Weightier Matters

Boy, are we compassionate. A drive is underway here to collect truck loads of stuff for those in the Astrodome in Houston. Today, a well known Christian radio personality was calling for a national day of prayer for the needs of the Gulf coast. I have heard of hundreds of evangelical churches that have been destroyed. People are displaced, and yes, they need our prayer and our compassionate action.

But, have we left “the weightier matters undone.” How can we, as believers in Jesus Christ, not get the point that God is calling men and women to repentance? As I understand the scriptures, this is just “white noise” compared to the full volume judgment that is coming on this world. I realize that God is not calling our nation to repentance. Our nation has no standing before God. But the people do. They are those being called. We, complacent Bible-believing church members, are being called to get serious about our lives and our service for God.

If God were to start moving among the people we know, who would be there to bring the Word of life to them? Would it have to be someone else? Are we prepared and eager to give that answer? Do we show that hope that will cause others to seek out our God?

While we open our hearts and our finances to those who have been displaced in the Mississippi and Louisiana area, let us not forget the far greater displacement they and millions of others are facing – being alienated from God and alone in the world. While we pray, let us remember the believers there who are carrying food, water, supplies, and the Word of God to these people. And let us remember to do the same here.

Oh, one more thing. I was talking to a brother about some of this, and he said, very sarcastically, "Don't worry. We'll get over it." I understand him. After a while, things don't seem so bad, and we "get over it."