The Question Every Atheist Has The Right To Ask

The Atheist has EVERY right to ask this question!   Yet, I question if any of us are prepared with an answer when it comes.  Suffering as a result of a world crafted upon the framework of sin is the all too theological (although true) answer to the skeptic.  This is where we usually drop the ball...  We give the theological answer and we leave it at that.

Child Struck by African Famine

North Korean Children Starved Under Totalitarian Regime

 

Syrian Child Injured in Conflict

 

We can ignore these faces forever, but we WILL have to give an account as to why we did...  Paul reveals the judgment seat of Christ as a place where we will either be awarded merit for our deeds or demerit for our ignorance.  Jesus, himself, separates the sheep from the goats, proclaiming judgment on those who spoke in the name of Christ, but did nothing for the least of these...  In fact, He says that the world's poor and oppressed are actually Him!  How we process these images reveals to the world who we are and what god we have truly surrendered to. 

The unbeliever should question why "Christians" shove General Revelation down their throats, while ignoring their position in the Body of Christ!  Truly, if God is the "Father to the fatherless" and we are "His Body" then why aren't more of us moved to compassion and action by sights such as these? 

I will not belabour the point.  We all know how offensive this message is.  I serve as an offense to my own selfishness, but that's Jesus in a nutshell.  He doesn't make it difficult for anyone to come to him, but once we are indwelt by His Spirit, His agenda takes precedence over ours.  The surrendered life is the dethroning of Self and the coronation of the King Jesus. 

Church, we must surrender our vanity.  We only have a short while to make the difference the world expects us to make.  Until we do, enjoy the scoffer's cries.

**These are hard words spoken by our Lord;

Matthew 25:31-46

³¹ “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. ³² All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. ³³ He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

³⁴ “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. ³⁵ For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, ³⁶ I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

³⁷ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸ When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? ³⁹ When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

⁴⁰ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

⁴¹ “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. ⁴² For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, ⁴³ I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

⁴⁴ “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

⁴⁵ “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

⁴⁶ “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

James 1:27

²⁷ Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Revelation 3:14-21

¹⁴ “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:

These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. ¹⁵ I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! ¹⁶ So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. ¹⁷ You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. ¹⁸ I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.

¹⁹ Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. ²⁰ Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.
²¹ To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne. ²² Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

**According to scripture, when did the church become a country club that caters to the rich???

Matthew 5:16

¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.