Overflowing With Care, Rushing to Help

Practical Ways of Getting More People to Heaven

Matthew 13:45-46 (NKJV) “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.

Romans 5:8 (NKJV) But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Matthew 10:24-25a (NKJV) “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. 

If you are confused by the previous three passages, that’s A-OK with me. But do not worry, all will be explained.

If you are familiar with the kingdom of heaven is like a pearl parable, you probably already know that Jesus is describing the value of being a part of His kingdom. And with that, the value of entering into heaven. Notice how He describes the value; its worth more than anything the merchant had. That implies that His kingdom, especially what it will be like in heaven, is worth more than anything we have. Understanding that value is essential because Jesus warns us that the faith He asks us to have is one that is willing to lose everything for His Kingdom. Just as Jesus tells us in Matthew 10:37-39 (NKJV):

He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.

In other words, the expectation of Christians is that we would “Love the Lord [our] God with all [our] heart, with all [our] soul, and with all [our] mind” (Matthew 22:37 - NKJV). And “lay up for [ourselves] treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where [our] treasure is, there [our] heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:20-21 - NKJV)

But what is in heaven that is so valuable? Why should we want to live in God’s kingdom instead of our own? Well, as it was said in Matthew 6, it is a place where no wrongs exist; therefore, nothing can be taken from us by theft or decay. In a practical sense, imagine having a car that never breaks down, a house that never needs repair, friendships that are never broken, and happiness that is never touched by sorrow. Is that more valuable than anything and everything you have today? Some might turn to you here and say, “See, give up everything for Christ by giving everything to the church!” But I will not do that because I do not think that is right. I’ll give you the reason by asking you a question, “What was the pearl of great price to Jesus?” In other words, what was the thing that Jesus gave up everything to purchase?

I’ll give you a hint from 1 Peter 1:17-19 (NKJV):

“And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”

I get choked up just thinking about it; I was Jesus’ pearl of great price. You were Jesus’ pearl of great price. He sold everything that He had to become human and die on the cross for you and for me. He sold everything for you and me, who are imperfect people who hurt ourselves and those around us. And it was not because we somehow earned or deserved it. Instead, Jesus died for us while we were still His enemies, as it says in Romans 5:8. Contrast that with what we get for letting go of our stuff to follow Him. We get heaven and life in His kingdom. For what Jesus gave up, He got me and you. How fair is that, really? So from there, I ask you now what? Well, Jesus tells us that if we are His disciples, we should be like Him (Matthew 10:24-25a). So yes, we sell everything we have for heaven, but then we do it again and sell everything we have to help our neighbor get to heaven, too. While we cannot and need not die on the cross for their sins, what was Jesus’ act of dying on the cross? It was an act of love, but more practically speaking, it was a selfless act of caring and giving us real help.

So I ask you, how do you demonstrate that your neighbor and everyone in your church is a pearl of great price worth sacrificing everything for to help them get to heaven? How does your church demonstrate the same to every visitor and each individual in your community? Maybe a better way of thinking of it is, if I walked into your church today, would I know that you care for me and would help me if I needed it?

Single Church Capable and Practical Example 1 - Well, “What help do you need?”

Exactly! To know how to help someone, you must know what kind of help they need. To know what kind of help they need, you probably have to ask them. But more than that, you must talk about how you or your church helps people. Why? Well, it is a way for people to feel comfortable asking for help. After all, if the church is focused on its needs as an organization and not the needs of its members, people will not feel comfortable asking because they think they are a burden. Or, they will think they are the odd one for needing help. After all, our society is conditioned to put on a strong face and look, at the very least, like they are doing alright. When the church talks about how it helps its members and the community, it says, “We care, and you are not the odd one looking for help.” So, I would recommend putting up something like a “menu of services” that lists what help the church provides. You may be a small church and not working with other churches yet, so here are some practical things most any church can offer even on their own:

• Prayer

• Help Moving

• Meals

• Real friendship (see the next example)

• Pastoral Counseling

• Opportunities to get together with others

• Answers to tough questions

• A person to be with you if you are sad (e.g., a death in the family)

• Help with a leak (if someone is a plumber)

• A place to stay for a few nights while the A/C gets fixed at their house

Single Church Capable and Practical Example 2 - Real Friendship

Have you ever quit a job? What happened to the friends you made at that job? If you are anything like me, probably 90+% of those friendships died when you left. The truth is, most of our friends at work are a friendship of convenience. We share a few beverages and maybe hang out a few times to complain about work, but there really isn’t anything there that we would want to continue without the job. In other words, they are friendships of convenience but not substance. Now, think about if you left your church today. How many friendships would remain? Be honest. Which of them are seriously deep and you rely on? 1? 2? None? If that is the case, is it really a “body of Christ that celebrates and suffers together?” In other words, is it a family, or are the relationships there shallow and built out of convenience?

As someone who struggles with building and maintaining relationships, I know how difficult it can be for some people to do that. That means, as unfair as it is, you may have to do all the heavy lifting for a while. The church may need to set up events where friendships are built. But while Bible studies are needed, friendships require more than that. They need cookouts, game nights, outings (e.g., to the zoo or hiking), birthday party celebrations, etc. So, if the church is trying to create times to make friendships, look beyond just Bible studies. That being said, I would argue real friendship that goes beyond the church occurs in people’s homes and places outside the church. That means individual members should be encouraged to share their hobbies and host people at their homes.

Multi-Church Required, but Practical Example, Example 3 - Depression and Mental Health

Mental health issues, especially depression, are rising in this country, particularly among teens and young adults[1]. I would argue that social media, with its largely negative ecosystem, and isolation from meaningful face-to-face contact with people who care about them, drives depression and anxiety. Other drivers of depression, anxiety, and even suicide include lack of purpose, real friendships, intimate relationships, and peer support. The practices in example 2 will help and, I would argue, are essential to helping when those things are the root causes of depression, etc. However, those things are not always the root cause. Instead, the underlying issue is sometimes physical, sexual, or emotional abuse. Those issues typically require professional care, even above and beyond pastoral counseling.

The professionals that deal with such things are psychologists/psychiatrists. They can be rather expensive to hire, especially if insurance will not cover it. While a single church could sponsor one or two people to go to a psychologist, five churches could reasonably pay that psychologist’s salary and offer free sessions to the community and its members, or at the very least, almost free sessions. I recommend five churches because it would allow the psychologist to have sessions one day a week at each church. That way, there would not be any fighting over who gets more or less time. I would also recommend searching out and hiring a Christian psychologist/psychiatrist. Yes, they do exist even in a very secular profession. Many people in this country need mental health help, and this idea will allow churches to reach out to more than just the homeless or exceptionally poor. It is also universally needed in the US, no matter what community a church is in. In other words, together, it is a doable and great way to provide for needs and get an opportunity to help more people get to heaven.

If this article got you thinking of other practical ways to help get more people to heaven, please leave your ideas in the comments. The ideas that you share will help!

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®.
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Used by permission.
All rights reserved.

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[1] “Study: Mental Health-Related ER Visits Among Young People Nearly Doubled in a Decade,” https://www.axios.com/2023/05/04/mental-health-emergency-visits-youth-study. Accessed 08/29/2023.

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