Trending Faith: How Should Christians Respond to Refugees?

In this week’s episode of Trending Faith, Dean of Grand Canyon University’s College of Theology Jason Hiles, PhD, and GCU Pastor and Dean of Students Tim Griffin, EdD, sat down to discuss the timely question: How should Christians respond to refugees?

Dr. Hiles started off by saying that this is a “wisdom question” because there is no one verse in Scripture that says what do in this situation. He says that the best way to start formulating an answer to this question is to think biblically about how to approach the situation.

When governments bring in refugees from a different country, they have to keep in mind the integrity of their own country. Certain logistics are important to consider when bringing in refugees. Thus, it all comes down to wisdom in the choices made by those in authority.

Dr. Hiles states that as a father and husband, he has a duty to protect his family, but as a Christian, he has a duty to make sure that those who are not from the land, refugees, are being treated well. This stems from the broad principal that we should love our neighbors as we love ourselves.

This brings up the question: Which neighbors? Do I love my family and friends? Or do I love the foreigner who is living among us? This is definitely a difficult thing to balance. Dr. Hiles says one thing that helps him is if he seeks the Kingdom of Heaven and trusts God to take care of him, then he can love people and treat them as human beings made in the image of God. Knowing this is a really freeing disposition as it can give peace of mind.

The Apostle Peter wrote in one of his epistles that it is better to be wrong while doing good than to shield yourself from evil so much that you do not ever really do good. Dr. Hiles says that sometimes we forget this and instead of honoring God, we focus too much on ourselves.

At the end of the day, we need to trust in God and put faith in the fact that He is watching over us. We need to spread His love and honor Him to anyone that God puts in our path, whether it be refugees or family members.

To hear the whole response, watch the full video below:

Do you have any questions about faith that you want answered? If you do, send an email to trendingfaith@gcu.edu and we may feature it on the show! To learn more about Grand Canyon University, visit our website or use the green Request More Information button at the top of the page.