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Matthew 25:31-46 - The Parable Of The Sheep And Goats - The Final Judgment. [addendum]

Matthew 25:31-46 - The Parable Of The Sheep And Goats - The
Final Judgment. [addendum]

Matthew 25:34-36, 40 (NIV) "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.
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, 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.'.... "The King will
reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of
these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

Mat 25:34-36, 40 (CWB) Then as Judge and King He will say to
those on His right, `You are my Father's children because you are so
much like Him. Come! Now is the time for you to be given a
permanent home in His kingdom which He has been looking forward to giving
you for quite sometime. Everyone could see the change that took
place in your life when you decided to become one of God's children,
because you cared about others as you would care about me. When others
were thirsty, you gave them water. When they were hungry, you gave
them food, and when they were lost and homeless, you took them in.
When they had nothing suitable to wear, you gave them clothes. When
they were sick, you visited them and comforted them, and when they
were put in jail, you didn't forget them.'.... And the Son of God will
say, `I know you didn't realize this because a transformation had
taken place in your life and kindness and compassion became a
permanent part of your nature. What you so caringly did even to those who
are thought the least of, you did for me.'

Mother Teresa presented this challenge: "All of us, you and
I, should use what God has given us, that for which God created us.
For God has created us for great things: to love and to give love."
What makes things great? Mother Teresa says, "It is how much
love we put in the doing that makes our offering something beautiful
for God."
Billy Graham visited Mother Teresa in Calcutta. When he was
introduced to her, she was holding a dying man in her arms, and Graham
waited as she helped the man face death. When he died, she prayed and
gently lowered him to his bed. Then "this tiny, wrinkled, radiant lady"
turned to greet Graham.
They talked till dusk, and here is how Billy Graham says she
explained her calling to him:
"Mother Teresa looks past the physical features of every man,
woman, or child and sees the face of Jesus staring up at her through
them. In every starving child she feeds, she sees Jesus. Surrounding
every lonely, dying man she cradles in her arms is Jesus. When she
ministers to anyone, she is ministering to her Savior and Lord."
Mother Teresa often referred to the poor and dying as being
Jesus in "distressing disguise." She saw being abandoned and unwanted
as the greatest poverty, and she daily ministered to people with
love as if each were Jesus in distress.
Most of us will never pick up dying men or starving children
from the streets, yet we must deal with the "irritable, the exacting,
and the unreasonable" in our own lives. Mother Teresa demonstrated
that it's a unique privilege to get beyond our frustrations and to
share the joy and love of Jesus.
Impossible? "Love is a fruit," she says, "in season at all
times and within the reach of every hand. Anyone may gather it, and no
limit is set."
Lord Jesus, I want to sense your love today. Help me to reach
for it and see you in "distressing disguise" in the faces of those I
meet who need encouragement and the love that comes only from you.
The King will says "I tell you the truth, when you did it to
one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it
to me!" Matthew 25:40 NLT [The One Year Book of Encouragement by
Harold Myra]

At age thirteen William Booth apprenticed in a pawnbroker's
shop, where he became acutely aware of the humiliation and degradation
suffered by those who live in poverty. As a teenager he became a
Christian and an enthusiastic evangelist. By 1865, he would form his own
movement, called The Christian Mission, which ministered to the wretched
and poor of London's East End. The going was tough, but in 1878,
Booth realized that the battle for souls required a well-disciplined
"army." The message of the organization didn't change, but the methods
and the name did.
By Booth's death in 1912, The Salvation Army was at work in
fifty-eight countries. Today, more than 3.5 million volunteers, led by 3,500
officers, bring aid to more than 30 million people each year. These
workers provide disaster relief, shelters for battered women, AIDS
education, family counseling, prison ministry, and substance- abuse
rehabilitation, and share the gospel in 160 languages.
Booth's last public words are said to have been, "While women
weep, as they do now, I'll fight. While little children go hungry, as
they do now, I'll fight. While men go to prison, in and out, in and
out, as they do now, I'll fight. While there is a drunkard left,
while there is a poor lost girl upon the streets, while there remains
one dark soul without the light of God, I'll fight. I'll fight to
the very end!"
Will you join the fight?
William Booth (1829-1912) was the founder of The Salvation
Army. [The One Year Bible Live Verse Devotional re Mat. 25:35, 36]

