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Q. How can we reverse the church's flight from the inner cities?

A. God has never been satisfied with a gospel that reaches only the safe, clean, and whole. He wants to move us beyond condemnation, a critical curiosity, and prejudice. Four principles, drawn from Matthew 9 and 10, will lead us to a godly response:

1. Go where the need is. Jesus "traveled through all the cities and villages," rubbing elbows with real people. He wasn't afraid to get close enough to see the need. We can follow His lead, stepping outside our safe little worlds to where real needs are.

2. Compassion is a response rather than a reaction. It's not merely feeling sorry. Biblical compassion acts on that sorrow. Jesus told His disciples to pray for the Lord to send workers into the harvest field. Then He split them into teams and sent them to surrounding villages to engage needs. As we get close enough to see people's real needs, Christ will assign us to do something to meet them.

3. Biblical compassion is a commitment, not a convenience. We'll be faced with bewildering, risky circumstances. Jesus warned the disciples that they'd be opposed. Minister to people with AIDS, and some will brand you soft on sin. Minister to drunks and addicts, and some will fault you for hanging with sinners.

4. Compassion takes people all the way to Christ. Jesus not only healed, He also preached the gospel of the kingdom. The most compassionate thing we can do is to reconnect a lost soul to God. Only Jesus Christ can take a hurting life and make it whole.

Joseph Stowell is president of the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago.

Adapted from A Heart for the City (Moody Press, Moody Bible Inst., 1999) by permission.

Copyright © 2002 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of Integrity magazine.
Click here for reprint information on Men of Integrity.

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Prayer for the Week

Merciful God, make me compassionate so that I will begin to mirror Your character.

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