In the story of the sheep and the goats, those who provided for the poor and visited those in prison or sick were commended. Do you suppose this was meant to be an exhaustive list? Do you think the list could be expanded to include any form of ministry to those in need? What about the elderly who were not called out specifically in the original story? You don’t have to look very far to find those who are in need of assistance or even just companionship, and everyone is going there someday, including you.

Do you refer to the meeting room of a church as a sanctuary? Do you use the same term for a wildlife refuge? These are similar enough that the same term is used and this refers to a safe place. Do you have a sanctuary of your own? Do you have a place where you can meet with me and feel safe, undisturbed by the cares of the world? If you do you should go there often. But I understand the demands on your time and your duties and responsibilities. Yet I am still with you even if you don’t have a place to go.

When you go to the movies you see an image projected on a screen. You know that the image has no substance. You use the same terminology about people, that they project an image. Are you aware that this image doesn’t have any substance either? Yet people cling to their crafted presentations as if they were their true identity. In some cases there is deliberate deception involved and in others people fool themselves as well or better than they do others. I promised that if you would abide in me then you would know the truth and be free. What does this consist of?

Are you familiar with the concept of ‘buying into’ an idea? This means embracing it and making it your own. You live in a society that has established cultural values. In some cases materialism is more firmly embedded than is beneficial to your spiritual life. Even if you live in a materialistic culture you don’t have to buy into materialism, either literally or figuratively, but it requires deliberate intention to go against the current that carries everyone else along. Come out from among them and be separate.