January 12

We Are The Least Of These

“And 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

As prayer draws us closer to the heart of God, we will be compelled to reach out to those around us.  Set ablaze by God’s holy love, our hearts will be motivated to take action as we remember that because all people everywhere matter to God, they will also matter to us.  The parable of the sheep and the goats in Matthew 25 is instructive for how we ought to respond to those around us. Surprise was expressed by both the sheep and the goats, not having recognized the face of Jesus in those whom they either helped or did not help. I believe that a primary reason we struggle to see His face in the eyes of those in need is because we too often forget that we too had needs for Jesus to meet. We were hungry and He fed us. We were thirsty and He gave us something to drink. We were strangers and He took us in. We were naked and He clothed us. We were sick and He visited us. We were in prison and He came to us. We were "the least of these," and He met our needs. He met our needs and provided the salvation that was desperately lacking in our lives by becoming one of us. He became human like us. He became "one of the least of these," just like us. He became just like us because we, like all people everywhere, matter.  Meeting the needs of others is not only about recognizing the image of God in everyone we see. It's not only about seeing the face of Christ in the eyes of those in need. It's about doing what has been done for us. It's about giving back to the Lord what He has so graciously and mercifully given to us. May we never forget how He ministered to us when we were "the least of these." Freely we have received; let us freely give.