The Least Among You

The Least Among You

It’s just an hour each month, but it’s an important one to me.  Several of us from our church gather at a home for the aged on the second Sunday of the month to worship with the residents.  Some of them are only partially aware of their surroundings,  many are severely debilitated by age. Most are simply forgotten, too old to matter to anyone any longer. They matter to us.  We look each one in their eyes, shake their hands, and greet them. We sing together, and I share the hope of Christ.  None of these people will ever become part of the church where I serve as Pastor. None will ever staff a ministry or make a contribution. So why invest the time to lead a worship service there, some might ask?  Let me answer that question with Jesus’ own words.

"All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate them as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left. Then the King will say to those on the right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’" (Matthew 25:32-36, NLT)  "Then the King will say, ‘I’m telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me—you did it to me.’ " (Matthew 25:40, The Message)

We naturally tend to focus our attention on those who can contribute something of value.  The bright, the beautiful, the influential, those who have life together, are easy to like, aren’t they? Those with social grace who know enough to put away their cell phone in public, who are showered and combed, who don’t blurt out offensive observations are easy company.  But what about those who have not been so blessed?  Have we fulfilled the law of love if we do not exclude them but continue to ignore them?  When they approach is there acceptance or avoidance?  Does our body language betray what we might never say?  

Jesus was equally at home with Lazarus and his sisters, respectable residents of a Jerusalem suburb, as he was with the ‘tax collectors and sinners.’  He extended the same worth to beggars and prostitutes and rich guys like Zacchaeus.  I cannot help but be changed in my attitude toward others when I know how much He loved me! (and I’m nobody, from nowhere)   

James reminds us of the importance of loving the least.  May this word from the Word  "My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim that you have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people more than others? For instance, suppose someone comes into your meeting dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in shabby clothes. If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, “You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor”—well, doesn’t this discrimination show that you are guided by wrong motives?

Listen to me, dear brothers and sisters. Hasn’t God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith? Aren’t they the ones who will inherit the kingdom God promised to those who love him? And yet, you insult the poor man! Isn’t it the rich who oppress you and drag you into court? Aren’t they the ones who slander Jesus Christ, whose noble name you bear? Yes indeed, it is good when you truly obey our Lord’s royal command found in the Scriptures: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you pay special attention to the rich, you are committing a sin, for you are guilty of breaking that law." (James 2:1-9, NLT)

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