The Gang

They were local boys, most of them, and they lived on the margins of the law. Most of them had a criminal record, and as gang members, they were viewed with suspicion by many people and with fear by some.

But when they discovered local children were going to school hungry, the gang members swung into action. Using their own money, they began making sandwiches and delivering them to a nearby elementary school.

Teachers and hungry students were thrilled.

Children from homes where there was often not enough food were now being fed regularly. Other schools requested that they also might participate in the sandwich program, and before long, the gang members —who described themselves as “not exactly pillars of society”— were rising early in the morning to prepare hundreds of sandwiches and delivering them to dozens of schools.

A former school superintendent commented, saying, “Rich, poor, good or perceived as evil, everyone gets a lift from giving that makes them feel good. Give enough and it’s almost selfish because you feel so good about what you’re doing for others.”* In Matthew 25, Jesus described genuine Christianity.

He said that when He returns, He will acknowledge that some clothed Him, welcomed Him, visited Him, and fed Him. In the story, those He commended were puzzled to learn they had done such things for Jesus. He explained, “Inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me” (verse 40).

The parable contains no affirmation of theology or orthodoxy.

Neither church attendance nor faithfulness in giving is mentioned, as important as they undoubtedly are. Jesus speaks here to the importance of demonstrating the love of God, of serving Him as we serve others.

Followers of Jesus can learn from a group of men with criminal records and tattoos. Seeing a need and motivated by compassion for those who were going without, they stepped forward and made a life-altering difference in numerous young lives.

Motivated by the love of God and a desire to see people come to know Jesus as Lord and Savior, the church can make an eternal difference when it rises up to bless Jesus in others.