But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, “Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.” ... Jesus replied ... You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me. -John 12:4-5,8 NRSV
Jesus words ring true some two millenia after he spoke them. Two thousand years of human progress. Centuries of Christianity. Yet the poor are still among us. Kids still go hungry. The disenfranchised and impoverished remind us that we have not come all that far. Millions of believers have closed their ears to the cries of the poor in their cities.
I write not to shame but to remind myself of how the presence of the poor is God's call for us to be like Jesus. We are called us to care for the least of those among us. God commands us to care for the sick, the thirsty, the hungry, the imprisoned and those without hope. These are our brothers and sisters. We are our brother's keeper.
Thy kingdom come Lord Jesus. As it is in heaven let it be here on earth. Help us to care for those you love.
... this devotion is part of an ongoing series on the Gospel of John.
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