redeemed1953 wrote:
In the church, today, there are enough people who are without, that we could keep ourselves busy meeting the needs in the Body of Christ. Instead, we go look for someone who doesn't give a rats rear about Jesus and meet their needs instead.
THe needs of the poor in the church need to be met first. IF you have no poor people, then contact Voice of the Martyrs and take care of someone in the church who is starving to death. I promise you can keep yourself busy taking care of God's people.
hmmm...... not sure I can agree with you completely, redeemed.
I'm not aware of scripture that tells us that the needs of the Body of Christ should be met
first. I'm not saying, of course, that to minimize your suggestion, just to say that the needs of unbelievers seem to be equally important to Jesus IMHO. If you can provide scripture that shows otherwise, please provide it. I'll be happy to change my outlook.
If we are led by the Holy Spirit of God and we are led to provide the needs of an unbeliever, it may be the very act that leads that individual to the Lord. Look what Jesus said about the man who was dying by the side of the road:
Luk 10:30 Jesus replied and said, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went away leaving him half dead.
Luk 10:31 "And by chance a priest was going down on that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
Luk 10:32 "Likewise a Levite also, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.
Luk 10:33 "But a Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him; and when he saw him, he felt compassion,
Luk 10:34 and came to him and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them; and he put him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn and took care of him.
Luk 10:35 "On the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and said, 'Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I return I will repay you.'
Luk 10:36 "Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the robbers' hands?"
Luk 10:37 And he said, "The one who showed mercy toward him." Then Jesus said to him, "Go and do the same."
And here:
Jam 1:27
Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.
And here:
Isa 58:6 "Is this not the fast which I choose, To loosen the bonds of wickedness, To undo the bands of the yoke, And to let the oppressed go free And break every yoke?
Isa 58:7
"Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry And bring the homeless poor into the house; When you see the naked, to cover him; And not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
These verses to not speak of believers only. God's love is not limited to believers only.