The Least of These

Bob Parr didn’t live an ordainary life. Sure he worked in a cubical at a big insurance corporation. He had a wife and three kids. He lived in a nice home in the suburbs. He had a bowling-buddy friend. Things were normal. Bob Parr, however, didn’t live an ordinary life. Bob Parr wasn’t happy: He was living a double life. Using the cover of “going bowling,” Bob would listen to a polic scanner, waiting for situations where he could use his super-human powers to save people. Yes, Bob Parr was the mild-mannered disguise for “Mr. Incredible.” You see, there was a day when superheros worked with the government to keep the streets safe. After a few accidents and misunderstandings, the superheros had to be relocated and enter “normal” life.

Bob, however, wasn’t happy. He loved being a superhero. He was born to be a superhero. He was Mr. Incredible. Eventually he was offered the opportunity to be a superhero again, but it was a secret from everyone. His wife adored him: she thought he was moving up in the company and more pleasant at home than ever before. His kids thought he was the best--he spent more time playing with them. But all the time he was living this secret superhero life.

Do you know people who are saying one thing about their life and actually living another? Inconsistency in our lives isn’t something we can just sweep under the rug. There are real repucussions for how we live, no matter what we say about life. Christ spoke of our hearts as the source of who we really are and do—not what we say to others. At some point who you really are comes to light . . . what we do matters.

[read Matthew 25:31-46]

Jesus’ parable of the sheep and goats portrays a harsh reality. How we treat the poor, sick, and imprisoned—the “outcasts” of our society—has a direct bearing on our relationship with God and our future. Jesus’ parable sets it out clearly. Those who responded to others with the love of God (remember the Great Commandment—love God, love neighbor) were ushered into the kingdom. And those who did not share God’s love with those around them were to depart from God “into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (v. 41, NRSV). Harsh. There is no second chance to perform great deeds. No hearing will be scheduled to explain why you just didn’t have the time amongst all the church activities and charity events and family outtings. You either have lived the compassion of God or you haven’t. What a harsh picture of reality Jesus paints for us.

What if He really means the lesson in this parable? What if Jesus is being completely serious when He tells those around Him that just being a good boy or girl doesn’t guarantee entrance into the kingdom of God. The seriousness of the repercussions of our actions demands that we take action now. Are we earnest in our relationship with God? If so, we can’t ignore His directive to feed the hungry, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, take care of the sick, and visit the imprisoned. Much like the servant with the one talent, we must decide that fear can not stop us from following the lead of God. Here is what the writer of 1 John says about fear:

There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. We love because he first loved us. Those who say, ‘I love God’, and hate their brothers or sisters, are liars; for those who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen. The commandment we have from him is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also (1 John 4:18-21, NRSV).

Do you see the theme here? God loves us. God calls us to love Him and those around us. God’s love, which can fill our lives, casts out the fear that might stop us from loving God and loving others. Fear doesn’t control who we are or what we do when we allow God’s love to fill every aspect of our lives.

What does a God’s-love-filled life look like? I think it looks like something beyond this church, this building, this worship gathering, these programs. I think it looks like men, women, teens, boys, and girls living the life God created for them—not as the world would live, but as Christ would live. I think it looks like families living together, healthily and lovingly. I think it looks like financial decisions being made with God in mind and our wants in the background. I think it looks like a community revolutionized because the Christians joined God in His work among the neighbors. I think it looks like the actions and characteristics Christ used as a guideline for separating sheep from goats: feed the hungry, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, take care of the sick, and visit the imprisoned.

So what does that look and sound like in our little town? What does that look and sound like in your life? This is not a campaign for conformity and assimilation into the Church. This is God’s calling to love like God loves: with His very life, forsaking what rights He had because of love.

When you have seen Christ hungry, thirsty, a stranger, naked, sick or in prison?