As many of you know, the Holcombes are big fans of Tim Keller, which is our "live version" of C.S. Lewis - he's our movie star!
We listen to his podcasts, read his books, get mad when people take his words out of context, quote him at too many parties, and will knock down the doors of our church when he shows up in Hong Kong.
For those of you in the dark, you need to know this man! He's the senior pastor of Redeemer Church in Manhattan and he's an intellectual giant who loves the Lord and knows the gospel. He's also a lover of literature and movies, so he speaks to our whole household!
I found this review of Keller's book, Generous Justice (or maybe it's Ministries of Mercy, can't remember). It's worth the 22 seconds it will take to read it. There is a great need for mercy all over this world, including the US. There is poverty and injustice everywhere and I believe we are all called to do something about it. I think reading it before seeing the videos is helpful.
What I appreciate about the book is the balance that Keller brings to the subject. Some people who write about mercy ministries tend towards the extreme. “Unless you are living in poverty in the worst neighborhood in the city then you are an affluent Christian who probably really isn’t a Christian!” Keller balances his discussion about mercy ministries, not by leaving a backdoor for people to escape from participating in mercy ministries, but by showing the broad range of what mercy ministries is really all about. No matter what your life situation is or what your spiritual gifts may be, after reading the book you will not only feel motivated to participate in ministries of mercy, but also have many different areas and ways that you can be involved in.
Whether you are mowing your elderly neighbor’s lawn in Glenside or clothing the homeless on 15th and Market, you are participating in the ministries of mercy. No matter where your location or situation, Keller makes sure that you realize that doing mercy is not optional. It is a mark of being a follower of Jesus.
To say that evangelism can be done without also doing social concern is to forget that our goal is not individual “decisions,” but the bringing of all life and creation under the lordship of Christ, the kingdom of God.
I have three videos that I took while in Cambodia and they really just show the poverty of this nation. Two of the videos are about 30 or 40 seconds and the third is less than three minutes. It's hard to capture anything on film, unless you're my daddy, and we know no one, and I mean no one, can be that.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVOeoChJIOc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgdU25RHRk0
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