April Week 1 Commission Thursday: When you serve the overlooked, you serve Christ Himself

What happens when we embrace Jesus' radical identification with society's most vulnerable? Spirit-led foresight transforms our engagement with those pushed to the margins of our communities.

Drawing from Matthew 25:37-40, this episode explores the profound truth that serving the overlooked is serving Christ Himself. Jesus' words cut through religious pretense: "Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." This divine identification with the marginalized rewrites our understanding of Christian service.

The call extends in three directions - to the lost wandering our city streets without homes or hope, to the least whom society deems insignificant, and to the last in geographically remote areas beyond our comfort zones. Each represents not merely a humanitarian opportunity but a divine appointment with Christ Himself.

The gospel's transformative power works uniquely in these overlooked spaces—bringing hope to prison cells, dignity to street corners, and connection to isolated communities. Rather than seeing this work as burdensome charity, we're invited to recognize it as meaningful participation in Christ's ongoing ministry.

Whether through personal presence, faithful prayer, or generous financial support, everyone can participate in this kingdom work. Will you accept the challenge to see with spirit-led foresight? The marginalized aren't just charity cases—they're where Jesus waits to be served. As the episode reminds us: doing good isn't just nice—it's necessary, and in God's economy, it's the best business of all.

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction to Commission Thursday
• 0:34 Scripture from Matthew 25:37
• 1:41 Spirit-Led Foresight and Outreach
• 2:26 Reaching the Lost, Least, and Last
• 4:10 Call to Action and Conclusion

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Welcome to Commission Thursday, a place where we believe every believer is the salt of the earth, every believer is the light of the world and every believer is the ambassador of the good news, which is the gospel of the kingdom. Today I bring you an amazing episode in this season of Spirit-Led Foresight, and today I just want us to read the scripture from the book of Matthew, chapter 25, verse 37. And the scripture says Then the righteous will answer him Lord, when did we see you hungry and fed you? Lord? When did we see you hungry and fed you, or thirsty and gave you something to eat? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing a cloth and clothed you? When did we see you ill or in prison and go visit you? In prison and go visit you? The king will reply Truly. I say whatever you did for one of these lists of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it for me. Here we find a very critical question, that when did we see you hungry? When did we see you naked? When did we see you having no place? And then the master answers by saying if you did this list through this list one, then you did it to me Spirit-led foresight.

Speaker 1: 1:41

Where is it leading us? In this particular season, god wants us to reach to the least, reach to the last and reach to the lost. In the society, there are people who have been marginalized. There are those people who are in the street, there are those people who are in the prison, and it is your duty and my duty, as the carrier of the gospel, to take this good news to them. So in this session, I will talk about three things that are from this passage. Foresight, to reach to the lost. There are those people who are lost in the society and they have been marginalized, even in the street, and we have been called as the ambassadors of Christ to spread this good news. If you go to the street of Nairobi, you find people there who doesn't have home, and Jesus is telling us that doing good is a good business, and reaching out to these people in the street with the gospel of Christ is a good thing. That is expected of us as a believer. Not only in the street with the gospel of Christ is a good thing. That is expected of us as a believer. Not only in the street, there's also in the prison. People in the prison need to hear the gospel of Christ, because it is only the gospel of Jesus that can bring the real transformation of a person.

Speaker 1: 3:01

But number two is the foresight to reach the least, the least in the community, those people that we look down upon them and say this one are the least in the community. Those are the people, very people, that God wants us to reach by the gospel of Christ. So, in this season of spirit led foresight, let our eyes open, our vision to see that we are needed in the places where these people are found. And in this scripture we are told if you did it to this least one, you did it to me. So the service of reaching out to the least is the service to the Lord and that is what God is calling us into in this particular season.

Speaker 1: 3:46

But last is foresight to reach the last. There are those people who may be in a very, very far place, interior place like Trucana, and it is your participation, either by going, either by praying, either by sending someone, through your support or financial, that we are able to reach those people who are far end. So God bless us in this season, even as we meditate on this message, that this Spirit-led foresight to lead us, to the people who are lost in the community, the people who are least in the community and the people who are last in the community. It's my prayer that you'll engage from the place of prayer, from the place of sending and from the place of going, participating, because that is what we are called to remember doing good is a good business. God bless you, shalom.