At Concordia Sr. College, Ft. Wayne, where I received my bachelor's degree before it became Concordia Theological Seminary, there is a huge mosaic in the Administration Building showing the story of the Good Samaritan.  The Samaritan bending to help the victim is very typical except in their faces - they're both the same.  The face of the helper is the face of the victim.  The artist was saying several things:  He is saying when we help someone else, we are being helped.  He is saying the helper and the victim are the same.  I believe he's also saying the helper realizes, "There, but for the grace of God, go I."

          Today is the last Sunday after Pentecost, and so we have come to the end of another Church Year.  The church year is divided into two halves.  From Advent to Pentecost Sunday is the Lord's Half year, 26 weeks that tell the life of Jesus and the events leading to our salvation.  The remaining 26 weeks are all about the teachings of Jesus, His parables, miracles and sayings that enrich our faith by showing us the face and heart of God.

          In Jesus, we see the face of God.  But in Jesus, we also see the face of our neighbor.  The Gospel Lesson for today is that wonderful story Jesus told about the final judgment when all people stand before God and He renders His verdict on both the faithful and the faithless.  It's more than a story - it's a depiction of reality.  On that day God will pronounce to the faithful that they are received into heaven because their faith shows itself in what they did.  And it's not what they did directly for God, but what they did for their neighbor.  "Whatever you did for the least of these, you did for me."  Conversely, He will condemn the unfaithful because they showed no faith.  The message for us is that if people do not show mercy and compassion, they likely do not have a true, living faith and will not receive the blessings of heaven.

          Sounds a lot like works righteousness, doesn't it?  Live a good life and God will bless you.  Keep the commandments and you win the prize.  Be a good girl and you'll go to heaven.  But that's getting the cart before the horse.  Faith always comes first, then the works.  It must be that way.  Faith must show itself by works or it's no faith at all.

          James, the brother of Jesus, once said this quite clearly, "What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds?  Can such faith save him?  Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food.  If one of you says to him, 'Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,' but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?  In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.  But someone will say, 'You have faith; I have deeds.'  Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do." (James 2:14-18)

          James is echoing the words of his half-brother, our Lord Jesus, who spoke the words of our Gospel text.  First of all, let's clear something up.  Despite what you may have heard, Mary, the mother of Jesus, did conceive and bear more children.  The Gospel writers Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, all tell us this quite plainly.  Those who insist those others are children of Joseph from a former marriage, or else cousins Mary is caring for, are in denial.  There is nothing at all in Scripture to indicate that Mary's only child was Jesus.

          Consider the time Mary and Joseph "lost" Jesus on the way back from the temple when he was 12 years old.  How could Mary possibly lose track of her only son if she did not have other little ones to care for?  It might seem honoring to say she remained a perpetual virgin, but that's rationalizing something that's not in the Bible.  She and Joseph had a normal marriage relationship after Jesus was born, including conceiving and bearing other children.  There's nothing wrong with that and nothing in the Bible to show us otherwise.

          Back to the topic!  James, brother of our Lord, wants to clear the record on how faith shows itself.  He was living among people who were like some of us.  They thought faith in God was enough, and that meant faith that God exists.  They were saying, "I believe in God, now leave me alone!"  But that's not faith, it's just agreement.  Saying, "Yes, I believe there IS a God" is not at all the same as saying, "I believe IN God."  Even Satan believes there is a God, and it doesn't please him at all.

          You see, true faith requires trust and surrender.  I believe there is a devil, but I don't trust him, not one bit!  I believe evil exists, but I stay as far away from it as I can.  True faith means we surrender ourselves, trusting in God for everything.  We believe there is a God, we believe that there is but one true God, and we trust that one true God for all that's good in life.  "In God We Trust" is more than a slogan for the Christian, it's the very heart of our relationship with the Almighty.  Faith is only saving faith when there is trust in God.

          And faith, to be genuine faith, must show itself by actions.  These days there are so many needy people out there.  There are so many worthy causes which we can support that it's hard to decide which are genuine and which are bogus.  But whatever we choose to help, we must choose some.  To sit on wealth, to box up our blessings, to keep it all for our own rainy day is to deny our faith.  God doesn't want full closets, He wants open doors.  He doesn't decry our full closets, but He does frown when we lock their doors.

