From Plot to Passover (Matthew 26:1-25)
Use this guide to help your group discussion as you meet this week.
Transcript
To be continued... Good morning. I'm so thankful for those who volunteer and serve with our worship week in, week out. They are all volunteers, and I'm thankful for the work they put in in leading us every Sunday to respond to the goodness of the gospel in praise. So there's something I'm thankful for.
My name is Spencer. I'm one of the pastors here. We're going to be in Matthew 26 this week, the first 25 verses, so you can go ahead and flip there. We do have physical Bibles, a sign of good things, as the pandemic is where it is. But we have Bibles now.
We have Connect cards. It's nice. If you want to grab a Bible, you can go ahead and turn to page 485. That's where it will be. The text will also be on the screen. I had a friend a few years back.
She was a vocal woman of faith. She led Bible studies. She was zealous. I mean zealous in the good way that zealous is used biblically. Zealous for what was good. We were a part of the same ministry.
I thought that she was going to be a leader in women's ministry in the church. I thought that she was going to be a missionary, lots of things. And then she started dating one of our other good friends, and they fell into some sin. They had a horrible breakup. And I don't say this to be funny at all. It was a little bit of a Britney Spears moment.
She cut her hair in pretty dramatic fashion. She lost an unhealthy amount of weight. And then she moved away. And over the next few years, I watched online as she became a subtle critic of the faith she once stood for, and then a very vocal, aggressive critic of the gospel she once proclaimed. And I won't pretend to know her heart, because I don't have to. And I won't pretend to autopsy her once vocal faith with any precision.
That's not my job. But something changed in her. I don't personally know what was happening in her heart, but there's a general pattern for how these things go. And what happens is that someone ultimately treasures something above Christ. And when something happens, when trials come, eventually what they're treasuring over Christ, what resembles faith, begins to crumble completely. And this story has played out in tragic fashion over and over and over again.
And today we're going to be in a series of a bunch of different stories. And in these stories today, we're going to see one of the most tragic stories of all time of someone who put their faith in something else and eventually turned their back on Jesus. So we're going to watch that play out. But alongside this really tragic story of someone turning their back and betraying Jesus, we get to see a second example of someone whose heart so loves Christ, it's two just different approaches, two different hearts, two different mindsets with Jesus. And we're going to see them kind of side by side today.
And I hope that as we walk through this, we'd be reflective of our own hearts. We'd be honest with ourselves that we wouldn't be prideful. We'd humble ourselves. We'd let the Spirit speak to us. And we'd respond. So let me pray.
And then we will jump into these stories. Father, you are good. What we said earlier, your steadfast love endures forever is so true. It endures in the fact that we get to open up your word and we get to hear you speak. God, I pray that you'd help us listen. And that we respond.
In Jesus' name, amen. Like I said, we're moving through a bunch of different stories. So it's going to be one scene, the next, the next, the next, starting off verse 1. When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples, you know that after two days the Passover is coming and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified. So all these sayings really captures what he just spent, what Chet just spent the last three weeks on.
All right, that was the final discourse, the final teaching of Jesus. There's no more teachings. We're shifting completely towards the cross. Every step right now is moving towards the cross. And he's been hinting at this, right? He's been saying that he's going to die.
He's been saying that he's going to be crucified. Now he's saying it's happening. It's happening in the next couple of days. When Passover is done, he will be delivered. He is being very explicit about what is about to happen. All right, it says that, shifts.
Different scene, verse 3. Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, and plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him. But they said, not during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people. All right, so while this is going on, there's a group of religious leaders who are meeting in the shadows. And their leader is named Caiaphas. This is the first time we see him.
We're going to see him later on as well. He is the high priest. And the leader of what we're going to see throughout chapter 26 is called a council. But the literal Greek word for that is Sanhedrin. So we know what council this is.
It's the Sanhedrin council. The Sanhedrin council was a religious and also political group of religious leaders that came together for two purposes. They wanted to make sure that the people followed the law while also working with the Roman government to keep the people in check. And there are two main parties in the Sanhedrin, two political parties. You have the Pharisees, we've seen over and over again, and the Sadducees that we've seen a little bit of as well. They function a little bit like our U.S.
Congress. They have two different theologies, just like we have two different political philosophies, two different ways of governing, but they have to work together, and power shifts depending on who's in power. The Sadducees at the time of Jesus had the power in the Sanhedrin, and their leader, Caiaphas, believed to be a Sadducee, has them all together. We're going to see them working together throughout 26, plotting against Jesus together to kill him. So, this plot is happening. And then we shift again.
Like I said, a lot of quick stories. Verse 6. Now, when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper. All right, so Jesus now goes to Bethany. He goes to a specific house, the house of Simon the leper. Now, this is the only time that we see Simon.
He does not currently have leprosy. He couldn't host this gathering if he did, because if you have leprosy, you have to be completely apart from the people. So, we can read into the context here and make a pretty educated guess that Jesus actually healed him of leprosy. At one point, he had leprosy. Now, he is healed. And somehow, Simon the leper, the nickname has stuck, which is not the most endearing of nicknames.
I mean, we wouldn't call someone, I don't know, chafing Chet because of a problem they had in college. Like, that's, we're adults. We wouldn't do that. That nickname wouldn't stick, right? Like, Simon went and got healed of leprosy. That guy went to the doctor.
It's fine. We're adults. We move on. I don't know why Matthew decided, I want to keep this name. Maybe they were friends and he wanted to mess with him for the next 2,000 plus years of this gospel being read. Regardless, that's who he is.
Simon the leper. And they're at his house. All right, here's what happens at his house. Verse 7. A woman came up to him with an alabaster flask, a very expensive ointment. And she poured it out on his head as he reclined at the table.
All right, so, let me pause. There's a lot of debate about this. It's gone back and forth. Some version of this story shows up in all four gospels. After spending some time with it, Chet and I looking at it this week, looking at different commentators, it seems that this story shows up in three of them and then one of them is separate. So, Matthew, Mark, and John seem to be describing this story that happened in Bethany.
All right? This happens in the gospel sometimes. They take different, they focus on different details of stories. They're told a little bit differently because these stories are being told thematically. They focus on different things. Luke has a different story of a woman coming to anoint Jesus.
That one seems to be a completely different situation altogether, which happens. You have a feeding of the 4,000 and the 5,000. You have some overlap and differences and similarities between stories. But when you look at this and you piece together Matthew, Mark, and John's accounts, you get a more full picture of what's happening here. So, John's gospel tells us that this woman is one of the Marys. All right?
There's a bunch of different Marys in the New Testament. It's confusing to keep up with who's who. This is one of the Marys. And Mark and John's gospel tell us what type of ointment this is. It's nard oil. So, nard oil, if you know it today as spike nard.
