The King Who Hides in Plain Sight
OPENING PRAYER:
Lord Jesus, you are the King who is coming again. Quiet my heart and open my eyes to see you as you truly are. Speak to me through your Word. Amen.
Near the end of his ministry, Jesus paints a picture of the day he returns in glory. Every knee will bow, and the nations will be gathered before him. He begins by speaking to those on his right.
"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.'" (Matthew 25:34-36, NIV)
REFLECT:
As Pastor Rodney walked us through this passage, he asked a simple question: "Don't you think we could all do that?" Notice the list Jesus gives. There is nothing exotic or complicated here. Food. Water. A welcome. Clothes. A visit. These are not acts reserved for the spiritually elite or the professionally trained. They are the kinds of things almost any of us could do in an ordinary week.
What is striking is not the size of the actions, but the identity of the One receiving them. Jesus does not say, "When you fed the hungry, you did something nice." He says, "I was hungry." The King of heaven chooses to stand in line with the hungry, the stranger, and the prisoner. He hides in plain sight among the people we are most likely to overlook.
This changes how we walk through the world. The person at the intersection with a cardboard sign, the family who just moved in down the street, the coworker who seems to be falling apart: any of them could be the place where Jesus is waiting to be met. Following him means learning to look for him there.
APPLY:
Read the list in verses 35-36 slowly. Which of these six needs do you see most often in your everyday life? Ask God to show you one specific person who fits that description. One simple way to start: sign up to be part of the CarePortal Response Team, so you hear about real needs in our community as they come up. Find out more in the Pathway App or at pathwaychurch.com/fostercare.
I WILL STATEMENT:
I will take action to remember the forgotten
CLOSING PRAYER:
Jesus, thank you for coming close to the hungry, the lonely, and the overlooked, and for coming close to me. Teach me to recognize you in the faces I usually pass by. Give me a willing heart and ready hands. In your name, Amen.
PRAYER REQUEST:
Share your prayer request and pray for others.