April 6, 2020 A RICH HERITAGE
Luke 10:33-34 “But a certain Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon Him; and when he saw him, he felt compassion, and came to him, and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them; and he put him on his own beast, and bought him to an inn, and took care of him.
Matthew 10:8 “Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give.”
In the book “Water From A Deep Well,” the author does a masterful job of giving insight on how the early church functioned and the impact it had on the culture. One of the main reasons of writing this book was to show the deep and wonderful heritage we have as believers; indeed we do have deep roots as believers. There is much we can learn as we discover our spiritual roots; as we take a close look at the lives of the early believers, it is indeed like drinking water from a deep well. As I was thinking about what our response as believers should be concerning the coronavirus, I was reminded about one of the facts I learned in reading this book was how the early believers dealt with those who were sick. In the Roman culture, it was customary to cast anyone out of the house if they became ill; the sick were left to wander and to fend for themselves. This is where the early church made a difference-because they had experienced the grace, the love, and the compassion of God, they demonstrated the same compassion by taking in those who had been cast out, making every effort to nurse them back to health; this also included helping those who became sick with plagues. It is amazing, but because these early believers were not afraid to come along side those who had the plague to help, many of the believers developed an immunity to the plague! Wow! We could call certainly this current coronavirus a plague. What I am about to say may sound contradictory, but I don’t think it is. I think it is wise for us to follow the protocol in responding to this virus; we should maintain ‘social distancing’ and etc. But at the same time, we must be willing and anxious to help when and where we can; perhaps deliver meals or help in some way as we have opportunity. We need to pray for those who work in healthcare who are at high risk for getting the virus. As believers, we should be wise, but not to live in fear. Our confidence must be in the Lord and the compassion that God has put in our hearts should be expressed to those in need. We have been following the protocol personally, but the other day someone who was just home from the hospital called and asked us to take her to the doctor’s office; my first thought was that we should not be around those who had been exposed in such a way to the virus, but then the Holy Spirit reminded me that we do not need to fear, but to be willing to help when asked. Again, let us be wise, but also let us put our faith into action and be expressions of the love, grace, and compassion of God.
Matthew 25:36 “I was naked and you clothed Me, I was sick and you visited Me, I was in prison and you came to me.”
3 John 1:2 “Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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