But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.
-Mark 9:22
Our world needs help… and the Church are just the ones to give it to them.
The economy, political unrest, world turmoil… you name it, and it seems to be going wrong. Everyone, in some way or another, is hurting and needs a helping hand.
This was the same situation with the people around Jesus. I’ve been reading through the Gospel of Mark lately and I’m struck by the quick pace and the narrative flow of the book. Jesus is walking around and people keep crowding around him. Why? because he might be able to help them.
Sure, he’s the creator of the universe and he came to die for their sins, but he went to the hurting and offered help.
As we go through life, we need to have our eyes open, we (the Church) need to be willing to see the needs of our world and offer what help we can. This also means knowing what the real needs are. Someone who is hungry needs food, but they also need the gospel. Someone who is naked needs clothes, but they also need the gospel. Someone who is rich, needs to learn how to give, but they also need the gospel.
We all need the gospel. Would we fail to offer help to someone who was drowning? We find ourselves in a much worse situation, the world isn’t drowning, they have already drowned. They are long past dead. They need far more than resuscitation, they need resurrection. And so did each one of us (cf. Eph 2:1).
Resurrection, salvation, new life, and abundant living is available to anyone if they simply reach out their hand in love and accept the gift offered by Jesus Christ. The gospel is what our world needs, the gospel is what we need.
Jesus died on the cross in our place. He came to pay the price for the sin of the whole world (cf. 1John 2:2).
The world needs help, we are the helpers, let us have true compassion on them and offer real deliverance!
