Father, it has sure been a challenge recently to make the time to be with You. Every day this week I have been up at 4ish to be at work by 6:00. I’m not sure how well my mind would process anything at 3:00, so instead, I have been trying to write in the evening. I am so grateful that You are available anytime I can sit down with You. Bless our time together this evening. Amen.

Matthew 25:31-46 (<<click to read the passage)

In life, there are things that we can choose or not choose to participate in. We can be in the thick of things or we can choose to hide in our shells. But in our relationship with Christ, we cannot abstain from participation. We may choose not to follow Him but in so doing it does not exempt us from participating. Either we are for Him or we are against Him. Period. It’s an all not, nothing kind of thing.

Jesus makes it very clear, by repeatedly speaking of it, that He will return to take His rightful place as King of…well, as King of absolutely everything! Just because many believe that to be a false statement does not make it any less true. We are allowed to be delusional but, again, it does not exempt us from participating in a relationship with Him.

When the final judgment comes, every person who has ever come into existence “will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left.”

That division will be based on what we did in regards to our relationship with Jesus and interestingly enough that is based largely on what we did in our relationships with others! What it really boils down to is service – addressing the basic needs of one another’s existence. And those needs would be food, drink, shelter, clothing, physical care and companionship to the lonely.

Love is a participation sport. If we truly love we cannot sit on the sidelines. We cannot skip attending the game. All of us are in the game, even as you are reading this. For whatever we did for “the least of these my brothers and sisters, [we] were doing it to [Christ]!”

No excuses! No notes from your mom or your doctor! Pick a side and go! And make it count! “Eternal punishment” or “eternal life” – it is our choice.

Oct 31st, 2018, Wed, 7:11 pm