In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
“To the extent that you did it to the least of my brothers, you did it to me.” (Mt 25: 34-46)
This is one of my most beloved passages of the New Testament. Our Lord along the side of the Mount of Olives overlooking the City of Jerusalem spoke these words. On that day, He spoke to His twelve disciples about the future and about the day He will return to this world for the second time. He encouraged them to remain strong in their faith and to put their faith into action. He ends their long conversation by sharing a story of how a Christian can keep his or her faith alive and growing every day. He says: “When you feed the hungry, give drink to those who thirst; when you welcome the stranger, care for the ill or visit the forgotten or lonely; when you do these things for them, you are doing them to Me. ‘For I tell you,’ He says, ‘to the extent that you did it to those who are members of my family, you did it to me’.”
In other words, He is saying to us that we have to be open to opportunities—opportunities to extend a helpful hand to someone who can’t help themselves—opportunities to be that voice of kindness to someone who has no one to speak with—opportunities to show love to those who have long since forgotten what it means to have someone in their lives who loves them—and opportunities to help someone who can’t pay us back for having helped them—and to do these things because it is the right thing to do.
He is talking about Acts of Mercy we can all do every day. These acts don’t depend on ability or wealth or intellect. They are simple acts that can be freely given and make a great difference in the lives of others. He is telling us that Christians have no excuse to neglect those who have deep needs and that we serve where service is needed. This kind of service reflects God’s Love into the world. This quote from the Bible is like a commandment to all Christians.
I want to share a simple little story that illustrates this point very clearly. I know I shared this story a long time ago, but it fits in so well here today. The story is about an older man who lived a number of years ago. He was a poor older man, who was cruelly nicknamed “Old Bones” by a group of young boys from his neighborhood. One of the boys, named Thomas, was worried one day when he saw the older man heading directly toward his home. He knew he was in trouble. Surely, his parents would be upset with him for disturbing the older man. The man looked at the boys sadly as he passed by them and he said: “You wouldn’t be calling me such names if you knew what caused my ill health.” When the man arrived at Thomas’ home, he was warmly embraced by Thomas’ mother. She called for her son to come home. While the mother was preparing a warm pot of tea, the older man turned toward Thomas and told him a story.
“Years ago, on the first day of spring, a young mother took her baby outdoors for a carriage ride along the river. Stooping to pick a flower, she briefly let go of the handle. Suddenly, the carriage lurched forward careening down the hill, but before she could catch up with the carriage, it had plunged into the river. I was sitting on a nearby bench and heard her scream. I ran after the carriage and jumped into the river. After a difficult struggle, I managed to get the baby safely out of the water, but you see, young man, the river was still quite frigid and it caused my frail condition. Now, ten years later, I can hardly hobble along. For you see, young Thomas, that mother was your mother and that baby was you.”
Thomas hung his head in shame. “Thank you for saving me,” he cried, “and thank you for caring enough to jump in the cold river. Can you forgive me? Can you ever forgive me for calling you awful names? I’m sorry. I didn’t know who you were.”
This is a great story. The closest thing to the Heart of God is helping other people. Our church believes that God loves when we read the Bible and He loves when we gather for Badarak in His Name to receive Holy Communion, but nothing pleases God more than when we take care of each other. Something for all of us to think about.
So, let’s ask the Almighty God to place in front of us opportunities to offer help where help is needed and to show love where love is absent and to do so realizing that it is our Christian and moral obligation to do so. What a better world it would be.
Amen.