“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 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. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
“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.’
“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“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.’ Matthew 25:31-40
This passage seems in some ways at odds with grace. Here, eternity is offered at first glance to those who have been faithful in serving others. We know from the rest of the New Testament that grace is the free gift of God, given with no strings attached. But this teaching of Jesus suggests that those who know they are heaven bound are so delighted that they cannot help but busy themselves with obedience
There is a sweet naïveté among the followers of God in this passage. They seem surprised that their commendation should be so wholehearted and overwhelming, ‘Whenever did we see you hungry or thirsty, a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison and minister to you?’
When we minister to any human need, we write the name of Jesus on the very forehead of the person we help. But the ministry we offer is registered in the bookkeeping of heaven as deeds we have done for Jesus alone.
When we meet anyone vile and diseased, we must not think, "poor soul, vile and dis-eased!" Instead we must pray, "So, dear Christ, it is you. I will attend to you, for I have received heaven from you already, and I refuse to let any of your children endure this human hell without my ministry."
We never cry over any human hurt here on earth without our tears being registered in heaven.
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