November 19, 2017 Matthew 25:31-46 Seeing Jesus

24^th Sunday after Pentecost  We see Jesus everyday in the face of those deeply in need. Psalter Reading Psalm 123:1-4

1 Unto You I lift up my eyes, O You who dwell in the heavens. 2Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters, As the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, So our eyes look to the LORD our God, Until He has mercy on us. 3Have mercy on us, O LORD, have mercy on us! For we are exceedingly filled with contempt. 4Our soul is exceedingly filled With the scorn of those who are at ease, With the contempt of the proud.     Psalm 123:1-4 NKJV

31“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. 33And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. 34Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ 37“Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’ 41“Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: 42for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; 43I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’ 44“Then they also will answer Him, 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?’ 45Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ 46And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Matthew 25:31-46  (NKJV)

Over my years of pastoral ministry so many have wondered why they did not see God in their life and around them.

This parable gives us the answer to that question.  The reason we do not experience Jesus is we look in the wrong places.  We cannot experience Jesus as we huddle in our congregation but in truth where you experience Jesus is as you meet the needy and hurting in the community around you and the world.

We can see ourselves as being good and that we deserve all the blessing God has given to us but as the Psalmist tells us we are just in need of the daily mercy of Jesus as anyone else!  This Psalm is a Psalm of Assent that people would sing as they climbed to Worship at the Temple.  Three times they would cry out for God’s mercy.

All around you people are crying out for God’s mercy!  They are hungry (need the Bread of God), poor (need the riches of God’s grace), broken (need God’s healing) and hurt and destroy others (need God’s forgiveness and His power to change)!

Step out of your comfort zone and offer God’s mercy and love to those in need!  You will not know what to say or to do but God will give you the heart to care, the courage to dare and the words to share!  And there you will experience God!!!