http://bible.com/events/25086825
“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.
“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.’
“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 25:31-46 NIV
-The difference between those who are blessed and those who are cursed at the judgement day will be the acts of love that were shown to those in need.
-It’s important to note two things
-these were simple acts….a meal to eat, a cup of cold water to drink, welcoming a stranger, looking after the sick or those in prison
-these are things that anyone can do…those with much, those with little, those who seem qualified, those who seem unqualified
What you see…..
-Initially it does not appear that either group could see Jesus. Their response is “Lord, when did we see you….?” (Verse 37, 44)
-But the righteous did what they did, not because they could see Jesus, but because they could see a need.
-The righteous did not do what they did for the applause of man, but because they were compelled by love to meet a need.
-It begins with what you see, because when your lens becomes loving others first, it’s not about religious duty or obligation
What is in your heart….
-The Bible is clear that our salvation is by grace through faith, but the Bible also says faith without works is dead
-Our God does not desire your actions apart from your heart
-The difference between the sheep and the goats in Jesus’ story was never about the actions in and of themselves, but the heart behind their actions
Bottom line:
Your true test is what you do about what you see
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God
As God changes our hearts, He continues to open our eyes to see Him present in the every day needs all around us.