Today we come to celebrate the hand and heart of Jesus — the hand that makes a difference on behalf of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This is a time when we can make a difference while we are here, a difference for eternity — for the “least of these” around us who need the hand of Jesus to make a difference in the lives of somebody else.
It’s the clarion call to come alongside somebody and lighten their load by lending a helping hand. As we look around us, we all see somebody who needs a helping hand — not a handout, but a hand up. Somebody that we have helped was in need, and we never told anybody about it. All of us, at some point, have given a dollar or two — or much more than that — to bless somebody who was having a hard time, to help them or just do them a favor. And we didn’t look for it to be given back.
And perhaps some of us, though we may not admit it, have had to reach out at some point in our lives for somebody to help us. I know I have.
There have been times when I have had to call on somebody to come to my rescue, to lend me a helping hand. Life is about helping others. Giving can be a means by which we do that. God put us here to help others — to be His hand and His heart. We all, in some way or another, have reached out to somebody in need. You know your story.
We gave to charities. We gave to the United Way, the Salvation Army, Samaritan’s Purse, the Red Cross and others. We were Jesus’ hands serving food, giving disaster relief to areas where tragedy has struck. Where I serve as pastor, we give to nonprofits — food to food banks, coats to help children, food plates to seniors, and more recently, a gift to widows through our young adult ministry. We have given to the needy, and not just our members, for love knows no boundaries. We’ve given abroad.
All of us, as individuals, have touched somebody in a tangible way, and it touched your heart when you did — to know that you touched somebody’s life and made it better. You know when and you know where. A lot of us have given to be a blessing and nobody knows about it. We didn’t let our left hand know what our right hand did (Matt. 6:3). And that’s the way God wants us to give. We don’t have to sound a trumpet all the time. We don’t have to be recognized by the world or the church. When it’s from the heart, we give anonymously, and God, who sees in secret, rewards us openly (Matt. 6:4).
But we live in a fallen world where we always have the least — those who are less fortunate than we are, those who are sick, people living in impoverished neighborhoods, those who have fallen on hard times and are living on the streets through no fault of their own, mothers living in cars with little children. And then there are those living with disabilities — veterans who have given the best of their service to our country, some who are wounded warriors who seem to have fallen through the system. It’s hard to walk away from them when we have been blessed to have the resources to be a blessing.
God works through us when we allow Him to guide us in our giving. When disaster strikes — from tornadoes, hurricanes, tsunamis, mudslides, floods and fires — we are called to come to the aid of the least of these, to support however we can. These are those whom Jesus will recognize. These are those He smiles on because giving reflects who He is. For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son.
In Matthew 25:31-40 we see the final judgment, when God separates the sheep from the goats. During the tribulation, God will be purging Israel so that at the close of the seven-year period there will be a believing remnant — a small group of Jews — waiting to meet Christ their Savior. They will then show love and mercy to these suffering Jews, the 144,000, by feeding them, clothing them and visiting them in prison. These are those Jesus calls His brethren.
When we give, when we serve others in His name, when we put our hands to the plow to help our brothers and sisters — the least of these — we do it unto Him. Jesus said to His disciples in Matthew 10:40, “For inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it unto me.” So when we bless somebody, give to somebody, feed somebody, visit somebody and sacrifice for the least of these — blessing somebody in His name — know that we are doing it unto Him.
And remember, the only hands that Jesus has are ours. The only heart that Jesus has is our hearts. Those of us who can help somebody along the way are called to minister to the least of these. In the words of Mahalia Jackson: “If I can help somebody as I pass along, if I can cheer somebody with a word or song, if I can show somebody that he’s traveling wrong, then my living shall not be in vain.”
For as much as we do it unto them, we do it unto Christ, in Jesus’ name.
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