The Overlooked King
day sixteen
If Jesus showed up in Melbourne today, where would you expect to find Him? On the steps of Parliament? On stage at a big Christian conference? Outside the MCG with a megaphone? According to Him, none of the above.
He says He’s already here. In places we barely glance.
He’s waiting at the Sunshine Centrelink office while someone argues with the system for the fourth time this week. He’s in the ED at Footscray Hospital, holding the silence while a nurse squeezes a hand. He’s on the 411 bus that still hasn’t come, sitting beside the teenager who’s not sure if anyone’s expecting her home.
And here’s the scandal. Jesus doesn’t say He’s just with them. He says He is them. “Whatever you did for the least of these… you did for me.” That’s not poetry. That’s reality. And it changes everything.
Mission isn’t about arriving with answers. It’s about noticing where Jesus already is and learning to move towards Him. The uncomfortable question is this: if He’s hiding in plain sight, how many times have we walked straight past?
DAILY READINGS
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31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
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Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord,
and he will reward them for what they have done.
DEEPER
Matthew 25 doesn’t let us stay theoretical. Jesus isn’t handing out bonus points for theological accuracy or good intentions. He names six very real, very human conditions. Hunger, thirst, loneliness, poverty, illness, imprisonment, and ties each one to Himself.
And then He says, “Whatever you did for one of the least of these, you did for me.” Not “as if.” Not metaphor. It’s direct. It’s confronting.
To feed someone doing it tough is to feed the King. To ignore someone in crisis is to ignore Him. That’s the kind of clarity we’re not used to.
Proverbs 19:17 backs it up: “Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord.” It’s wild when you think about it. God so identifies with the vulnerable that when you give kindness to someone doing it tough, He treats it like you handed it straight to Him.
This lands in the real stuff. Not just how we sing, but how we carry ourselves in the bottle shop car park when someone asks for a coin. How we react when the cleaner at work is invisible to everyone else. How we move through the neighbourhood message group, and someone mentions they’re doing it tough. Jesus isn’t tucked away in a worship set. He’s there in the overheard stories, the awkward pauses, the people we usually rush past.
This flips the whole idea of mission. It’s not about saving people. It’s about recognising Jesus where you didn’t expect Him. And often, if we’re paying attention, we realise something even deeper — that we’re the ones being ministered to. Our own hardness softens. Our imagination stretches. We meet Jesus again, not in a song or a sermon, but in the worn-out eyes of someone we might have overlooked.
It’s not comfortable. But it is holy.
RESPOND
Who have I walked past this week without really seeing? The neighbour whose name I still don’t know? The person doing it tough outside the shops? The colleague who always gets overlooked? Jesus says He is there. Sit with that. Let it unsettle you. Then ask: what might it look like for me to slow down, notice, and meet Him in the ones the world ignores?
PRAYER
Jesus, forgive me for the times I’ve rushed past you in the faces of others. Give me eyes to see, courage to slow down, and a heart that recognises you where I least expect it. Make me faithful in the small acts of kindness that honour you as King.
Also, pray now for our local leaders—Mayor Daria Kellander, and our MPs—Tim Watts at the federal level and our various state representatives. Ask God to place the vulnerable of our community clearly on their radar and give them wisdom, compassion, and courage to act for them.
ACTIVATE
Today, look for one ordinary moment — at the coffee shop, the supermarket, the street — even a slightly awkward one. Lean in. Offer a friendly word, a moment of listening, or a small kindness, expecting that in doing so, you might meet Jesus.
“The river always runs low, filling the cracks we didn’t notice.”