How Can We Be the Hands and Feet of Christ?
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“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, 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” (Matthew 25:35-36).
We seem to hear the expression all the time from different popular ministry groups. You know them – the ones that are focused on being the “hands and feet of Jesus.” The expression itself seems to be rather self-explanatory, I think; we do this by fulfilling the commands of Christ and loving our neighbor as we love ourselves. But, if I’m honest, I have to admit – it has long been a challenge for me to actually live this out in my daily life.
Don’t get me wrong, I saw what others were doing – taking ministry trips abroad, returning home with a deep, and deserved, sense of satisfaction. But throughout most of my working life I was unable to accomplish this due to my schedule, or at least, so I told myself.
I have come to realize that I had a great deal to learn.
Serving Others: Not What But Why
Recently, my wife and I had the opportunity to serve in western North Carolina with Samaritan’s Purse. We were there to assist those who still had a great deal of need after Hurricane Helene and were still experiencing the storms in their lives – both literally and figuratively. The impact was overwhelming. Meeting with people, listening to their experiences and stories both during the storm, as well as the weeks and months following, was simply overwhelming and heartbreaking.
I learned then it wasn’t so much about “what” we did, although that was important. The critical factor was “why.” The why is what got us up in the morning, energized for the day, regardless of what awaited us.
The “why” also brought a realization that we have people all around us – every day – that are also going through the storms of life. Yet in our own comfort, we are so often either intentionally ignorant or we live with the same excuse that I did for so long: “we don’t have time…”
Perhaps our personal comfort and convenience simply blinds us to the truth and are poor excuses. We are called to sacrifice for others, to be Jesus’ hands and feet.
In North Carolina we found that some of these were ordinary folks who were suffering through an extraordinary impact on their lives. And sometimes, they just needed someone to be there with an open heart to listen to what they went through.
Don’t Just Act, Speak
In Matthew 25:34-40, Jesus told a parable that essentially praised his followers who saw people in need and responded as He taught – in love.
“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. 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, 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.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 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.’”
The righteous saw someone hungry and helped. They saw someone thirsty and helped. They saw someone who simply needed someone to visit them and helped. They saw the “least of these” and their compassion – their hearts – moved them to do something about it.
There indeed are a great many organizations that do incredible work: fighting human trafficking, digging wells, or even sponsoring children in third-world countries. There are others who offer medical assistance around the globe to those in need. But the steps we take need not be overseas adventures. The need not be great productions; they can be right across the street or around the corner.
But there is one more thing – we are not only to be the hands and feet of Jesus, we ought also to be his voice.
The motto of Samaritan’s Purse is “helping in Jesus’ name.” And they do. They make sure that each person is given the opportunity to hear the gospel. And please don’t misunderstand – it is not forced but rather offered in love. Yes, we are called to help those in need, but we are also called to create disciples. What a better opportunity to tell someone about Jesus than when we are with them, when we are helping – not as a condition of the help, but out of love. Then we serve both their physical and eternal needs.
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…” (Matthew 28:19).
Reflecting the Heart of Christ
Jesus’ ministry here was clearly marked by His teachings, but also by His healing and His heart. Jesus puts everything He is, everything He says, into what He carries out. What He says He is, He does. What we see is the heart of Jesus in action.
In Matthew 8:2-3, a leper approached Jesus and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” Remember, it was contrary to the Law for a Jew to touch – even to be near – a leper. That means this man had not felt a human in touch for a very long time. Yet, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man.
“’I am willing,’ he said. ‘Be clean!’ Immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy” (Matt. 8:3b).
When a group lowered their paralyzed friend through the rooftop, Jesus didn’t even wait to hear their request. Before they could open their mouths, Jesus acted.
“When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, ‘Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven’” (Matthew 9:2).
So often as He traveled from town to town, we read of Jesus’ compassion for the crowds “because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd” (Matthew 9:36).
Then, only twice in the gospels do we read that Jesus broke down and wept. Of course, it was not out of sorrow for Himself or the pains He was to face – it was sorrow over another. In one case, a deceased friend, Lazarus (John 11:35) and in the other, it was anguish over Jerusalem (Luke 19:41).
What was Jesus’ deepest pain? The suffering and despair of others. It was the tears of others that drew on Jesus’ own heart. Throughout the gospels, we see Jesus drawn to the “least of these” – the sinful and forgotten by society. Jesus is moved by the brokenness of the world we live in. And every time He “ran toward the fire,” as they say – toward the sin and suffering, not away from it.
