What did we do to you?

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Scripture

“Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
(Matthew 25:34 NASB)
‘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;
(Matthew 25:35 NASB)
naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’
(Matthew 25:36 NASB)
“Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink?
(Matthew 25:37 NASB)
‘And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You?
(Matthew 25:38 NASB)
‘When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’
(Matthew 25:39 NASB)
“The King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.’
(Matthew 25:40 NASB)

 

Observation


Jesus was telling the disciples who would inherit the kingdom. It was not the ones who had been zealous at following the religious laws, but the ones who would live within his kingdom here on earth. As ambassadors within the kingdom we are called to be imitators of Christ. Imitating Christ doesn't take us to following a list of rules, but engaging with a hurt and needy world. We are to clothe the naked, visit the sick and imprisoned, feed the hungry, and give the thirsty something to drink. These are the behaviors which are expected of Christ followers. Every human being is created in the image of God and as we minister to the very least, we are ministering to Christ himself.

 

Application


The key to being ambassadors is the desire to minister to Christ by meeting the needs of the least of these. We struggle within the church, trying to find the right balance in regard to compassion and evangelism. Often we have used compassion as a tool of evangelism. If we provide for someone's need, then we will get them to come to Christ. Interestingly, that's not what Jesus is saying here. Jesus is saying that we are to find the needy of this world and minister to them, simply because this is our worship of God.

What is my level of involvement with the needy of this world? Am I willing to get in there and minister in the name of Jesus, simply to be Jesus, or do I always evaluate what the return might be? This is a serious question which we must ask ourselves. What if there is no measurable return? Jesus ministered for three years and touched thousands of lives and on the day that he died, what was his measurable return? All that remained was a little band of followers. All the rest had left him. What is our expectation? We are called to worship Jesus through our love and ministry to the very least. Time to check our motivations and our actions!

 

Prayer


Lord, I want to worship you daily through ministry to the least of these. Please, help me to be a faithful servant. Amen.

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