"Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me." - Matthew 25:45

Today’s Gospel talks about Christ’s Kingship. Since Christ’s Kingship rests in love and service, we the people of His Kingdom are expected to prove our loyalty to Him by serving others, especially the helpless in our society.

“For thus says the Lord GOD: Look! I myself will search for my sheep and examine them.” (Ez 34:11-12). Christ’s love for us was so great that he came among us to experience for himself what it was to be truly human. In His stay in this world, He suffered, felt pain. He even experienced death. Even today, He continues to take upon himself the pain and the anguish of us men brings. It is like He’s dying each day because of our sins and each day He keeps rising victoriously as our King.

“For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.” (Mt. 25:35-36). It is in the suffering of every human being that we will see Him reign as Christ the King. We shall not discover Him dressed in expensive clothing, paraded with luxurious cars, or even in people with uncontrolled power and authority. We should discover him in the people we see on streets begging for food and drink, the people we see or heard of who are ill with infectious and incurable disease. We should discover Him in our pains, conflicts, and struggles.

“For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death,” (1 Cor 15:25-26). If we want to honor Him, we must do something to our least brothers and sisters; “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Mt 22:39). So if we really want to enter into His Kingdom, we must imitate His act of service to the needy. “If Christ is the royal ruler of the universe and if doing something for the needy is the same as doing it for Christ, then even the least among us is royalty and even the little we do to them is royal service”

As a youth tricord, I am faced with a lot of struggles in school, friends, family and in the ministry. The pressure and dependence of a lot of people overwhelms me. Sometimes, exhaustion consumes me and I feel like giving up. But my passion to serve the Lord prevails. Whenever I need to make a decision, I always think about God first. “Ma happy ba siya sa aking gawin?” Yes. The struggle is real. :) Entering the Kingdom of God is very difficult. So we always need to put in mind God’s commandment and may it be a challenge to us especially being in this ministry.

Such a service may seem hard at first but little by little, in our own little way, we can be able to see Christ’s full reign over us. As the Youth Encounter #16 preparation draws near, we are asking you, to do our own “marketing” of the Lord; promote His Kingdom by gathering more youth into His Kingdom. 

God bless! :)

- Iana Navarro


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