It's a very precious oil imported from India. It's very expensive. The amount that she brings to him is worth about an annual, a year's salary. I mean, it's a very expensive oil that she brings to him. And Mark's gospel doesn't say, I mean, it gives us more of a picture that she didn't use a little bit. She broke the jar open and she anointed his entire, all over him.
Matthew focuses on the head because there's a little bit of Matthew, what he does with David, some comparisons to David and kingship, anointing of the head. There's some Old Testament pictures there. Mark just talks about he's being covered with this oil. John goes with a different picture, focuses on the fact that she took her hair and she was scrubbing his feet with this oil. This is a deeply humbling admiration for Jesus because she could have grabbed some cheaper oils. Right?
There are cheaper oils out there. She could have gone and gotten something different. But no, she goes and she grabs what's probably the most expensive, most valuable thing that she has. And she goes and she grabs it. She looks at it and says, I know who deserves this. I know who's worthy of this.
Probably would have just sat in her house like fine china that's never used just to look at. She's like, I know who's getting this. And she brings it to Jesus. Jesus taught in Matthew 6.21. He says, For where your treasure is, your heart will be also. And it is clear.
This woman treasures Christ. Which shows the first heart posture that I want us to see this morning. And that is this. If Jesus is your treasure, you'll trade everything for Him. If Jesus is your treasure, you'll trade everything for Him. She treasures Christ.
And out of the overflow of her affection, her admiration, her really worship of Jesus, she devotes the most valuable thing for Him. She goes and she gets it and devotes it to Him. If you treasure Christ, you'll trade everything for Him. And we see that clearly in her actions. It's almost childlike. You get your child something for Christmas or for a birthday.
And they run upstairs and they go and they find the most valuable toy they have and they get excited and they come down and they bring it. I got you this. I mean, she treasures Christ. Her heart belongs to Him. I want you to picture the room and just smell it as she breaks in and she breaks the alabaster, beautiful alabaster jar. She breaks it and starts to anoint Him.
Just think of the smell that would just overwhelm you. Have you ever been to somebody's house that's been diffusing oils? And you walk in and it just knocks you back? That was a few drops of oil they put into a diffuser. And I know that they're the most essential, most precious, most well-sourced, purest oils in the world. But listen, that's a few drops.
This is a pound of expensive, fragrant oil and she just, she completely just anoints Him. I mean, it's a powerful display. It would knock you back to see this. And the disciples see this and they respond. Verse 8, and when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, why this waste? For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.
So, the disciples are indignant. They're angry. They are not happy at this. They break up the moment with a, well, actually, Jesus. Which I've, I've learned through personal experience that, well, actually, moments aren't received well. They're not appreciated by others.
I get excited and I bring in a well, actually, fact. They're like, oh, I actually just died inside. So, that's what this is. Well, actually, Jesus, this is really expensive oil. We just did the math. That's a year's worth of salary you just taught on, right?
To help the least of these among us. That could have helped a lot of least of these. So, they do this. John's gospel tells us that Judas, who we're going to learn more about in a moment, was leading the charge. But it says, and when the disciples saw it, they were indignant.
This is a collective mindset that this woman has come and she's wasted a lot of precious oil that could have been sold and helped a lot of people. To their credit, minimal credit, it's a jarring moment. She walks in. I mean, it's a lot to handle at once. And that is a very expensive gift. Right now, the elders and our toast team, that's our treasury and oversight sustainability team, they're the ones that oversee our finances.
We work together to put a budget together and that's what we're doing right now. We're putting together a budget because our annual budget runs from second quarter to first quarter so it'll start in April. So we're going back and forth, back and forth, back and forth because we care about stewarding our gifts and offerings well. So we're getting at the end of setting this budget and if someone just piped up and said, you know what, I think we should get Matt Freeman a gift. Let's get him a $40,000 guitar.
We'd go, no, that's insane. That's over the top. But Matt isn't Jesus and Jesus has a completely different take on this. Verse 10. But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, why do you trouble the woman?
For she has done a beautiful thing to me. For you will always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me. In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial. Truly, I say to you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her. Jesus does not see it as a waste. He sees it as beautiful.
Y'all, He knows the value of the ointment. He knows how to math. You know how we know this? He created math. He knows how to add. He knows what's happening here.
He sees the value. And He sees that it's beautiful. Because this comes at a very specific moment. There's two reasons why this is a beautiful display of affection and worship of Jesus. The first is very clearly seen in the text. This comes at one of the most pivotal moments in all of history.
Jesus is getting ready to go to the cross where He's going to be crucified for the sins of humanity. And then He'll be buried. And when they buried people back then, they anointed their bodies with oil. Whether she knows it or not, it's foreshadowing. It's just pointing forward. He's about to die.
He's about to be buried. It's a beautiful display. And it's foreshadowing. I love just in the details of how God works all of this together. That someone in India sourced this oil. They put it in a beautiful alabaster jar.
It was shipped and it made its way all the way to Israel. It ended up in a marketplace where she or someone else bought this for her and she put it on display for years for everyone to see. And then one day she encountered Jesus and He absolutely changed her world. And then later on she said, you know what? That belongs to Him. I will anoint His body because in God's sovereign plan this was to anoint His body in preparation for what's about to happen in just a few days. that's what's clearly on display but also it shows her heart that if you treasure if Jesus is your treasure you'll trade everything for Him.
She sees Jesus is worthy of this and Jesus says that is wonderful. That is good. This act of devotion will be remembered. He says, write it down. This is going John says of all the stories that be told about Jesus would fill all the books he's saying which means they had to choose which stories they wanted to focus on he says this one gets in. She will be remembered for her act.
So, story shifts again. Verse 14 Then one of the twelve whose name was Judas Iscariot went to the chief priests and said what will you give me if I deliver him over to you? And they paid him thirty pieces of silver and from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him. Jesus had twelve disciples twelve men that he poured into for three years twelve men that were his friends they ate countless meals together they camped out together they got to do ministry with Jesus see him perform miracles they got to perform miracles they got to be on the inside track of some of the most profound teaching that's ever been taught or ever will be taught for three years the twelve got to spend time with Jesus and then one of them says he's worth thirty pieces of silver he's worth it trade him out take the silver and I'll run thirty pieces of silver is about four months of wages so it is a little bit it is quite a bit of money but Judas says that's worth it we don't know much about actually let me say this for for group leaders those who have led groups I want you to hear me so clearly I know there have been moments where you've watched people turn their back on you stab you in the back where you've watched people walk away from Jesus and you've questioned yourself over and over and over again and I just want to say very clearly to you to lead groups and have led groups Jesus spent three years with twelve and one of them abandoned him and stabbed him in the back and sold him out and you're not better than Jesus so just receive some grace we don't know much about Judas we know that he was one of the twelve we know that he had the same experiences that the other disciples did we know from John's gospel he was the one that led the charge on why is this woman wasting this oil because what was happening was he was the treasurer okay he kept the money bags he wasn't concerned about helping the poor because he was actually helping himself to the money that came from that was given to Jesus' ministry so we know that he's greedy we know he's a thief you know he's deceptive but what we know most about him is really this act of betrayal that I mean I mean Judas that's you call someone a Judas you know you can be a hard atheist you know exactly what that means you're a backstabber you're a traitor you're a betrayer so no one names their kid Judas y'all know anybody named Judas?
