|
May 9, 2006
They will know…
Mark 9:41 “I tell you the truth, anyone
who gives you a cup of water in my name because you
belong to Christ will certainly not lose his reward.”
-NIV
A new friend reminded me of this story this morning
so I went and found it:
Mahatma Gandhi is one of the most respected leaders
of modern history. A Hindu, Ghandi nevertheless admired
Jesus and often quoted from the Sermon on the Mount.
Once when the missionary E. Stanley Jones met with
Ghandi he asked him, "Mr. Ghandi, though you
quote the words of Christ often, why is that you appear
to so adamantly reject becoming his follower?"
Ghandi replied, "Oh, I don't reject your Christ.
I love your Christ. It's just that so many of you
Christians are so unlike your Christ."
Apparently Ghandi's rejection of Christianity grew
out of an incident that happened when he was a young
man practising law in South Africa. He had become
attracted to the Christian faith, had studied the
Bible and the teachings of Jesus, and was seriously
exploring becoming a Christian. And so he decided
to attend a church service. As he came up the steps
of the large church where he intended to go, a white
South African elder of the church barred his way at
the door. "Where do you think you're going, kaffir?"
the man asked Ghandi in a belligerent tone of voice.
Ghandi replied, "I'd like to attend worship here."
The church elder snarled at him, "There's no
room for kaffirs in this church. Get out of here or
I'll have my assistants throw you down the steps."
From that moment, Ghandi said, he decided to adopt
what good he found in Christianity, but would never
again consider becoming a Christian if it meant being
part of the church.
How we treat others tells people more about what we
believe, and what following Jesus means to us than
all tracts we pass out, or all the fine sermons we
deliver. Will they know who you are?
By Gethsemene Rose
© can be used with permission just copy the entire
devotion including contact information contact devotions@gethsemenerose.com
|
