Who are the least of these and what should we do with them? Scripture says that the least of these are those people who are strangers, they are hungry, they are thirsty, they are in prison and they are sick. [1] Matthew 25:31-46. Do we as believers really care about the least of these? Jesus stated that those who did not care for the least of these would be thrown into the eternal fire. Matthew 25:41. Should our motivation be out of fear or out of love?

James 1:27 states that “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” As Christians, we need to reach out to those who are lowly and destitute, those who are poor and those who are hurting.

I recently read the book “[2] Under the Overpass - A Journey of Faith on the Streets of America” by [3] Mike Yankoski. Mike and his friend, Sam spent 5 months living as homeless people in Denver, Washington D.C., Portland, San Francisco, Phoenix and San Diego. They spent time with the least of these. One thing that really stood out to me through their journey is that most “Christians” and “churches” they encountered had little or no desire to help the down trodden and homeless. It was quite a wake-up call. Why would we as believers ignore commands from Jesus to help the least of these. We should be the first to give a cup of cool water and the coat off our back.

A. W. Tozer in his book “[4] Of God and Men” calls our methods into question when he states “We hear a Christian assure someone that he will ‘pray over’ his problem, knowing full well that he intends to use prayer as a substitue for service. It is much easier to pray that a poor friend’s needs may be supplied than to supply them.” We should pray and then act, displaying our true intentions of reaching out to the least of these. Remember, not only the poor need you help, but so do those whose [5] illnesses cannot be seen. Being a disciple of Christ is intentional. We need to show the world that we are followers of Christ by our love through action in reaching out to the least of these!