You can be a hard atheist you know exactly what that means you're a backstabber you're a traitor you're a betrayer so no one names their kid Judas y'all know anybody named Judas? I don't that's on the black list of names you'd never name your kid that because we know what that means he's a traitor we don't know why Judas did this alright I mean we see that he's greedy
Some have theorized that it's possible that the religious leadership is closing in turning against Jesus we know from the context of the gospels that they assumed some type of political movement was going to happen in Jesus and they were very surprised when it didn't so maybe he just thought I need to get out while I can and get some money we don't know it's possible
It's a decent theory we don't know but you can see very clearly that ultimately one of the reasons why he did this is because he cared about himself and that really presents the second approach to Jesus second heart towards him if something else is your treasure you'll trade Jesus for it if something else is your treasure you will absolutely trade Jesus for it whether it was money
Or power or whatever Judas said it's worth it I'll trade Jesus for that so he sells Jesus out story shifts again verse 17 now on the first day of unleavened bread the disciples came to Jesus saying where will you have us prepare for you to eat the Passover he said go into the city to a certain man
And say to him the teacher says my time is at hand I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples and the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and they prepared the Passover alright so can't spend a lot of time here today we will spend some time next week because in this meal at the very end of it Jesus is going to institute the Lord's Supper communion so we'll spend time on that next week
But you at least need to know what the Passover meal is generally the Passover meal was basically a meal of remembrance it was like celebrating Independence Day it was a joyous meal it remembered that God saved his people from the Egyptians it's a joyous celebration so like every Passover meal that all of them have been in before the expectation is this is a joyous occasion and it turns very quickly into something very serious verse 20 when it was evening he reclined at the table
He reclined at table with the twelve and as they were eating he said truly I say to you one of you will betray me and they were very sorrowful and began to say to him to one another is it I Lord it says they were very sorrowful now that word sorrowful doesn't quite capture the emotions that are involved in this is deep sorrow shock
Confusion they are utterly confused and shocked that anyone amongst them would betray Jesus that can't be is it I Lord is it I Lord one by one is it I Lord they want to know is it me verse 23 he answered he who has dipped his hand in the dish will with me will betray me
The son of man goes as it is written of him but woe to that man by whom the son of man is betrayed it would have been better for that man if he had not been born Judas who would betray him answered is it I Rabbi he said to him you have said so he says is it I Rabbi he doesn't say is it I Lord he didn't see
Jesus as Lord he sees him as Rabbi a great teacher but not God is it I Rabbi Jesus confirms it yes it is you and shock had to set in and it says that they were greatly they were sorrowed couldn't believe this shock sets in in that moment and ultimately Judas made a decision that he thought was best for him
And it says it had been better had he never been born which is where we get that phrasing from there are two central figures in this series of stories this series of stories there is the woman Mary and there is Judas and there is two different heart approaches to Jesus the first if Jesus is your treasure you'll trade everything for him
That was her heart the second if something else is your treasure you'll trade Jesus for it the problem is is that when we see those two approaches it's very easy for us to distance ourselves from Judas we don't want to be like him we don't want to think of ourselves as anything remotely close to him but the reality
Is is that Judas Judas didn't always look like this Judas spent three he was a disciple he was more of an insider than a woman he looked the part he performed miracles he did good works he helped the poor he taught he was sent out by Jesus as a missionary he looked
Every bit the part so much so that when the eleven found out that one of them was going to betray him they couldn't believe it it's not possible they were greatly sorrowed at this it's hard for it's hard for me to wrap my mind around anyone who can walk away from Jesus I've witnessed over the years and I know it's going to continue to happen people that look
So much like a follower of Jesus people that seem like they were so deeply in love with him and they walk away and then I look at my own heart and I look at my life and how much of my own life is wrapped up in my own self-interest in my own idolatry and I look at this story and I just tremble and I plead
For repentance there's a song by a band called King's Kaleidoscope it's called What Have We Done in that song they say Judas sold you for thirty I'd have done it for less and that may seem to some as melodramatic but I would invite you to check your own heart and examine your own
Heart and realize the things that you treasure over Christ name your price if there's something else that you treasure you ultimately will trade Jesus for it so what are you trading right now what are you trading valuing above
Jesus is it success that's a big one in our culture people will go after success with everything in them a lot of times when we sort this out we talk about deep idols we talk about how power power idolatry is underneath this that it's pushing someone to pursue success at all
Costs they'll steamroll anybody that gets in their way sacrifice their energy their time their effort their money their identity in order to get it because that's the thing they value over Christ at all costs we'll get it and then someone tries to point out hey man I haven't seen you at group a lot lately I haven't seen you on Sundays and it's like
No I'm busy I'm working I've got this I'm doing that and people try to point hey man I think you're valuing this too much you're like no you start boxing people out you've treasured something above Christ if something else is your treasure you will trade Jesus for for others that's sex maybe that's living with your boyfriend or your girlfriend or sleeping
Around and ultimately what comes out of that is this is what makes me happy this person makes me happy and a lot of times when we're working through deep idols like that there might be some approval idolatry that's happening there that you give yourself away to someone because that that means you feel loved like no Jesus is actually
Better don't do this this happens with sexuality someone will say well pedestal this and say no this is the most important thing I could possibly pursue and we're trying to say no this is what the Bible says and someone says I don't care what the Bible says if you treasure something else
Above him you will trade Jesus for it in the end we do this with comfort talk about that as an idol a deep idol beneath all the rest it's the reason why people pursue pleasure that if I can just get comfort in this world whether that's drunkenness whether that's drugs whether that's sensuality
Whether that's pornography if I can just fill up this void life is hard it's full of pain and misery if I can just cover up the pain with a little more pleasure I'll be okay and then someone comes in and says no that's not good that won't actually bring you hope you keep going back to it
It will not satisfy it never brings comfort maybe the kind of person that doesn't like to ever be disturbed doesn't like anyone point out anything in your life everyone bends their will towards you because they don't want to make you angry because your life is about comfort and at the end of the day
You just want to do you and nobody is going to tell you how to live your life if you treasure that above Christ you will trade him for it or maybe it's just you worship yourself it's very clear that's part of what Judas was doing he worshiped himself
Maybe you're so obsessed with your own image to others I feel this there's some control idolatry in this that you got to be all things to different people you got to make sure that you're putting on the best face you got to put on different
Masks you got to control your image you got to control all the things in front of you ultimately you're worshiping yourself this happens with self righteousness ultimately in self righteousness you do a bunch of good works I got to make sure I
