Is Your Church Reaching 'The Least of These'?

This season of giving is a good time to reflect on the impact your church is having on its local community during these difficult times. As believers, we are “ambassadors for Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:20), the One who “loved the church and gave Himself up for her” (Ephesians 5:25).

And, if “God is love” (1 John 4:8), we should show non-partial love to everyone within our sphere of influence. “For there is no partiality with God” (Romans 2:11).

In August, the Heritage Foundation released an article by Ryan Messmore titled, The Difference One Church Can Make. It focuses on First Baptist Church of Leesburg, Florida, where “many live in poverty, drug and alcohol addiction are rampant, and a quarter of the population lacks health insurance.”

The article tells how the church helped an alcoholic named Bob, an abandoned 11-year-old girl, and an elderly man with health issues.

All of these services are part of the outreach of this one church, which operates a “ministry village” consisting of seven facilities on four acres. It is staffed by 500-plus volunteers from the congregation who operate more than 70 ministries.

The article quotes Pastor Emeritus Charles Roesel as saying, “Because God loves persons and cares for their needs, we are to love them, minister to them, and witness to them of His love.”

Christ told us that when faithful believers stand before him, He will say, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me” (Matthew 25:34-36 NIV).

Matthew goes on to tell us that these believers will wonder when they did such things for Christ. He will respond, “I tell you the truth, whatever you do for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25:40 NIV).

Who are the least in your community? Is your church making a difference in their lives?

At First Redeemer Church in Cumming, Georgia, a suburb of Atlanta, you’ll see three large trucks in the parking lot with the words “There’s Hope for the Hungry” painted on the side.

This ministry delivers food to the poor in more than 20 locations in north Georgia, southern Tennessee, and North Carolina.

As of November 28, “There’s Hope for the Hungry” had fed more than 29,000 families (more than 76,000 people) and distributed more than 655,000 pounds of food.

As people come in to receive a food box, they hear the Gospel, and many have received Christ as their Savior.

In Nashville, Tennessee, Belmont Church has a ministry to the poor and disenfranchised called “Isaiah 58.” It extends a lifeline to people with short-term needs and builds long-term relationships with individuals and families trapped in the cycle of poverty.

Included in this outreach is the Isaiah 58 bus, a mobile outreach that provides food and refreshment to economically depressed areas in Nashville.

The church also has an outreach called Room-in-the-Inn that provides overnight shelter and hot meals to homeless people during the winter.

Isaiah 58 has 12 different types of outreaches, including a prison ministry that goes into local jails.

Finally, I’d like to share the story of a church that stepped up to the plate when an organization that helps people with AIDS lost the corporate sponsor for its Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter food outreaches.

The church, Calvary of Albuquerque, wanted to “reach out and bless a community of individuals usually not associated with the evangelical church,” said one of its pastors, Dave Row. “Our heart was to show God’s love and demonstrate His love in a very concrete fashion.”

Church members packed 167 bags of groceries for the Thanksgiving meals and took them to New Mexico AIDS Services (NMAS), which provides medical help, counseling, insurance, and other services to people with the disease, whose treatment costs can run up to $20,000 per year.

Calvary of Albuquerque gave so much that NMAS not only received enough food for Thanksgiving but for Christmas and Easter, as well.

Is your church reaching out with the love of Christ to your community? If not, now is a good time to launch an outreach that could grow to proportions you wouldn’t imagine.

Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). And, when you give, you are also blessed.

Think about the location of your church and what special opportunities await your congregation. Then, visit Crown.org/Library, where we’ve posted a document on frequently asked questions about church benevolence programs. It takes one person to get the ball rolling, and maybe that person is you!

Howard Dayton