Jesus said to his disciples:
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit upon his glorious throne, and all the nations will be assembled before him.And he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘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, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.’Then the righteous will answer him and say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?
When did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?
When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?’And the king will say to them in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’
Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you accursed, 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, a stranger and you gave me no welcome, naked and you gave me no clothing, ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.’
Then they will answer and say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison, and not minister to your needs?’
He will answer them, ‘Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.’
And these will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
— Matthew 25:31-46
Today’s Gospel reading is one of the clearest descriptions of the living faith that all Christians are called to have. There have been plenty of debates about the faith and works among different Christian denominations, but it’s clear from the reading above that both things are fundamentally inseparable. Good works will always accompany true faith in Christ. This does not mean that true faith will instantly make us sinless, but rather that when our hearts are changed by The Lord, and when we allow Him to transform and renew us, we will make an effort to share the Gospel and to imitate Christ in our deeds as well as in our words.
The image of the sheep is one that we see often in the Bible, and it’s very telling that in today’s Gospel, as Jesus talks about the coming judgment, He presents those who are righteous and who’ll go on to eternal life as sheep. Sheep are docile to their master. They follow Him faithfully. Goats are the complete opposite. They are stubborn and rebellious.
Obedience to Christ means loving and imitating Him in our ways, and in that manner, we can become the righteous sheep who will inherit the Kingdom. Just like Christ came to serve and not be served, so are we called to live lives of service to our fellow men, taking special care of those who need it most.
Even as the Son of man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.
— Matthew 20:28
May we all follow our Savior’s example, and devote our lives to service, so when Christ returns in glory, we can be among the righteous sheep who surrendered their lives for Him, whose living faith manifested itself in acts of love and charity.
In Christ,
Juan — Simple Man
Thank you for reading, and God bless you!
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