Check every box I got to make sure I'm doing all the good things if I don't do all the good things everything's going to fall apart you're not worshiping Jesus you're worshiping yourself maybe the kind of person that values your
Time above others that if anyone infringes upon your time you're not happy maybe it's production I got to get stuff done and it doesn't matter who gets in the way as long as I get the tasks done I go on and on and on I just I want us
To be honest what are you clinging to right now I want you to think about it I want the spirit to go to work on your heart what are you treasuring what are you clinging to above Christ think of it I want you to heed the warning you are already on your way
To the council you are already on your way to collect the silver you are already on your way to trade out Jesus for it and it will destroy you listen Jesus is on a collision course with your idolatry he is on a collision course with my idolatry with my sin and my
Hope this morning is that we see this woman we see her heart and we say I want that I mean that's when I look at the story I want that heart I want to be so deeply in love with Jesus that no as he starts pointing out things
That I'm like that's fine it's yours point it out whatever I find most valuable whatever idolatry that I'm so clinging to I'll go and I'll get it and I will break it before your feet take it that I want the heart of this woman Jesus you want my time you want my money you want my
Future you want my identity point it out I will take it and I will bring it and I will break it before your feet you are worth it I want this heart and for our church I want us to have this heart that we would lay anything that we're clinging to above him anything that we're treasuring above him we lay it at his feet because he's better that's why we say it every week Jesus is better than everything else
Because if you don't believe that if we don't treasure Christ with everything in us you won't make it you will walk away and my hope is that we wouldn't be Judas but we'd be this woman and we come to Jesus in repentance and in worship Matt's going to come up and he is going to sing a song over us it's a song that you're not
Familiar with and I just I want you to just listen to the words and I want you to let the spirit go to work on your heart some of you have actually never treasured Christ you've never actually treasured him and I want this morning for you to finally see that he's better than whatever you're clinging to
I want you to believe I want you right now to come to him to lay your life down completely before him and I want you to respond and believe for the rest of us I want us to if you love if you follow Jesus I want you to to sit in this moment
And ask the Holy Spirit to go to work on your heart it's not if you cling to things you do it's not if you treasure other things you do and I want you to let him go to work on your heart
And I want you to bring it to him I want you to go to find the idols in your heart the things you're treasuring and worship above him and bring it to him it's a daily pursuit of Jesus where we do this y'all this sounds
Familiar for a reason because we have to keep dying to our own self and to our own sin and bringing our idols and bringing the things we treasure to him this week in groups I want you to go to your groups
And I want you to be vulnerable I want you to bring your sin and bring your idolatry I want you to let others call you out and I want us to respond in repentance I want us to have the heart of this woman I want us to come in our brokenness and our weakness because the
Spirit's power is made perfect in our weakness and we are a weak and needy people but we have a sufficient and glorious God who's worthy of our worship so in this moment may we be a people who see a need for Jesus and repent
And behold Jesus like this woman is
The Sheep and the Goats (Matthew 25:31-46)
Use this guide to help your group discussion as you meet this week.
Transcript
SYSTEMukan Well, good morning. My name is Chet. I'm one of the pastors here. I think one of the mistakes we often make in reading the Bible is that we read it as if it is about us. And so you'll see that people read the scriptures and they're just looking for where do I show up in here? How is this about me?
How ought I to respond that it's somehow just a book of morals? And the reality is that the Bible is primarily not about you, but it's about Christ. It's about what God has done in the world on your behalf. And that is extremely good news. That having been said, today we're going to read a Bible story that has you in it. That you're in here.
And what we're going to look at is Jesus prophesies in his last kind of major discourse in the Gospel of Matthew. As he's going to tell us about the end and we're there. And this prophecy will either be a joyous, glorious occasion for you or it will be terrible. And Jesus in his last major teaching in the Gospel of Matthew really goes hard after trying to declare to his disciples that you ought to be ready when he returns. And that you ought to live in such a way that you know that the end will come. That Christ will judge and inaugurate his reign and that we ought to be prepared for that day.
So let's pray together as we then turn to Matthew chapter 25 to study the word together. God, I pray that you would in this moment this morning that you would help us to see ourselves clearly. Lord, I pray that you would help us to see you even more clearly. That we might fix our eyes on you. That we might see what you have done and what you will do and that we might respond accordingly. So we ask for your grace.
We ask for the powerful work of your spirit. We pray that you'd bless this time we have together this morning. In Jesus' name. Amen. So we're in Matthew chapter 25.
Matthew has 28 chapters. So we're coming on the tail end of this. And it's taken us almost no time at all. We've breezed right through this. Matthew chapter 25. We're going to pick up in verse 31.
So in this section, Jesus is answering a question that his disciples had asked him. They said, he had prophesied the destruction of the temple. And they said, when will this be? When will these things be? And what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age? And so Jesus is answering that question.
And this is the last part of that answer. And he says, when the son of man comes in his glory and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations. And he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. Jesus refers to himself as the son of man. This whole time he's been referring to the coming of the son of man.
So they ask, when is your coming? And he refers to it as the coming of the son of man. And so he's clearly saying that when I return, when I, Jesus return, I will sit in glory, all my angels with me. So he's very definitively declaring himself to be king and judge of the whole world. I think it's silly sometimes when you hear people say, well, you know, Jesus was a good teacher, but he never really claimed to be God. Oh, yeah, he did.
Just read it. He aggressively claims that he's going to return with all of his angels, that he's going to sit on a throne, that he's going to judge the world. He says he will sit on a glorious throne and before him will be gathered all the nations. That's you. You're there. The word nations there means it's not our word nation like nation states.
It's not USA and Canada. We're not going to be sitting there chanting USA. It's not that's not going to happen. Or Ozzy, Ozzy, Ozzy, whatever you might chant. It's not that it means all people groups, all tribes, all tongues, all languages. Everyone is there.
And then he says he he makes a distinction one from another. Meaning that this is a personal distinction. You will be there as an individual and you as an individual will go one direction or another. He will separate us one from another. And it says as a shepherd might separate sheep and goats. I am not a shepherd.
I don't think you are either. But we can tell the difference between sheep and goats. The distinction on that day for Christ will be very clear. He will be able to see clearly which is which. And so he separates as he Judges all peoples. Verse 33.
And he will place the sheep on his right but the goats on the left. And we'll find out later that you want to be on the right. You want to be among the sheep. And that's a metaphor that Jesus uses on a regular basis. Is that those who belong to him are sheep. That he is the good shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep.
