Daily reflection _ the very heart fo Jesus teaching

THE VERY HEART OF JESUS' TEACHING
Jesus lives in others. What we do to them, we do to Jesus.  
Deacon John Ruscheinsky
It must have been a wonderful thing to have lived with Jesus while He was on earth. What a great privilege it was for Peter, James, John, and the other Apostles, to have known our Lord so personally and intimately. Naturally, we wish we could have lived during that time as well, and I think we feel that we would have been completely devoted to Him. Actually, many people who lived with Jesus, either did not recognize Him, or failed to respond to Him. And, today, it may be that we, too, sometimes fail to recognize Him and respond to Him. However, we do not have to wish that we could have lived during the time of our Lord. The truth is that He is living among us right now. He is present in this world, not only in the Eucharist, but also in the people with whom we encounter each day. He is all around us.
In today's Gospel, Jesus tells us that what we do to one of His brothers, we do to Him. It's important to notice that He does not say it is as if we do it to Him, or that He will consider what we do to others as done to Him. We must not water down the truth. Jesus lives in others. What we do to them, we do to Jesus. The first reading gives us many practical directives for dealing with people, all of which are summed up in the one Commandment, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." Among the Old Testament people, the word "neighbor" was understood as referring to a fellow Israelite. Jesus gave two new dimensions to this Commandment. First, neighbor was meant to include everyone, and, secondly, Jesus lives in the hearts of our fellow human beings - our neighbors.
Living in the fourth century, Martin of Tours was a young Roman soldier and seeker of the Christian faith as a catechumen. One evening, he met an unclothed man begging for alms in the freezing cold. Martin stopped, cut his coat in two, and gave half to the stranger. That night, he dreamt he had seen the heavenly court, with Jesus robed in the torn cloak. One of the angels present asked, "Master, why do You wear that battered cloak?" Jesus replied, "My servant, Martin, gave it to Me." As a result of this vision, Martin "flew to be baptized." God is gracious and merciful; His love compels us to treat others with mercy and kindness. When we do something for one of Jesus' little ones, we do it for Him. How beautiful!
There is no sense in daydreaming about how much we love Jesus or in imagining all the great things we would like to do for Him. "It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation" (Preface - Eucharistic Prayer II) to seek Christ here, in the Eucharist - His Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity. And He remains with us! His Spirit dwells in the hearts of those around us, and in the people we meet every day. When our time comes to leave this world and face God, Jesus will want to know whether we have loved Him, not only by our worship of Him in the Liturgy, but also in finding Him and serving Him in our fellow human beings.
Throughout Lent, we do well in praying to God at Mass, and this is always necessary. At the end of Mass we hear the words, "Go in peace, glorifying the Lord, by your life." Indeed, we will fulfill these words if we go forth to serve others for the love of God!