Certified Christian Counseling: For The Least Of My Brethren?
Christian Counseling needs to restate the divine mandate from Christ that echoes in our minds whenever we see someone in trouble that when “you do it for the least of your brethren, you do it for me”.
Christ used numerous references emphasizing the acts of mercy throughout Scripture. Most notably, the parable of the Good Samaritan illustrates how someone should go beyond the norm to help one’s brother who is in trouble, danger or need.
From a modern perspective, nothing has changed. We are still commanded to care for others and help those in need. While I would not suggest endangering one’s life by picking up a hitchhiker or endangering your family’s needs by giving all your funds away, I do suggest a closer look at what matters most. Yes, we are commanded to give to the Church that ten percent and our spiritual talents, but do we just give the minimum? What do we owe a God who not only created us, but died for us? We owe him much more than the mere minimum.
In understanding this, we need to examine what else we can do for the Church and the least of our brethren. God is far from asking that we forfeit our entire inheritance, but he is asking that we examine our choices and what we do very closely. How materialistic are we when we spend unneeded amounts of money on clothing when there is a homeless shelter down the road with individuals who would gladly wear our scraps? Do we help clothe the naked in that regard?
What about when we waste our food? Do we think of feeding the hungry? Or do our over excessive desires lead us to over priced dinning experiences while the starving man down the road raids the restaurant dumpster?
We are called to a much higher standard and unfortunately materialism leads us to excess and blinds us of spiritual treasures. It also blinds us to the one’s we do not see that are suffering everyday. Why not sacrifice one week of a fine dinning experience and instead donate or give food to a shelter with that “extra” money?
Finally, I feel we sometimes only regard treating the least of brethren as another Christ to only a homeless man shivering in the snow or a starving child in a third world nation. How do we treat other people we interact with each day? Do we treat other people with respect as we would treat Christ? Are we polite, genuinely caring and open to their concerns and worries? Do we yell and scream at a person, if while driving, he or she cuts us off? Do we maliciously mock someone and downgrade others for sport? Do we not offer our time and help to those who need a simple favor?
If we deny these people who have small needs throughout the day, then we are failing Christ’s command. Simply by bringing someone a coffee at work, or offering someone that extra buck for lunch fulfills this divine command!
If you are interested in Christian Counseling Courses, please review the program. If you are interested in doing certified Christian Counseling, then please review the program.
Mark Moran, MA