That his sheep know him. They know his voice and they follow him. That he has a pasture. He has a fold that belong to him. And so his sheep are his church. Those who belong to Christ.
Those for whom he has died. And he separates them. And he puts the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. And again that's just a picture. These are people. Verse 34.
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. Oh what a beautiful day to be on the right hand of Christ. That he will come with all of his angels.
In all of his glory. That he will seat himself on a throne. As king and eternal ruler. That he will have all peoples gathered in front of him. Who have ever lived. We're all going to be there.
And then through his power. Or through the work of his angels or something. He's going to begin to separate us. And there's no at that point being like. I think I'm on the wrong side. I want to be.
Like you do what you're told. And we're going to be separated. And we're going to be before this glorious throne. And then he's going to turn and look. To those on his right. And he's going to say.
Come. You blessed by my father. Inherit the kingdom. Prepared for you. From the foundation of the world. What a beautiful day.
Can you see that? Can you feel what that would be like. For just a moment. To be in front of King Jesus. In all of his glory. And him to welcome you.
And to call you blessed. And to say that there's a kingdom. That's been prepared for you. Since the foundation of the world. That's what Ephesians tells us. That he chose us in him.
Before the foundation of the world. That he's preparing this place for us. That his original design. Was that we would live with him in Eden. That we would belong to him. That we would be his people.
And that got broken. And that got lost. Through sin. But that Christ has come to redeem a people. That might belong to him again. That might get to live in his kingdom.
That he's been preparing. His ultimate desire this entire time. That awaits those who know him. And love him. And have been redeemed by him. Verse 35.
He says. 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. Then the righteous. This is the first time we're told this. But those on his right. Are righteous. They are holy.
They are good. Then the righteous will answer him. Saying. 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 do we see you sick. Or in prison. And visit you. Now Jesus is prophesying. I don't know. It seems really bold.
To say that. Like if I'm on his right. In that day. And he says. You're blessed. You've done all these things.
I'm not going to go. I don't think I did. I don't want to call you out. But I should be on the other side. Just be blessed guys. Like just.
But there. There's this response. That they have. It's like. I don't know. When did.
When did this happen? When did we see you. And respond. This way. And the king. Will answer them.
Truly I say to you. As you did it. To one of the least of these. My brothers. You did it. To me.
Now that phrase. My brothers. Is. Very important. To understanding this passage. This is often taught.
That the least of these. Just means. Everybody who is. Hungry or hurting. Or. Poor or destitute.
But. That phrase. My brothers. And some translations. Will say. That you did.
To my brothers. Or sisters. Even the least of them. Even the smallest of them. You did to me. That phrase.
My brothers. That's only used. In the gospel of Matthew. For two types. Of brothers and sisters. Physical bloodline.
Brothers and sisters. Or. Disciples. Those who belong. To Christ. So.
There's even a place. Matthew 12. It says. That they. Come to him. And they say.
Your mother. And brothers. And sisters. Are here. And he says. Who is my brother.
My mother. And who are my brothers. And stretching out his hands. Toward his disciples. He said. Here.
Are my mother. And my brothers. For whoever does the will. Of my father in heaven. Is my brother. And sister.
And mother. In Matthew 28. After his resurrection. He says. Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers.
To go to Galilee. And they will see me. This picture of the church. Being brothers and sisters. Being a family in Christ. Is the predominant picture.
Given to us. In the New Testament. And it seems as if. Jesus is. Clarifying. That this was done.
Not specifically to. Not in general. To anyone who was destitute. But specifically to those. Who belong to him. And he's reiterating an idea.
That we see in Matthew 10. Where Jesus is sending out his disciples. And he says. Whoever receives you. Receives me. And whoever receives me.
Receives him who sent me. So he's telling his disciples. If they will receive you. If they'll accept you. They receive me. And as he keeps going.
In verse 42. He says. And whoever gives one of these little ones. Even a cup of cold water. Because he is a disciple. Truly I say to you.
He will by no means. Lose his reward. So it seems as if. Jesus is pulling that same idea. To here. And saying.
That these are the people. Who loved and received. Those who belong to Christ. That they loved and received. The church. That this is not.
Just being nice to everyone. In general. There's a couple of things. To say about that. One. You are supposed to be nice.
To everyone in general. Jesus tells us. Specifically. Pointedly. There are three groups of people. We're supposed to love.
We're supposed to love. The brothers. We're supposed to love. Those who belong to Christ. And specifically. To do things for them.
Because they belong to Christ. We're supposed to love. Our neighbors. And his story. The good Samaritan says. Everyone's your neighbor.
And we're supposed to love. Our enemies. Those who belong to Jesus. Those who you come in contact with. Those who are your enemies. That's who we're called to love.
You don't know anyone. Who's not in one of those categories. So this. Highlighting. And specifying. That he is talking to those.
About those who belong to Christ. Is not. To say. That we don't have to. Oh good. We don't have to help other people.
But it is to help us understand. What he's saying. In this. Passage. That's what he says. In John 13 34.
He says. A new commandment. I give to you. That you love. One another. Just as I have loved you.
You are also to love. One another. By this. This love for one another. All people will know. That you are my disciples.
If you have love. For one. Another. That there is a distinct. And special. Love.
In the church. For those who belong to Christ. I was a. When I was in college. I was an intern. At a church.
In Lawrence. South Carolina. The pastor was. Out one Sunday. There was a guest. Pastor coming to preach.
And I was his handler. I was to show up early. And help him get his microphone. And show him where things were. Be his friend. So I did that.
He was an older gentleman. Big old guy. Real country. And after everything got started. And you know. I just went and sat down.
I was in the front. First or second row. Sitting next to my wife. And she takes notes. She has real pretty handwriting. And she.
When someone is preaching. She will write down the date. She will write down who it is. If she knows her name. She will put. If they have a sermon title.
She will put that in quotations. At the top. Or she will start writing. Real kind of pretty writing. The kind of the passage. That they are coming from that day.
And that morning. He. He was going to preach from this. John 13 34. And he says. He says.
Now God. Says. That we are supposed to love. One another. And we are supposed to love our enemies. And we are supposed to love our neighbors.
But I am here today. To tell you. Who we supposed. To love. Special. I was paying attention.
And then I glanced over at her notes. And she had written in parenthesis. Who we supposed to love special. Y'all. I lost it. I'm on the second row.
It's just. I was like. That's an excellent title for a sermon. Who we supposed to love special. And I'm going. It's bad.
You can't let me and my wife hang out with each other. We cause trouble. But. It wasn't a good look. It's not my best day. But I did sit and laugh.
For a full like seven minutes. Because I couldn't get it together. If I could have just laughed a little bit out loud. It would have been fine. But I had to.
But Jesus here. I think is saying the same thing. That there is a. Who we supposed to love special. That we are supposed to have a specific. Reception.
