The Perfection of Religion
It was Mark Twain who first said, “It is not those parts of the Bible that I do not understand that bother me. It is the parts of the Bible that I do understand that bother me the most.” This is one of the parables in the Bible where the meaning is crystal clear and there is very little wiggle room for those who would like to side-step the whole thing. Basically, it says that those of us who perform acts of kindness for those who are hungry, thirsty, sick or in prison are those who will be rewarded on Judgment Day. Those of us who do not will be punished. End of story.
My first reaction to this teaching of Jesus is the realization that there is so much need in the world that whatever I do, I will not even scratch the surface of what needs to be done for the hungry, the thirsty, and those who are sick or in prison. I cannot feed all those who are hungry in Haiti. I cannot provide fresh water for all those who are thirsty in Zimbabwe. I cannot visit all those who are sick or in prison in Myanmar or China. The thought of the enormity of the task is overwhelming. I feel like the person walking down the beach, picking sand dollars up off of the hot, dry sand and throwing them back into the blue waters of the ocean. I will never be able to save them all. No, but the impossibility of the task should not be what stops me. On Judgment Day, Jesus will not ask whether I was able to end hunger throughout the world. What he will ask is whether I was faithful in doing what he has asked me to do. Effectiveness is not part of the equation. Faithfulness is.
In a sermon preached in 1777, John Wesley called “good works” the “perfection of religion.” Good works, he said, are not a hindrance to salvation, nor are they insignificant. If they are born of right principles that we have learned and are applying in our lives, good works are the perfection of religion. His reference, of course, was the verse from the fifteenth chapter of John, “My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit.” What makes me nervous is that all this sounds like “works righteousness” to me. Aren’t we saved by our faith and not by our works? Wasn’t that one of the bedrock principles of the Reformation?
Yes, it is true that we are saved by our faith. Nothing is asked of us other than that we believe that Jesus Christ is Lord and accept his Lordship in our lives. But, if we have done so, what would be the evidence of that change in our lives? I believe that the evidence would be that we are doing what our Lord has asked us to do… that we are faithful disciples and obedient to his will. It’s a “Catch-22.” If you have one, the other is present as well. The reflection of our faith is the work that we do in his name. However, the reverse is not true… all the good works in the world will not save you, if you do not profess Jesus as Lord.
In evaluating our effort to help others, Jesus does not measure how “good” we are at the task that he asks us to do. Our efforts are not measured against the efforts of others. Just as effectiveness is not part of the equation, skill is not part of the equation either… only faithfulness. Sometimes, we rationalize that we do not work in soup kitchens or food pantries because we cannot cook. Sometimes, we don’t go to visit people in the hospital or in prison because that is our gift. We send a check and leave it to others to do the work. The word “visit” has its roots in the Latin word for sight or “to see.” It is difficult to “see” someone by merely sending a check. Even in the Greek, the word translated “visit” means “to come toward.” If we don’t leave our homes, it is difficult to say that we have moved toward anyone. But wouldn’t it be more effective to send someone who knows what they are doing? Wouldn’t a doctor heal more sick people… a cook feed more hungry people… and a counselor change the behavior of more who are incarcerated? Again, it is not the effectiveness of what we do, but our faithfulness in doing the task.
Let me ask a question: What if the task that we have been given was not given to us for the benefit of those who are hungry… or thirsty… or sick… or in prison? What if the task that has been given to us was given to us for our benefit… not theirs? There are countless stories of individuals who lives have been changed by a single mission trip… a single conversation with a dying person… a single encounter with the poor. What if God has asked us to feed the hungry… visit the sick or those who are in prison because God knows that we will be transformed by that experience? Should we close the door to the opportunity to learn from the Master himself just because the effort takes us out of our comfort zone?
I still remember my first visit to someone in a nursing home. This woman was a friend of my Grandmother’s. I did not know her well. One day, my Grandmother was sick and could not make her regular visit to her friend. She asked me to go and take something to her. I remember the awkwardness of that first visit… my discomfort with a nursing home… the helplessness of many patients. My grandmother’s friend was bedridden because her legs had been crippled by arthritis. Despite this disability, she had a lively mind. Her roommate was her sister who was perfectly healthy, but had an advanced case of Alzheimer’s Disease to the extent that she could no longer care for herself… nor did she recognize her own sister.
My opening words were stilted, but she soon took over the conversation, asking questions about me and my life. By the end of my thirty-minute visit, I found that I had agreed to come to see her again. Over time, this woman became a friend and mentor to me… and I became a friend and advocate for her. On the day of my wedding, when she could not come to the church, my husband and I visited her after the ceremony, still dressed in our formal clothes. I gave her my bridal bouquet.
Nana Clara is gone now, but those visits changed my life and I know they transformed me into a better person than I was before I met her. No, I did not want to go. No, I did not have the skills needed to deal with her physical disabilities. Yes, I could have stayed at home, but today my life is different because I went. Does visiting her make me a saint? No. Each day, I still struggle with the things that God asks me to do that are uncomfortable… awkward… and different. Lots of times, I have asked God if there is any other way to do these tasks. Usually, the answer is no, so I have gone… often reluctantly and dragging my feet. I do know this: I have never regretted the effort… and it has made me a better person.
What work of transformation is God trying to do in our lives today? Are we listening to the whisper that tugs at our hearts… or have we plugged our ears and slammed the door, hoping that the voice will go away? We have so many opportunities to serve in the coming weeks. We have a mission trip to Galveston planned for the weekend of December 6th and 7th. We have another mission trip to Cornerstone Children’s Ranch planned for December 21st through the 23rd. And there is another mission trip planned for February 1-9, 2009, to New Orleans. Each trip will allow us to touch the lives of people who are suffering in some way. There are also those who are here in Stephenville who need food… water… a visit in the hospital or at home. God doesn’t ask if you have the skills to fix things… God only asks that you be faithful in ministering to his people.
During this season when we have so much to be thankful for ourselves, let us step out of our comfort zone and offer ourselves to others… in person. It might be more than their lives that are transformed by our faithfulness… and perhaps that is what we need this holiday season. That is the perfection of religion. Amen.
Matthew 25:31-46