The Only Act of Christian Charity...
Scheduled for July 13
Did
you know that there is one act of Christian charity that can be performed --
entirely -- while lying down?
My
rather puckish sense of humor delights me in this. I sometimes daydream of
what it would be like to approach a lovely young woman and ask, “How would you
like to join me in the only act of Christian charity which can be performed --
entirely -- while lying down?” (Best done outside the presence of her
husband. Husbands have been known to have no sense of imagination in these
matters).
To
the pure all things are pure. There is nothing crude about it. The only act
of Christian charity etc..... is giving blood. That’s right. For those
of you who have never done it (I have been a donor for years) it is done
entirely while lying down. And it most assuredly is an act of Christian
charity, for lives are saved by this.
You
cannot, if you are a Christian, fail to note the parallel. We are saved by the
blood of Christ. Indeed, Scripture assures us that when Christ took the cup to
institute the Lord’s Supper he told his disciples that “This is my blood.” It
is the blood that gives life, whether we think of that medically or
spiritually.
There
is another point, however, that I would make to you. The process itself is not
particularly painful (there is a sharp prick of the needle, but that’s about
it). No matter how little the pain (I’ve even had one facility offer Novocain
for that tiny amount of pain) some people just won’t even consider giving blood.
I know the feeling. I’ve done this many times, and I still can not look as the
nurse puts the needle in my arm. At that moment they always ask, “Are you all
right?” I tell them I’m fine, which is a polite way of saying, “Lady, you’re
dealing with a chicken here.” When it comes to getting stuck with a needle,
I’m a devout coward.
How
much more, then, did it take for our Lord to go to the Cross? Please remember
that Jesus is “Son of Man” -- entirely human, just as you and I. He felt the
agony of anticipation (remember the scene in the Garden of Gethsemane?) of what
would happen. He asked for a way out. He felt the fear in much greater
measure than I do. But through it all He said, “Not my will, but yours” to His
Father. He overcame the terror of the Garden to face the pain of Calvary.
All
this He did for us. His life was not taken from Him; He gave it up freely
that you and I might have life. By the blood we live; let us remember also
the fear and the pain needed to bring that blood to us.
There
is one last parallel. When you try to give blood, they ask a long list of
questions, most of which convince me that I’ve led a very dull life. It’s
largely a list of sexual sins -- and answering yes disqualifies you. This is
to protect the blood supply from disease. One would not want a transfusion of
AIDS. The blood must be pure if it is to save a life. To save all who will,
only the perfect purity of the blood of Christ Himself would do.
