The Least of These

Recently, when I was in a group, someone shared with us a short story about a woman who dressed inappropriately for church but attended anyway. She had been a prostitute and wanted to change her life. The people in the church felt uncomfortable and stared at the woman because she was dressed like a prostitute (it was all she had), and the pastor had a brief conversation with her about her outfit following the service. Next Sunday, she went back and was dressed the same. The story concluded with a punchline about God not being present or invited to the church, so He was also unaware of the dress code. It was funny, and maybe for some people a little shocking, but I liked it because it reminded me of a passage from James.

James 2:1-13

My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. 2 For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, 3 and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, "You sit here in a good place," while you say to the poor man, "You stand over there," or, "Sit down at my feet," 4 have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?

5 Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court? 7 Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called?

8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself," you are doing well. 9 But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it. 11 For he who said, "Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not murder." If you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law.

12 So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty. 13 For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

The people in both scenarios were casting judgment based on appearance. In the first story, the woman was dressed like a prostitute, and in James' they were just a poor person, but in both circumstances, the people were denied mercy and treated differently because of how they appeared. James called that sin and reminded us that mercy triumphs over judgment.

A better, more righteous response from the church and the Pastor, in both circumstances, would have been to inquire how they could help. Do you need help getting new clothes? Do you need work? How can we help you improve your situation? Those are the questions the woman and the poor man should have been met with, questions that expressed love and concern.

The church's response should always be rooted in love. While we may not always be able to provide exactly what someone needs, showing love and a willingness to help demonstrates the love of God towards those individuals in need. It shows that we care and want to be of service. By being willing to enter into their struggles, we can help bring about restoration in their lives.

Being the hands and feet of Jesus means serving those who are hurting and broken. Being the Church is not just about attending weekly services, singing songs, listening to a message, and then going home to pat ourselves on the back for being good Christians. It involves taking up your cross daily in service to God's kingdom. It is about being a shining light that leads those who are lost and hurting in a world filled with darkness to their Healer, who is the Light of the World. When we serve those in need in this way, Jesus says that we are truly serving Him.

Matthew 25:31-46 fleshes that out,

Matthew 25:31-46:

31 "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.

34 Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.'

37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?' 40 And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'

Now the flip side of that:

41 "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.'

44 Then they also will answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?' 45 Then he will answer them, saying, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.' 46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."

In both scenarios presented in the beginning, the churches saw someone in need and turned a blind eye to it. This is the real sin in showing partiality that James pointed out in that first passage. Blinded by the lowly appearances of the prostitute and poor man, the church cast judgments on them, not knowing their hearts, and the opportunity to serve was lost as a result. They had a chance to show them mercy and love, but instead, they saw them as less than and treated them that way as well. They dismissed them and probably gossiped and poked fun at them as well (if today's church is any indication).

But these words shared here from Matthew and said by Jesus make it clear that it is not just the individual we see that we are serving in these instances, but Jesus himself. Let that sink in for a minute. When we serve the poor, the hurting, the addicted, the broken, the elderly, the mentally handicapped, and the lost, we are serving Jesus.

Now think about your life, how many times have you been given the opportunity to love those poeple and declined to help because it was too messy? How many times have you been casually cruel because someone was different? Or it was too hard to get involved? How many times have you walked away, saying I don't even want to try? How many times have you made excuses to get out of helping when you knew you should? Don't get me wrong, it's okay to have boundaries and to know our limits, but when is that true, and when is it just becoming the excuse to get out of doing what you are called to do?

Understand that being the Church means that we both share the gospel and serve the suffering in whatever way they are suffering. That's why the Arbor's mission statement is "Seek the Lost. Serve them in Love. Introduce them to the Savior." Jesus calls us to love in action. And when we love the least of these, we love Jesus.

Let's read these 2 verses from Matthew again:

Verse 40:

And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'

Verse 45:

Then he will answer them, saying, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.'