We have all heard the Bible verse in Matthew 25, “is as much as ye have done it unto the least of these my brethen, ye have done it unto me.” We have all seen the infomercials on television and the images of a child in a third world country who is hungry, poor, and dying. Why do the advertisers show pictures of these children? It is simple, when you can put a face to a need it pulls on a person’s heart strings a little harder. While there are those who are hungry, poor, and dying here in America, it is still a less seen sight here than in third world countries. The question becomes, when we see those images whether of children here in America or elsewhere, what do we do? Many of us say to ourselves or to those in the room “we really need to do something.” However, the reality of the situation is many times this, we do nothing because it doesn’t really effect us. After all, many times we are sitting in front of our televisions with dinner or snacks. What should a Christian do? Let’s return to Matthew 25. Jesus says (paraphrasing heavily here) that when He was hungry, thirsty, alone, and naked you took care of me, because as you were taking care of those people it was as though you were taking care of Him. Jesus didn’t just call us to feel sorry for them or think about helping them. Jesus shows that those who belong to Him will help those that He leads them to help. This is clear because later in that same passage there were those who did not help the poor, hungry, and alone people and it was shown that they were not part of His kingdom. I am not talking about a social gospel that so many people want to push. Rather, I am talking about the fruit that should be evident in the lives of Jesus’ disciples. While we may not be able to help everyone, God will not only give us the grace and strength to help those He leads us to, but He will also provide for us the means with which to take care of them. The key here is this, always remember that every person is a member of someones family, and if someone in your family was poor, hungry, or alone, wouldn’t you want someone to come along who was not only able but also willing to help your family member?
By His grace and through His strength, may we live for Him!