If Jesus were physically here today, where would He spend His ministry? If He were in our community, what would His week look like? In a church? Probably, He loves His bride and that’s where she usually is. But what about during the week? What would His public ministry look like today?
Let’s just consider His philosophy of ministry: “It is not those who are well who need a doctor, but those who are sick, I didn’t come to call the righteous but sinners” (Mark 2:17). What about some examples of people whom Jesus surrounded Himself? Fishermen (Mark 1:16-20), sinners and tax collectors (Mark 2:13-16), a demoniac (Mark 5), a divorcée ostracized by society (John 4).
From what we see in His own ministry, Jesus’ time would not be confined to one demographic or socio-economic status; however, from the list above, I know one place Jesus would invest Himself: the streets of Kensington in Philadelphia.
Tom Syversten and I have been helping a local ministry started by Chris Battin, who has been serving the people of Kensington faithfully three times a week for years. We don’t offer much physically: the staples are bottled water and a banana—sometimes more, sometimes less. But what Chris continually reminds everyone in his sphere of influence: “It’s not about what we’re bringing; it’s about the relationships and conversations we have.”
Just to give you a day-in-the-life: every week we see open-air drug use—the popular drugs on the street now are Fentanyl or horse tranquilizer; on one day within a few hours, Chris used Narcan on three separate individuals. There are drug dealers openly on the streets, and when you have been there long enough, you develop situational awareness to see them. There is solicitation of prostitution on the corners, where women earn more money in a day then the average American makes in a week, only for all of it to go into their arm. Whenever the city tries to move the people or clean the streets, it quickly returns to the status-quo.
When I first came and saw all of this, I was emotionally devastated: the cyclical hopelessness, where people regularly talk about losing someone to violence or overdose; the feeling that there is little that the current establishment is doing to make change; the reality that many of the people we talk with will die if left untreated.
Despite all of this darkness, God is still working: beyond just the small ministry we’re doing, there are several others serving the people—Rock Ministries and Angels in Motion currently come to my mind. I’ve seen people speak about escaping the streets because of “the grace of God and ministries like you guys.” Some of the most popular items people take are a simple Gospel of John or Chris’ “song sheet” we hand out which has lead to several Gospel conversations.
The light of the Gospel ought to penetrate into every social stratum; because of the radical love that Jesus has shown sinners, Christians have the ultimate motivation for sharing this self-sacrificial love to others; we are not there for social credit but because of the Gospel itself—Jesus not only cared for the unlovable but died for the unlovable like myself.
God has continually been prospering our time there, where it has gone from simply Chris going to about five of us—and that’s only considering what we do! As you go about your week, continue praying for us every Wednesday morning, especially Chris who also goes on Saturday’s and Sunday’s. Continue praying for the growth and opportunities of others like Rock Ministries and Angels in Motion. Pray for our society and that changes might come that bring an end to this Opioid Crisis growing worse every year. Finally, pray for the people on the streets, that they can escape the darkness and find the peace and marvelous light found only in Jesus Christ.