Who Will You Obey?

I think it's safe to say that the world is a mess. It is divided, angry, hurting, and full of hate. We can easily tune into the world's message by listening to and reading the news, or even just getting on social media. We don't have to look far to encounter the undercurrent of fear that has become common in our daily lives.

We hear the world's message because we have access to technology, but God doesn't write a blog or send out tweets, so we haven't been paying His message and His teachings their due.

But amidst the white noise of the world's fear and hate, I can faintly hear my Savior speaking and we not only need to listen to Him, we need to start living out His teachings once more.

"I was a stranger and you welcomed me." (Matthew 25:35)
"I was hungry and you fed me." (Matthew 25:35)
"I was thirsty and you gave me water." (Matthew 25:35)
"I was sick and imprisoned, and you visited me." (Matthew 25:36)
"Let the little children come." (Matthew 19:14)
"Love the foreigners for you were foreigners." (Deuteronomy 10:19)
"You are Christ's ambassadors." (2 Corinthians 5:20)
"Our battle is not against flesh and blood." (Ephesians 6:12)
"Love your enemies." (Matthew 5:44)
"Pray for your persecutors." (Matthew 5:44)
"Our citizenship is in heaven." (Philippians 3:20)
"Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." (Joshua 1:9)

The world mocks, scoffs, and tries to drown out these teachings. It tries to convince us that trusting in "chariots and horses" is godly after all, but this is a lie.
The. World. Is. Wrong.
People are scared. That is understandable. The world seems to be a scary, strange, chaotic place.

We are not acting out of love for one another. We have been acting out of fear for far too long.
Leaders are making decisions out of fear. Historically, this leads to actions that our descendants are ashamed of.
People are scared, so they lash out. Other people are hurt and scared, so they lash out, and a cycle is born.

Can reaching out in love break this cycle? The Bible seems to think so. Yes, I'll admit that loving someone who hates us won't fix things overnight, but this is the path that we, as Christians, as called to walk. To the non-believing world, it doesn't make sense to lower our guard and reach out to others in love. It may not even make sense to us in the Church, but the thing is, God didn't invite us to edit the Bible to make it more palatable for our culture. He called us to obey, even when our culture is shouting that God's way will fail.

"For I was a stranger and you welcome me in." (Matthew 25:35) Jesus didn't promise safety and security when we welcomed the stranger. He didn't promise that it would be easy or convenient. But He did call for us to welcome the stranger in our midst. We can form friendships across cultures, even when our world says that it will fail.

The world is calling for us to react in fear.
Jesus is teaching us to love others in spite of our fears.
Who will you obey?