I have been spending a great deal of time pondering the crisis at the border. I was once a die hard Republican, a card carrying tea party member. Much to my shame at one time I would have just said to blow their heads off. I would have argued that they have no right to be here, they are a drain on our system and they are going to collapse the United States. I pretty much would have used all of the arguments I hear on talk radio today. The difference is that as I have matured in the Lord my Christianity has driven out my Republicanism.
Those who are hyper political see this through purely secular eyes. I have even heard it brought up in sermons where the preacher simply mentions the illegals as being dangerous to our nation. Let’s settle first thing first if we can. These are not your everyday illegal immigrants and they are not coming to America for welfare and a lazy life at least not the majority. So what are they? They are fleeing nations in South America that are plagued by tyranny, war, violence, drug gangs as well as poverty and disease.
They are being sent by parents who undoubtedly want a better life for their children. Can you blame them? Would you do things differently if you were in their shoes facing war, oppression, the constant threat of violence, lack of food and clean water and all the other things that can be found in South America? We welcome refugees from Cuba and grant them citizenship upon reaching our land and yet these who are fleeing the oppression and poverty of their own nations are used as a political tool.
Second of all is the compassion that we should feel for those in need. These who are coming are in need. They are coming from war torn, drug torn, nations and are seeking compassion. I don’t believe for a second the majority of these youths have ulterior motives. I believe they truly seek a better life. What are they met with? Howling mobs of protesters, and political commentators portraying them as leaches. I have even heard a few commentators refer to them as an invasion of locusts. That would make them pests and what do we do with pests? We destroy them is what we do. I have heard of so called militia’s taking to the border with guns. Is this the compassion of the Savior?
At some point we need to stop looking through political glasses and look through the eyes of the Bible. These are people fleeing war, poverty, violence, and want. They have no hope in their homelands. We live in a land of plenty that has all the resources these people lack and we who believe in the God of the Bible should share these resources with others. The Bible says of the sins of Sodom:
“Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.” (Ezekiel 16:49)
The Bible speaks of helping the stranger and sojourner:
“Thus saith the Lord; Execute ye judgment and righteousness, and deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor: and do no wrong, do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, nor the widow, neither shed innocent blood in this place.” (Jeremiah 22:3)
“Open thy mouth, judge righteously, and plead the cause of the poor and needy.” (Proverbs 31:9)
We need to show compassion on these in the name of the Lord. Those who give to the poor lend to the Lord according to Proverbs 19:17. We need to shake off this mindset that what we have is ours, we earned it, go get your own. We need to see all that we have as coming from God in order to share with those in need. The only hope for these young people is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We need to see them and be moved with the Savior’s compassion.
“But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.” (Matthew 9:36)
We have before us the single greatest opportunity. One that past generations of believers would have given their wealth, freedom, and left arm to have. We have thousands of lost people from hard to reach countries coming to us. We could take up the task of sharing the Gospel and winning some of these youths then send them back to their own lands bearing the news of the Gospel. If we did that we could in a few short years impact millions of unreached or barely reached villages and souls with the Gospel.
Instead we are taking a political stand and using this God given opportunity as a weapon against the current Administration. We see them as “illegal aliens” not souls in bondage and darkness. We see them as a threat to our liberty. I have said before I would sooner see our Constitution torn to shreds and all of our freedoms taken away if only to reach these young people and the nations they come from. Here is our opportunity but what will we do with it?
The Gospel Beacon 