SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 4/2/2024 10:43 AM
My Worship Time Focus: PT-4 “The Inheritance of the Saved”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Matthew
25:34-40
Message of the verses: “34 "Then the
King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father,
inherit the kingdom prepared
for you from the foundation 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 naked, and you clothed
Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to 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 ‘And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked,
and clothe You? 39 ‘When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’
40 “The King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent
that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of
them, you did it to Me.’”
I
want to begin this SD by listing six representative areas of need that the Lord
has listed that these fellow believers helped with: hungry, thirsty, a stranger, naked, sick, and
the last one was in prison. It is the
kingdom that there for those who have ministered to such needs in the lives of
God’s people, and the reason is because those good deeds evidence true, living
faith. They are characteristic of God’s
children and kingdom citizens. Let me
just say that there are times while driving, especially around the airport that
people will be dressed up in dirty clothes with signs asking for food money,
and I have to wonder if they really do need food money or if they are just too
lazy to find a job. While going to Founder’s Week at the Moody Bible Institute
which is located in downtown Chicago my wife say what looked to be a homeless
woman who was looking for money to supposedly by food. My wife invited her to eat with us, and it
kind of seemed to me that she was disappointed that she did not receive
money. Like I say it is not always easy
to see a person’s motives and one has to be careful. James 2:15-17 says “15
If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, 16 and
one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and be filled," and
yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is
that? 17 Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.” My point in this is to make sure you are
really helping someone who that you know is in need. In 1 John 3:17-18 we read “17 But whoever has
the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against
him, how does the love of God abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not love
with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.”
MacArthur
writes “The response by those whom the King commends is remarkable and is
another proof of their salvation. Because they have ministered in a spirit of
humility and selflessness and not to be seen and honored by men (see Matt. 6:2,
5, 16), they have seemingly forgotten about the many things they have done and
are surprised that these are worthy of such mention by the Lord.”
He
goes on to write: “The King addresses
them as the righteous, not simply because they have been declared righteous in
Christ but because they have been made righteous by Christ. Their works of service to fellow believers
give evidence that they are themselves and the product of divine ‘workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we
should walk in them’ (Eph. 2:10).
I
want to conclude this SD with one more paragraph from MacArthur’s
commentary: “The good deeds mentioned in
these verses all deal with common, everyday needs. There is no mention of monumental
undertakings or of spectacular accomplishments (CF. Matt. 7:21-23, where the
claim to the spectacular is useless) but only of routine, day to day kindnesses
that help meet the needs of fellow believers.
Nothing more evidences conversion that a life marked by the compassion
of God and the meekness and love of Christ.
When the disciple John the Baptist wanted evidence that Jesus was the
Messiah, He replied by telling them not just about His spectacular healings but
also about how He treated those in need ( Matt. 11:4-6). When He announced His messianic credentials
to the people of Nazareth, He again reflected not on the amazing but on the way
He treated the poor, the prisoners, the blind, and the downtrodden (Luke 4:18-19). The person who belongs to Christ will
demonstrate such compassion and be humble about it.”
4/2/2024 11:13 AM
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