*This is part four of a five-part series on the refugee crisis in the Middle East. If you are just now joining the series, you may want to begin with Part one, Part two, and Part Three.
I do not believe you can be a Christian and not accept refugees. If we haven’t before, now is the time to truly count the cost of following Christ.
As Christians, we are called to lay down our lives for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We are the hands and feet of Love in this broken world, and we risk our lives being so. Our doors are to be open to the Christian refugee as well as the Muslim refugee. We of all people need to be the ones greeting refugees when they come.
Islam is a religion of consummation. They are not merely concerned with us accepting them and letting them have their own religious peace. They want the whole world to be converted. In taking them in as a nation, we risk being consumed by them. If we want the world to know peace, then we must be the first ones to care for them so that we can introduce them to the One who is peace.
The same Father of Isaac is also the Father of Ishmael. Just as He heard him crying under the bush where Hagar left him, He continues to hear him crying today.
We could have gone to Muslim countries long ago, but we haven’t. Not as many as could have. Now, they are coming to us. We have a grand opportunity to open our doors and lead them to their Lord.
Will we seize this opportunity?
Let me suggest three practical ways we can greet the refugees here in our land right now.
Help them get their feet under them
If they are refugees recently immigrated from the ME, they have been on the run. They have lost their homes, their livelihood, and all they knew and loved. Think about that for a moment and ponder how you would feel if you were in their shoes. I think you know what you would like someone to do for you. But if you can’t think of anything, let me give you a few suggestions:
- Help them find housing
- Show them where to find groceries
- Connect them with good jobs
- Simply put, be community for them.
Open your home to them
One of the most powerful forms of discipleship is allowing others to see what a Christian family looks like on the inside. Have people over for meals. Include them in various family outings. As they watch you relate, it will pique their interest and they’ll begin asking questions. Furthermore, the more everyday experiences you have together, the more opportunities to talk about eternity and God. Reminds me of Someone else who discipled this way.
Lead them to Jesus
James talked about how pointless it is to greet someone and wish them well, sending them away with a blessing, unless you have also taken care of their physical needs. Meeting people’s immediate physical and social needs provides a perfect on ramp to sharing Christ with them. Jesus is the motivation of our love. What He has done for us is what spurs us to do good for others. And what this world needs is Jesus.
We don’t do good humanitarian deeds simply for the sake of feeling better about ourselves; we do them to lead people to Jesus. To reconcile broken humanity with its Creator.
So, as you run into refugees in your local community, don’t fiddle around wondering what you should do and don’t blab on Facebook about how you wish you could help them. Instead, begin doing for them what you would like others to do for you. Help them get their feet under them, open your home to them, and lead them to Christ.
Question: Have you personally met a refugee in your community (or do you know of refugees in your community)? If so, what have you done for them? Feel free to share in the comments.
