Does Jesus need someone to take care of him?

Ken Kamp wrote an insightful article, click to read and see the pictures of this powerful article The Faces of Hunger and Poverty, for the Baptist Standard (10-14-05 issue). He reflected upon how Katrina brought national attention to the many in the US that live in impoverished elements. He quoted Joe Haag (Baptist General Convention of Texas Life Commission’s world hunger emphasis:

"One out of 10 children under 12 years of age in Texas is hungry. Nearly a third of Texas' children are hungry or at risk of hunger," he said. "These children miss meals, eat too little, have low-quality diets, or live in households which regularly seek emergency food assistance because they do not have the money to purchase the food they need . . . No state has a higher percentage of families experiencing hunger and food insecurity than Texas, Haag added . . . Nearly one out of six Texans lives in poverty, and Texans in poverty constitute just under one-tenth of the nation's entire poverty population "

Sometimes some Christians quote out of context (innocently or defensively) Matthew 26.11: "The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me." Upon a careful broader contextual reading of the passage one quickly realizes that Jesus’ focus was not to detract from aiding the poor, but rather to honor the devoted worship from the woman (Mary) with the alabaster jar of expensive perfume.

Also, consider the parallel Gospel accounts of the same incident: In Luke 7.37-39, the pharisees were concerned with Jesus associating with the sinful women and not the neglecting of the poor; and in John 12.1-6 we learn that Judas was not concerned about the poor, but was only selfishly interested in the "waste" of the expensive gift (John 12.6).

How did Jesus really feel about the poor? "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, and to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor." (Luke 4.18-19)

There are so many other passages that deal with God’s love and concern for the poor. With a good concordance and an open heart to the Holy Spirit, you’ll have no problem seeing the concern and compassion that God has for his impoverished and marginalized creation.

What can we do as a church to share in God’s burden for the whole person caught in poverty? Certainly we start with God’s message of forgiveness and purpose for conforming his children into his Son’s image. Do we stop there? The hungry need a full stomach before they can hear the message of Christ. The homeless and inner-city need community and acceptance from the Body of Christ so that they can truly know the community and love of the Trinity.

Is this just another version of the social gospel or a sincere interpretation of "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 25.35-36)

What can Dellview Baptist do in our inner-city community and fellowship to feed, minister to, and love Jesus in the face of the poor, individuals with special needs and marginalized? How can we take care of Jesus by taking care of the marginalyzed?