we attended at Jacob's Well.

Joyce told us that most Christians would answer with either John 3:16 or The Great Commission in Matthew 28:19 ("Go make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the father....").

But Jesus clearly states that the greatest commandment is to Love God, followed by Loving others.




There is so much pain and corruption in our world that it is easy for even the best-equipped to be discouraged. Where does one start? It seems that you may be able to feed one starving child only to turn around and see three more behind you...

So what's the answer?

It's all to easy to look at Joyce's work in the downtown Eastside where the reality is that they do more burials than baptisms and say that it's not for us. Working somewhere like that would be too discouraging, and would likely make us depressed. A person like Joyce must have something different running through her veins because expecting something like that out of someone like you is unfair.

The fit's just not right.

Although I agree that everyone has different callings in life, and everyone has different giftings- we manipulate that fact so as to be the exception to the rule of loving others... ALL OTHERS.

I am convinced that one of the biggest reasons that people convince themselves that the "fit" isn't right- that they won't be the next person to help those facing problems of drug addiction, social injustice, poverty, AIDS, child abuse/ neglect/abandonment, war etc. - because we see these people who require our help as something to "fix" or "save".

But take a look at Matthew 25:35-39

"For 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,
I needed clothes and you clothed me,
I was sick and you looked after me,
I was in prison and you came to visit me"

Note: it does NOT say: I was hungry so you bought all my groceries for life or I was sick and you healed me.

No where does it say "you saved/changed me, you fixed all my problems and made my life straightforward and clean."

Instead it is seeing a need, and acting in love.




Are you a humanist or a Christ follower? (Do you feel pressure to save people or love people?).

Instead of being overwhelmed to the point of apathy- judge your life by this: at the end of each day, ask yourself:

Have I loved well?