Typical is not a way I would describe what took place on Saturday. In fact, I would go as far as saying it was abnormal. So, now that you're hooked, let me tell you exactly what happened.
In the heart of San Francisco, lies a place that is in disarray. It's called the tenderloin, and thousands of homeless live on the streets here. Men. Women. Children. One thing is quite clear when you visit this place. One thing stands out among everything else. It stands out above all the buildings, all the cars, and anything else around. Need. All people need something here. Nearly everyone needs food. Some need shelter, some, better clothing. But the one thing that is needed the most here: Jesus Christ (he is needed all places). The need for Him here though, is deafening.
That is where City Impact is trying to make a difference. City Impact is a rescue mission located in the heart of this place. It was started by a man, who saw this need when he was younger, was obedient to God, made 50 sandwiches for the people here, and if you fast forward to today and you have what is now City Impact, a rescue mission with a desire to help the people here. There is one goal. To share Christ with the lost, the broken, and the needy. Providing for physical needs? Absolutely, but for the end result of showing the love of Christ to others so they might know Him and choose to follow Him.
My wife and I got to travel to this place on Saturday. We took place in a conference of over 500 people. It was not going to be a conference of talking about doing things, but to actually venture out among the people in this place and serve them, just as Christ would. To go out, and to love His people, His creations, and to tell them they are loved, they are cared about, they haven't been forgotten. To penetrate the darkness of this world with the amazing light that Jesus Christ brings. Something was experienced on Saturday that I haven't seen quite like this in a while.
I saw love; I saw prayer; I saw obedience. People choosing to serve others, rather than themselves. People choosing to say no to selfish ambition and vain conceit and truly considering others better than themselves. People unifying in the message that Christ is the way, Christ is the truth, and He is the life. People living to do something other than be comfortable. Something other than look to satisfy their own hungers, their own desires, their own pleasures. It was about one thing: Jesus. That's it.
It was in such opposition to the typical. It wasn't normal. It wasn't safe. It reached far beyond our comforts and every day living. For those who went, we got the privilege to meet and serve with a man named Francis Chan. Maybe you've heard of him, and maybe you haven't. He is the author of the books Crazy Love, Forgotten God and Erasing Hell. That isn't the cool part though. In fact, compared to what Jesus did on this day, it's far from cool. Francis is a man who loves Jesus, he is a man who wants to see others come to know Jesus. I most admired him on this day for being willing to humble himself and truly reach a hand out and serve those who needed it most. Not to consider himself higher than anyone else but to give himself and his time as a sacrifice so that others may come to know the Jesus that has saved those of us who have come to know Him and call Him our God. When I say we served with him, I don't mean he was there and gave a great message, he was, just as we were, serving people at their level and their need because they matter. Because they are creations of God and they are in need of Him. So for this, thank you Francis!
When Francis was talking to the group of us that were there to serve, he challenged us all to cleanse our hearts before we served. To offer up anything that we needed to speak with God about and rid ourselves of before we served. John the Baptist preached repentance, Jesus preached Repentance, as did many others throughout scripture. It has to be important right? We should cleanse ourselves before attempting to bring others to Christ. Because we are imperfect people, we can only be effective when we stop living like it's okay to serve Christ half-heartedly. Deliberately choosing sin, or even tolerating it, isn't okay. We must offer up our repentance to Him so we will be able to be effective in reaching others towards Him. I can only assume people were obedient in repentance before we went out to physically work with people because once we did, it was awesome. By that, I mean it really was awe-inspiring.
I saw 600 homeless wait in line to receive groceries but they also got to sit down for a service to listen to a message from one of the pastors there and to also worship alongside a band that was playing. And let me tell you, I saw people worshiping their creator! People who were broken, people who didn't have anything except the air they breathed and some small hand outs. They were worshiping the Lord. Not blaming him for their current state like so many people in our world do. Along with the service and worship, there was meal delivery, evangelism teams, feet washing, a school makeover, people makeovers, clothing distribution, and much more.
Why did any of us choose to do this? Obedience is the short answer. We are supposed to. This is how life was meant to be lived. In service to one another.
These are people who are made in the image of God. People who are lost and heading towards one place. Emptiness and destruction. It's heart-breaking to see people who created to worship God, live under such pressure and darkness. It's almost like they are in a prison. Some put themselves there, others ended up there due to life circumstances, but none of them need to live under the darkness that they do though. There is a way to turn it all around. The enemy may think he's won but let me tell you. This stronghold of sin, isn't going to last much longer. Through the love of Christ, there is freedom.
Life isn't about our safety. It's not about saving up all the possessions we can find. It's not about glorifying ourselves. It's about Jesus and Him alone. It's about loving because Jesus first loved us.
The message of our world, or at least our American world is one of self-actualization. To become the best you can possibly be. To accomplish any and every goal you might have. To make yourself great and essentially, glorify yourself.
What would you say if I said this was wrong? Would you call me unpatriotic? Would I be crazy? Maybe so, but the message that I see Christ preaching is one of Glorifying Him and Glorifying our Father in Heaven. (Matthew 5:16)
When Jesus was talking to the rich man in Matthew 19. He told him to sell all his possessions and give to the poor.
16 Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?”
17 “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”
18 “Which ones?” he inquired.
Jesus replied, “‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, 19 honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’”
20 “All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”
21 Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
22 When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.
Does this mean we are all supposed to give away our possessions? Yes. It does. Notice the man was sad after Jesus told him to get rid of his stuff. After all, he had worked so hard saving up his treasures. This is where he truly placed his comfort. It wasn't about following Jesus and serving others. His confidence was in his possessions. In the same way Jesus told him to get rid of his possessions, we are supposed to get rid of anything that would keep us from following Jesus and serving others. Anything that comes before God, we are supposed to get rid of. Anything. That car. Those vacation plans. That money.
The point of this blog isn't to bring attention to anything that we did or glory to ourselves. Quite the opposite. It is about telling you about a time in my life, where I saw life as it was meant to be lived. I saw the church of Christ truly doing what it was called to do. Perfectly? No. Not in the least, but when Jesus is involved, he can take what we did and work it perfectly into His plan! We are just people after all, but when the church of Christ gives the power and glory to Him, we are made heirs to the same power and love that raised Jesus from the dead. We can find perfection, but not in ourselves, we can find it in Jesus.
There is only one way that this place so enveloped by darkness will ever change, and that is when the people who claim to love and follow Jesus truly deny themselves and look to Jesus to make the change that is needed. Considering others better than ourselves and choosing to let our hearts break for the same thing that breaks Jesus's heart. Not just for people needing food, though sad, not just being crippled, though difficult to see, but seeing people be trapped by the darkness that comes through not knowing Him. Seeing people's lives headed towards utter destruction. That is where the heart-breaking truly matters. When our hearts break for this reason, and we are willing to look at people in the eye and tell them that there is a way towards Life (Jesus), is when we truly live life as it was meant to be lived. In complete obedience and surrender towards Him.
This is my desire from now on. To love with a love like I saw this weekend. To have such compassion rooted in Jesus that people recognize Him as their greatest need and begin to follow Him. I only hope that out of what was experienced this weekend, we can replicate this process within our communities and within our world. To choose the abnormal way instead of the normal way, to choose to not go down the road of comfort and self-gratification and to start to live a life that is seemingly crazy to the rest of the world. A life that is out of this world and in complete surrender to Jesus Christ.
Jesus. I love you. My life is yours.
