Feed My Sheep

One of the things I’ve noticed is how irrelevant the American Christian Church is. Look at what’s happening overseas, and people are flocking to Christian churches. Christ is relevant there, but not here. Why? I contend it’s because The Church has ceded responsibility for taking care of people to the American government. Let me see if I can construct my reasoning so it makes sense. One of the faults of the Law of Moses is it can only condemn. There is not grace. That’s what the American system of government has become. There are rules that tell what can be done, others that tell what cannot be done. Often there is conflict, and it’s been said, “Show me a man, and I’ll find out what laws he’s broken.” Or something similar. That’s The Law. Not grace. When Jesus came down the mountain and saw some of His disciples arguing with the Pharisees and teachers of the Law, he asked them, “What are you arguing about?” That’s been explained as, “Why do you bother to discuss fine points of Scripture with people who only care about fine points?” The same could be said about America. The administrative process is so full of people who know nit-picky details that they can’t make any judgment calls. You either qualify for something or you don’t, and too many of them are too concerned with that detail and never actually help the American people. They are “Pharisees and teachers of the Law.” But they’re able to impact the populace on a daily basis, so they’re relevant. If the Christian Church would pick up the responsibility Christ gave us (feed My sheep), the church would become relevant again. People are staying away in droves because there is no reason to go. “Why bother? The government will take care of me.” A down-and-out person can get food, housing, clothing, education, all from government programs. Why would they need the church? In order for Christ’s Church to become a force in a person’s daily life, they have to take care of people. “If you have no love, your faith is meaningless.” Feed the hungry, house the homeless, and clothe people who have no clothes. Even something as simple and inexpensive as bringing a single can of non-perishable food to church every week. If every man, woman, and child would bring a donation every week, the food pantries would be full. If every wage earner would actually tithe, the church would be flush with money and able to help so many people. That’s all the job of THE CHURCH, not the Pharisees and teachers of the law in government. A Spirit-led church program can say “yes” to someone who wouldn’t qualify under government rules and regulations. There are so many people who have a need and don’t meet the standards of those rules. The opposite is also true. People who DO qualify but don’t need are taking from a system that’s meant to help people. They’re taking advantage of a system that can’t say “no.” A church program can look at the person’s specific circumstances and make that determination without the tyranny of rules. Jesus told US to feed His sheep. The Pharisees don’t care if the sheep get feed, as long as the rules are followed.