Adoption

What do you think of when you hear the words "orphans & widows"?
I think bout morality. I think about good deeds. I think about non-profits.

Above all else, I think about Jesus.

This topic has grown on me over the past two months. Serving in a homeless ministry for a year and volunteering at events that serve those without refuge, ministry and service to those without much has become one of my heartbeats. I can see myself living in an inner-city, low income community after college, to  love on those people and to be a light in a dark place.

God has revealed His heart behind serving these people, in His Word.

James, the brother of Jesus, says "Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you." (James 1:27)

In Isaiah, it says,"Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans.  Fight for the rights of widows." (Isaiah 1:17) In the ESV version, the word "orphans" is replaced with "the fatherless."

Paul says in Galatians, "They (Peter, John, & James)  encouraged us to keep preaching to the Gentiles, while they continued their work with the Jews. Their only suggestion was that we keep on helping the poor, which I have always been eager to do." (Galatians 2:9b-10)

And there are many more from where that came from. Look it up yourself! The most powerful verse to me is from Matthew 25:43-45 (read the whole chapter for yourself to get the fullness of the context). Words from Jesus himself: 

 I was a stranger, and you didn't invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn't give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn't visit me.’

“Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’

“And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’

We read that and ask ourselves, is Jesus really saying that if we deny the "least of these" that we are denying Him? YES.

Just as Peter did verbally?

YES.

But why? Why does Jesus command this of us? What in His life did He do for the widows & the orphans & the least of these?

We can add  the miracles and the healings and the visits and the encounters that Jesus had with people like these. However, I have realized that there is much more to it than that. There's a bigger reason behind why it is so important.

------------------------------------

Why should we care for the least of these?

1. Loving your neighbor as you love yourself is the 2nd Greatest commandment, behind loving God with all of your heart. (Matthew 22:34-40)

Jesus was asked what the greatest commandments were. He replied with two. The first was to love God with everything you have. Then the second was to love your neighbor, just as you love yourself. These people are in our communities, probably not cared for. I know that if I lost my spouse, or mother & father, or even everything I had, I would desire for someone to show me some love. Not just a check or money. The type of love that cannot be bought through tithe percentages and weekly meals. We need God's love, and since we are Christ's ambassadors with the gospel message of His great love for us, I would need someone to share that message with me, along with practical care such as food and clothing. Most Christians would hardly ever step foot into situations such as these, but if any of this happened to you, how would you want to be taken care of? Let this thought reflect how we care for others.

2. If Jesus says do it, do it.

Obedience is a true mark of a disciple. Plainly, & simply put. Not only that but, true obedience roots from love. Think about your parents & the times where we obey them only so we don't get the belt! However, when you learn to enjoy obeying them, it roots deeper than routine. It roots deeper than being a robot without a conscience. When we grow, we learn to love our parents, and our actions root from our love for them. Same thing with God, our Heavenly Father. We obey His commands because of our love for Him. Not because of the probability of Him zapping us to hell for not doing what He says. That's religion, and religion without love is nothing but a car without an engine. Or as James calls it, impure and defiled(James 1:27). So if the needy are mentioned in the bible more than 100 times, and a lot of those times it tells us to help them and care for them, it must be important to our Lord. Do it.

3. We were once widows and orphans.

YES. I said it. Whether your live in the suburbs or the hood, you yourself either are a widow & orphan or once were. And JESUS saved those who once were.

We are/once were widows because we are called to be the bride of Christ. This simply means that Jesus wants a relationship with all of us. Jesus is the groom. Don't freak out by the term, "bride." Bride is another term for the Church. The Church is not a building. It is made up of believers. Even though I'm typing this post from a living room, I am still the Church. Even though you are reading this in your pajamas, you are still the Church. We are the church, the bride of Christ. I'd love to go even more in depth, but this post is getting long.

If you didn't know, the term "widow" is the definition of a wife who lost her husband. Lost in 99.9% of these cases means death, but we can just call it what it is, lost. So, if we are the bride of Christ while most of the world doesn't even have a relationship with Jesus, they do not know of their eternal groom. He is lost to them, but in the big picture, those who do not know Him are truly the lost ones. Think about it!

Lastly, we are orphans. If you are familiar with my blogs, then you would've read my "Hide & Seek" post I put up this past May. I wrote about how everyone is truly looking for the Father. Check it out!

I talked about how those who are lost are looking for eternal love that can only come from one being, God, the heavenly Father & He wants to be our Father. He is our creator. He is the author of salvation. He spoke earth into existence. He is everything that we are looking for and more, beyond our wildest dreams. He is the piece that our hearts are missing. Everything we need, is God. As you know, most of the world doesn't believe this. There's times where I don't believe it. I don't believe that He can be my everything so I attempt to fill that desire with lust and greed. Then it all comes full circle: it's never enough. 

God is enough. God is the Father that the lost don't know about. The Father that this world does not know about. And He wants to adopt us. Read this once again:

"Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans.  Fight for the rights of widows." (Isaiah 1:17) 

In the ESV version, the word "orphans" is replaced with "the fatherless."

Orphan in the bible is a synonym for "the fatherless." They are one in the same. If the world doesn't know of God. Consider the world as a bunch of orphans. Consider this world a huge orphanage. It's crazy, because God, the Father is available to us. He is alive and He cares for us. There are many that do not understand this message about God. You cannot deny the fact that a child without parents is an orphan, just as a man without God is lost. 

So what does this have to do with Jesus? As a follower of Jesus Christ I'd have to say that it has everything to do with Him. He saved His bride. I and everyone that make up His beloved Church is not longer a widow. And through Jesus Christ, we gain a relationship with God. But without Jesus, we would never be able to have a relationship with our Father. I am no longer an orphan. I am free. Jesus is the true Savior.

------------------------------------------------

Jesus cares for us all. His love for us will never be matched by a mere person, but that doesn't excuse us from doing our best to reflect that love to the world. The bible says that people such as the poor, the powerless, the orphans, & the widows are the least of these. Jesus says that if we deny them, we deny Him! That's something that I'd rather not have on my resume: denied Jesus when He asked for food. Denied Jesus when He needed clothing. Denied Jesus when He asked for protection. 

Not the best thing to have on a track record.

What can we do on our part? Intentionally care for the needy. Intentionally visit those places. Intentionally love on the people who live at the bottom of the social ladder. Look at the world and see that these are the people that it forgets about. The least of this world. We, believers, are here to remind them of their greatest treasure, one that all the money in the world cannot purchase; our treasure in Heaven.

As for myself, ministry to this community is important. More than that, love to this community is important. Without love, feeding the homeless is nothing. Something else that I know I want to do is adopt. Of course this will be when I have all of my ducks in a row and get hitched (if I'm lucky enough that is). I feel that since God adopted me as His son, I can reflect that in adoption here on earth. There are too many children in orphanages & foster care for us to be doing nothing. 

Taking in an orphan & making them a part of your family, loving them with your life and caring for them; the same thing that God did for us.