These Little Ones and Anyone in Need

And whoever in the name of a disciple gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water to drink, truly I say to you, he shall not lose his reward. –Mt. 10:42

In chapter 10 of Matthew's gospel, Jesus gathers the twelve disciples, instructs them, and sends them out to minister and proclaim the gospel. The message to be preached was "The kingdom of heaven is at hand" (v. 7). Everything they did, then, was to be a validation for that message. After a series of instructions, the last thing Jesus tells his disciples is to pay attention to the little ones. Why? They are extremely vulnerable. In this verse, they are depicted as so weak, famished, defenseless, and unprotected, they simply need a drink of water (v. 42).

Children are the most helpless people on the planet. In the ancient world, children born with disabilities or simply born female, were commonly left outside to die by exposure. Children are unable to work, not respected, and sometimes even seen as a burden. No wonder elsewhere in Matthew's gospel, Jesus equates neglecting children with despising them, "See that you do not despise one of these little ones..." (18:10, emphasis added). And, in Jesus' last great teaching in Matthew's gospel, he expands his vision from children to anyone in need. He makes a personal matter of caring for people who are hungry, thirsty, poor, naked, and sick, "Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me" (Mt. 25:40). Strikingly, Jesus embeds these remarks within a teaching that pictures himself sitting on his throne, judging the nations of the world! Clearly, then, God cares how nations—and individuals—treat the needy and vulnerable among them.

So, where are the needy in our society? Where are the little ones, the hungry, the thirsty, the poor, the naked, the imprisoned, and the sick? How can we engage them as a society and as an individual? When I appear before Jesus Christ sitting on His glorious throne, I pray there is some kind of evidence from my life that I cared about the same things He did.