When the Son of man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, 33 and he will place the sheep at his right hand, but the goats at the left. 34 Then the King will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; 35 for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ – Matthew 25:31-36
Dear Disciple of Christ,
You remember that I was talking for the last two weeks about an Iranian group that the president of the congregation and I tried to help based on our congregational perspective about stewardship (use of our large meeting room to provide care). The request for a meeting space was presented as a group simply trying to help students in America who couldn’t work (no work visa’s). They did that but they also had something else in mind at the same time. They wanted to gather support for an exiled Iranian leader (who wanted to replace the Ayatollah. That exiled leader also wanted to ingratiate himself to the FBI, hoping he could become an American “agent”, sharing information from around the world. This was all unbeknownst to us).
So, how would you feel about finding out about that? Would you still try to help them? Pray for them? Or, in anger or embarrassment, would you no longer focus on their legitimate and challenged needs for help? Would your care change if you knew you were being deceived in some way? I wonder how people feel who send money to help someone or some group in need but it turns out it was all a scam or 95% scam, with 95% going to “administrative fees” and 5% to the cause you thought you were supporting. Perhaps they commit themselves to never being “tricked” again and to do that by not helping those in need, just tossing any requests into “file 13”.
In some ways, I had some of those feelings. The president and I had really “stuck our necks out” for the youth but there were other things going on. Before they left I had another visit from the leaders and some young college age girls. They smiled as they presented me with a wall hanging. It had some intricately laid mosaic of wood around the frame. The background was a green soft cloth and in the center was writing in bronze. The sense of the gift was it was a thank you for our kindness to them. From the look in their eyes, I really did believe them. That plaque sits on a shelf in my office at home to this day.
I suppose we (or I) may have been taken advantage of, but I think there really was some help we provided to some in serious need. I wasn’t trying to “entertain angels” (as Hebrews refers to it), but to simply help those in need (along the line of Jesus’ teaching in the Matthew 25 lesson above). That always raises the question. How do we know who to help or how to help them? How do we avoid being taken advantage of and resources not reaching those in true need?
I would suggest that one of the best ways to avoid that is to support agencies that you know are legitimate. My wife and I have supported Lutheran World Relief with monthly automatic donations (you can check out their global and expansive ministries ** each year our church sends quilts to LWR that are sent all over the world.) It is likely your church is holding to pretty high standards (as they should) in using donations to help others. You can review and hear at least annually where the donated funds went. You can direct where those funds go as well. But if we are going to err, wouldn’t we want to err on the side of support? Refraining from helping others might protect us one out of a dozen times people request aide but if we don’t help them, we failed to care for the stranger the other 11 times.
I’ve mentioned a number of times over the years, the “global rich list.” It was a website that allowed us to see visually just how our resources compare with others in the world. Though the site is not actively functioning, you can still get a sense of our wealth compared to the poverty of so many others in the world. You might check this link (https://www.statista.com/chart/11857/the-global-pyramid-of-wealth/) that shows a general picture (via a pyramid) of the wealth distribution in the world.
Even within our own country we know there are people in situations that are just terrible and who are seriously in need of support. Right now we’re watching some of the effects of a two recent hurricanes that looks to have been massive and devastating (hundreds of people died and hundreds are still missing). Interviewers were speaking with people who did not leave their homes, despite the warnings. When asked why, some said it was not a callous disregard for the dangers but simply a “financial issue”. Though there were free shelters inland where parents and children could stay, they still would have to pay for gas in long lines to fill their tanks. I expect most of us would be able to find a way to protect our families, even if it was using a credit card for gas.
Can you imagine being so financially challenged that you would stay and face a hurricane with your family at your side? There really are some around us who are in great need and they have little to deal with the challenges. But there are agencies proficient in helping. You can ask your pastor for agencies that help and send your support. I hope and pray we can all keep an open heart, even in these times of deception, so that we can offer legitimate help for legitimate needs.
Blessings on your care for others.
Peace,
Pastor Johnson