I was sitting on the bed with my laptop on my lap. Artaban's story is intriguing for me. As a human, we always tried our best to please the Lord. We only focused on looking unto Jesus and giving him our best gifts.
However just like Artaban, there are a lot of unknown trials ahead of us. I believe it's not the easiest choice for Artaban when he wants to give away his precious gifts. If we look at the problem from our point of view, we would say to Artaban to keep his gifts. But of course that wouldn't be what God wanted.
In Matthew it says that,
"Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me."
From this Bible verse I learn that it's not only about what we give to the Lord, but it is about helping others. Just like the great commandment says
" Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."
(Matthew 22:37 NIV)
And the second is like it: "Love your neighbor as yourself."
(Matthew 22:39 NIV)
These verses reminds us, that it's not only God that we have to love, but also our neighbors.
Henry van Dyke truly blesses me with his story of Artaban. It is a beautiful story full of melancholy. A great reminder to not only focus on Jesus but also our neighbors.
