The Covid 19 pandemic has affected the whole world. The most affected are the poor and helpless. Jesus knows this and gave us a very practical way to do our part in helping the poor as a household and at a personal level.
But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.
(Luke 14:13-14)
Keep on loving each other as brothers and sisters. Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it! Remember those in prison, as if you were there yourself. Remember also those being mistreated, as if you felt their pain in your own bodies.
(Hebrews 13:1–3)
If you help someone who cannot pay you back, God will repay you at the resurrection of the righteous. Inviting and helping people that cannot pay you back demonstrates to God that you have an empathetic and compassionate heart. A heart that is of God and represents the Kingdom of God.
Hospitality is using that which God has given us to demonstrate His love for others.
Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘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.’ 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 needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.
(Matthew 25:34-40)
Jesus says something startling here: Whatever we do to help the poor we do to God. Especially the most vulnerable:
1. The Fatherless
…You are the helper of the fatherless.
(Psalm 10:14; Psalm 68:5; Psalm 146:9)
When we come alongside children that are fatherless, we act on God’s behalf as the Heavenly Father when we help them.
2. The Orphans and Widows – (Deuteronomy 14:29; 1 Timothy 5:3-16: James 1:27)
Take care of any widow who has no one else to care for her. But if she has children or grandchildren, their first responsibility is to show godliness at home and repay their parents by taking care of them. This is something that pleases God.
(1 Timothy 5:3–16)
Pure and genuine religion before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble…
(James 1:27)
3. The Stranger (People from other countries)– (Exodus 23:9; Psalm 146:9)
People in our community that are from other countries are often shunned and ignored.
You shall not harass (Ignore) a stranger, for you know the heart of a stranger, because you were strangers in the land of Egypt.
(Ex 23:9)
Jesus our King of Kings is our example!
When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick. As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.” Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.” “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered. “Bring them here to me,” he said. And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.
(Mathew 14:13-21)
At the Last Supper Jesus said:
For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.
(Luke 22:27)
After, Jesus washed His disciples’ feet:
So, he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
(John 13:4–5, 12–17)
Today, Jesus continues to serve the poor through us who follow Him. Let us do what He calls us to do.
Jonathan Cortes