Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “Faith”
Our Bible verse for today: “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can his faith save him? Show me your faith without works and I will show you faith from my works.” James 2:16; 18 (HCSB)
Our thought for today: “Real faith expresses itself in works.
In his book “Reaching for the Invisible God” Philip Yancey tells the story of a French Friar by the name of Pierre. Shortly after World War II, and before becoming a Friar, Pierre was a wealthy man who served in the French Parliament. France in those days, right after the War, was overwhelmed with homeless and destitute people living on the streets of Paris.
Pierre was appalled and frustrated by the lack of sensitivity and the inaction of the wealthy members of Parliament to the plight of the suffering masses of people. Finally Pierre left Parliament, left his life of wealth and ease, became a Catholic friar, and dedicated his life to helping the beggars. Pierre instituted self-help programs on a huge scale, all designed to assist the homeless in getting back on their feet. An important aspect of the programs required every homeless person to find at least one other person who was worse off than them and to find ways to assist that less fortunate person. The premise was that, no matter how great your own need, there was always someone worse off than you and an important part of your own recovery, involved being a blessing to someone else.
The programs were so successful that eventually the standard of living for everyone was rising, and it was becoming increasingly difficult for the down-and-out to find others they could help who were worse off than they were. While Pierre was happy and grateful that so many people were now doing so much better, he also recognized that they had reached a point of crisis as well. Pierre wrote, “I realized that I had to find someone new for my beggars to help. If I didn’t find people worse off than my beggars, this movement could turn inward. They would become a powerful, rich organization, and the whole spiritual impact would be lost. They would have no one to serve.”
Finally Friar Pierre became aware of a colony of lepers in India, five thousand miles away, who were in desperate need of help. Pierre discovered that those lepers were in far worse condition than the former beggars in Paris had ever been. Returning to Paris he mobilized the former beggars to raise the funds to build a hospital for the lepers, to send supplies to then, and to go on short mission trips to serve them. To the grateful recipients of this gift in India Pierre said, “No, no, it is you who have saved us. We must serve or we die.”
Yes. We must serve or we die. We die in that our faith becomes a weak, tepid, inwardly focused thing that causes us to become preoccupied with ourselves and our own small needs. Are you having trouble making ends meet financially and wishing your paycheck was more? There are plenty of people who have no income at all and who are living in a cardboard box under a bridge. Are you sick? There are many others who are sicker. Are you feeling a little lonely? Many seniors living in nursing homes haven’t had a visit from anyone in years.
The point is that there is always someone worse off than you are and therefore there is always an opportunity to take your eyes off of yourself and your own problems, and to be a blessing to someone else instead.
This is what James was teaching in his short letter. The world is filled with lonely, hurting, hungry, sick, and dying people. And if the practice of your faith doesn’t include acts of mercy and blessing to those in need, then that faith is a weak and tepid thing that is making no real difference to you or to anyone else.
I encourage you to find someone today who is worse off than you are and find a way to bless them in the Name of Jesus.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 