"…the least of these…"
What does that mean? Who are "the least of these"?
I'll let Matthew 25:34-39 explain…
"Then the King will say to those on his right, "Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 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, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.
"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go visit you?
"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me"
These verses compel me to love others in a new way that I've never thought before. When was the last time I passed someone on the road with a cardboard sign and wrote them off as a lazy alcoholic just begging for bar money? Have I ever taken a moment to think of these verses in Matthew that command us to love others as if they were Christ himself?
This has been heavy on my heart these days…this idea that by feeding, clothing, caring for, and visiting the poor, sick, and broken hearted, I am also serving Christ in the most real way possible. I can show people just a glimpse of Christ's love for them by serving them and giving of my whole self to them.
Since when have I given my whole heart to serving someone else? My whole controlling, comfort-seeking, selfish self is always focused on self in the end. Sometimes I think that I will be unequipped to be effective on the World Race. I find myself thinking that I might just be too uncomfortable to do what God might be asking of me. If I might fail, I better not even try. My own thinking gets in the way of what God might be trying to do through me.
I pray that I will love others above myself in the next year, to shake off the selfishness that tugs at me when things get hard. I pray that I would lose more of myself and gain more of Christ.
— chelsey —
