WHAT WE DO TO JESUS
MATTHEW 25:37-40 NKJV
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 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?' 40 And the King will answer and say to them, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.'
When you first hear the title of this devotional, you may be thinking that we don't do anything to Jesus. We may do things for Jesus, but that's different.
If you are thinking along those lines, you are not alone. However, Jesus shared a different perspective in this passage in Matthew.
Jesus was giving an example. This is not a parable. He spoke of the end times when He is on the throne judging the nations. He refers to Himself as the King, and that is an accurate statement. He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. And when He sits on the throne in His glory, all debate and doubt, and wondering are totally over.
During this time, King Jesus is commending the righteous for what they did to Him. That the righteous fed Him and gave Him drink. The righteous took Him in and gave Him clothes. The righteous visited Him when He was sick and came to Him when He was in prison.
But the righteous were perplexed by these words. They had no idea what He was talking about. So they asked Him about when they saw Him in these various situations and came to His aid. I mean, after all, He is the King, and when did the King ever need anything?
The King's answer is rather startling. He stated that when they fed, clothed, and visited the least of the King's brethren that they were doing it to Him. Jesus identifies so much with those who are connected to Him that what is done to them, even the lowest on the social totem pole, He considers it being done to Him.
APPLICATION
How Jesus identifies with us creates a bit of a double edge sword. The good news is that He is closely connected to us. The bad news is that He is closely connected to the brothers and sisters we have in Christ that we don't particularly like. We just can't treat our family in Christ any way we want because how we treat them, Jesus takes personally.
One of the accounts in the Bible that comes to mind is the story of Saul on the road to Damascus to persecute Christians. This is the story where Saul gets knocked down by a bright light, and the Lord speaks to him. Jesus said, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?" (Acts 9:4) When Saul asked who was speaking to him, Jesus said, "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting." Jesus did not say you are persecuting my brothers and sisters. He said you are persecuting Me.
So if we want to do something good to Jesus, one of the best things will be to treat our family in Christ with love and care. Remember they are connected to Him.
PRAYER
Lord, remind me that Your people are connected to You. I would always want to treat You right, so I'll start with them.