And love. And grace. Towards those who belong to Christ. And there is something in that idea. Of who those who receive you. Receive me.
And those who receive me. Receive him who sent me. That same idea. That if we. Love and receive the church. And those who will love.
And receive those who belong to Christ. Will ultimately love and receive Christ. And will ultimately get the father. That's why he. We want to be good missionaries. And that's why we talk about.
We've been sent out as the church. Because if people will receive us. They'll eventually receive Christ. And if they'll get Christ. They get the father. So he says.
That to those. On his right. Verse 41. Then he will say. To those on his left. Depart from me.
You cursed. Into the eternal fire. Prepared for the devil. And his angels. Depart. From me.
You cursed. Into the eternal fire. Prepared for the devil. And his angels. The kingdom. You will be here.
On that day. We will be in front of a glorious. And fearful king. And he will look at some. And say. Welcome.
You blessed. Come inherit the kingdom. And he will look at others. And say. Depart from me. You cursed.
Into the eternal fire. You are. Prepared for the devil. And his angels. The kingdom. Is prepared for those.
Who will receive it. Those who end up. In hell. Have joined. The enemy. Hell was not prepared.
For you. Hell was prepared. For the devil. And his angels. And it is a place. Of eternal punishment.
For him. I don't know. What you have seen. On cartoons. Or TV shows. Or movies.
Satan does not hang out. In hell. And he does not enjoy it. When he eventually goes there. He is not the ruler. Of hell.
Christ. Is the ruler of hell. And he has prepared it. For the devil. And his angels. But those who do not.
Submit to Christ. Do not love Christ. Do not follow Christ. Have not been redeemed. By Christ. Will join.
The enemy. In his punishment. And it is a place. Of eternal fire. There is a glorious kingdom. Prepared.
From the beginning. Of the world. And there is a place. Of eternal punishment. And everyone. On that day.
Will be sent. One way or the other. And if you. Have not considered this. I plead with you. To consider this.
If you have not. Wrapped your mind around. There will be a day. When you see. Jesus. And that will be.
A beautiful. Glorious day. Or that will be. A terrible. Frightening. Awful day.
I ask you to see this. And he'll say. 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. Then they also. Will answer. Saying. 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. Then he will answer them. Saying. 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.
And these will go away. Into eternal punishment. But the righteous. Into eternal life. Your soul. Was meant.
To live for eternity. And your soul. Will. Live. Beyond your body. All of our bodies.
Are failing. All of them. And they fail more. And more. Over time. And the older you get.
The more you have discussions. With people your age. About how your body. Is failing you. It's just how it is. Little kids.
Heal up. Like magic. Overnight. They heal right up. High school. You heal up pretty quick.
College. You heal up pretty quick. Then you start getting injuries. And you're like. I rolled my ankle. Fifteen years ago.
And it is somehow. Still rolled. It has not unrolled itself. And the older you get. The more you will sit around. And discuss with people.
All the things that are wrong with you. Your body is failing you. This is God's grace. A simple. A simple. A simple.
Gracious reminder. That you will one day meet him. That your body will not last forever. But your soul will. And I want you to see. That these two locations are eternal.
Eternal punishment. Or eternal life. That you will be sent. Somewhere that is. Terrible. Or somewhere that is.
Glorious. And I think it's. A very valid question. For us to try to understand. What is this passage saying. And how might I end up.
On the right. Oh. If this is true. I want to be among the sheep. First thing I want us to see. We ought to take away from this passage.
Is that Jesus will return. To judge the world. There is a day. When everything will be called to account. When you will stand before him. Final judgment will be passed.
And it will be done. Based off of. King Jesus's desires. Not ours. Not our method for fairness. Not what we think ought to happen.
There will be no. Appeal court. I know we're Americans. And we don't like. Monarchies. But Jesus is a king.
And there is no overruling him. He will return. To judge the world. And you need to see that clearly. Secondly. The thing we have to understand.
From this passage. Because this passage. Taken on its own. Removed from it. The context of the rest. Of scripture.
Can lead us. In an odd direction. So the second thing. We're going to spend our time on. This morning. Is that we do not earn.
Righteousness. But we do display it. If you are in Christ. We do not earn righteousness. But we do display it.
The righteous. Will dwell. With Christ. For eternity. So another way of saying that.
Is we do not earn. Our salvation. But we do. Display it. If you took. Just this passage.
On its own. You better run outside. And feed some hungry people. Because all he's going to do. Is keep up with. Whether or not you've done that.
But that would be. To negate the rest of scripture. That says that you do not. Earn salvation. I want to show my work. Romans.
Chapter 3. Paul says. What then? Are we Jews. Any better off? No.
Not at all. He's reading. He's talking about Jews. They've been given the law. They've been told. How they ought to act.
But he says. For we have already charged. That all. Both Jews and Greeks. Are under sin. As it is written.
None is righteous. Okay. So now we have a contradiction. Because he says. You righteous. Welcome to the kingdom.
But the scriptures also say. None is righteous. So it's as if. Jesus is saying. On that day. I will separate the sheep.
From the goats. Oh. No sheep. It says. None is righteous. No.
Not one. No one understands. No one seeks for God. All have turned aside. Together they have become worthless. No one does good.
Not even one. Sound like you and your family? Sounds like mine. For by works of the law. No human being will be justified. That means made right.
In his sight. So those who are justified. Are righteous. But he says. No one will be. Not by works of the law.
Since through the law. Comes knowledge of sin. So that if you learn all the rules. All it does. Is show you your wickedness. But then Jesus says.
In the very next sentence. The very next thing. That he comes out of his mouth. In chapter 26. If we look at that in Matthew. It says.
When Jesus had finished. When Jesus had finished. All these sayings. He said to his disciples. You know that after two days. The Passover is coming.
And the son of man. Will be delivered up. To be crucified. So Jesus says. In Matthew chapter 25. Something that seems as if.
He's declaring to us. That we ought to go out. And earn our salvation. And then the next words. Out of his mouth. Are I'm going to the cross.
And then. As we see this carried out. Into the rest of the New Testament. We begin to understand. What's going on. Galatians 2 21.
Also Paul. He says. I do not nullify. The grace of God. Meaning unearned favor. That's what grace is.
For if righteousness. Were through the law. It's good behavior. Good actions. Then Christ died.
For no purpose. So whatever. Anybody says. What God wants from us. Is to be a good person. That's what Jesus came.
To teach us how to be moral. The question I always ask them. Is then why did he die? What is the purpose of the cross? Because if he just wants. You to be a good person.
And that's all it takes. What was the purpose of the cross? Paul says. No purpose at all. If the point is for you. To be moral.
We would nullify grace. And Christ would die. For no purpose. Titus 3 5. He saved us. Not because of works.
