In our scripture for Sunday, September 23rd, the disciples were arguing amongst themselves about who was/is the greatest. When Jesus heard what they were arguing about he said the following words,
“Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” 36 Then he took a little child and put the child among them; and taking the child in his arms, he said to them, 37“Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.” Mark 9:35-37
These words are important words for us to consider as we approach the upcoming election on November 6th. When we hear these words from Christ we are reminded as Christians how important it is for those of us who have power and influence to use that influence to help people in our communities who cannot always help themselves and who may not be able to repay us for the help that we give. Just like the child in Jesus’ example.
As Christians we are called to use the intelligence that God gave us to be good stewards of our bodies, and the possessions God lets us use while on earth. When we are so blessed, sometimes, we start to believe that ‘we are the greatest’ and are better than others around us. Instead, Christ reminds us, as Christians, we are called upon to care for the ‘least’ and ‘last’ in our communities. We are even to put ourselves last…and in so doing we will be first when it counts; when Christ comes to judge our actions on earth.
To this end, I strongly urge and encourage each of us to carefully investigate the candidates we will be voting for. Ask questions of these candidates like, “Do they have the interests of the poor and the sick in mind? Do they know how many children are homeless each night? Do they really care what happens to people other than themselves and their usually very large bank rolls? Do they allow us to show love toward one another, the way a child does? With no expectation of anything in return! In other words, are they really looking out for the good of others, or simply trying to maintain their ‘better than other’ status?
One of the ways we are called to be Christian in this world at election time… is to not take for granted what everyone else is saying on million dollar paid advertisements that say in essence, “Your candidate is awful, our candidate is the greatest” but rather, take time to look into the issues and to understand them. Many of us have been blessed with ‘much’ in our lives. As you vote this November, please remember to vote for those who are truly working to serve and be least of all. – Pastor Dan