I was a stranger and you welcomed me.

Matthew 25:35 (ESV)

In Matthew 25:31-46, Jesus told an amazing parable about welcoming and hosting strangers in our midst. Strangers are people we don't normally encounter in our daily lives or people we avoid because they are so different and often so dissimilar to us in every way. However, by telling this parable, Jesus wants us to understand that they belong to Him, even if we believe they never truly belonged to us.

Here is the gospel challenge: Jesus says that how we treat “strangers” reveals whether or not we are truly His disciples. If you tend to avoid or somehow never connect with new people coming to our church, especially if they don't look or act like you, listen to the gospel again and ask yourself if you're missing something.

Jesus identifies with the outsiders. He loved them because He saw them as His brothers and sisters. And whatever we do or do not do to the least of these, we do to Him. Instead of taking Jesus' strong words as a rebuke, consider them an invitation to live and lead a counterculture life steeped in the value and perspective of the kingdom.

It is through the Cross that Jesus bridged the irreconcilable gap between God and us, as well as us and others. The Cross demolished the wall which separated all of us (Ephesians 2:14).  The Apostle Paul tells us there is no longer Jew or non-Jew, rich or poor, male or female because we are all one through our union with Jesus Christ (Galatians 3:28). In essence, we are no longer strangers to one another, but rather neighbours. If this is true, the question becomes not who is a stranger to the church, but who am I to be a neighbour to?

We are free to love our neighbour as Christ loves us. It takes obedience and unwavering faithfulness to resist the temptations of division, prejudice, and fear. When we learn to receive and care for one another, the presence and the power of the Holy Spirit will move us to a greater expression of the unity we share as a body of Christ.