The Stranger Among Us
Have you ever met Jesus in your everyday life without knowing it?
Could one of the strangers you interacted with have actually been the Son of God in the flesh? What did you say? How did you treat Him?
Jesus said that the way we treat others is the way we treat Him
Hebrews 13:2 says:
- “Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” (KJV)
- “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it.” (NASB)
Have you met an angel without realizing it?
What if that was no ordinary angel? What if you met The Angel of the Lord; God incarnate; Immanuel – God with us; Jesus the Son of God? Were you courteous, kind, respectful, hospitable, and loving? Or were you inconsiderate, neglectful, indifferent; perhaps even rude?
Every person you meet could be an angel, or even Jesus Christ Himself.
So . . .
How have you been treating others lately?
Even if they are not angels or God in the flesh, everyone is special to God, created in His image; someone He loves; someone Jesus died to redeem. While teaching about the coming judgment of all people in Matthew 25:31-46, Jesus said that the way we treat strangers is the way we treat Him.
“When the Son of Man comes in His glory and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. All the nations will be assembled before Him, and He will separate people one from another like a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on His right and the goats on His left.
Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave Me food, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited Me in, I was naked and you gave Me clothing, I was sick and you took care of Me, I was in prison and you visited 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? When did we see You a stranger and invite you in, or naked and clothe You? When did we see You sick or in prison and visit You?’ And the King will answer them, ‘I tell you the truth, just as you did it for one of the least of these brothers or sisters of Mine, you did it for Me.‘
Then He will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire that has been prepared for the devil and his angels! For I was hungry and you gave Me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me nothing to drink. I was a stranger and you did not receive Me as a guest, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’
Then they too will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not give You whatever You needed?’ Then He will answer them, ‘I tell you the truth, just as you did not do it for one of the least of these, you did not do it for Me.‘
And these will depart into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life. (NET)
This gives new perspective to:
The 2nd Great Commandment, and the Golden Rule
We need to love others as ourselves by treating them the way we would want to be treated
Because Jesus says that is how we are treating Him!
So . . .
How have you been treating Jesus lately?
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