WATCHWORD:
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, 33 and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. 34 Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; 35 for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? 38 And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? 39 And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ 40 And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family you did it to me.’ Matthew 25:31-40
Meditation:
You Did It to Me
Jesus’ lesson to His disciples, and to us, actually describes the Final Judgment. We will be asked those questions directly and clearly, and we need to take this seriously. We may consider the full array of our sins and it may embarrass us to be that frank, but in the end, the greatest sin you and I have committed has been to ignore those in need. Those who are hungry or thirsty, or ill, or in prison, or who have been alienated by life. Do we believe what this gospel says, or do we make excuses? Has the truth of the Gospel taken root in your heart and mind and is it reflected in our actions? We need to think about this, it is indeed serious stuff. Amen.
Maundy Thursday — This is the Day of Passover and the Last Supper. During the Lord’s Supper he washed his disciples feet as a parable of service, the role of a Christian. Then he shared the bread and the wine in holy communion. Later, Jesus and the disciples left the Upper Room and went to the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus prayed in agony to God the Father. Luke’s Gospel says that “his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground”. Late that evening, Jesus was betrayed with a kiss by Judas Iscariot and arrested by the Sanhedrin. He was taken to the home of Caiaphas, the High Priest, where the whole council had gathered to begin making their case against Jesus. It was there, in the early morning hours, that Peter denied knowing Jesus.
Lenten Prayer:
Lord God, You sent your Son into the world, and before his hour had come, he washed his disciples feet. You had given all things into his hands. He had come from you, and was going to you, and what did he do? He knelt right there on the floor and washed his friends’ feet. He was their teacher and their Lord, yet he washed their feet. Lord God, help us learn from this his example; help us to do as he has done for us. the world will know we are his disciples if we love one another. Strengthening our hands and our wills for love and for service. Keep before our eyes the image of your son, who, being God, became a servant for our sake. All glory be to him who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, One God, now and forever. Amen.
