Advent-ure Day 10: Representing the King

During this special season, we do celebrate the child in the manger, but we also celebrate that Jesus is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. We acknowledge Him and submit to Him as King of our lives. We represent Him and should seek to represent Him well. 2nd Corinthians 5 speaks powerfully to us:
20 Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God.
21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

He is the King; and we are citizens of the Heavenly Kingdom.  We belong to Christ, and He has infused us with spiritual power so that we might live a devoted life.  We proclaim the greatness of that King and demonstrate what a surrendered life looks like, a life that is marked by a love for the Lord and a freedom from sin.  Certainly, we point out sin where it occurs and realize that there is a answer to overcome that sin through the power of the King.

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We have entered the second full week of 25: our Christmas Advent-ure.  It's our Faith Radio Advent Guide, centered on various Christmas songs, lyrics, and corresponding Scriptures.  Over the
weekend, we had Day 8, concentrating on In the Bleak Midwinter. Isaiah 9:2 says:
2 The people who walked in darkness Have seen a great light; Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, Upon them a light has shined.

Into the darkness of a world that did not know God, He sent His Son as its Redeemer.  He came to a
young girl named Mary, and we're told in Luke chapter 1, verses 31 and 32:
31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.
32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.

This passage corresponds to Sunday's Christmas song in the Advent guide, Mary Did You Know?

One of the aspects of the Christmas narrative is the introspection of Mary.  In Luke 1, you read her soliloquy, known as the Magnificat, in which she expresses her appreciation to God, as the result of His choosing her to bear the Christ child.

We also see evidence of her reflection on the magnanimity of these moments in Luke 2:19:
19 But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.

Today's Advent guide song is What Child is This?  The operative lyric is, "This, this is Christ the King; Whom shepherds guard and angels sing..."  Jesus came as a child and He is also our King. And, we are representatives of that King.

Certainly, on The Meeting House recently, I have spent time concentrating on the situation at the Southern border of the United States.  And, I think, as an extension of last week's conversation, we can shine a spotlight on how churches are responding appropriately to the immigration crisis.

The much-maligned Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, also known as ICE, you know, a law enforcement organization that some want to abolish.  The agency is tasked with management of those seeking asylum in the U.S., and where there is a need for housing for people when they await a hearing, ICE will turn to...local churches!

A story from Arizona television station, Fox 10, says:

Dozens of asylum seekers, many of them women and children, say they are victims of persecution in the Central American countries of Nicaragua, Guatemala, and El Salvador. ICE cannot accommodate them all, and works with small evangelical churches, mostly latino ones, to give folks a place to stay for a couple days, before they go on to stay with loved ones around the country, while they await rulings in their asylum cases.

But, as the story points out, there are "so many people and not enough space" to begin with, which is why churches are being contacted. The article says, "...some of those churches are being overwhelmed. Nueva Esperanza, located near Southern and Gilbert in Mesa, is one of those small churches, filled to bursting with busloads of asylum seekers, over and over, since October."

The AZ Central website states that:

Federal immigration authorities have released about 2,500 Central American families at Hispanic churches in the Phoenix area over the past two months, totaling more than 5,000 people, according to one pastor.

The families had recently crossed the border illegally in southwestern Arizona, which has become one of the most popular entry points for a growing wave of migrant families arriving at the southern border seeking refuge in the United States.

So, governmental authorities are looking to churches to step up and be involved in helping those who are coming in to our country, but more are needed - this is a great reminder of the opportunity that churches have to get involved in ministry during a crisis.

A Religion News Service story highlights people of faith doing ministry in Tijuana.  It states that "the city of Tijuana is overwhelmed by more than 6,000 people who have arrived, many hoping to gain political asylum in the United States."  The story continues:

Although accustomed to constant traffic across the border, Tijuana is not fully prepared to accept such a large group for an unknown amount of time. Nonetheless, the Central American migrants have seemingly been welcomed thus far, in part thanks to religious groups that are organizing to help manage the sudden influx.

Nazarenes are working alongside Salesians, who are part of a Catholic order, to provide needed services.  The Salesians are providing meals, and the Nazarenes are treating medical conditions, such as lice, bedbugs, and more.

Just because one may not agree with the premise of the caravan, there are still people in need who need to encounter the love of Christ in action.  That is a proper response.  I believe an appropriate response to the immigration crisis is not for Christians to demand the country take in more refugees and immigrants and set artificial numbers, but for churches to minister personally to people in need.

For instance, there is news from the Phoenix area - we read this from ABC15 Arizona:

Valley churches are seeking donations for hundreds of Central American migrants expected to be dropped off in the Phoenix metro area this week.

Almost 200 were bused in by the Department of Homeland Security on Monday to one of about a dozen churches participating in a humanitarian mission to help the families try and connect with loved ones already in the United States.

The churches are part of a network that spans across the Valley, from Chandler, to Mesa, Phoenix and Glendale.

There is certainly a crisis on the southern border, and there are those who would want to break our nation's laws to gain entry into our country, where they would receive taxpayer-funded services.  There has to be a better way, and Christians can be involved in advocating for reform to the current system.

But, in the meantime, there are real people with real needs - all the members of the migrant caravan are certainly not paid actors, although I feel sorry for so many who have been manipulated and deceived with the promise of a better life.  There may even be a place for churches and individual Christians to sponsor people who want to come to this country as refugees and immigrants, not those attempting to game our system, but who legitimately wish for a better life here in America - that's why so many, including our ancestors, came in the first place.  But, Christians should develop a support system to relieve the burden from taxpayers; not trying to inflate numbers in order that taxpayers may fund the relocation and provide for people once they arrive. 

We can certainly be receptive to people in crisis - they need the hope of Christ.  That's the model of disaster relief: provide for physical needs, certainly, but use that as a springboard to provide hope and comfort, as well as conversation about spiritual matters.  And, just like in disaster relief situations, the government recognizes the unique equipping of people of faith to reach out to those in need.  We just have to make sure that we are ready, properly positioned spiritually and strategically, to act as we are called upon.