Daily Encouragement

Wednesday, March 30, 2005

"The Least Of These"

"I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me" (Matthew 25:40).

All over the world today genuine Christians are reaching out and meeting the needs of others. Earlier this week I received an email from Joel and Adrienne, a young missionary couple who attended our church in New England. They now work in an African country with a heavy burden concerning a Marburg virus outbreak that is causing many fatalities, particularly among children. This young couple is right on the front lines of spiritual battle representing Christ's hands of care extended.

One of the outstanding tests of how we care is our response to human need around us. Today I have on my heart those who are caring for "the least of these." It is one of the most authentic ways of expressing God's love, for it seems that God has a special heart for the powerless.

We tend to esteem the value of other people based upon our perception of their worth. In doing so we set the standard, and we are all incapable of setting this standard. After all there are plenty of people who would look at me or you and in one way or another see us below their "worth threshold."

One of the greatest characteristics of an authentic follower of Jesus Christ is how we deal with "the least of these." One of the last lessons Christ taught before His death was on this subject. In Matthew 25:31-46, He uses representative examples of what we may call the "down and out", "losers", "unlovable", etc. According to Jesus in this lesson how we respond to the "least of these" is a proof of our true discipleship and criteria for entrance into God's Kingdom.

Today we all may very well come in contact with people regarded as the "least of these." How will we respond?

A fervent prayer rose up to heaven,
A fragile soul was losing ground,
Sorting through the earthly babble,
Heaven heard the sound.
This was a life of no distinction,
No successes only trials.
Yet gazing down on this unlovely one,
There was love in heaven's eyes.

In heaven's eyes there are no losers,
In heaven's eyes no hopeless cause.
Only people like you
With feelings like me,
Amazed by the grace
We can find in heaven's eyes.

The orphan child, the wayward father,
The homeless traveler in the rain.
When life goes by and no one bothers,
Heaven feels the pain.
Looking down God sees each heartache,
Knows each sorrow, hears each cry.
And looking up we'll see compassion's fire,
Ablaze in heaven's eyes. *

Be encouraged today,

Stephen C. Weber

PS: From the perspective of our desperate need and God's amazing grace we are all in the "least of these" category.

Note from Brooksyne: The message today takes me back to a time when I was a very young Christian. I was about 14 and had only received Christ as my Savior months earlier. God spoke to my heart about "the least of these" at my school. They were the teens in special education who were ridiculed. I could no longer stand by and just observe the tormenting but began to interact with these important individuals and at times intervene.

But the incident that never left me was a ride on the school bus one afternoon. An extremely overweight girl with very long matted hair and an unpleasant odor rode our bus everyday. Linda lived in a house that was so run down that it didn't have windows, only cut-out holes. The students would make fun of her, call her filthy names, spit in her hair and wouldn't sit in the seat beside her, behind her, or in front of her.

God began to let me feel in my heart the pain she must be feeling and He spoke to me about sitting near her. After days of trying to get God to understand how it would hurt my popularity rating among peers I finally took the seat behind her for several days. As I write this note I can still visually see the spit in her hair and tears come involuntarily some 35 years later. Then the nudge from God to sit right next to her began to beckon me. After more argument I finally obeyed. I hung over a little in the aisle due to her large size and she definitely was suspicious thinking it was another prank. To my knowledge nothing came of that situation except that it was the first time I had heard God's distinct voice and I obeyed. And it was the true beginning of a life-time calling to reach out to "the least of these."

Many longtime readers know how much Brooksyne enjoys flowers. We have our first blooms for the season on a small daffodil plant in our front yard!

* "In Heaven's Eyes" McHugh, Phill © 1985 River Oaks Music Company (a div. of EMI Christian Music Publishing) CCLI License No. 2005306

Matthew 25:31-46

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Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission; and the King James Version.

Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."

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