P EOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY are starting to lose heart. Jesus promised those people that “the kingdom of God was at hand” — and they all thought that its coming was just around the corner.
But what they got instead was pain, and trouble, and a very long wait. And one by one, people also started to die — good people; Jesus-loving people. And the question becomes “When?”
Our reading today is set within the larger unit of Jesus talking about last things. It’s written in a style called “apocalyptic writing” — similar to Revelation. A problem is that such writings frighten some Christians. But the message of Christ’s return is not meant to frighten us. In a nutshell, just like Revelation, it is written to give people one thing — and that one thing is: hope.
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WRITINGS LIKE THESE are especially important for people who are suffering — people who are under attack like Matthew’s own little community. They were under attack by Rome. They were under attack by their own Jewish community. So these two chapters tell those people that their suffering is not in vain. God has not forgotten about them. “Only stay alert — only hold on — just a little bit longer; God will come and he’ll make it all right.”
People can go on for a long time without food. And people can go for a long time without water. But what human beings can’t go without for very long is: Hope. We need meaning and purpose to survive. We’ve got to know that life even with all its suffering makes some sense and that one day — here or hereafter — things will be made right.
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PEOPLE IN THE CONCENTRATION CAMPS of Nazi Germany suffered beyond belief. Victor Frankel was a psychiatrist. He was there in the camp, a prisoner, suffering right along with the others. Later, he wrote a book about those unimaginable times. He wrote that he could see when the people who worked in the camps were about to give up and get themselves ready to die. He could see the signs as they resigned themselves for the ovens.
They didn’t give up because of their lack of food, or their lack of water, or even from the terrible, bitter cold. They gave up because they lost hope. When all the meaning and purpose of their existence was drained out of them, they gave up. When they saw no reason to live, they gave up. Once they lost hope, Frankel could see in their eyes they were as good as dead. His three years at Dachau led him to discover the importance of finding meaning in all forms of existence, even the most brutal ones, and thus, a reason to continue living.
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WE DON’T KNOW WHEN Jesus will return. Day or night. Unexpected. No one knows when. Not even Jesus himself. But he tells us to be ready. Hang tough. He’s coming. How do we do that, get ready? There’s John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.” The salvation of humanity is through love and in love. In Christ we are loved. In Christ we love. To be ready is to believe in Jesus.
I agree with that. But I also believe that, if we truly believe in Jesus, while we wait we will try to live as Jesus wants us to live. And how is that? I told you that our reading today is part of an apocalyptic writing. Later there is a judgment scene. Christ has returned to earth and is sitting on His throne, with all the people of the world spread out before Him. He says that He “will separate people one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.” He will put the sheep on his right hand and the goats on his left. Then Jesus goes on to say: “Then the King will tell the sheep on his right hand,
‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 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, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
Jesus then says that righteous people will be surprised to learn that they’ve done these good things. They will say:
‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
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SOME OF YOU KNOW THE ANSWER to that question. It’s an important question, because the answer will give us an idea how to prepare for Jesus’ coming.
Jesus said:
“Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”
In other words, if you fed someone who was hungry — or gave a cup of cold water to someone who was thirsty — or welcomed a stranger — or gave warm clothing to someone who was cold — or visited people in the hospital or in jail — it will be as if you had done those kindnesses for Jesus.
Then Jesus will turn to the goats on his left and consign them to the eternal fire. He will say: you didn’t give me food to eat, or water to drink. You did not take me in; you did not clothe me or care for me when I was sick. When I was in prison and you didn’t visit me.’ They will say, “When did we do such terrible things?” And He will say: Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.”
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WE WONDER WHEN the Lord will be coming to set things right. We wonder how we can be ready, what exactly we need to be ready for. We wonder if we dare to hope.
No one knows. Keep awake. Be ready. No one knows, this may be the hour, when our great Judge and Redeemer decides to pull up a chair, roll up his sleeves and dine with us. No one knows. No giving up. No complacency. Be ready. Be ready to see Christ in the least of our sisters and brothers.
— Keith Cardwell
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resources:
http://magdalenesmusings.blogspot.com/…/unexpected-hour-ser…
http://www.emmanuelonhigh.org/…/…/First_Sunday_of_Advent.pdf
https://www.sermonwriter.com/…/matthew-2436-44-getting-read…
