We say we believe in Jesus and that we love Him right? Wouldn’t we want to know his last message to his followers before being taken away to be hung on the Cross? In His last message before His crucifixion Jesus spoke of His return and explained in clear detail what would take place: He said that He would gather all nations and divide the sheep (His followers) and the goats (those who refused to keep His words) and He will know who His true followers are by a particular distinction:
“But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at 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 creation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’
“Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’
“And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’
“Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’
“Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’
“And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’
“And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.” Mathew 25:31-46.
Then He continued: “When Jesus had finished saying all these things, he said to his disciples, “As you know, Passover begins in two days, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.” Mathew 26:1,2
What’s interesting to me is that after His resurrection He appeared to them for 40 days teaching and proving that it was truly Him by performing many signs, wonders and miracles. And when He left to go sit at the right hand of God the Father, His church, His true followers got busy doing what He told them before going to the Cross. James says in chapter 2 that the followers of Jesus will put action to their faith. And it all goes back to Jesus command: Love one another as I have loved you. This Love He is talking about is not just a word or a feeling, it’s having compassion and mercy on others. How? “I was hungry and you fed Me…” James says “Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.” James 2: 15-17
In conclusion: As you think about Jesus this Easter weekend, remember His words and what it means to Love one another. If you encounter the hungry, thirsty, naked, fatherless, homeless, don’t pass by. Don’t ignore them and act like it’s not our responsibility. Let’s keep His commandment and show our faith in Him by the Love we have for one another.
