Chapter 34—Our Individual Responsibility
An Individual Work Committed to Christ’s Followers—Christ
commits to His followers an individual work—a work that cannot be
done by proxy. Ministry to the sick and the poor, the giving of the
gospel to the lost, is not to be left to committees or organized charities.
Individual responsibility, individual effort, personal sacrifice, is the
requirement of the gospel.—
The Ministry of Healing, 147
.
Needs Supplied as We impart.—Christ has bidden us, through the
prophet, “Deal thy bread to the hungry,” and “satisfy the afflicted soul;”
“when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him,” and “bring the poor
that are cast out to thy house.” He has bidden us, “Go ye into all the
world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” But how often our
hearts sink and faith fails us as we see how great is the need and how
small the means in our hands. Like Andrew looking upon the five
barley loaves and the two little fishes, we exclaim, “What are they
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among so many?” Often we hesitate, unwilling to give all that we have,
fearing to spend and to be spent for others. But Jesus has bidden us,
“Give ye them to eat.” His command is a promise, and behind it is the
same power that fed the multitude beside the sea.
In Christ’s act of supplying the temporal necessities of a hungry
multitude, is wrapped up a deep spiritual lesson for all His workers.
Christ received from the Father; He imparted to the disciples; they
imparted to the multitude; and the people to one another. So all who are
united to Christ will receive from Him the bread of life, the heavenly
food, and impart it to others....
The disciples were the channel of communication between Christ
and the people. This should be a great encouragement to His disciples
today. Christ is the great center, the source of all strength. His disciples
are to receive their supplies from Him. The most intelligent, the most
spiritually-minded, can bestow only as they receive. Of themselves
they can supply nothing for the needs of the soul. We can impart only
that which we receive from Christ, and we can receive only as we
impart to others. As we continue imparting we continue to receive;
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