Pastor Rick Warren of Saddleback Church does not think that Christians can rightfully turn a blind eye to the ongoing refugee crisis. Speaking at the recent GC2 Refugee Summit at Community Christian Church in Naperville, Illinois, Warren said doubts will be raised on Christianity if Christians do nothing to help immigrants.
"Jesus loves the Church, and he loves the world," said Warren, according to The Christian Post. "He valued relationships much more than rules. Jesus never got angry at irreligious people. He only got mad at people who should know better."
Warren said Jesus got angry at people who claim to be religious but do nothing to help others. "The largest refugee crisis in our lifetime right now is going on, and people are ignoring it. Actually, they are closing down the borders. I have been to some of the largest refugee camps in the world, but have never seen anything like this," he said.
Despite the many efforts made by Christian ministries such as Saddleback, a lot of refugees are still living without water, sanitation, and food.
"Why must we care about these refugees? Why must we care about foreigners? Why must we care about immigrants—what the Bible sometimes calls aliens, foreigners, strangers in the land? Because God commands it. All throughout Scripture, God says you are to treat people who are out of their country kindly," he said.
Warren said people should learn how to emulate Jesus and "love what Jesus love."
"We have to be indifferent to what Jesus is indifferent to, and we have to be angry at the things Jesus gets angry about. And we have to sacrifice for what Jesus sacrificed," he said.
