Hospitality

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Today's text confuses a lot of people, even a lot of Lutherans. It seems to be contradictory to everything else that we believe, teach, and confess. All that business about salvation by grace through faith in Christ alone – that looks like it gets chucked out the window with this passage. After all, the King is basing His judgment on the works done by those on His right and left. This seems to lend itself to the idea that you will be judged on the works you have done, whether you have done enough to merit the favor of the King.

The Church of Rome reads this discourse in just such a fashion. To them, this passage is all about hospitality that you must show to your neighbor. Your faith is formed by your love, which is worked out in your service to your neighbor. This passage is straightforward Law: do this, and go to heaven; fail, and go to hell. Salvation cannot possibly be grace through faith alone; Jesus commend these faithful for their works of hospitality and service.

But that is turning this whole passage on its ear. Jesus is indeed indicating that the King will commend or condemn those before Him based on their works, but only as evidence of the plea put before Him.

Before we get into that, however, let us take a moment to consider a few things about this passage. First of all, it is of vital importance to remember that this is NOT a parable or allegory. There is no make-believe going in in these verses.

The past two weeks, you have heard parables that Jesus told to help you understand the coming of the Kingdom of heaven. Matthew 25 starts with the words, “The kingdom of the heavens may be compared to ten virgins,” and then continues with the parable of the Virgins which you heard two weeks ago. Then, last week's lesson began with the words, “For it will be like a man.” Notice the words “may be compared to” and “it will be like”. These set up comparisons; they are signal-words that let you know that what is coming is not necessarily true, but is a story to illustrate a point.

However, today's lesson begins with no such words. The actions of the King are told in straightforward, declarative statements. He will come with His angels, He will sit on the throne of glory, He will gather the nations before Him, and He will separate people one from another. This is what scholars call prophetic narrative: Jesus is foretelling for His disciples what the Last Day will look like, not in metaphor but in real-life plain language. The King will come, and He will judge and separate all people one from another.

Next, notice who it is who comes. He is first called the Son of Man. This is a title inherited from the prophets of the Old Testament, specifically Daniel, who speaks of the Son of Man sitting on the throne of God in judgment. The Son of Man is therefore the King of Heaven, who reigns over all creation with the authority of His Father. Then, He is likened to a shepherd who separates the sheep from the goats. This calls to mind Psalm 23, where David teaches us that the Lord is a Shepherd who leads His people into paths of righteousness and pastures of good and plenty.

Perhaps this tempers the character of this scene a bit. The image is not of the stern, prepossessed judge who sits high and lofty above the grunts below and passes judgment from arm's length, but the Shepherd who calls His sheep by name and lays His hand on each one.

All the nations are gathered before the King, who will separate them as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. This is not simply the judgment of Israel, or the judgment of the Church, or the judgment of whatever group. Each and every person who has lived or will live must face this Judge and answer to His judgment. There is one God and one Lord, not just for Christians, but for everyone.

So, then, having separated all people to His right and to His left, the King begins to pass judgment on those assembled. “The King will say to those on His right, 'Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” What does this mean?

For the answer to this, you need to think back a few weeks. Remember the Gospel lesson from All Saints' Day – the Beatitudes? Whom does Jesus describe? The blessed of the Father. And what does He promise to them? That they will inherit the earth, and that theirs is the kingdom of heaven. What was a future hope and promise is now coming to pass before their eyes. The kingdom promised is now delivered. God keeps His promises. Always.

But recall, how does God accomplish this? Who is the one “blessed by My Father”? Is it you? No, at least not on your own. Left to your own devices there is nothing blessed and righteous about you. What belongs to you is sin, death, and condemnation. What is yours is lies, deceit, and treachery. What is your portion in life is sorrow, heartache, and pain. These things do not earn you favor before God, a ticket into eternal bliss, or a seat at the banquet table of the Most High God. Your sins earn you a spot in hell with the devil and all his angels, condemned to spend eternity in everlasting torment and death, bereft of the comfort of God's grace and mercy. This is certainly not inheriting the earth, entering the kingdom of heaven, or any of the other wonderful things promised.

Again, recall the lesson of the Beatitudes. You are righteous, holy, and blessed by the Father, because you are a new creation in Christ, who is and continues to be all those things for you. You are blessed, because you are joined to the Beloved Son of the Father. You are righteous, because your sins have been covered with His blood that was shed on the cross. You are holy, because you have been clothed with the royal garments of the King.