Done by us. In righteousness. But according to his own mercy. By the washing of regeneration. And the renewal of the Holy Spirit. Or Philippians 3.
I have suffered the loss of all things. And count them as rubbish. In order that I may gain Christ. And be found in him. Not having a righteousness of my own. That comes from the law.
But that which comes through faith in Christ. The righteousness of God. That depends on faith. So if we're to read this. With the rest of the New Testament in mind. We would look and say.
Those who are on his right. Those who are his sheep. Are those who have the righteousness of Christ. Applied to their account. Through faith. By grace.
Through the work of Jesus. But they have not earned this on their own. But Jesus says. He'll look at them and say. Welcome. You've done good things.
You see. Jesus in this passage. These things are not in contradiction with one another. Jesus in this passage. If you understand the rest of the New Testament. Is talking about the fruit of salvation.
Not the root of salvation. He's talking about what the root of salvation. Eventually leads to. Which is fruit. That those who have been made righteous by Christ. Display righteousness.
So we do not earn our righteousness. But we do display it. This is what he says in Matthew 7. Beware of false prophets. Who come to you in sheep's clothing. But inwardly are ravenous wolves.
You will recognize them. By their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorn bushes. Or figs from thistles. So every healthy tree bears good fruit.
But the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit. Nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit. Is cut down. And thrown into the fire.
Thus you will recognize them by their fruits. So Jesus can look at those on his right. Call them righteous. And declare. And refer to their good works. Because they are the outworking.
Of his righteous work in them. 1 John 3.10 By this it is evident. Who are the children of God. Okay. So there is evidence.
Someone says I belong to Jesus. There ought to be evidence. You ought to be able to watch their life. And go yeah. Seems like it. This is one of the reasons.
Why we do membership through community groups. Some of the reasons we do membership through community groups. Is that we want to care for you. And if you are not in a group. We don't really have a way to do that. But some of the reasons we do membership through community groups.
When we do membership class. We just tell you things. And then we send you off to your group. And your group has to co-sign whether or not you are a member. Because in membership class. In our membership commitment.
You are saying I believe these things. And if you go back to your group. And say I want to be a member. And your group can go. You don't believe those things. We love you.
No. We want you to believe those things. But we know you well enough to know. That this isn't showing up in your life. We want to walk this out with you. We want to help hold you to this.
It says by this it is evident. Who are the children of God. And who are the children of the devil. Okay. So those who belong to Christ.
And those who belong to the enemy. Whoever does not practice righteousness. Is not of God. Nor is the one who does not love his brother. If it doesn't show up. You don't belong to him.
Verse 14. As he continues. He says we know that we have passed out of death. Into life. Because we love the brothers. Do you love the church?
He says we know that we belong to Jesus. Because we love the brothers. Do you? Whoever does not love. Abides in death. Everyone who hates his brother.
Is a murderer. And you know that no murderer. Has eternal life abiding in him. Meaning that if you do not care. For the church. You do not love those who belong to Jesus.
That you hate them. They bother you. They frustrate you. And you don't overcome that with forgiveness and grace. But you just turn from them.
He says that you've got death abiding in you. By this we know love. That he laid down his life for us. Oh he gives us a picture of love. Full sacrifice. That he laid down his life for us.
Some of you say I would love the church. But it's really hard. And they're very aggravating. Yes. It's going to feel a lot like dying. To love the church.
That's how we know love. That he laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world's goods. And sees his brother in need. Yet closes his heart against him.
How does God's love abide in him? Well that's a sentence. Just pulled directly from what Jesus just said. That he's going to look at. Those who belong to him and say. I know you belong to me.
Because of look at what you did. Look at how you responded to those in need. And that's why. John can say. If you have the world's goods. And you see a brother in need.
And you don't respond. How do you have love in you? If you can see them. And just turn. And don't care. How do you have love in you?
How is it there? If you don't care. And those who abide in Christ. Abide in love. So James 2.
What good is it my brothers. If someone says he has faith. But does not have works. Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed. And lacking in daily food.
And one of you says to them. Go in peace. Be warmed and filled. Without giving them the things needed for the body. What good is that? So also.
Faith by itself. If it does not have works. Is dead. One of the things we talk about in this church. Is that we want to be gospel centered. We want to be gospel fluent.
We want to know how the gospel applies to life. And we want to point each other back to Christ. In all things. And I think there's a danger for us sometimes. To someone struggling in our group. Someone's in need in our group.
And we just encourage them. Just know that the Lord cares for you. He loves you. He'll provide for you. We know that. Because Jesus came.
And he died. And he provided everything for us. And you leave. And you're like. I blessed them. Because I gave them the gospel.
And James says. Yeah. Did you help him pay the bill? Did you help him pay the bill? Or did you just tell him Jesus was good? Because if he's not good in you.
To help you be the church. So they might receive you. So they might receive him. So they might know the father. If he's not in you. What faith is that?
Oh it's dead. Oh it's dead. And so if you are saying. I belong to Christ. I've been made righteous by Christ. My tree is renewed.
I have the root of salvation. Then Christ can look at you and say. Yes. Show me the fruit of salvation. Do you love? Do you care?
Do you sacrifice? Do you welcome? Do you welcome? Do you pay attention? Do you listen? Do you pray?
Do you give? Has the root of salvation. If you're saying it's the root. It means it's the absolute core of you. And if it's the absolute core of you. If he's gone to work on the inside of you.
To make you righteous. Now it'll be a mess sometimes. And there are seasons. That's why I love that it's fruit. There are seasons where it takes a while. There are seasons where it doesn't show up.
The way you want it to. But long enough. It's going to show up. And so if you say. This is the core of me. That I belong to Jesus.
One of the questions is. Okay. Is that reflected in the outer part of you? Is it reflected in your wallet? Is it reflected in your time? Is it reflected in how you love and care for the church?
Do you have time for those who are in need? Do you? Do you? Do you? Do you? Do you?
Do you? Do you? If not. John says. The love of God does not abide in you. James says.
Your faith is dead. And Christ says. Depart from me you cursed. I think too often. We have pitched Christianity. We have understood Christianity.
We have understood being a Christian. And being a faithful Christian. As all the things we do not do. Depending on your age group. What church you grew up in. Christians don't dance.
They don't watch movies. Christians don't dress a certain way. Christians don't talk a certain way. The joke I always had growing up. Was they don't drink smoke or chew. Or date girls that do.
Christians don't sleep around. Well. Okay. I have heard a pastor say. That he. Had a friend.
Who had a dog. That was. 15 years old. And that dog. Laid on the floor. In his friend's house.
And he said. Often it seemed like. The way we describe Christianity. My friend's dog. Was a. A beautiful.
Wonderful picture. Of a good Christian. Because he didn't do. Do anything. And if all Christians. Are.
People who don't do things. Then that dog. Was excellent. But Christ says. He's going to look at the church. And say.
