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If a Brother or Sister Is...

What good is a person’s faith if they have no works? You’d question the sincerity of a person’s beliefs if were to fail to take appropriate action. So what if a brother or sister in church has nothing to wear and no food to eat? How would you respond?

It’s easy for people in church to greet one another and treat each other like members of the same organization. “Brother” or “Sister” becomes a title used to address someone in the church. Beyond that, there is no real affection, such as the kind Apostle Paul described (Rom 12:10; 1Thess 2:8). Rather, people attend church for their own benefit, for their own salvation. But self-centered interests do not define religion as the Lord Jesus had intended.

The truth is the Lord brought each member into His household. This household is made up of different people. There are some who are older, others younger. Some have belonged to this household longer than others. Some are more comfortably off than others. Each professes the Lord Jesus to be their Lord. They all acknowledge what He has done for them, and all believe what the Lord Jesus will do for them. But where is the relationship between these brothers and sisters? There is something we must do as members of God’s household between the present time and the Lord Jesus’ second coming.

The Lord Jesus hinted that not everyone who belongs to the church will be saved (Mt 7:21-23). The Lord will judge according to how we treat each other. He foretold what would happen on the day of judgment in the parable of the sheep and the goats. Each represents a group of people who already know the Lord, for they both asked, “Lord, when did we see You…?” (Mt 25:37, 44). But neither group was aware that their treatment of their brethren reflected their relationship with God.

Surely the words of Elder John ring true: “He who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?” (1 Jn 4:20). Love is not merely restraining from doing wrong against one another. That is like saying, “I do not beat my wife, therefore I love my wife.” What kind of love is that?

So what good are words to those who are weak or in need? How do they relieve their suffering or troubles? What good is a person’s profession on the day of judgment? As Elder James asks, “Can faith save him?” (Jas 2:14).

Publisher: True Jesus Church
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