And because you are a new creation in Christ, therefore you may be called “blessed of My Father” and enter into the Father's house. As proof of this, the King cites the works that you have done: giving food and drink to the hungry and thirsty, welcoming the stranger, clothing the naked, visiting the sick, attending the imprisoned.

But when have you done these things to Christ? You have never seen the face of Jesus, much less put your arm around his shoulder or set His dining table. “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these My brothers, you did it to Me.” says the Lord.

That is, you serve the Lord in these, and countless other ways, when you show the hospitality that the Law of love demands. Love does not count the cost, but gives from your own resources to help those around you who are in need. Love does not think of self, but only of how to ease the pain and suffering you see in this world. Love gives itself fully and completely, choosing to place others ahead of yourself, and keeps coming back more and more abundantly in the giving.

This righteousness is not born of your own will or of your own goodness, but is bestowed upon you in your Baptism. It is the righteousness of Christ now accounted to you as righteousness by faith. And it is the righteousness that receives the One who fulfills all righteousness – by being baptized for you, by fulfilling the Law for you, by dying for you, and by rising again for you.

Who are “the least of these My brothers”? These are, first of all the apostles, and in their train all pastors and preachers of the Gospel. In other words, to receive and show hospitality for the least of these brethren of Christ is to receive their words; that is, to receive the Gospel. What our Lord commands here is that you receive the one whom He has sent to you as His own messenger, that you show him the hospitality that you would show your Lord, and that you receive the blessings he comes to give as from the Lord Himself.

The preachers of the pure Gospel suffer mightily in this world. They stand at the front lines of the battle against the devil and his forces. The old evil foe will stop at nothing to bring down the shepherds of Christ's sheep. He will attack their health, their theology, their faith, their character, their marriages and families, and their livelihoods. He will oppress them with poverty and pervert them with riches. He will flatter them with lies and lead them away by inches. He will make them suffer ill health and misfortune. He will rob them of the sustenance they need to put daily bread on their tables and food in their children's mouths. And they will turn to you, O you faithful of God, and ask for your help. Will you receive one of the least of these with kindness and hospitality?

Secondarily, the love of Christ in you is shown in service to the neighbor, to the poor and needy, the oppressed and downtrodden among you. The right and faithful reception of the Gospel fortifies and equips you with the love and mercy of God which you have in abundance in order to serve your neighbor. When you see your neighbor sick, pray for him and visit him. When you see the kids across the street running around without coats in the snow, find out if they need help buying winter clothes. When you see the widow and orphan in your community, lend your support and encouragement, even if just with a kind word or a thoughtful note. This is the life of the righteous, the life of the baptized, the life of the Church together.

Our Lord wants no one to experience hell. Hell was prepared for the devil and his angels, not for mankind. This is a punishment that one chooses for oneself, via unbelief. Failure to receive the Word of God, and subsequent failure to show hospitality in the Gospel, is what condemns a person to hell. Those whom Christ the King pronounces as accursed and commands to depart into the eternal fire are those who would not receive Him while there was time and opportunity. He is simply giving them what they wanted: if they did not want Him when they had the choice, He will not force Himself on them when they can no longer choose.

Again, the proof the Judge cites is their works in the world. These accursed ones have failed to show hospitality to the messengers of God and have rejected the Word of the Lord. They have failed to acknowledge what the Law says about their sinful condition, about their lives and actions, and about their evil hearts and minds. They have failed to support and protect their neighbor in any physical need, defend him and speak well of him in any circumstance, and live in peace and mercy with all. They have neglected the house of God, the preaching of the Word, and the forgiveness of sins here offered.

Therefore, these unnamed accursed ones, those whose names are not recorded in the Lamb's Book of Life, “will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” Those who would not receive the Word of Life will not receive the blessing of eternal life. Those who are called righteous and blessed by the Father of all mercies will enter into the glorious Kingdom of heaven, to inherit the blessings prepared for them from the foundation of the world. You are among those who are called blessed and righteous in Christ. Yours is the kingdom of heaven. Receive this blessed Word with thanksgiving, and receive your neighbor with the love, mercy, and hospitality you would show to your Lord.

In the Name of Jesus. Amen.