The Community Service Alliance is a 501c3 organization dedicated to expressing the faith of the Gospel through the works of service. While everyone is welcome and all faiths are invited, this organization was built on the words and the deeds of the spirit found in the Gospels.
In Matthew 25:35, 40
Jesus said:
"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... Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me."
For some, this echoes and fulfills the great commission which is expressed in the verse:
"‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
When we give, when we help, when we reach out to those who need help, we have the opportunity to show the world the Gospel in our words and our deeds. That’s what embodies the spirit of the Alliance. The goal isn’t to convert someone to an ideology, the goal is to be grateful that we get to serve and show our faith.
The Community Service Alliance gives anyone the opportunity to help. Whether you know the red letters words or this is the first you’ve heard them, this is the guiding spirit that built this community.
A man can’t be expected to believe in the good news when he’s freezing in the bitter rain. A man can’t be held accountable for his disbelief when the believers turn their backs on him. A man whose ears are overflowing with the sound of an empty belly, won’t be receptive to any Good News.
The Community Service Alliance gives everyone an opportunity to give back. Is your belly full? Is your family warm? Do you have hope for the future? These basic things are what give a man dignity. Everyone falls, everyone makes mistakes, everyone understands the old expression that isn’t in the Bible, “There but for the grace of God go I”. Those words, you’ll never find them written in the Bible but most men believe these words. Call it luck, call it karma, call it God but your success is fleeting. In fact, King Solomon, one of the richest Kings in Israel's history called it your vanity in action.
The Apostle James wrote:
"What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead."
The Community Service Alliance was built on this idea, to show faith through works. So in the spirit of the Gospel: All are welcome to come and rest. All are welcome to come and help. All are welcome to participate.
People don’t realize, Jesus said that he himself was homeless. He said, “'Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”.
His point wasn’t to complain. He was speaking to a young man who said that he wanted to follow in his footsteps. The young man said "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go." Jesus answered that his path was hard and that even though he was walking in his own kingdom, he had no home.
He was telling that young man that his path wasn’t smooth. He was explaining that He wasn’t born into a normal kingdom and that those that wanted to follow him needed to set aside their earthly concerns. He said this knowing that following in his path meant sacrifice and more importantly mercy.
If anything, it’s that mercy that defines the mission. No matter what faith you have or what you believe, it’s this guiding principle that’s revealed throughout the Gospels that the Community Service Alliance will try to honor.
Please give us the opportunity to help as many as we can. Please help us express our faith through works. Please come and rest, those who are weary and alone. Give us the opportunity to reveal the spirit behind the words that provide our chance to fulfill the great commission that built these homes.
