Determined to Help

“So each of the disciples, according to his ability, determined to send relief to the brothers who lived in Judea. This they did, sending it to the elders by means of Barnabas and Saul.” (Acts 11:29-30 CSB)

A group of prophets from the church in Jerusalem went to Antioch to visit with the church there. One of them was named Agabus. Agabus prophesied that a famine was coming soon to the Roman Empire, and it happened during the reign of Claudius.

The result of the famine was devastating to the church in Jerusalem. First, food was in short supply. Second, the Jerusalem church was no longer as popular as it had been. Third, the Jerusalem church was especially unpopular among the Jewish leadership because its growth threatened the foundations of Judaism. So, with regard to food distributions, which the temple leaders could influence, people related to the Jerusalem church would have been “lowest on the totem pole,” so to speak.

When Agabus made his prediction, well before the event, Christians in the church at Antioch took it seriously. Little by little, the disciples in Antioch set aside money that could be sent to Jerusalem to provide some relief to the brothers there. At a point when someone judged the need to be acute, the money was sent to Jerusalem via Barnabas and Saul.

This expression of “agape” love came about because the believers in Antioch were determined to help. They heard the message, and they made a determination that they would be ready to help when the time came. It all began with a decision.

In the modern western world of Christianity, churches sometimes seem to be in competition with one another. Obviously, that is not always true, and many pastors and church members alike would deny it. But actions, and lack of actions, suggest that there are at least some who act as if they are.

Perhaps we need to be reminded of some realities. In Christ, all of us – church or individual – are on level ground. If a church is genuinely “christian,” it is preaching Christ. If the church’s theology is Bible-based rather than oriented to the ebb and flow of political correctness or other social pressures, then it is a true sister church. And if churches like this are hurting for some reason, and another church has a resource that can help, then that church needs to determine that it is going to offer its help. Any sense of competition needs to be thrown out the window. There is far too much at stake to allow pettiness or some level of competition to keep us from helping a genuinely sister church. As we have the ability to do so, churches need to determine that they will help anytime it is needed.

Lord, Remind us that as true fellow believers we are all on the same page, serving the same Lord, for the same purposes. Show us ways to support and help one another. Amen.