Did For Or Did Not
I will admit it. I regularly read Facebook and occasionally Instagram. This morning a post shared by a friend caught my eye. I had to read it twice to completely digest its message.
Reverend Ben Cremer was shown in the picture to have shared the following message: “If we Christians somehow arrive at the conclusion that giving up some personal liberties for the sake of other people’s safety somehow makes us free, then we have deeply misunderstood the cross.”
Instantly my mind went to vaccinations and mask wearing but in reality, it’s much, much more. The more I thought about it, the more it made me uncomfortable.
Did for or did not do for the least of these…
With this year being the twentieth anniversary of 9/11, 60-Minutes had a special episode dedicated to remembering that day through the eyes of the FDNY, the fire department that was first to respond to the dramatic and tragic events in New York City.
In one segment, the interviewer spoke with one of the commanders who had given orders to the firefighters as they were dispatched into burning first tower. Group after group he sent in to the building with the intent of rescuing as many lives as possible. As thousands ran out of the building, hundreds of firefighters ran in to it. When asked by the interviewer, “How many refused to go in?”, the commander paused briefly and looking the interview straight in the eye said, “Not a one.”
Did for or did not do for the least of these…
I have always had great respect for Reverend Billy Graham and have admired him for so many reasons. His deep voices slowly and clearly spoke and continues to speak truth to the world. It was 9/11 this past weekend and his son Franklin reposted the words Rev. Graham shared in the days that followed the toppling of the two towers, the Pentagon being crushed and the plane crashing in Pennsylvania. On the day set aside for prayer shortly after 9/11, he addressed the nation that desperately tried to understand the horrible events of that day.
One thing I have always noticed about Rev. Graham is that he often references the Bible when he speaks saying, “As the Bible says…” and either quotes scripture or paraphrases the message of the Bible. And this speech was no different as he shared the Biblical message of hope through God to a hurting nation.
Did for or did not do for the least of these…
As I consider my freedom and my willingness to consider others, I can hear Rev. Graham. What I hear him saying is, “The Bible says, whatever you do for others, or in the words of Jesus, ‘the least of these’, you do for Him – you do for Jesus. Whatever you don’t do for other, or the least of these, you don’t do for Him.”
Whether it is:
Running into a burning building.
Comforting one who is hurting.
Giving a meal to someone who is hungry.
Visiting a prisoner.
Helping the sick.
Or any other action that protects or helps another. This is my “did for or did not do for the least of these”. This is my “did for or did not do for Jesus”.
Jesus gave up all His personal freedoms to be my Savior. And your Savior. We are the least of these in His eyes. What He did is:
Suffered greatly.
Died on the Cross.
Overcame death.
Rose again.
All for the least of these. All for us. The Bible tells us He could have chosen not to. He could have put His life and personal comforts first but He did not.
Will you join me in doing for the least of these and for Jesus?
JW