I wrote this post a while ago but thought I would share it here.
Monday, 13 December 2010
Am I really a goat?
Matthew 25: 31-44
The Sheep and the Goats
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
Yesterday as I was watching football(my favorite you know), snuggled up in my warm blanket, my oldest son came home from his church with a stranger in tow. We were not expecting this guest but we welcomed him, or did we? My son right away informed us that this stranger needed a warm place to stay for a couple of hours, so of course we said "sit down" and "can we get you something to drink?". And then we sat and continued to watch our football. Every now and then he spoke to us and we listened and responded but then went back to watching football. After a couple of hours my son needed to go back to his church for Sunday night prayer so he took him with him. His church found the man a place to stay for a couple of days and even fed him. So what is my issue today? Did I do all I should have to help this homeless young man? Did I show him the love of Christ? Did I lay down my comfort and my desires to make sure this man felt loved and graced? I have to say no, I didn't. I didn't do all I could have. I sat wondering if my son was going to take him with him or leave him for us to deal with. I wondered if we and our children were safe. Was he a mass murderer, a pedophile, or was he just a lost, homeless man? I waited to order food until he left. I prayed that my son would not bring him back home. How awful of me. I am truly amazed that the Lord tested us and I feel like we failed the test. I know I am being very vulnerable right now but it is the truth. I am confessing before my brothers and sisters and realizing that we are unprepared to really do what this scripture tells us to do. I have repented with the Lord and asked for forgiveness and to be honest have even asked for another chance. A chance to make it right and do what I knew in my heart I should have done. It wasn't enough to just allow him in and give him some water and I know it, I know it because I know my heart. It wasn't 100% in the right place. I praise God for my son, he did the right thing and I am thankful that he belongs to a church who stepped up and did what Christ would have them do. I know it wasn't all my responsibility but really, should I have just sat there and done nothing? NO, I know there were things I could have done different. I want the heart of Christ. Lord, I pray right now that you will give me your heart. Help me to see people the way you do and to treat them they way you would. Thank you for my son and his humbleness to listen to your Holy Spirit and pick this guy up out of the cold and help him find food and shelter in this bitter cold. Please Lord, forgive me and selfish heart. I pray that this man will find a purpose for you and live his life for you. I pray that you will continue to mold and shape my son and use him for your glory. In your Son's name, Amen. I don't want to be a goat. I want to be a sheep.
So how about you? What would you have done if you were put in the same situation? Come on now and be honest, the Lord already knows our hearts anyway.
Well, sis, if I had to guess I'd say you kept watching football because it helped take your mind off the potential unpleasantries of who this person may or may not be (Actually, if you focused on the visitor instead, you would have taken your eyes off the unpleasantries of what was probably a discouraging Bears game to boot)!
ReplyDeleteYes, all of us have fallen short of God's glory and you're correct to remind your readers of that. There are times when I'm a sheep and there are times when I'm a goat, and this side of heaven I expect I'll be something of a "cross" breed until I get to that sweet bye and bye.
Remember that Peter received his healing from the Lord after attending the rooster concert, and I'm sure, as you indicate, you will receive your healing too--and anyone that's the recipient of that will be truly blessed indeed.
Good blog, hon--keep up the good work.