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Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.         --James 2:15-17 Not long ago, I was talking to a lady who had just returned from a mission journey. It was her first time to leave the country, and I asked her about the difficulties she faced as she was communicating with people who couldn’t understand her language. She told me, “I didn’t understand a word from them and they didn’t understand a word from me. But the one thing I could tell they understood was love. And when we loved them through our acts of service, they got a glimpse of the Gospel!” An old adage says, “People would rather see a sermon than hear one any day.” Now of course, we must proclaim the Gospel with words. But let us never forget that one of the most powerful validations of the message of the Gospel is the love that we show because of the difference it’s made in our lives. How many people today are leaving our churches because they’re tired of words without action? Your love may be the only Bible people ever read. Proclaim the Word of God and love others well! LOVE OTHERS WELL AND YOU’LL PROCLAIM THE MESSAGE OF JESUS CHRIST IN A POWERFUL WAY.

Earnest Care

Friday, October 11, 2019

by Dr. Paul Chappell

“As it is written, He that had gathered much had nothing over; and he that had gathered little had no lack. But thanks be to God, which put the same earnest care into the heart of Titus for you. For indeed he accepted the exhortation; but being more forward, of his own accord he went unto you. And we have sent with him the brother, whose praise is in the gospel throughout all the churches;”

2 Corinthians 8:15–18

Titus was something of a trouble shooter for the Apostle Paul. Almost every reference to him in the New Testament revolves around him being sent to a troubled church or city to help make things right. “For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee” (Titus 1:5). The main reason Titus kept getting these jobs is that he had a heart for the people who needed his help. Paul described it as “earnest care.”

A deep motivating compassion for the needs of the people He met was a defining characteristic of the life of Christ. He was never too busy to stop and heal the sick, cast out demons, or teach the way of salvation to those He met. He did not view these encounters as interruptions or distractions. The people He met were His mission. He said, “For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

There are people in all of our lives who are in need of someone to care about them. The world is filled with lonely, hurting hearts, even among those who have a host of online “friends.” We can view these people as problems to be avoided or as people to be loved. God wants us to earnestly care for them and their needs.

Today's Growth Principle: 

We cannot make a serious positive impact on others without genuinely caring for and about them.