I will agree there is a responsibility on the part of a believing Christian to offer a response to the problems of poverty, hunger and neglect. Indeed, Jesus minced few words in Matthew 25:42-45 (NIV):
For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 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.’“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?’
“He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
And in many ways over the centuries followers of Christ have done just that. In fact, as I sit here and type this post I am trying to imagine any other movement in history that has resulted is so much outpouring of giving, charity and compassion as Christianity. I can think of none. Certainly none of the other faith traditions of the world -- they may have their charitable functions, but none have been as sweeping and far-reaching. For one thing, for the true Christian there should be no "us" versus "them" -- all are our neighbors.
Which is why I disagree in part with your quote which opened this post. I agree that human reason, intelligent effort and critical reasoning are important. But the missing ingredient is a belief and reliance that Christ's Spirit will pervade our faithful efforts and power us beyond what we alone can do. For with that, believers in Christ can truly move mountains.
Yes, that's magical, mystical talk there. But that's the Gospel.
One of the things we're dancing around here is a sad, sad fact that cannot be ignored: there are, increasingly, some strikingly bad examples of "Christians" in the world today. They drag the name of Christ into the dirt. They give Christianity a bad image, a poor reputation, and leave a stained impression in the minds of many non-believers.
And for millions who look upon this, the bathwater is so foul it's not worth considering whether there's a baby somewhere in the water. So out it all goes.
But the Truth of Christ does not change. And that, I think, is the starting point for all consideration to address the problems of this world.
Both you and I have been affected by poor examples of "believers." In the United States, a poll of college students revealed that 80% thought "Evangelical Christianity" was a political cause. Over here in the United States we have preachers on TV who preach a message of pure selfish greed, insisting that if viewers were to send money to ministry, then God would shower them with money and other material possessions. Millions of desperate lost souls send in their money, and the ministry grows fat and rich, flying around in private planes with the preacher living in million dollar homes.
Which is why my heart literally cries out to God -- please show me what a true follower of Christ looks like. Let me see so that I might learn and copy.
Note: the single most moving example I ever came across was a story I read in a magazine about a woman in Detroit who made it her ministry to serve in a local hospital's neo-natal unit. There, infants born to drug-addicted women lay dying of drug addiction themselves. The mothers were long gone, having abandoned their children to the care of the hospital. Her calling was to go to the hospital at night and hold in her arms those babies who were about to die. Night after night she held tiny babies in her arms so that their last experience on this planet was the warm embrace of one who loved them. That woman worked in complete obscurity until the article was published; she did what she did for one reason -- because she heard the call from Jesus and said 'yes' to His bid for service.
I do not know what my calling is in life. To be honest, I've never really earnestly sought God's guidance on this. The legs of my faith are too weak to carry me at this time. I do not think being a pastor is my calling. There is a strong theme in the Bible that God will use people at their weakest point, so that our human pride will not interfere with the work of His Spirit. I have a sense in my heart that my calling may one day be to serve the lonely, for they are vast in number. I do not feel I am equipped to do this, for my confidence in my ability to be of good company to others is weak. All I know is that when I see the face of lonely people, I sense a nudge.
I hope that both of us are able to overcome the poor images of Christianity that dog our minds, and come to understand that despite others who do shame to the name of Christ, Christ himself remains unchanged -- he was, is and will always be the God of true love, compassion, forgiveness and mercy.
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