Good Works Bless Christ

Please turn to Matthew chapter 25. Matthew chapter 25 can be found on page 831 if you're using the

Pew Bible in front of you. We'll be looking particularly at verse 40.

We've been doing a truly a mega series on motivations for good works because it's broken up into a little mini -series.

This little mini -series being on those motivations would have to do with the way good works advance the kingdom of heaven.

This particular message is on how good works bless Christ. The particular verse is verse 40, and the king will answer them.

Truly I say to you as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.

However, I will read all of 31 through 46 for context. When you have that, please stand for the reading of God's Word.

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.

Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.

And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on his left. Then 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.

For I was hungry, and you gave me food. I was thirsty, and you gave me drink. I was a stranger, and you welcomed me.

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?

And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?

And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you? And the king will answer them,

Truly I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of my brothers, you did it to me.

Then he will say to those on his left, Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal 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 welcome me.

Naked, and you did not clothe me. Sick, and in prison, and you did not visit me. Then they also will answer 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, Truly I say to you, 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 eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.

Amen. You may be seated. Dear Heavenly Father, we thank you for your word.

We know it does not return void. We know it accomplishes its purposes. You have your purposes for us today as we hear that your word proclaimed.

We ask that you would accomplish those purposes in us swiftly and greatly by the power of your spirit.

That we would recognize the truths here, that we would tremble at the threatenings, that we would rejoice at the promises, and that we would be comforted always by your goodness, and especially that goodness that is found in Jesus Christ.

In his name we pray. Amen. So in going about the

Christian life, God has called us to serve him. He has made a people for himself, not just to sit there and await that final day of salvation, but he has made a people for his own possession to be zealous for good works, as it says in Titus 2 .14.

And yet that zeal is threatened by so many different things, and that zeal that could exist often does not, because truths that scripture offer us are not recognized as fully as they ought to be recognized by us.

One of those truths is this truth we have here, that good works bless

Christ. You may think of your good works as being primarily for others around you, that they are the ones who benefit.

How could God, who has everything, benefit from your good works? Yet they are told to us to be a blessing to Jesus Christ himself.

Now, why would that have an impact on the way you go about the Christian life, on the way you go about obedience to him, avoiding those transgressions against his law, walking in those positive commands that he has given in obedience to his law?

How would it help? Well, you can imagine that as you have opportunity to do good to others, you feel differently based on the person that you are doing that good to.

If it is someone very lowly, you feel very differently about it than someone very high.

Naturally, if you had an opportunity to do good for some poor beggar, you have a certain kind of emotion about it.

But if you have the opportunity to do something good for, for example, the president of the

United States or a king, you might feel a great sense of importance in that opportunity to minister to that particular need.

And so it is with the commands that Jesus has given us. He has given us his law, not just as something that has only a mundane significance, a significance for this earth, but something that has a heavenly significance, something that blesses

Christ. And the more you realize this truth, the more that you see this with eyes of faith rather than just with earthly eyes that cannot tell what is going on, eyes that just see brothers and sisters and cannot in them see

Jesus Christ, the more you will avoid or avoid good works or do them with a lackluster spirit.

The more you see that truth, the more you will do it zealously, and the more of such works you would do.

And keep in mind, as we have defined good works throughout this series, I'm not talking about just those great kind of extra things that people do when they're going above and beyond.

That's often called, in Roman Catholicism, it's known as supererogation, those things that are beyond God's law.

The reality is that we cannot do anything more than God has commanded us. He expects—his law requires perfection.

The only thing that we can do is what is required of his servants. And so when I speak of good works, do not speak just of those things that are extra, above, and beyond.

I speak of all zealousness and all faithfulness to those commands that he has given.

In total, in this passage here, where we read about this final judgment, if you would consider with me for a moment the context of this passage, what has been going on in the previous passages.

In chapter 24, the disciples had asked about the signs of the coming and the end of the age, for when the temple would be destroyed in the end of the age.

Now, often these are conflated as being one question, but really they are two different questions, and Jesus gives them two different answers.

And as he transitions into that second answer, in verse 29 of chapter 24, he begins talking about that final judgment.

Later on, he tells them that no one knows the day or the hour of that final judgment. In chapter 25, he gives the parable of the ten virgins, as they are supposed to be waiting for the groom.

So we are supposed to be waiting for the groom. He gives the parable of the talents, about how judgment will be conducted on that final day, how those servants will be evaluated.

And here, likewise, we have a statement about how people will be evaluated. The separation of the sheep and the goats.

In verse 31, it says, Now, Christ is already king of kings.

He already reigns. But he must continue reigning until every last enemy is put under his feet, as it says in 1

Corinthians 15. And on that day, when every last enemy is put on his feet, that reign will become so fully manifest that those who had taken it lightly will be forced to take it with great fear and trembling.

He will come in all his glory. With his angels, he will sit on his glorious throne.

And it says in verse 32, Describing, putting people in two different categories.

In some of these parables, we're talking primarily about evaluating people of one category in different ways.

But here, we are talking about just two completely different categories. There are those who are the sheep, those who will have eternal life, as it says in the final verse in verse 46, and those who go off into eternal punishment, those being described as the goats.

There are these two categories, the sheep and the goats. Now, how will that evaluation be made?

It's a very surprising answer that is given. It is not based on a general pattern of conforming to the law as most people imagine it.

Rather, it is framed particularly in that goodness done to Jesus Christ.

