“Now you are the body of Christ,
and each one of you is a part of it”
I Corinthians 12:27

No Hands but Yours
April 1, 2020, by Pastor Bob Bolt

“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in” – JESUS (Matthew 25:35)

The story goes that during World War II there was a cathedral that was bombed in Germany.
Much of the cathedral was destroyed.  But there was a statue inside of Jesus raising his hands. The statue was intact except for one thing.  The hands were missing!  Now, what to do?  Throw out the statue?  Manufacture some new hands and reattach them?

The church decided to put a sign at the bottom that read “Christ has no hands, but yours”.

I’m not sure if this is a true story or not.  But I like it none the less.

A patron female saint named St Teresa of Avila wrote this poem many years ago:
Christ has no body but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
Compassion on this world,
Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,
Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.
Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,
Yours are the eyes, you are his body.
Christ has no body now but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
compassion on this world.
Christ has no body now on earth but yours.

Jesus was certainly notorious for stepping into messiness and misery.  A woman at a well desperately needed acceptance, forgiveness, and love. Jesus offered her living water. A little tax collector had a full pocketbook but still an empty life.  Jesus said “Let’s have dinner together” and he turned his world upside down. Martha and Mary’s hearts were broken over the death of their brother Lazarus. Jesus replaced their tears of sadness with tears of joy when he raised their brother from the dead   We have shattered broken lives by sin, Jesus came down to put our lives back together.  Jesus did not run away from suffering but to it.

How about you? Can you provide some words of encouragement for someone? Can your hands be helping hands in some way? Can your feet walk into the life of someone in need?   Can your peaceful presence be passed on to a person? Let’s not be wild reckless while at the same time failing to see opportunities of needs around us.

The world’s cries can be met by the church’s compassion.

PRAYER:
As I open my hands to you, Lord Jesus, not only do I want you to fill them but to use them.  Your hands are now my hands!   Now I lift them up in praise to you and offer them as a living sacrifice to you!   In your name, I pray.   Amen