“Caring for the Precious”

Three times Jesus asked Simon Peter the same question; “Do you love me?” Peter's answer was, in turn, surprised, emphatic, and finally indignant, but each time the answer was the same; “You know I love you.”

Then Jesus said “Take care of my sheep.” There was no mistaking the reason for repeating the question three times. There is a clear message here. If we love Jesus, we will take care of his sheep.

Just who are the sheep? Some say the sheep are the flock of the church. But Jesus said ; “I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen and I must bring them in also…” John 10:16 We can understand Jesus' words to include all of humanity. The same principle applies to the great command to “Love your neighbor.” The one who needs to ask “Who is my neighbor?” does not understand the great commission to go into the world and preach the gospel to all nations. Jesus' sheep and our neighbors are all people, everywhere. And we must care for them. Christian care must be founded in the word, but it must go beyond words. We can be active in helping alleviate suffering and meeting real needs of people. We read this advice in the book of James; “ suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?” James 2:15-16 It is a fact of life in this world that unless ones physical needs are met, the message of the gospel is not easily received. Many times the first step in proclaiming the gospel goes through food in the stomach and clothes on the back.

Jesus has compassion for all people and calls his church to follow along the same path. Matthew records Jesus' example in the ninth chapter of his gospel; “Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” Matthew 9:35-38. The message is clear. The example is vivid. The need remains. Christ's church needs to be addressing the needs of all Jesus' sheep, nourishing and caring for the body with what we can do, and nourishing and caring for the soul with the news of what he has already done.

Dear Lord – I trust you solely for my faith and I ask you for willingness and strength to share that faith… by whatever means you give me. Amen

Storage and Care of Seed – Caring for seed is important to the future viability of the seed. Proper temperature and humidity control have a tremendous impact on how the seed will perform when planted, or how long it can live in storage.