Sunday, January 28, 2001
Sunday, January 28, 2001
And whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me.
So his guide reversed his field and took his guest to churches, day care centers, libraries, schools,
hospitals, public health centers, research laboratories, transient centers, institutions for the
disabled, and soup kitchens.
"Ah," said the king, "all this is new. We didn't have these things in Babylon."
No, they didn't have those things in Babylon because they did not have the church of Jesus Christ.
I challenge you to go into any non-Christian nation in this world and find the level of ministry to
the intellectual, social, physical, and spiritual needs of people that you will find in those countries
in which Christians are the majority. Search out the histories of our great universities, our great
hospitals, our great benevolent societies and you will find, more often than not, that they were
begun in the name of Christ. The church is an institution unlike any other in this world and the
reason is that our founder is still with us. It is he who breathes life into his weary followers; it is
he who still beckons with the call, "Follow me."
(Matthew 10:18
NRSV)
There is a story of an ancient king of Babylon who came back to life and visited one of our
modern cities. His host showed him the underside of the city: brothels, gambling and drug dens,
taverns, and the like. The king was polite but bored. He said, "We had all these in Babylon three
thousand years ago, and on the whole, we did it better. Have you nothing new to show me?"
Loving God, thank you for calling me to follow you, and may I do so with joy. Amen.
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