What Kind of King do we Have? Matt 25
We have reached the end of the Christian Year. We might even consider it the height of the Christian year. The Christian calendar begins in Advent with the expectation of the Messiah, and moves into the celebration of the birth of Christ at Christmas. Epiphany tells the story of the revealing of Christ’s true identity as God-With-Us. In Lent, we follow Christ into the wilderness in preparation for the cross on Good Friday. And from that deep sadness we enter into the joy of the resurrection on Easter Sunday.
But the story doesn’t end there. Christ ascends (Ascension) into the reality of heaven, and becomes present to his people in a new way. Christ remains present to the Church through the Holy Spirit, and continues to act through his body on earth, which is what we celebrate at Pentecost. Throughout the season after Pentecost, we learn to live as his disciples, following his teachings, until we arrive at today- The Reign of Christ, or Christ the King Sunday. … This is where the Bible tells us all of history is heading. We are heading to the time when Christ will be recognized as the King of all.
Today, two of our readings use the image of the shepherd. In Ezekiel, we see the image of God as a shepherd going out to gather the scattered sheep. The Good Shepherd feeds the sheep, and leads them to water in the hill country of Israel (see also Jn 10; Psalm 23).
There is an element of judgement in Ezekiel’s image of the shepherd. The lost will be found, the injured will be treated, the weak will be strengthened. But strangely, the fat and strong will be destroyed, … which is odd behaviour for a shepherd. Usually, they want fat and strong animals. God, the shepherd, will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. Ezekiel says why- the fat and strong sheep are bullies. God says,
“Because you pushed with flank and shoulder, and butted at all the weak animals with your horns until you scattered them far and wide”.Then God sets David as a shepherd over the flock. This is obviously King David, who was actually a shepherd. But this is written long after David died, so David here is a symbol of the Messiah, who is the son of David. Ezekiel says,
“I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: … and be their shepherd. And I, the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them” (34:23-24).So, we have this imagery of God as the shepherd. Judgement, in Ezekiel, seems to belong to God. We read,
“thus says the Lord God to them: I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep” (34:20).
God is the judge here.
When we look at our Gospel reading, we see Jesus as this Shepherd who is also judging the flock. In the Gospel there is a blurring of these images that Ezekiel uses for God and the Messiah. Jesus presents himself as the one who will judge all the nations- all the people of the world.
What is the basis on which he going to judge humanity? … He is going to judge humanity on the basis of how they treated him when he came to them in disguise. He is disguised as the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, and the imprisoned. (In Jesus’ day those who were imprisoned were often those who couldn’t pay their debts- so we might even call them “the bankrupt”).
There are a couple of ways we can interpret this passage.
To the original hearers they would have probably heard Jesus speaking about his disciples going out to the nations. Jesus speaks about the “least of these my brothers and sisters”, which would most likely refer to his disciples. … As his disciples go out to the peoples of the world to share the gospel they will be treated either with hospitality or with hostility. So, at the end of the age all the peoples of the world will be gathered together, and they will be judged on the basis of how they received the followers of Christ. … If you are a follower of Christ and someone has mistreated you because you are his follower, it is taken personally by Jesus. He takes it so personally that what has been done to you he considers it done to him, personally. It is also true that if we mistreat a fellow Christian, that is also taken personally by Christ.
The second way we can interpret this passage is to see the “least of these my brothers and sisters” as the suffering of humanity. This is the way Mother Teresa has interpreted this passage. She often called poverty the “distressing disguise” of Jesus. But she isn’t the first to read this parable this way. … Written in the 6th century, The Rule of St. Benedict (530AD) directs the monks to welcome every stranger as if they are welcoming Christ (Chapter 53).
Often throughout the Old Testament the prophets warn the people about a coming judgement for the way they have treated the vulnerable. In Isaiah 58 we read,
When we look at our Gospel reading, we see Jesus as this Shepherd who is also judging the flock. In the Gospel there is a blurring of these images that Ezekiel uses for God and the Messiah. Jesus presents himself as the one who will judge all the nations- all the people of the world.
What is the basis on which he going to judge humanity? … He is going to judge humanity on the basis of how they treated him when he came to them in disguise. He is disguised as the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, and the imprisoned. (In Jesus’ day those who were imprisoned were often those who couldn’t pay their debts- so we might even call them “the bankrupt”).
There are a couple of ways we can interpret this passage.
To the original hearers they would have probably heard Jesus speaking about his disciples going out to the nations. Jesus speaks about the “least of these my brothers and sisters”, which would most likely refer to his disciples. … As his disciples go out to the peoples of the world to share the gospel they will be treated either with hospitality or with hostility. So, at the end of the age all the peoples of the world will be gathered together, and they will be judged on the basis of how they received the followers of Christ. … If you are a follower of Christ and someone has mistreated you because you are his follower, it is taken personally by Jesus. He takes it so personally that what has been done to you he considers it done to him, personally. It is also true that if we mistreat a fellow Christian, that is also taken personally by Christ.
