Whatever you did for one of the least of these

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. (Matthew 25:31-33)

This is the third of three parables of judgment in Matthew 25, clearly helping illuminate the inevitability of judgment. The Bible speaks volumes about judgment, from the days of Noah to the destruction of glorious empires. Both scripture and human history itself, showcases the perils of wickedness and the consequences it beckons. But, the beauty of our faith is that as Christians, our judgment is not placed upon us but on Jesus Christ.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer spoke about "cheap grace" to represent a shallow understanding of our sins. To truly grasp the magnitude of God's grace, we must be cognizant of the weight of our sins and the judgment it attracts. Recognizing and accepting judgment is integral to nurturing our faith by fostering honest repentance, serving as a stepping stone to spiritual maturity.

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 25:34-40)

In these verses, we are introduced to the righteous, those positioned on the right, the place of blessing and honor. It’s important to remember that this position is bestowed upon them not because of their grand actions, but by sheer grace. Their righteous acts, such as feeding the hungry or visiting the imprisoned, though commendable, aren't the ticket to their blessed status. The key thing to remember is that they didn’t even know they performed such deeds. What does that mean? It means that their righteous acts came out of the love in their hearts, rather than deeds performed.

Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. (1 John 4:8-10)

Apostle John tells us that it is not about our love, but about God’s love in us. The life of faith is not about merit, but it's about accepting the love and righteousness of Jesus Christ who carried the cross for our sins. Through that acceptance by faith, the love of Jesus overflows as righteousness in us that is manifest through that grace. Living by grace is living freely with the love of Jesus in us all the time by the power of the Holy Spirit. This is the power of the Holy Spirit which works to compound the grace we have received.

Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’ They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life. (Matthew 25:41-46)

In the shadow of the righteous are those represented by the goats. They face eternal punishment. In contrast to the sheep, the goats know what they have done and believe this should be enough to receive their reward in heaven. In other words, they calculate what they have done and live in self-righteousness and not under the grace of Jesus Christ.

Will this be our frightening realization during our time of judgment? Many believe their deeds alone warrant heaven. This parable points to the core of our hearts: are we driven by a self-centered desire to check boxes, or are we genuinely driven by our faith and love for Jesus Christ? The Kingdom of God doesn't measure our worth by our deeds but by the love and faith residing in our hearts. Let us reflect on our motivations and strive to center our lives around the love of Jesus Christ.