Charles Haddon Spurgeon contrasts believers who have a
strong, vigorous faith with others who are weak or troubled. He
concludes, "In God's flock, there are always some lame sheep."
Some of these, he says, were born to see the dark side of
everything. They see in the Bible only the threats and never the promises.
"For them the road is always rugged, the pastures unsavory. If there
is a slough, they will fall into it, and if a thicket, they will
get entangled by it."
Others aren't born that way but become lame from hearing
superficial theology or responding to the devil's lures and lies. Still
others have been crushed by home troubles, unable to rally their
spirits, or they've been wounded by church splits and controversies.
Spurgeon saw all sorts of lame sheep and expressed great
empathy for them. In fact, he also saw their strengths and said to the
morose: "Some flowers must be grown in the shade, and perhaps you are
one of those flowers. I have known women for whom the sunny scenes
of life have no charms, but their faces have shone like angels in
the chambers of the sick or the wards of the hospital." He advised
those who tend toward depression to consider Jesus, the Man of
Sorrows, whose spirit was not crushed.
However, he came down hard on those who treated the lame
harshly. "You may be strong and vigorous and strangers to depression," he
said, "but be thankful and not presumptuous. Don't despise those who
suffer--your turn may come before long."
So what should be done about the lame? Spurgeon advises, "The
rest of the flock should seek their healing!" and quotes Hebrews
12:13, "Make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may ...
be healed".
When we see the suffering among us, we are to comfort them,
assist them, and encourage them.
Charles Spurgeon says, "Consider the example of our Lord
Jesus, who was always quick to spy out the lame, the blind, the
crippled. His hands were always stretched out for their relief."
Lord, in many ways, I'm one of those lame sheep. Help me in
my needs. And open my eyes to the troubles and limitations of
others who need my understanding and loving touch.
The King will say, "I tell you the truth, when you did it to
one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it
to me!" Matthew 25:40 NLT [The One Year Book of Encouragement by
Harold Myra]

What is the sign of the saved? Their scholarship? Their
willingness to go to foreign lands? Their ability to amass an audience and
preach? Their skillful pens and hope-filled volumes? Their great
miracles? No.
The sign of the saved is their love for the least.
Those put on the right hand of God will be those who gave
food to the hungry, drink to the thirsty, warmth to the lonely,
clothing to the naked, comfort to the sick, and friendship to the
imprisoned.
Did you note how simple the works are? Jesus doesn't say, "I
was sick and you healed me... I was in prison and you liberated
me... I was lonely and you built a retirement home for me..." He
doesn't say, "I was thirsty and you gave me spiritual counsel."
No fanfare. No hoopla No media coverage. Just good people
doing good things. [Grace For The Moment SB By Max Lucado re Mat.
25:35]

This passage of Scripture always reminds me of what is
important to Jesus and how he wants us to join him in his work on earth.
It is so easy to be busy doing many things: taking care of our
households, a business or ministry, or projects we're interested in. But
then it also becomes easy to miss the thing that's most important:
extending mercy to the "least of these," caring for those who are hungry,
poor, sick, or imprisoned. Our response to these needs doesn't affect
only our future, eternal destiny. It also affects our present prayer
life.
Prayer theologians of the past emphasized that the Lord will
not hear us if we aren't listening to him and responding to what he
asks of us. We can't feed all the hungry people, help all the
homeless, or visit every sick or incarcerated person. But we can listen to
the voice of the One who loves all of them and doesn't want them to
perish without knowing his mercy and compassion through the hands of
his followers. Ask what he would have you to do to reach out to
them. And remember, he promises that when you come under his yoke, it
will be easy, and his burden will be light because it is full of
grace.
LORD, I want to join you in what you are doing to rescue
those who are perishing, to feed those who are hungry and thirsty with
your Bread of Life and Living Water. Forgive me when I don't listen
and instead pursue my own agenda. Help me to hear and obey when you
call on me. Empower me to be your hands and your feet in the place
where I live. [Praying Through The Bible By Fuller re Mat. 25:34-36]

What we do with the Good News of Jesus has enormous
consequences, because the punishment of those who reject Jesus is just as
eternal as the reward of those who serve Him. [Life Principles SB By
Charles Stanley re Mat. 25:46]