The second way we can interpret this passage is to see the “least of these my brothers and sisters” as the suffering of humanity. This is the way Mother Teresa has interpreted this passage. She often called poverty the “distressing disguise” of Jesus. But she isn’t the first to read this parable this way. … Written in the 6th century, The Rule of St. Benedict (530AD) directs the monks to welcome every stranger as if they are welcoming Christ (Chapter 53).
Often throughout the Old Testament the prophets warn the people about a coming judgement for the way they have treated the vulnerable. In Isaiah 58 we read,
“Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, … if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday” (Is 58:5-7,10).
Psalm 68 says that God is the
“Father of the fatherless and protector of widows” (Ps 68:5).
Exodus explicitly commands,
“You shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child” (Ex 22:22).
Deuteronomy 10 says, God
“executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing” (Deut 10:18).
God rescues a group of slaves and makes them the people of God. We could go on, but I think we can see from a few examples that God has a particular care for the vulnerable. That doesn’t mean God doesn’t care for the rich and powerful, but there is particular attention given to the poor and vulnerable that live on the margins of society. … Jesus was right in line with this prophetic tradition regarding his care for those who were on the margins of society.
What is Jesus saying with this teaching? He is saying that he comes to us in need, but disguised, and either we help him or we don’t, and we will be judged on that basis. It is about how we treat Jesus in the other person. Our character is being exposed when we encounter those in need.
People will hear Jesus say either, “come… inherit the kingdom” or “depart from me”. Those who were welcoming of Jesus in the vulnerable, will find themselves welcomed by him. Those who rejected the presence of Christ in the vulnerable will get more of what they wanted- they will depart from the presence of Christ.
It’s easy for us to focus on the element of judgement here. There is something for us to learn in that for sure, but I think it is equally important to think about what kind of a King we have. … Those who have power have often been guilty of elevating their position and desire for profit over the welfare of vulnerable people. It is often the boots of the powerful that crush the vulnerable. … This is a silly example, considering the things happening in the world, but have you ever been with someone who is always looking over your shoulder to see if there is someone more important for them to talk to, … and when there was they left you mid-sentence, … like you were nothing? … That is often the way of the powerful with the vulnerable.
We have a King who so identifies with the poor and vulnerable that he stands with them against the bullies of the world. To bully them, to ignore them, to not help them…. Is to bully him, is to not help him, it is to set yourself against him. … Do you know any other king, or prime minister, or president, who is like this? Who else uses their power to stand with those who have none? …
May we recognize Christ in each other. May we love Christ in those the powerful overlook and take advantage of. May we receive the stranger as if they are Christ himself walking through our doors. … And when we feel forgotten, ignored, taken advantage of, or crushed by the boot of the powerful, may we feel Christ standing with us, experiencing our situation as if it was happening to him. That is the kind of King we have. AMEN
What is Jesus saying with this teaching? He is saying that he comes to us in need, but disguised, and either we help him or we don’t, and we will be judged on that basis. It is about how we treat Jesus in the other person. Our character is being exposed when we encounter those in need.
People will hear Jesus say either, “come… inherit the kingdom” or “depart from me”. Those who were welcoming of Jesus in the vulnerable, will find themselves welcomed by him. Those who rejected the presence of Christ in the vulnerable will get more of what they wanted- they will depart from the presence of Christ.
It’s easy for us to focus on the element of judgement here. There is something for us to learn in that for sure, but I think it is equally important to think about what kind of a King we have. … Those who have power have often been guilty of elevating their position and desire for profit over the welfare of vulnerable people. It is often the boots of the powerful that crush the vulnerable. … This is a silly example, considering the things happening in the world, but have you ever been with someone who is always looking over your shoulder to see if there is someone more important for them to talk to, … and when there was they left you mid-sentence, … like you were nothing? … That is often the way of the powerful with the vulnerable.
We have a King who so identifies with the poor and vulnerable that he stands with them against the bullies of the world. To bully them, to ignore them, to not help them…. Is to bully him, is to not help him, it is to set yourself against him. … Do you know any other king, or prime minister, or president, who is like this? Who else uses their power to stand with those who have none? …
May we recognize Christ in each other. May we love Christ in those the powerful overlook and take advantage of. May we receive the stranger as if they are Christ himself walking through our doors. … And when we feel forgotten, ignored, taken advantage of, or crushed by the boot of the powerful, may we feel Christ standing with us, experiencing our situation as if it was happening to him. That is the kind of King we have. AMEN
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