Overview of: MatthewToday's Reading:
Matt. 25:31-46
"The Sheep and the Goats"
Focus Verses: Matt. 25:31-32
31 "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 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.
Insight:
I am currently reading N. T. Wright's new book, Surprised by Hope. Yesterday I read chapter 9 ("Jesus, the Coming Judge"). Early in the chapter, Wright says, "The picture of Jesus as the coming judge is the central feature of another absolutely vital and nonnegotiable Christian belief: that there will indeed be a judgment in which the creator God will set the world right once and for all." This judgment, he explains, is part of the Good News because we will all be delivered from "a world of systematic injustice, bullying, violence, arrogance, and oppression.”
Those of us who have placed our faith in Jesus, and have embraced his agenda for the world, have already begun to participate in the redemptive work the kingdom. As followers of Jesus we are, today, bringing hope to the "least of these." We are, today, standing in opposition to systematic injustice, violence, and pride. We are his sheep, we hear his voice (John 10), and we follow his lead today. We are committed to Jesus, and so we anticipate his coming to judge because we see it as the ultimate realization of the Good News.
Response and Action:
I must live the Good News of Jesus today. Because Jesus is my king, I must commit myself to the work of his kingdom. He is my shepherd, so I will follow where he leads. I must oppose sin, and unrighteousness of every kind: injustice, disregard for the poor, violence, marginalization of minorities, and abuse of the environment. I must live with a concern for the lost, the poor, the sick, the hurting, the forgotten, and the abused.
O God, help me to live for you and through you in thought, word, and deed. Help me to turn away from what is wrong and to do what is right. Help me to love you with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love others as myself. Give me a heart for righteousness and a compassion for the oppressed. Help me to act justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with you. May your kingdom come--your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Through Christ Jesus, who will one day judge the living and the dead, and whose kingdom will have no end, Amen.
Old Testament for Today: Ezekiel 34:15-17
15 I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign LORD. 16 I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice. 17 " 'As for you, my flock, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will judge between one sheep and another, and between rams and goats.
In Context: Ezekiel 34
Proverb for Today: Prov. 30:5
"Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him."
Recommended Reading:
Surprised by Hope
by N. T. Wright
