Rebecca is the news and website editor of DisciplesWorld magazine. She is a 2007 graduate of United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio and is an ordained minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) denomination. Rebecca lives in Cinncinnatti, Ohio, USA.

Pink House We are entering a season of hospitality. One of the reasons we love Thanksgiving and Christmas is because of the opportunities to gather together to enjoy food, see familiar faces, and share stories.

These are the times that call us to reflect on our many blessings and to be filled with gratitude.

But Jesus calls us to go further. In Matthew 25, he calls us to a hospitality that goes far beyond our cultural norms of preparing food and drink, decorating and entertaining, and exchanging gifts with those we love.

Lately it has become more popular to add good works to our “to do” lists during this season. That’s all right – I won’t fault anyone for volunteering at the soup kitchen, giving presents to a family in need, or putting money into the Salvation Army kettle. Those are wonderful things to do.

But again, Jesus asks us to go further. If you re-read Matthew’s parable of the sheep and the goats in Matthew 25, you’ll notice that even those who have been faithful to Jesus, the ones called righteous, have to ask him, “Lord, when was it that we saw you?”

The “least of these” to whom Jesus refers are not just the carefully chosen persons in need that we help in exchange for their gratitude and the satisfaction of knowing that we have done good works. The least of these are unknown to us. Their names and faces are a mystery.

This should give us pause. It should cause us to ask ourselves how our actions impact those we do not know.

Mosque at Night Is it, then, a call to contribute to overseas mission, to organizations working far away to fight hunger and provide clean water and medical care and clothing and freedom from unjust imprisonment? Well, maybe that’s a step in the right direction. But even in those cases, we entrust our resources to organizations and we are connected to “results.”

I see in Matthew 25 a call to shalom. It is a call to live in right relationship within the web of God’s creation, working for justice, healing and reconciliation, and trusting that what we do, and how we do it, matters, even if we don’t see the impact it makes. That takes work. Most of all, it takes faith.

Not to mention that it is impossible! No matter how conscientious our choices are, we still fall short of perfection.

And in that state of imperfection, God’s grace meets us. It comes as a humble child, a stranger to this world. One who depends on humanity for sustenance, clothing, care, and companionship.

In receiving the one we do not know, we receive Jesus, our salvation and our redeemer.

This season, may you enjoy friends and family. May you share your blessings. But most of all, may Christ be your shalom.

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