Is it Jesus I'm Looking to?

Matthew 25:31-33

“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. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.” 

The Scripture above is referred to in my New English Standard Bible as “The Final Judgment.”  A few of you may have my problem of not understanding the meaning of a word, so shall we look at the word final.  Their decisions are final: irrevocable, unalterable, absolute, conclusive, irrefutable, incontrovertible, indisputable, unchallengeable, binding.  I got it, the door is closed, the show is over, the tests have been graded, and it is a done deal.

As I enter my seventies, the word final seems weightier and yet often we live in denial, for many of us who traveled for a living heard the term, “this is your final destination” on almost every flight.  But the Scripture above is from the mouth of One who created time, and knows the number of hairs on our head.  A wise person would ponder on those words.  Jesus asks this question; “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life?” (Matthew 16:26)

“The passage in Matthew 25:32-33, uses figurative language, like shepherd, sheep, and goats, and you can see these same words being prophesied in Ezekiel 34:17-19, but the rest is too literal to be classified as a parable.  The passage is therefore best taken as a literal description of the final judgment.  Verses 31 and 34 define the title Son of Man as King.  The King, Jesus, will judge people based on their reception and treatment of the least of His brothers.  In light of Matthew 12:50, the words refer to Jesus’ followers who seek to do God’s will.  Humble and compassionate treatment of Jesus’ followers necessarily accompanies acceptance of the gospel that they proclaim.”   (Taken from HCSB and this writer took some freedom with adding words.)

We need to look into Matthew 12:50, “For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”  Does that not leave one wondering what is the will of the Father, and it is too important a question for one to ask of anyone but the Father.  Has the Father made clear His will, and the answer is yes, in the gospel of John 6:40, “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

So while you are pondering on the above, ask yourself, is it Jesus I’m looking to, or is it a pastor, church, denomination, my mate, or even grandmother’s faith?   For many years I was a Baptist, went to church, gave a tithe of my income, and was open to helping a few people, but if the final time had come and I stood before the Judge, He would have said depart from me, I never knew you!

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice