Helping at the Cross – Matthew 25:31-46

A text – Matthew 25:31-46

25:31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory.
25:32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats,
25:33 and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left.
25:34 Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world;
25:35 for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,
25:36 I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’
25:37 Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink?
25:38 And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing?
25:39 And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’
25:40 And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’
25:41 Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels;
25:42 for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink,
25:43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’
25:44 Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?’
25:45 Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’
25:46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

A reflection:

We are called to live our lives looking for ways to participate in God’s mission in the world. And God loves to help the underdog, the person on the margins, the one you’d least expect. God calls us to the cross: to Jesus’s cross and to the moment of the cross in other people’s lives. When we spend our time and our energy standing with those who are experiencing their cross, who are in a time of suffering, who just about cannot cope, we are standing at their cross. We are participating in their suffering. And all the time, God is at hand, also participating in their cross and noticing who is there to help.

Is it any wonder that in Jesus’s description of Judgment Day, the Son of Man credits the human beings standing there before him who have helped people going through deep trouble? Is it any wonder Jesus welcomes those helpers into the continuing life of God, since that is where they have been all along? And is it any wonder that when he sees those people standing before him who have avoided the crosses of others in their lives, he leaves them out of the continuing life of God, since they have not joined that work their whole life long?

Why have the “sheep” people always helped others? Because it seems like the right thing to do? Because God told them to? Because that’s how their parents raised them? For whatever reason they chose the life of service, Jesus says they have been serving God all their lives and will continue to live with God forever. As for the “goats,” those who have avoided helping others, Jesus lets them continue to avoid it, well outside the Kingdom. The Kingdom of God is almost here, coming near, perpetually. And when we see our chance to notice it and join in it, we will begin to join into our future in the life of God.

A prayer:

Lord God, Thank you for loving us. Thank you for showing us your kingdom that comes near to us often without our knowing it. Help us to notice, to find those who need your help and offer our help, even our mere presence to them. Help us always to be about your work. Amen.