Jesus taught in the parable of the ten virgins (Matthew 25) that God’s followers should actively prepare for the Lord's return. In Jesus’ parable of the talents Jesus taught the importance of managing the gifts God has entrusted to His followers in His absence. When Jesus returns, all nations will be judged. In Jesus’ description, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 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.”(Matthew 25:35-36) The Lord Jesus said that the cursed person does not know the Lord’s needs at all, much less serve the Lord. And the Lord said whatever you do for one of “the least of these,” you do for Him (Matthew 25: 40).
Have we done what the Lord Jesus wants us to do to "a little brother"? The Greek word for "little child" in the New Testament is generally used to refer to an immature child—someone socially insignificant, someone to be sympathetic to, and someone to be cared for. There are many "little brothers" of Jesus in the Church. They are in AWANA on Friday night, and they are in Children's Sunday School on Sunday morning. They too hunger and thirst for righteousness and need to be fed. They also need to put on the armor of the Gospel and truth. They too are little sinners who need to be healed by salvation. They too were born sinful and bound by sin. We should not see them as the children of other people's families but as the "little brothers" entrusted to us by the Lord Jesus for us to serve. May we serve these little brothers and sisters so that we who are blessed by the Father may take our inheritance—the Kingdom prepared for us since the creation of the world (Matthew 25:34). Let's serve out of glad obedience to God and love for our little brothers and sisters in Christ.
～Min. Rebecca Zhang 張翱翔傳道～