THE LEAST OF THESE
A king who had no son to succeed him posted a notice inviting young men to come along and apply for adoption into his family. The two qualifications were love of God and love of neighbour.
A poor peasant boy was tempted to apply, but fell unable to do so because of the rags he wore. He worked hard, earned some money, bought some new clothes, and headed off to try his luck at being adopted into the king’s family.
He was halfway there, however, when he met a poor beggar on the road, who was shivering with the cold. The young man felt sorry for him and he exchanged clothes with him. There was hardly much point in going any further toward the king’s palace at this stage, now that he was back in rags again. However, the young man felt that having come this far, he might as well finish the journey.
He arrived at the palace and despite the sneers and jibes of the courtiers; he was finally admitted into the presence of the king. Imagine his amazement to see that the king was the old beggar man he had met on the road, and he was actually wearing the good clothes the young man had given! The king got down form his throne, embraced the young man, and said, “Welcome, my son!”
v There is a direct lesson in this story to show the welcome of God for king kind and the good when they come before him after death.
v Whatever you do to the least of these, that’s what you do unto me. (Mt. 25:40)
No comments:
Post a Comment