Today we are going to go through Mathew 25. I want to do this a little differently and tell this in story form. I hope this encourages you to dive into the word and read it like a story rather than a textbook. Close your eyes and start to imagine this as if you were in this story. Let’s talk about verses 31-46.
Your soul and the souls of many others are together waiting to be judged by God. As far as the eye can see are souls of others just like you. As you stand there, you notice that each person is going before the throne of God. The line starts to move and each soul goes either right or left. Groups are getting told to go right, other groups are getting told to go left.
After every person has found their place either to the right or to the left, silence seems to overtake everyone. God slowly turns to the group on the right and says, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.”
There is a bit of confusion that overtakes the group on the right. They say, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you? ”
God simply answers, “ Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.”
It starts to come back to each and every one of them. The times they visited the hospital to put a smile on a little child’s face. The times they chose not to walk by a homeless person but instead gave them money or food. The times they chose to put others first rather than themselves. Those instances weren’t just moments in time where they did a good deed, those were encounters with our heavenly father. At that very moment, God made himself known to those people and they understood.
Then God turns to the group on the left and says, “Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.
“ They too were confused but said, “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?” At that very moment, the group on the left is made known of all the encounters they had with God that they chose to ignore. They were reminded of the quiet voice of the Holy Spirit whispered to them when they had the opportunity to help. Instantly they realize that all of the reasons they had in the moment were meaningless.
Then he will answer them and say, “Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.” At that moment it was as if there was something stuck in the pit of their stomach. They plead for forgiveness over and over but the decision and their choices have already been made. Eternity has been decided. Don’t waste your opportunity!
Please don’t waste this time you have been given and get caught up in all the distractions of this world. In the end, they will all be meaningless. Start to looking and praying for opportunities to encounter God in your life. I promise there are plenty out there; you just have to be willing to sacrifice your time. Rejoice in today because you have been given another day on this earth, so be a light for his kingdom. Have a great Thursday everyone!