Certainly, we are not called to heal as Jesus did, but we can live out the practical acts of kindness and compassion as our hearts mirror Jesus’s own ministry of helping. It is our duty to be obedient to Jesus’s teachings in living out our faith through service – love – to others.
Too often we feel righteous because we attend church every Sunday. We read our Bibles, and we give. These are all very important aspects of living out our faith, but there is more. During Jesus’ famous “woe to you, Pharisees and teachers of the law…” teaching in Matthew 23, Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for being hypocrites. They followed the law – the rites and rules and rituals, including their tithes – but they failed in “the more important matters.” (His words, not mine.)
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices — mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law — justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former” (Matthew 23:23).
He rebuked the Pharisees for failing to live out justice, mercy, and faithfulness.
Faith without Action Is Dead
So, it’s all pretty easy to talk a good game. It’s all well and good to go about our lives, professing our faith and how much we love the Lord. But are we truly living that faith in our actions? Are we giving but not doing for others? Well, perhaps it’s time.
My wife’s dad had an expression when she was growing up. “Eyes that do not see; hearts that do not feel.” As I said, sometimes we let our personal comfort and convenience blind us to what is going on around us; we don’t see so our hearts don’t feel. By doing so, we avoid the pain our hearts might feel and the risk of being inconvenienced in our lives.
Maybe it’s time we start going through life with our eyes – and our hearts - open to the problems of others. Rather than simply saying, “Oh gee, that’s too bad,” perhaps we need to do something. James, the brother of Jesus, put it this way:
“Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead” (James 2:15-17).
This does absolutely not mean that we have a new set of rules to follow or rituals we must go through. It means if we claim to have faith, then our hearts should respond accordingly. If we don’t live that faith out in our lives, in our actions and our behavior, is our faith alive, or dead?
How often have we said “I’ll pray for you” rather than helping? And then often, we forget to speak the prayer we just promised. Maybe instead, we can say a prayer over that person right there and then and ask how we can help.
As I said, my journey to North Carolina was a huge wake-up call for me. One I wish I had learned a great many years ago. It’s time that we open our eyes and our hearts to the needs around us. That may be through serving with an organization like Samaritan’s Purse or another group, or simply serving those in need at your local church or your neighbor across the street.
3 Examples of How We Can Be the Hands, Feet and Voice
So how do we begin? First, pray. Ask the Lord to open your heart. And if you don’t want to, ask Him to give you the desire to do this work. Then take the first steps.
1. Acts of Kindness
We might be very surprised at the huge impact simple acts have on others. Offer a helping hand to someone who needs it, even a small act. Listen to someone’s problems or simply be a good neighbor. Give someone a ride to work or to school – or wherever – when they don’t have another way.
2. Volunteering
There are a great many Christian organizations that seem to operate under the radar. In North Carolina, we ran into Christian service organizations I had never heard of before. All helping, and all needing help from volunteers.
Do a bit of research in your area. Ask your church if they help support any local organizations, and if they don’t, maybe get them started. Volunteer to help at a soup kitchen or with a local charity.
3. Helping to Meet Physical Needs
And there are always the internationals organizations that are looking for help – both abroad and domestically. As stated, we have personally worked with Samaritan’s Purse, but they have multiple divisions that assist others, all in Jesus’ name. NAM is their North American Ministries, who are always looking for volunteers. Get on their list to help in times of disaster like floods, earthquakes, fires, tornadoes, or hurricanes. Simply because it is no longer in the news cycle doesn’t mean the problems are gone.
And yes – help digging wells or some other overseas journey is also beneficial. You never know, it just might change your life.
And in it all, don’t just be the hands and feet but also the voice of Jesus. Let people know why you’re doing what you do. Let them hear the good news of Jesus Christ, as they witness its impact on you.
As long ago as the 16th century, St. Teresa of Avila said this:
“Christ has no body on Earth but yours.
No hands but yours. No feet but yours.
Yours are the eyes through which Christ’s compassion for the world is to look out.
Yours are the feet with which He is to go about doing good,
And yours are the hand with which He is to bless us now.”
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/PeopleImages
Greg doesn’t pretend to be a pastor, a theologian, or a Bible expert, but offers the perspective of an everyday guy on the same journey as everyone else – in pursuit of truth.
Greg can be reached by email or on Facebook @ Greg Grandchamp - Author.