I found thnis quote in a daily devotional I get from beliefnet. It reminded me of things Al Baker, my college pastor, taught us about social justice. We must always remember to never look down on anyone. The ground is always level at the foot of the cross.
Justice demands that we seek and find the stranger, the broken, the prisoner, and comfort them and offer them our help. Here lies the holy compassion of God.
-Mechtild of Magdeburg
4 comments:
Good stuff Tom. That is a great reminder!
How can that be true? I know of a church where they've kicked out several "beloved" members. They looked down on them, judged them and cut off all contact with them. They didn't help them at all. What's your opinion on this?
Hi, Scarlett. Good question. My opinion, though, isn't that important. God's opinion is supremely important. I would suggest looking at how Jesus interacted with people for guidance on that.
Jesus reserved his harshest words for the religious people of the day, largely because of their pride. On the other hand He was criticized for his association with sinners such as prostitutes.
There references to removing people who continue in sin from a body of believers who demonstrate that they are there to distract from the mission of the church.
I don't know the situations you reference. I know that well-meaning Christian people do not always live up to the character of Christ in how they treat people. That does not in any way diminish the truth of the Gospel message, though.
I am sorry I haven't provided scripture references, but I have tried to you a straight answer based on scripture.
Hi Scarlett. As the au5hor of the original post, I felt I needed to respond to your comment.
First let me say tyhat I am truly sorry your friends and you were here by those within the the church. My post certainly was NOT a claim of perfection on the Church's part. All of us are imperfect and will be until Christs return. My post was simply meant to encourage or urge the Church to do the right thing. It was not a claim that we always do. My prayer for you and your friends is that God will make Himself real to you all and lead you to a place where you can be loved and encouraged.
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