Sometimes when I walk through East London, I see something that makes me stop and think. While some people are buying lunch from Woolworths, others are opening rubbish bags to find food. What is even more painful is that many of these people are not homeless. Some have homes, even families, but there is simply no food inside the house.
When I see this, I often ask myself: What does it mean to love my neighbour in a place like this?
A City of Opposites
East London is a city full of opposites. There are beautiful houses, busy shops, and nice cars — but also streets where people struggle every day.
Some have lost jobs. Others never had a job to begin with. Some walk the streets looking for piece work. Others stand at robots hoping someone will notice them.
It’s easy to talk about “the poor” in general, but it becomes different when it’s a person you recognise — someone who greets you every morning or sits near your local shop.
Soup Kitchens — and Something More
At Cambridge Baptist Church, we have a soup kitchen every week. We give a cup of soup, a piece of bread, and we take time to talk and pray with people. It’s a small thing, but it matters. For a short moment, people feel seen and cared for.
But sometimes I wonder: Is this enough?
We cannot only feed people’s bodies and forget their souls. But we also cannot preach the gospel and ignore their hunger. Both are important to Jesus.
So what does it mean to be faithful to Christ in a city where poverty is everywhere?
Poverty Is Complicated
Loving people who are poor means understanding that poverty is complicated. There is no single reason or single answer.
Some people need jobs. Others need freedom from addiction. Some need teaching and discipleship. Some just need someone to care.
The Bible tells us that sin has broken everything — even our work, our money, and our relationships. There are unfair systems in the world, yes, but there are also sinful hearts, including our own.
That is why we must help people with truth and grace, not with pride or guilt. Every person, even the one looking through rubbish, is made in the image of God. They have value.
And the gospel reminds us that our greatest problem is not lack of money, but being far from God. Only Jesus can heal that kind of poverty.
The Gospel and the Poor
Jesus said He came “to bring good news to the poor” (Luke 4:18).
That good news is not only about food or shelter — though Jesus cared about those things too. It is the message that through His death and resurrection, people can be forgiven, brought back to God, and made part of His family.
When Jesus met hungry people, He fed them. When He met the sick, He healed them. His love touched both body and soul. But He always pointed to something greater — eternal life with God.
That must also be our way: to show mercy that comes from the gospel, not mercy that tries to replace it.
What More Can Be Done?
Maybe the question is not only, “What can the church do?” but also, “What can I do as part of the church?”
Could we do more than serve soup?
Could we help people learn skills — like cooking, building, sewing, or computer work?
Could we teach young people how to manage money, read better, or start small businesses?
Could we mentor young men who have lost hope?
These things will not solve everything, but they could be small ways to show the love of Jesus in real life.
At the same time, we must never forget that the gospel is the centre of everything we do. Only Jesus can truly change lives and hearts.
Hope in Christ
Until Jesus returns, poverty will always be part of our world. But that does not mean we do nothing.
We preach Christ, we feed the hungry, we pray with the weak, and we walk with the broken. We do all this because we remember who we were — poor and lost — until Christ made us rich in His grace (2 Corinthians 8:9).
So as I walk through East London and see someone searching through rubbish — maybe someone who will go home to a hungry family — I pray quietly:
“Lord, show me how to love wisely. Make me patient, humble, and full of compassion like Jesus.”
Maybe that is where true change begins — in hearts that have been changed by Christ.