Some years ago a man, wishing to justify his being concerned only for himself and his family, told me that the Bible says that he is not his brother's keeper.
I said, "That phrase is in the Bible, but it's on the lips of Cain who has just killed his brother Abel. When God comes looking for Abel, he asks Cain where he is. Cain rudely replies, 'Am I my brother's keeper!'"
I wonder how often, by what I do or don't do, I'm telling God that I am not my brother's keeper. It's easier to see it in others. There's certainly a lot of people in our country right now who think that they are not their brother's keeper.
In Matthew 25:31-46, that I've been praying about all week, Jesus says, "Oh yes! you are your brother's keeper." The poor, the sick, the stranger, need me. I'll be judged on whether or not I meet their needs. I think I have an obligation to do this not only on an individual level but on a national and international level.
There are people without food and water and clothing and medical care, strangers here from other countries, people in prison and on death row. There are things I can do to help them, actions I can take, movements I can support. I need faith-filled eyes to recognize Jesus in the needy and a loving heart to meet his needs by meeting theirs.
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