Matthew 25:31-40
The Message Bible
A reading from the gospel according to Matthew…it is the parable of the Sheep and the Goats: (I am reading from the Message Bible this morning)
The Sheep and the Goats
31-33"When he finally arrives, blazing in beauty and all his angels with him, the Son of Man will take his place on his glorious throne. Then all the nations will be arranged before him and he will sort the people out, much as a shepherd sorts out sheep and goats, putting sheep to his right and goats to his left. 34-36"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Enter, you who are blessed by my Father! Take what's coming to you in this kingdom. It's been ready for you since the world's foundation. And here's why:
I was hungry and you fed me,
I was thirsty and you gave me a drink,
I was homeless and you gave me a room,
I was shivering and you gave me clothes,
I was sick and you stopped to visit,
I was in prison and you came to me.'
37-40"Then those 'sheep' are going to say, 'Master, what are you talking about? When did we ever see you hungry and feed you, thirsty and give you a drink? And when did we ever see you sick or in prison and come to you?' Then the King will say, 'I'm telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me—you did it to me.'
I would ask that you would pray with me…Loving Creator, Almighty God…you who poured out your Spirit on the day of Pentecost. I ask that you would again pour out your Spirit on all of us gathered here today. By the power of your Spirit may we discern what it is that you would have us hear this morning. May your message be heard through me or in-spite of me. May the meditations of my heart and the words of my mouth be pleasing to you oh Lord my Rock and my Redeemer. Amen.
Have you ever noticed (Like Huntley has mentioned before) that Jesus talks in parables so that we ordinary people can understand. These parables make us think of our lives and how these parables are much like what we are going through…are doing…are thinking…or even what we are seeing around us. When I read the Scripture from Matthew this morning…the first thought that came to mind was the Suncook United Methodist Church. It made me think “I am glad that I am shepherding sheep rather than goats!” Don’t get me wrong…we all have those times when we are like the goats…times when we think of self first…times we don’t see the suffering and hurt around us…but for the most part…I see this church more like sheep. (Amen!)
When I read…I was hungry you fed me…it made me think of the Our Families Table. You reach out to those around you with a hot meal…fellowship…and love. When I read…I was thirsty and you gave me a drink…I thought about how you open the doors to all who thirst for Christ in their lives…how you welcome all who enter these doors as if they have been coming here for a life time. They are welcomed with the love of Christ. If I met anyone thirsts for Christ in their lives…I would direct them to 152 Main Street in Suncook, NH where the love of Christ overflows to all who enter there. When I read…I was homeless and you gave me a room…it made me think about how this church opens their doors to people who may not have anyplace else to go. You have NA and AA Meetings each week, there is a Daisy Scout Troop who meets here every other Tuesday, there is a CAPS Meeting every fourth Tuesday of the month…the list goes on. The part about being sick and you stopped to visit me made me think about how much you love and care for each other here. If someone is missing from the flock…you make sure that someone calls or visits them, when they are in the hospital…you visit them…if they are home bound…you make sure they get a bulletin and a copy of the sermon.
The last part….when I was in prison you came to me…made me stop and think. When I was in Prison you came to me… I want you to imagine with me this morning (I know it’s early but I’ll talk you through it). You are sitting in a jail cell…no one seems to care about you. You know that you have done wrong but that doesn’t make you worthless. You want to make the changes you need in life but you just don’t know where to start. You feel lost and alone…maybe even angry about life. You don’t know anything about the power of forgiveness that can be found in our Lord Jesus Christ…heck…you can’t even forgive yourself never mind someone else for giving you. You may be thinking that you are too bad…you have done too much wrong in your life to be forgiven by Jesus. These types of thought and feelings happen every day in the lives of prisoners. They live with guilt and self hatred…hey live with the feeling of being worthless.
You may be asking yourself “What can be done to help change their lives around? How can they hear the Gospel of Grace? How can they see there is a better way?” I am glad that you asked these questions…it shows you are thinking “out of the boat.” Well…I can tell you, from experience that we can reach those who think they are unreachable and help them on the road to recovery. About four years ago, when I was at Wesley UMC, I heard the call to reach out to those who are behind bars in prison. As I began this ministry I learned that they not only were behind physical bars but they were also behind those invisible bars that we put in place ourselves.
I was working with the women at the Shea Farm Half-Way House out on Iron Works Road in Concord. I began by teaching Bible Study to them…I believe it was the Sisters Bible study that teaches how to apply Scripture to the everyday life of women…it started out with only two or three women but quickly grew into a class of ten. What made this study grow? What was it they were getting out of it that made them spread the word about the study I was teaching? Well…I actually asked these questions to these women and the answer I got gave me great joy and also humbled me. The great joy part was that they wanted to hear more about how to apply scripture to their lives so that they could make a change for the better. They were beginning to understand that God has a purpose in their life and it was a lot better than the life that they believed that they were destined to live. The humbling part was that I was the teacher and how they felt about me. They felt that I was there not to judge them but to help them…they knew that I would sit and listen to them as they told their stories and give them some glimmer of hope in my reply to them. They felt as if Christ was speaking to them, through me, and felt His presence each time we met. (Boy…how humbling is that…and a little scary too. I was there as Christ’s Ambassador and they were seeing Christ in me…I thought “boy, I better not mess this one up!” I knew the only way to reach them was to let Christ rule over the study…not me)
At another time, over the last 4 years, I taught a Recovery Bible Study with the women there. As we began to study and share stories of our lives, the Holy Spirit did an extraordinary thing (But then again…I am awe struck…all the time…at how the Spirit works in human beings), they began to see the places in their hearts…in their souls…that needed mending…that needed to touch the garment of Jesus Christ and be healed. They looked forward to our meetings each week and if I was not there for some reason, they began to meet with each other anyway. If I was sick or one of my children were sick, they prayed for me or my children. (Something they didn’t do before. They were beginning to become a congregation of people not just “Lone Rangers”). Jesus met them…right where they were…and began the healing process with them. Some of them even began to come to church and join Wesley when they reached the point that they could go out into the community with a curfew on when they needed to be back at the house. If someone hadn’t gone to visit them while in prison who knows where they would be now? Don’t get me wrong…some turn back to what they were doing before the studies (they had what some call “jailhouse religion.” They are all religious while they are in jail but as soon as they get out they set it aside and forget about it.) But there were some who continued to follow Christ and make the changes they needed to in their life.
I was in prison and you came to me…I have just been recertified for entrance into the prison system. I have been asked to do some one-on-one with the inmates not only at the Shea Farm but also those who are still in the “prison” with the “big walls”, as well as bible study with them (no that doesn’t mean that I am leaving Suncook. This is my “allegiance” lies) you see…this is one of the passions God has given me. It is not easy work but it has its own rewards. Jesus said to His Disciples “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” These men and women need our help, they need our prayers, and without them they may just never hear the Gospel of Christ. My question for you today is this…is there a Spirits prompting for you to go out in the vineyard? Are there gifts and talents that you have that you could share with these men and women…these other sheep that have wandered from the sheepfold? Listen…do you hear a voice on the wind calling you to action? If so…consider spending some time with these “goats” to help then become the sheep that God has intended them to be all along.
Amen.
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