When Least is Most

The following story recently went viral on the social media.  Perhaps you’ve seen it.

Pastor Jeremiah Steepek transformed himself into a homeless person and went to the 10,000 member church where he was soon to be the new head pastor. Only 3 people out of the 7-10,000 people said hello to him. He asked people for change to buy food - NO ONE in the church gave him change. He went into the sanctuary to sit down in the front of the church and was asked by the ushers if he would please sit in the back.

As he sat in the back of the church, the elders said, "We would like to introduce you  to your new Pastor, Jeremiah Steepek." The homeless man stood up and started walking down the aisle. The clapping stopped with ALL eyes on him.

He walked up to the altar and recited, “Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by My Father; …For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? …..’

'The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’” The story goes on that many people hung their head for shame, and some even cried. Pastors Steepek then challenged them, “Today I see a gathering of people, not the Church of Jesus Christ. The world has enough people, but not enough disciples. When will YOU decide to become a disciple?”

Many, maybe even most people initially took this story literally as factual. As it turns out, the story was fabricated as a modern-day parable. Unfortunately, probably the reason that many people believed it was true is that they could easily envision it happening in church today.

I want you to think for a minute about what kinds of people are the “least” to you. By “least” I mean the hardest to relate to, the people you usually avoid. Like this story, it may be the disheveled homeless person, or it might be the elderly person with Alzheimer's, the disfigured burn victim, the person with a disability, or the mentally retarded. Maybe it's the obese person sitting across from you on a bus or train, an ethnic minority, or the socially backward techno-geek in your class. All of us have people we are uncomfortable with, and if we are honest, we would admit that we feel they are beneath us.

Jesus spent most of His time ministering to the “least.” He saw them as valuable and worth the investment. In this way, He demonstrated to His disciples what love looks like, and encouraged them to imitate Him. He told them, “The greatest among you must be the servant of all. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (Matthew 23:11–12)

By loving and serving the “least,” Christ offers us the opportunity to do the “most.” He makes it clear that when we lovingly serve those whom we consider “least,” we are actually loving and serving Him.

Please join us this Sunday at 9:00 AM or 11:00 AM when we will finish our current series on “What Love Looks Like.” One of our own pastors, Linda Wallace, will be giving the sermon that is entitled “Regeneration.”

Pastor Che