Christ the King, Year A

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Greeting

Good morning. I hope you have recovered from a delightful Thanksgiving meal. Let’s look into Matthew 25 to understand God’s heart for us. 

Remember a time

I’m sure you all remember times you did a kind deed or spoke an encouraging word to someone just because you loved that person. Maybe recently around the Thanksgiving table? I remember when my daughter was one year old, I laid on the couch with her on my chest as I listened to the FM radio. She was a colicky baby, and often when I got home from work I was tired! My wife handed her to me, and I held her through her crying and tears as she calmed down and fell asleep. I loved doing that because I love her, being with her and seeing her happy (and it made Kathryn happy too). Today’s lesson speaks directly to us, Christ’s disciples, as to why and how we do the works of mercy Jesus commands. 

Review of Context

Towards the end of Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus teaches on the Kingdom of God and the Second Coming, and predicts his impending death and glorious resurrection. He encourages us to imitate His ministry even as we hope for his return. Let’s quickly look over the text leading up to today’s passage.

  • In Matthew 21[:22], knowing he will be crucified in a week Jesus encourages us saying,

"And all things, whatever you shall ask in prayer, believing, you shall receive."

  • In Matthew 22 Jesus says The Kingdom of Heaven is like a King calling people to a joyful wedding". Jesus warns us that many will ignore the invitation.

In verse 37 He summarizes the Law and the Prophets into two commandments: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind."  And your neighbor as yourself.

  • In Matthew 23, Jesus raises His voice against the religious establishment which consistently rebuffed God’s love:

In verse 37 [Jesus laments] "O Jerusalem… How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!"

  • In Matthew 24 Jesus warns us in graphic terms that the last Days will be rough, using words like persecution, desolation, hatred, abomination, tribulation.
    • Jesus implores us to keep awake with [24:46] "Blessed is that servant whom his master will find (laboring) when he comes"
  • In Matthew 25, Jesus emphasizes the joy of spreading the Good News to build His kingdom and the consequences of not doing so.

Verses 1-13, Parable of 10 Virgins: The five wise virgins go into the feast, the five unwise are left out.

Verse 14-30, Parable of Talents: The two profitable servants are rewarded, the unprofitable one is cast out.

Verse 31-46, Final Judgment: The sheep who fed, watered, clothed, visited or tended others stay with the King, the goats are cast out, asking… "Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?" 

Disclaimer and focus:

  • I’d like to focus on aspects of this passage that apply to our daily lives. So…
    • I won’t talk about the Last Days- that’s too big a subject for 15 minutes!
    • I will frame our relationship with God as a love relationship, where we do things for Him for because we love Him. I don’t agree with those who feel "God loves (is proud of, or He blesses) me when I do good works. Or if I don’t work hard for him he will dispose of me 

Six Questions:

So we are not talking about Goats, or what happens to them in the End Times. We are talking about us, the Sheep, and how we can live our lives until that time. To get the most out of this passage, let’s answer six questions.  They are Who, When, Where, What, Why and How. 

The first 3 are easy to answer.

  • Who – Jesus is speaking to all saints. That means all of us can perform works of mercy.
  • When – whenever the opportunities present themselves.
  • Where – anywhere you are: at the grocery store, school, work, gym, home and church. 

The last three, What, Why, and How, offer us practical insights for building His kingdom together:

  • What – Works of mercy. These can be separated into two areas: works that we can physically do and works that result from acts of prayer.
    • Remember Verse 44 when The goats ask, "Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison?"
    • Here’s a few examples of what we can physically do to ease pain, suffering, or distress?
      • Offering wise counsel when asked,
      • Conducting business affairs with integrity
      • Staying quietly at the bedside of the sick
      • Pursuing social justice for the widow, orphan, enslaved people
      • Helping Syrian refugees in Greece,
      • Feeding our local community 
  • Jesus said acts of prayer were very effective when we ask (individually or corporately):
    • Praying for the sick, addicted, or depressed, and for leaders and ministries to do Kingdom Work.
    • Praying for guidance and wisdom personally or corporately (as a church).
    • And let’s anticipate divine interventions. What Will Jesus Do (WWJD)? The God who saved three people from a fiery furnace can surely help us with our problems today!
      • BCP102 Morning Prayer Collect: "Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine…" 
  • Why – Why do we want to act as sheep to build His Kingdom rather be goats? Why do we follow the Great Commission and make disciples of all nations? Because He commanded us to and because we return his love with love.
    • Great commission is easy to follow: He told them and empowered them.
      • He had them practice Kingdom works of mercy:
        • Matt 10: 1 "…He called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction."
        • Luke 10: 1 "…the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go…. 7 The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”"
      • He commissioned them, and by extension us:
        • Matthew 28: 19 "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
        • Mark 16:15 "Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation."
        • Luke 24:47 "… that repentance and forgiveness of sins to be proclaimed in his name to all nations…"
        • John 20:21: "…As the Father has sent me, so I send you."
        • Matt 28:19: "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."  
  • God loves us.
    • Hosea 6:6 For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings."
  • Jeremiah 2:2: “I remember the devotion of your youth, your love as a bride, how you followed me in the wilderness, in a land not sown. 3 Israel was holy to the LORD, the firstfruits of his harvest. … 5 Thus says the LORD: “What wrong did your fathers find in me that they went far from me, and went after worthlessness, and became worthless?
  • John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
  • Therefore we love him.
    • 1 John 4:19 "We love God because he first loved us."
    • 1 John 4:7 "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God." 

We have a love relationship with our God. Since we are already redeemed by Grace, this passage can be read as a warning for what happens to people who don’t know Him. This passage is not about casting Christians into the fire because they weren’t "good" enough. Jesus is not outlining a transactional relationship where we earn our salvation by feeding the hungry or preaching the Good News. It is about a love relationship with God that focuses and empowers our lives for Kingdom building. 

God loves those who love Him. We don’t try not to sin out of fear of the second coming or judgment. We are growing up as sons and daughters into the image of the Father.

  • 1 John 2:1 says we have an, "Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous One. He Himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours alone but for the sins of the whole world."
  • John 15:9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you…10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love … My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you… 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other. 

The final question to help us today is "How." How do we, as sheep, "fully preach the Gospel"? In Romans 15:19 Paul says," Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obedience by word and deed, by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God—so [everywhere] I have fulfilled the ministry of the gospel of Christ;" 

So I leave us with a couple of insights.

  • We are maturing as forgiven sons and daughters of a loving God.
  • We are friends of God who love him enough to proclaim his Kingdom through word and deed.
  • Our love for God is our motivation, it is not fear or guilt he desires to instill in us. The church is his Bride, not his slave.
  • God advances the Kingdom of God through us, our presence, our words, and our deeds.
  • As we do works of mercy, such as feeding, clothing, giving drink to the needy and visiting the sick, stranger and prisoner (Matt 25:35) expect the Holy Spirit will work mightily through us, and sometimes in spite of us. 

We love a God who loves us and calls us into a life of joy, hope, love and power. Let us continue our Kingdom work till He comes, moved and empowered by His Spirit.

Thanks be to God.

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