Welcoming Sinners
When Mike and I first came to Connecticut, we attended Gateway Christian Fellowship in West Haven, experiencing passionate worship and compelling preaching. With a missions background, we were eager to get involved in outreach. We discovered our call serving food at the men’s shelter in New Haven twice a month. It felt fulfilling to prepare and serve food to the homeless! We were excited to hear the gospel preached and watch the lost surrender their lives to God. That was in the beginning. After months went by, we noticed that only a few responded to the words spoken by Jesus. Some of the men didn’t seem grateful for the food we made. Because of this, a few of the people that served alongside us didn’t show up as often and our workload grew. The excitement waned as we experienced disinterest and even complaints from the homeless men. Was it really worth it?
After Matthew the tax collector became a follower of Jesus, he had a great banquet for Jesus at his house. A large crowd of tax collectors and other friends gathered, but the Pharisees and Jewish teachers of the law complained. They asked, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” These religious leaders believed they were holy men and stayed away from sinners. Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” Jesus ate with them because they needed Him and His gift of salvation. The Pharisees, blinded by self-righteousness, failed to see their own desperate need for Him.
Outwardly, our outreach to the homeless at the men’s shelter seemed unfruitful. But Jesus was doing an inner work in us that wasn’t so obvious. He was questioning our motives. Were we serving the homeless out of love and compassion or to make ourselves feel worthy or righteous? Were we making food to bless those who were hungry or to receive the applause of man? Were we sharing the Gospel out of love for their souls or was it to count how many responded to an altar call? Jesus, so graciously, was doing heart surgery on us! We thought Jesus called us to serve at the shelter so we could help the men there, but He had other plans. He was teaching us to love broken people! God was preparing us for something more.
After years of outreach to the men’s shelter, we shared a growing frustration. We saw a few of the men at the shelter turning towards Jesus; they were truly desperate for discipleship, but the shelter environment did not offer a safe place to grow. Because of this need, God birthed The 180 Center, a storefront a few blocks down from the shelter and an 18 month residential program for men desperate for change. It’s also a place for the homeless to get a free breakfast and cup of coffee. Maybe their hearts will make a u-turn towards Jesus; maybe they won’t. What’s most important is that we are there, welcoming them to discover that their greatest need is Christ. On the days we wonder if it’s really worth it, we remind ourselves just how desperately we need Him too. Will you welcome sinners?
