The team that works our church's Food Pantry met this past week to plan and review and consider how we do-and do better-our church’s work with people who have food insecurity. I want to share a part of what we discussed, but with its Biblical and theological (theology being ‘how I think about God in regards to loving my neighbor') foundation.
As a pastor, it is my privilege to be involved in, an observer, and sometimes advocate for soul healing in our community. One byproduct of that for pastors is that we pick up a little knowledge about a lot of subjects. Often we, in turn, seek to use that knowledge to illustrate a point in a sermon or explain something in “layman’s” terms. In my experience, we tend to be 60-70% accurate in the broad concepts, but 15-20% accurate in the details. But folks get what we mean.
So, in an attempt to use “business” or “not-for-profit” language, we (I) laid out a broad vision for how to consider what we are doing when we do missions. There is a two-fold focus for missions. The first is “client” based, aimed to serving those who are in need (ala Matthew 25). The second is “partner” based, aimed to create those who will serve. There was, in my heart, a biblical foundation for this, that I did not take the time to share in the meeting.
But I want to here.
So here we go. Jesus fed the 5000. That gospel account I want to look at as a ‘case study’ for the broad principles of doing mission. It works well in the case of our food pantry. First, take the technical term ‘food insecurity’. I use that term and not the biblical description of ‘feeding the hungry’, because it has a more precise and yet a more general definition than ‘feed the hungry’.
Consider the 5000. In the biblical story, they’d followed Jesus far from their homes and immediate sources of food. In the crowd there may have been people who were without a home or a meal to go back to (the ‘typical’ understanding of ‘the hungry’). There may have been people who came because they did not have enough. But the food insecurity in the moment is that the crowd is far from home, so that the disciples suggested they should scatter to the surrounding villages to find food, that they were separated from their usual sources of home and nourishment.
Those who come to our Food Pantry may not be homeless or starving (or they might be). Other possibilities? They may be working people who can provide for themselves perhaps 50-75% of the time, but they do not make enough money to pay for food, and everything else, the rest of the time. They may have a sudden expense that demands they pull money from the grocery budget to pay it off. They may suddenly find themselves with a family member on their doorstep in need and not to be turned away. There are MANY reasons why people find themselves suddenly insecure about having enough food for themselves and their families.
To be insecure about having enough to eat is a horrible feeling. This term, food insecurity, it recognizes a broad range of reasons for needing to ‘get charity’ (it can be shaming to the person who wants to provide for their family) to provide food (it is a basic threat to our survival and well being) whether it be over the long term or for a single space of time when there just wasn't enough.
What this term is NOT is just the latest ‘fad’ to describe people in need.
So, in the feeding, Jesus was answering the need of food insecurity. To do so, he was providing faith-based ‘client’ services. These were the 5000 men, plus the women and children, who’d followed Him to hear Him teach.
But this was not simply a miraculous feeding. Jesus was accompanied by his disciples, he challenged them first to provide the ‘client’ services, then showed them how it was done. In the end, they gathered up the remainder of the food, 12 baskets full. This demonstrates faith-based ‘partner’ services. Yes, the disciples were being trained up as partners in the ministry of Christ, they were learning what do to.
Because
this was to be their calling. To serve ‘clients’
as Jesus was serving ‘clients’. And we
do see the results of this in the book of Acts.
The ministry of feeding the hungry became so large in the work of the
early church that the Apostles set up a specific ministry, the first Board of
Deacons, to care for the needs of widows and orphans, to administer the daily distribution of food in the community of faith.
The distinction for the church is one of great significance. 'Client' services are based on the presupposition that every person is a child of God, a sibling of our Lord Jesus. While everyone is welcome to join the church, that’s not the purpose of the mission. There is a stereotype about missions on “skid row”, preaching to the “bums”, that mandated "sermon before soup". It was based on a theological notion of ‘feed the soul then feed the body’. It also exploited people in their time of need.
‘Partner’ services in the church, in missions, is where we gather like-minded individuals who feel called to feed the hungry in Jesus’ name. It is an invitation to the whole congregation, and while it may not become their long term call, it is a place and a moment when we can fulfill the call to love our neighbor directly in their time of need. People who were once clients, who were food insecure, once they have found security in their daily bread, will often return as a partner to the mission to feed others.
‘Partner
services’ are based on the presupposition that we who believe in Jesus Christ
as Lord and Savior are called to serve Him-in response to physical AND spiritual needs, to do as Jesus did.
I believe
this is how we should look at our missions. Whether hands on, like the Food Pantry and the Thrift Shop or by our giving, through our Mission Budget. We serve people, clients, for no reason other
than it is the right thing to do (love our neighbor). We join as partners in the service of people because
Jesus said this is the right thing to do (love our God).
When we do this, there is a third piece of the feeding of the 5000 we can expect to see. Call it ‘miracle’ services-from the Lord. As in the loaves and the fishes. One way to interpret how Jesus fed 5000 plus families from the five loaves and two fish is the miraculous presence of God to create all that was necessary. Another way to interpret how Jesus fed 5000 plus families is that as the young man shared all that he had, this led the rest of the crowd to share what they brought and that in this way, God’s spirit of generosity took hold among everyone. Perhaps the miracle was a combination of the two.
Either way, there were 12 baskets left over.
Either way,
God’s power baby.
If this rather lengthy diatribe makes sense at all, it is because God’s Spirit has been at work through the
people of our church, leading me more than I could ever presume to lead
them. If this is all nonsense, the nonsense is ALL mine.
Peace to You, Sibs in Christ,
Pastor pete
