"How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?" (John 4:9)
I have just started reading a new book, Crazy Love, by Francis Chan. Right at the very beginning he says, "We need to stop giving people excuses not to believe in God." At the core of a statement like that is a realization that church, not Jesus, turns people off. And that is a not a new development. It was happening even when Jesus was walking the earth.
The group was very conservative. They were champions of the Word of God. They were extremely moral and faithful to the law. But they, said Jesus, had a habit of straining at a gnat and swallowing a camel. They were the Pharisees, and they were about as religious as people can get. They stumbled over the fact that Jesus was always hanging around sinners. They were the church crowd of the scene that Jesus invaded.
In John 4, the character that Jesus encounters is a Samaritan woman who has come to draw water in the middle of the heat of the day. She comes at that time because she is a social outcast. She has been married five times and is now living with a man that is not her husband. During the New Testament times, Jews hated Samaritans, and men did not speak to women they did not know in public places. But Jesus crossed all of the barriers to show this woman compassion.
Francois Fenelon said, "To just read the Bible, attend church, and avoid 'big" sins - is this passionate, wholeheared love for God?" (The Seeking Heart). As one believer to another, I can tell you if that is all there is, I don't want to be a part of the program. There is definitely so much more to being a follower of Christ. I believe when we learn to show the compassion of Christ to those in our world that society has turned away from, we will start attracting people back to church instead of giving them excuses not to believe in God.
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AMEN!!!!! to quote by Francois Fenelon. People find it hard to show compassion to people they have always looked down at. People lump the underachievers in the world as 'not worthy' of their time. Unless one steps out and becomes a friend to such a person, they will never understand why we should not look down at others. Most Christians think only of themselves...........not others. How can we encourage Christians to step out into the world and see the people who need Christ? Even once a person is personally involved with an underachiever, they find it hard to believe that they can change.
ReplyDeletethinking some more----- doubting that people will change is doubting God.........God is who changes people. Does anyone have problems dealing with people who are older special education people. I find it difficult to work with people who are not very bright. It's hard to help them.
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