Peter Hilgartner
We have a monetary recession taking place right now. It has adversely affected many of us. Many of us are frightened, asking ourselves ‘will it ever end?’ How badly will I be hurt before it does? What’s our new President going to do to steady the ship of state? Uncertainty runs rampant.
Bad things were happening in Jesus’ time. Whenever he encountered someone in distress, he took action to help that person. On the right side of the sanctuary in our church, there in a window, is a depiction (John 18:5) of the story about a man who had been sick for 38 years. He believed he needed to get someone to put him in the nearby waters to heal. Jesus saw him and told the man, “Get up, pick up your bedroll and walk.”
John 8:3-11 tells the story of an adulteress who was about to be stoned to death until Jesus rescued her, simply by telling those who were about to stone her, “let the one who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” When they heard this, they left one by one, until only Jesus was left with the woman. His admonition to her was “go and sin no more.”
The two stories above illustrate two ways you can “extend your arm” to help someone. One is passive. The other is the active way. Which is the best way? It depends on the situation, but if you know or see someone in distress, as my Marine drill instructor once told me: “Don’t just stand there, Marine, do something!”
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