The Essential JesusSample

I Wanna Be Ready

PRAY: Before you read Matthew 25:1-46, take a minute to reflect on 1 John 4:15-18 prayerfully.

READ: Matthew 25:1-46

REFLECT: I like parables that make a spiritual point with an everyday example. And I especially like it when Jesus zings the religious leaders of his day. But Matthew 25 makes me squirm. Darkness, weeping, gnashing of teeth, and eternal punishment (vv. 30, 46)–these parables are definitely not bedtime reading. What's gotten into Jesus?

Actually, he's just completing his picture of the kingdom of heaven (vv. 1, 14). In earlier parables, Jesus made the point that God invites everyone to enter his kingdom. But now he says some won't accept that invitation; some will be left out, and it won't be God's fault. Each of the 10 virgins had an opportunity to prepare for the bridegroom; five used it wisely, and five let it slip away (vv. 1-13). All three of the servants received an investment from the wealthy man; two made the most of it, and one misused it (vv. 14-30).

The last parable is perhaps the most sobering of all (vv. 31-46). It envisions a final day of reckoning when the Son of Man will sort out the sheep from the goats; that is, he'll determine who will enter the kingdom of heaven and who will not. At first reading, it might seem like Jesus is saying we can earn our salvation after all if we just help the homeless, hungry, imprisoned, and needy. But we can't see this parable in isolation from his earlier teaching. First, we must accept and believe in Jesus; that is, we must "understand with our hearts" (Matthew 13:15). Then, we must demonstrate the reality of that belief through our compassionate actions. It's the same thing the apostle James said many years later (James 2:26).

Some people find the idea of a final judgment difficult to accept; they feel that hellfire-and-brimstone preaching is manipulative. Unfortunately, it can be. But that doesn't eliminate the reality that Jesus will someday return to judge humankind. And no matter how we feel about it, the best response is to use your time now to get ready. Then you'll hear God say, "Well done, good and faithful servant."

APPLY: How do you feel about a final day of judgment? What are you doing to get ready?

PRAY: Lord, sometimes the idea of judgment makes me fearful. Please reassure me with a deeper sense of your love today.