Matthew 25:31-46
“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy 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 them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of 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 drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’
“Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’
“Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’
“Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
Notes from this scriptural context:
i. You are justified by faith in Christ not deeds, albiet a faith producing fruit of righteousness.
ii. It’s by connecting with Christ in obedience you receive strength to be spiritually productive.
“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me.” John 15:4
iii. The manner of our relation with others, irrespective of their state, is often testament of our relationship with Christ. For a renewed heart is predisposed to good works.
iv. The great reward awaits the believer when Christ comes in glory, sitted on His throne. For work done from the place of faith. It is better in all of our labours not to lose sight of this, as nothing will compare.
Revelation 22:12
“And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work.”
v. Good fruit is from good seed. Christ in you will produce a worthy harvest. This is why the focus is never how can I act differently, but rather how can I come in relationship with Christ. Only God can govern a pure thought and a rightly motivated action.
Luke 6:44
“For every tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush.”
vi. Jesus Christ reminds us, whatever worthy thing you do to the ‘least of these my brethren’ you have done to Him. As we prioritise the kingdom and walk in faith, do not forget to show kindness to all like the Samaritan in the scriptures.
Galatians 6:10
“Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.”
vii. Our faith in Christ grants us the opportunity and grace to display the glory of God. For through the death and resurrection of the Lord this is possible, as a seed decays but births a new life. We were created for good works.
Ephesians 2:10.
“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
God bless.
Pastor Israel Okunwaye
FB tags; #Acceptablefruit
Dear all, 