Imagine this: You are driving down the road, common street for you, on a cold and snowy morn. You see a man walking, carrying a plastic bag, in ratty old clothes. Or what about this: a person is sitting outside on a smoldering hot summer day, sweating, asking for change to buy a drink. Better yet, this: as you are leaving the register after paying for your gas and candy bar, you over hear the woman behind you has come up short for cash on her bread and milk.
What do you do? What are your immediate thoughts and reactions to each of these situations?
**Notice: I am not, in any way, shape, or form, claiming that I am a saint or do all these things. Purely my opinion alone.**
The world we live in today tells most people that in each of those situations to "mind your own business", "just keep walking". This results in a desensitized culture and lack of concern for the well-being of others. Society has set up stereotypes for each and every person here, and created ways for others to feed off said stereotypes. As the dictionary states it a stereotype is: a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person or thing. Every person has held another person or object to a stereotype/category. My question is why do we, even as Christians, feed into it? I am not saying that as a Christian you are to be held up at a higher level that you cannot reach. Instead I am saying that we are not all striving to reach the standard GOD has set, myself included. Matthew 25:31-46 is the story of the sheep and the goats. It is where God tells of what is to await those who helped him in times of need, and those who just kept walking. For those who don’t want to pick up your Bible and search for this passage, I will type it here:
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘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 have 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.’
Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go visit you?’
The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’
Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
So in the scenarios set up for you in the beginning, what or who are they? They are the children of God who were are called to care for. Stereotypes have hindered all people at some point in life. They become afraid of helping someone because they think either they will be hurt, or their money will be used improperly. Forget stereotypes, don’t think the worst of everyone. Reach out and help people. Think about what it would be like to be in their shoes and someone stereotyped you in a time of need. God doesn’t stereotype, neither should we.
