(Text – Matthew 25:31-46; vs 40 “…Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.”)
This is the familiar passage regarding the judgment separating the sheep (righteous) from the goats (unrighteous) that mentions their kind deeds toward others or omission of those deeds. As I thought on this passage, [@more@]I was reminded first of all that Jesus referred to himself as the Son of Man, indicating that “my brethren” that he refers to later are not just those born into God’s family by the Spirit but all mankind. To fail to minister to even the least of mankind was a failure in God’s eyes.
I was also reminded that neither the righteous nor the unrighteous in the passage had any consciousness of their deeds. This was because they were acting according to their own inner nature; in other words, their actions were natural expressions of their own hearts, either good or bad. They did these things because they had already been “blessed” by their Father or “accursed”.
As Christians we know we are not saved by our good works, yet this passage could easily be interpreted in that manner. We must, therefore, interpret the passage in the light of the truth of salvation by faith rather than allowing it to turn that belief on its head. In the light of our new birth in Christ by faith, this passage takes on a different meaning altogether. I firmly believe that most of Christ’s teachings regarding godly behavior are meant to open our eyes to our own need for Him and, thereby, draw us to Himself.
The entire Sermon on the Mount can, I think, be summed up in the first words, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven.” The “poor in spirit” are those who humbly acknowledge their need for a savior. All of the other teachings in this sermon remind us how far short of the mark we fall. In a similar way, the rich young ruler who claimed to have followed all God’s commandments (what an outrageous claim!) was reminded by Jesus of his covetousness when Jesus asked him to give away all he possessed and come with Him.
So this passage in Matthew serves to remind us, lest we think we are doing pretty well in God’s eyes, that failing to love and minister to even the least (or worst) of mankind is failing to minister to the Christ who died for them. This should cause each of us to pause and be thankful we truly are “blessed of our Father” with an “inheritance prepared for us from the foundation of the world” not because of our works but the work of Christ on our behalf.
Larry McCord, Texas, USA
