Matthew 25:31-46 ~ (New International Version)
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31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 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. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34 “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. 35 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, 36 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.’
37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
40 “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.’
41 “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. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 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.’
44 “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?’
45 “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.’
46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
When we look at the subtitles used to explain the sections to us, this is typically labeled "Sheep and Goats." We could even subtitle it with biblical quotes like "All Things are Possible with God" or "Remember, Beloved, a Day to God is a Thousand Years". Why? Because God combines an amazing analogy for us in this section.
We can be more creative than that.... we'll call it.... "The Huge and the you". (There is a ewe joke in there....)
God, the Vast, The All Knowing, The Father and Creator of the Universe says that you - a speck of dust in this vast creation both in time and impact - says all of creation will see God's Glory. All of us. That is enormous. And says to the blessed - take your inheritance. Still God tells us - Nations (Nations!) will belong in Heaven.
The answer to the question, "When did we see You?" Is we all definitely will. And ....we all should.
Joel 3:14
Multitudes, multitudes, in the valley of decision! For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.
More than multitudes and millions of people, God knows and loves you intimately.
Psalm 139:1-6
1 O LORD, you have searched me and known me!
2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.
3 You search out my path and my lying down
and are acquainted with all my ways.
4 Even before a word is on my tongue,
behold, O LORD, you know it altogether.
5 You hem me in, behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is high; I cannot attain it.
How does God want to see us? In attitudes and actions of love.
‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
Psalm 126:2-3
2 Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then they said among the nations,
"The LORD has done great things for them."
3 The LORD has done great things for us;
we are glad!
What does that mean to you today? When you believe in your heart, proclaim with your voice that Jesus Christ is Lord. All who believe, trust and call upon the Lord will be saved.
Matthew 10:7
And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’
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