You did. Do. Things. I think. Too often. We've thought of Christianity.
As not only the things. That I don't do. But a bunch of little. Personal activities. That we do. Read my Bible.
I pray. Those are excellent. They're good. The reason you need to read your Bible. Is so you'll read stuff like this. And if you just read it.
And go. Hmm. Good point. Thanks Jesus. And close your Bible. Or turn your little phone app off.
And move on. Without. Doing the things. James says. It's like someone who looks in a mirror. Sees that their hair is messed up.
Sees they have mustard on their face. And then walks away. And doesn't do anything. With what they saw. The reason we pray. The reason we read the Bible.
Is so that we might be the people. That have been sent out in the world. To display Christ. To have righteousness. Dwell in us. And exude from us.
And all the things that Christ lists us here. Are relational. Do you love? Do you care? Oh. Do you care?
Oh. And it's a beautiful picture. He says. I was hungry. And you gave me food. I was thirsty.
And you gave me drink. Christians provide physical needs. Pay for groceries. Buy meals. And when we do that. We're displaying the gospel at work.
In our heart. Because Jesus says. Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. That he'll satisfy. And so that we know. We've been satisfied.
Of our deepest longest. Deepest longing of our hearts. Our hunger and our thirst. To be made right. And so therefore. We respond.
In caring for others. Physical short term needs. He says. I was a stranger. And you welcomed me. That we're supposed to be hospitable.
That we're supposed to open our houses. For people to stay with us. And to eat with us. I was thinking yesterday. I know sometimes people are like. Yeah but what if.
Like what if I pick up a hitchhiker. Or what if I have someone to come in the house. And they hurt me. This is much easier for me to think through. Personally. Than for my family.
So I'm just going to think through it personally. But I was thinking. If I was by myself. And I picked up a hitchhiker. And he killed me. That's kind of a good way to meet the Lord y'all.
That's what I thought yesterday. There's a real good chance. I'm going to be doing something stupid. When I die. This one felt pretty good. Be like.
Yeah Lord. I was just doing that hospitality stuff. You talked about. But that we would. Welcome people. This is.
People who come down. And do summer internships with us. This is missionaries. This is refugees. This is orphans. That we would have strangers.
Who belong to Jesus. And we would welcome them. Just because they belong to Jesus. And we'd say. Hey. We're all going to share a big table.
In eternity. Come share my table with me right now. He says. I was naked. And you clothed me. They were exposed.
They lacked. Everything. Everything. That they needed. He said. You clothed me.
Do we care when we hear about. Tragedies in other countries. Do we care when we hear about it in other states. Do we care that there are people in our city. Who are wearing the same thing over and over again. That we.
That they need. Clothing. We were exposed. We were naked. We were uncovered in our shame. And Christ came.
And he was stripped naked. And exposed. So that he might take our shame. So that we might be clothed in his righteousness. You absolutely better believe that Christ. That Christians respond.
To soul level clothing. By simple. Earthly. Caring about the needs of others. There's a beautiful picture of the gospel. It says.
I was sick. And you visited me. I've been so blessed in this church. When I've seen some of our older members. There's two ladies in our church. Who at different times.
Would gather up gift bags. And gift baskets. And they would go travel around. And they would visit every single person. That's homebound or shut in. Just to care for them.
I mean there have been days. Where I heard that story. And I went and just sat in my office. And I thanked Jesus. That he was good. That he works in people.
That their hearts so love him. That they so love each other. There have been pictures of people. Who have been hurt. And gotten to go live. With another church family member.
There have been pictures of people. Who have run out of money. And church families come together. To pay for hospital bills. Medical bills. Buy vehicles.
And it's this beautiful picture. Of these people actually believe. They actually belong to Christ. That's why he says. The world will know. That you're my disciples.
By the way you love. One another. He says. I was in prison. And you came to me. There are a lot of inmates.
Who have placed their faith in Christ. This is also. It's weird. I don't really want people in my house. Yeah. But we had Christ go to a cross for us.
He died so that we might be redeemed. So that we might live out a picture of that. So yeah. Christians do a bunch of stuff they don't want to do. And yes. There's also a bunch of stuff we'd like to do.
That we don't do. But that's not our primary marker. They were meant to be people who love. And who so. Are so in love with Christ. And so see what he's done for us.
That we respond. You see. We do not earn our righteousness. But we do display it. And that means there's a very important distinction here. As you consider this.
And I would call on you to consider this. I'm calling you to consider this today. I'm calling you to consider it this week. I'm calling you to read this passage. And look over it. Because the reality is.
You want to be among the sheep. But if you look at your life. If you look in the mirror. And you see that there is no fruit of righteousness. The response is not. I better do better.
Oh I better start serving. I better get it together. If there is no fruit of righteousness. Then your faith is dead. There is no love in your heart. And you need Christ.
And you need his righteousness. To go to work on the root. So that then the fruit might be displayed. Now some of you are going. I see where the Lord is at work here. And I see where the Lord is at work here.
And I really do grow in hospitality. I really do need to add some of this to my life. And I need to be repentant. And asking the Lord to help me see this. But if you're looking at this.
And you walk out of here. And your only response is. I'm going to do better. I'm going to try harder. And then I will earn my salvation. And my righteousness.
That is not how it works. You are a sinner. In need of a savior. Who redeems you. And then righteousness. Blooms out.
Like fruit. Fruit. But if you have a tree. That doesn't grow fruit. You don't go to the spots. Where fruit should be.
And try to fix it there. The root's got to be okay. It's got to have water. It's got to have all these. Actual nutrients. Before it can.
Grow up and do what it's supposed to. The band is going to come back up. My hope is that we would hear well. The words of Christ. In his last major teaching. That you would know that a judgment is coming.
That an eternity is coming. That it is real. That it is coming for all of us. Sooner than we think. That's one of the primary things. That he goes after in this.
When will it come? Sooner than you think. And oh may we respond. In repentance. Receiving the grace that is offered. And then by Christ's righteousness.
A work in us. May we look like these people. And grow in our love for each other. And for our neighbors. And for our enemies. But I pray the Lord would help us.
To love each other special. Let's pray. God we thank you for your grace. Lord we will all see you on that day. And we eagerly await. For you to arrive as our glorious king.
But Lord may we be ready. For those here this morning. That have no love. Who would say they have faith. But by their life it is displayed as dead.
We pray that they would come to you. To be made new. That they would plead with you. To redeem them. To be righteous. In their place.
That you would forgive them of their sins. And make them whole. We pray that we would all grow. In displaying the fruit of righteousness. Which is a genuine love. For those around us.
May we see you. And your love. And may it empower us. To sacrifice. To give. To care.
To be put out. For the sake of others. As you were put out. Cast out. And destroyed. For our sake.
In Jesus name. Amen.