No B.S. Just Jesus is about one thing – living out the “words in red.” It is about being a Christian to a hurting world. In a world where a majority of people claim to be Christian it is clear that we who claim to be Christians are not always being obedient to the Word of God and what we claim to believe. If we were doing as Christ commands, the world would be a very different place. What would this world be like if Christians lived out the Gospel every day?
So much poverty, hunger, and hurting would simply be eliminated if only we would take the Bible seriously and live like we actually believe what it says.
There is a saying that “talk is cheap” and Jesus believed this and affirmed this statement over and over again. Remember, the lawyer who stood up and asked, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Did Jesus anwer, “ Accept Jesus in your heart as your personal Lord and Savior and you will live?” No, Jesus said, ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’” And then to illustrate what this means he told the parable of the Good Samaritan to show what it means to love God and your neighbor as yourself. In fact, Jesus equated doing this with what it means to be a Christian. Throughout the Gospels over and over again Jesus affirmed what our obligation is on this earth and that is to be his hands and his feet to the poor, suffering, widows and lost sheep.
James understood Jesus in the same way in James Chapter 2:14-20:
<em>“Dear friends, do you think you’ll get anywhere in this if you learn all the right words but never do anything? Does merely talking about faith indicate that a person really has it? For instance, you come upon an old friend dressed in rags and half-starved and say, “Good morning, friend! Be clothed in Christ! Be filled with the Holy Spirit!” and walk off without providing so much as a coat or a cup of soup—where does that get you? Isn’t it obvious that God-talk without God-acts is outrageous nonsense?
Do I hear you professing to believe in the one and only God, but then observe you complacently sitting back as if you had done something wonderful? That’s just great. Demons do that, but what good does it do them? Use your heads! Do you suppose for a minute that you can cut faith and works in two and not end up with a corpse on your hands?”</em>
In the story of the Sheep and the Goats (Matthew 25: 31-43) Jesus gives a picture of judgment day and the ONLY difference between those who entered heaven and those damned to hell was what they did or did not do on this earth.
Matthew 25: 31-43
<em>”When he finally arrives, blazing in beauty and all his angels with him, the Son of Man will take his place on his glorious throne. Then all the nations will be arranged before him and he will sort the people out, much as a shepherd sorts out sheep and goats, putting sheep to his right and goats to his left.
”Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Enter, you who are blessed by my Father! Take what’s coming to you in this kingdom. It’s been ready for you since the world’s foundation. And here’s why:
I was hungry and you fed me,
I was thirsty and you gave me a drink,
I was homeless and you gave me a room,
I was shivering and you gave me clothes,
I was sick and you stopped to visit,
I was in prison and you came to me.’
”Then those ’sheep’ are going to say, ‘Master, what are you talking about? When did we ever see you hungry and feed you, thirsty and give you a drink? And when did we ever see you sick or in prison and come to you?’ Then the King will say, ‘I’m telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me—you did it to me.’
”Then he will turn to the ‘goats,’ the ones on his left, and say, ‘Get out, worthless goats! You’re good for nothing but the fires of hell. And why? Because—
I was hungry and you gave me no meal,
I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,
I was homeless and you gave me no bed,
I was shivering and you gave me no clothes,
Sick and in prison, and you never visited.’
”Then those ‘goats’ are going to say, ‘Master, what are you talking about? When did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or homeless or shivering or sick or in prison and didn’t help?’
”He will answer them, ‘I’m telling the solemn truth: Whenever you failed to do one of these things to someone who was being overlooked or ignored, that was me—you failed to do it to me.’
”Then those ‘goats’ will be herded to their eternal doom, but the ’sheep’ to their eternal reward.”</em>
Do we really believe these words of Christ? My friend, this is what it really means to be a Christian and don’t think for a minute that this is simply for the “super” Christians or the Mother Teresa’s of the world. Jesus is calling each one of us to take up our cross and follow Him. To love the Lord our God with everything we have and to give of ourselves to the poor, hungry, and sick. In doing these things we are loving Jesus and I would bet that if we were to concentrate more on doing what Jesus said to do and less preaching more and more would come to faith in Jesus Christ.
It is time to get out of our pews, Bible studies and church retreats start doing the work of God. I challenge you to do something for God today. You don’t even have to move to Africa or sell everything you have and become a missionary. I am not talking about that. I am talking about living out His love daily in your life. Just open your eyes to those who are hurting in your own circle of influence. Take the time to connect with people and you might surprised by the opportunities that are presented for you to do something for God.
