Jesus drew large crowds wherever He went. Yet time after time, He stopped to touch that one person who needed to experience His love and forgiveness: Zacchaeus, Mary Magdalene, Bartimaeus, Thomas. He addressed multitudes. Yet He called individuals to come follow Him. Whether it was walking all day on the dusty roads of rural Palestine, going without food or water, staying up all night teaching and praying, Jesus sacrificed much to minister to that one person. He washed the feet of His disciples. He gave the people the words of eternal life but also provided real fish and bread to thousands who were hungry. When He gave His very life to die on the cross for those who didn't know Him or deserve it, He demonstrated ultimate sacrificial love by action beyond His teaching.
He passed on this legacy of sacrificial love to His followers when He told them, "By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another" (John 13:35) and "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me." (Matt 25:40). And this was exactly what the early Church did. In the first century, at a huge risk to their own lives, His followers constantly sacrificed to show His love. They took abandoned babies from the streets, bandaged the wounds of soldiers - even those who had tortured believers - and rushed into cities ravished by plagues to minister to the sick. This is our heritage. This is how our faith was born and triumphed over hostile opposition. When the first believers decided to follow Christ, they knew it meant a lifestyle of sacrificial love.
Now it's our turn. It's not enough to just say we're Christian or that we love God. The love of Jesus always involved sacrifice. This summer you can take up the legacy of Jesus' love and serve some of Africa's most vulnerable people. But it will take sacrifice. Giving away part of your summer, raising money to get there, eating food that is unfamiliar or maybe going without food, sleeping in uncomfortable places, working long hours for people you don't even know, and putting a smile on the face of a child. Will you do it because you know how highly He values them? Jesus showed us what God's love looks like. He came to those whom society overlooked, rejected, ignored or even oppressed, the most desperate and vulnerable. And He calls us to follow in His steps, will you?