Living in the Spirit
April 29, 2023
Scripture Reading:
Matthew 25:31-46
‘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. 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, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. 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; 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, 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.”—Matthew 25:31-36
I am going off lectionary for today. I spend much of my time as an advocate tracking state and federal legislation. There are many ways to advocate for others. I worked for 35 years for the State of Oklahoma and determined that experience prepared me best for this type of advocacy. For those of us who identify as Christ-followers, Jesus made it very clear in the above scripture by what criteria he judges the nations. Of course, nations are made up of individuals working together to achieve righteousness and bring justice to all. Our nation is looking more and more like the idols described in the Hebrew Bible. Our idols are not images carved in stone but greed, lust for power, and the resulting self-righteousness. Jesus specifically called on us to
- Feed the hungry
- Provide water for the thirsty
- Welcome the stranger
- Cloth the naked
- care for the sick
- Reform the prisoner
Where are we today?
- Targeting cutting food stamps to reduce our national debt.
- Trying to figure out how to provide water for the western states impacted by climate change we have too long ignored.
- Building fences that do not work to keep out refugees while eagerly working their children in hard daily labor.
- Allowing corporations to pay minimum wages below the poverty level while workers live on the streets wearing clothing inappropriate for the weather.
- Pricing people out of necessary health care because of the layers of profit applied at every level of care.
- Exchanging desperately needed restorative justice to increase the bottom lines of for-profit prisons.
Prayer: Father, forgive us for not knowing what we do. Open our hearts and minds to turn around and follow the pattern of being you have set forth for us. Amen.
All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.