          Some of us are finding an amazing ministry in the Orphan Grain Train.  We've had a veritable avalanche of clothing given to us already.  A hundred packed boxes have hardly made a dent in the mountains of sacks we have yet to sort through.  Friday mornings ladies sort some, Saturdays others come to work, and it will be a long time until we get through this first batch.  If anyone knows a source of fruit boxes (besides grocery stores), talk to Alan or Ken.  And if you want to spend a few hours helping others, see them also.  Our Orphan Grain Train box car is going to have a thousand or more boxes to ship if we can just find enough boxes and people to fill them.  (By the way, do we have some volunteers to paint our boxcar?  It would surely look a bit nicer with a coat of paint!)

          A pastor friend of mine recently told of a man and two children who came to His church before Sunday worship asking for food.  They were fairly well dressed but the father couldn't speak English, so the daughter translated.  She said they were out of food and needed only rice and milk which would get them through until payday.  My pastor friend gave them $5 and a sack full of donated food they had on hand, including cereal, fruit cocktail and Poptarts.  The children were so pleased with the Poptarts and thanked him several times.  "Imagine," he told me, "feeding Jesus Poptarts!"  And he was right.  If we feed and clothe the least of these, we feed and clothe the Lord.

          It's quite easy, though, for us to think such folks are just looking for a handout.  Many do make a sort of living through panhandling, but I want to caution you not to lock your cupboards and closets simply because you don't trust their motives.  God urges us to give our alms to the poor, however we can, and let Him take care of the rest.  Carol and I don't usually take solicitations like this over the phone.  There is nothing wrong with having limits, with being selective in your giving - indeed we must, for the needs are endless, and some may be fraudulent.  God calls on us to share, and how we do it is a privilege of our choice.  He calls on us to share our faith, too.  But we must share more than just the Gospel.  Sharing faith only with "one of the least of these" is missing the point, as James told us.

          Last Friday as I was waiting at the red light at I-25 and Hampden, a young man stood there wearing a cap that said in large letters, "PRAY!" and holding a sign that said, "The cap says it all."  As is my practice now and then, I handed him a Gideons New Testament with a dollar inside that he could see.  He smiled and pulled out some other New Testaments He'd been given, took my dollar and said, "I have several Bibles, but I really need that dollar."  With honesty like that I should have given him $5.  I don't doubt he meant it and that he probably used that dollar for things I might not buy, but I needed to give it to him as much as he needed to receive it.  He was one of the least of these, and I pray he will move past that intersection into something more productive very soon.

          One thing I learned from him was this:  sharing the Word of God is good, but if there's an earthly need, I can't let that go unaided.  Now I'm not advocating your giving to every street corner panhandler, but I am saying our Lord wants us to show our faith by what we do, not just what we say.  Faith without works is dead.  That's what James and his brother Jesus were telling us, and those two know what they're talking about.

          Our Lord Jesus gave Himself for all of us.  When He looks down at you and Me, He doesn't see pretty people, only needy people.  We're needy because of our sins, our faults, our failures.  We need Jesus, and we need what only He can give.  Christ died on the cross.  He gave Himself for the sins of the world so that needy people like you and me can have hope for today and hope for tomorrow.  In Him faith grasps the life preserver called Jesus, the One who saves us from perdition.  Only in Him can we have eternal life.

          This time of year always produces in us a sense of wanting to give, to share of our bounty.  This weekend a lot of people are putting together boxes of food to distribute to the poor, to give them a Thanksgiving meal.  Thanks to all who gave to Compa foods.  Now's the time to let our faith show itself.  "The least of these" are all around us, and they can use our word of encouragement, our food of blessing, and our gift of cash.

          Remember, we're to lead by example.  We're to be wise but not stingy, generous but not foolish, caring but not careless.  Don't let cynicism blind you to real need.  And don't forget to share your faith, for when it comes to faith in Christ, the whole world is needy.  And when you give, look carefully - in "the least of these" you'll see the face of Jesus.  Amen

Copyright © 2002 by Pastor Bob Tasler.  All rights reserved.