Now, none of this is to contend with what I was describing earlier, that we are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.

Yet, it is to describe what is that characteristic difference between those who are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone and those who are not.

What is it that primarily characterizes the difference between the sheep and the goats?

And what is described here is not just a conformity to some kind of a law that is separate from any sort of human interaction, but rather it is particularly that good we have done for the king of the kingdom.

That this is what characterizes it. And that is known particularly in the way we interact with those citizens of the kingdom.

This is the evidence that will be pointed to on the last day. There's several things that we should learn from this passage about the significance of union with Christ.

What this is teaching us is that union with Christ has implications. That union with Christ that his people have gives them a shared identity with him.

Not only does it give them a shared identity with him, but it means that any offenses towards them are shared with Christ, and any kindnesses with them are shared in Christ.

There's a shared identity, which means shared offenses, which means shared kindness as well.

This unity is both a legal and a spiritual unity with Christ.

This is something that we have covered before, but just to walk through this again, we have a legal union with Christ.

We are counted in the courts of God as being one with him. We are joined together with him.

It's similar to the notion of adoption. When you are adopted, you are considered as one with the family that you are adopted into.

Even though there be no actual share in blood in any court who would regard whether or not you belong to that family for some matter where that would be in concern, they would regard you as being part of that family because of that legal status that you have.

We are regarded, we who have trusted in Jesus Christ, are regarded as having a legal identity with him, a legal shared identity with him, so that wrongs and kindnesses done to us are considered shared with him.

Likewise, there is a spiritual unity. Now, when I say spiritual,

I mean brought about by the Holy Spirit. Even a legal unity could be considered a spiritual unity with a lowercase s in the sense that it's not a material unity.

When I speak of a spiritual unity, that unity brought about by the Spirit that grafts us into Christ, so that unity is not just a legal fiction but is something that has an actual component to it in a spiritual reality that we join together to him as the branches are grafted into the vine.

There's a very real connection. Just to use another scriptural analogy that brings both of those together, we have the analogy of a husband and wife, something that is more than an analogy, as the

Bible explains to us that there is an organic union between those two things, between the unity between man and woman as they become one flesh, and the unity between Christ and the church.

That this is something that God has built into creation. It's not some arbitrary analogy that Paul is drawing from or anything like that, but something that God has built into creation to illustrate that glorious salvation that we have.

In that unity between a husband and his wife, you have both the legal unity, as it's recognized in the courts of law, but then you have also a real unity, a unity that is able to bring about the fruitfulness of children.

There's a organic unity and there's a legal unity. And so there is with us a legal unity with Jesus Christ as well as a spiritual unity with him.

And both of those imply a shared identity with him. This is something where you do not understand completely that unity that you have.

You cannot fully understand that unity at this time because it has not been fully revealed.

One of the most surprising parts of this passage, you would think it's one of those, you know, the term of self -fulfilling prophecy.

I don't know what you would call the kind of prophecy where once you say it, it can't come to pass, but you might imagine that this would be that sort of prophecy.

Because he says, because they will say, when did this ever happen?

Then the righteous will answer him saying, Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you or thirsty and give you drink?

Now, any disciple who has read this passage knows what the answer is to it. So how can it be the case on the last day that anyone would be confused about this matter?

The reality is that we do not understand the depth of our unity with Christ so that we will still be perplexed by this on that day of judgment.

That it will become a greater reality to us and we will be surprised at all the ways that those actions toward our brothers and sisters are credited to us as actions to Christ.

Paul describes marriage, particularly the consummation, as a mystery.

It is something that has not been fully revealed. We are united to Christ in betrothal, but there is a greater union with Him that is to happen at that marriage feast, at that consummation.

When Paul describes it as a mystery in Ephesians chapter 5, it is a mystery that still has not been revealed.

Many people think of the term mystery as being something that defies logic. If you talk to Roman Catholics, for example, they would talk about the

Trinity as a mystery, which means that it is something because they are effectively undermining the very good doctrine of the

Trinity by describing it as something that not just fully cannot be understood, but rather as something that is irrational or illogical.

They describe it as a mystery, meaning that no one can understand it. A lot of people will hear that and then think that Protestants believe the same thing, that it is a mystery in the same sort of way, that we are willing to throw under the bus the

Trinity as being something that does not comport with logic. Or they will often point to the

Eucharist, the Lord's Suffering, as being a mystery because they believe that the bread and the wine turns literally into Christ's body and blood.

Of course, that entirely defies logic, and so they refer to that as a mystery, as something that defies logic. When the

Bible talks about something being a mystery, it is not talking about something that defies logic.

What it is talking about is something that is hidden and then later revealed. Well, there are a lot of mysteries that have been hidden and later revealed.

At the end of Romans 16, it talks about the gospel as being something that was hidden, but has now been disclosed at the end of the age.

Paul, throughout Ephesians, speaks of the mystery of Christ that was entrusted to him that has been disclosed, which is the union of the

Jews and the Gentiles into Jesus Christ. But in that same book, he talks about the mystery of marriage, particularly the consummation that happens in marriage.

Why is that a mystery? Because we do not understand yet what that entails for the consummation that will happen between Christ and the church.

That wonderful thing that happens in the consummation and the human marriage, there is something analogous to that that is the greatest thing that one can imagine.

Just as people imagine that marital union is the greatest thing that you can enjoy in this life, so it is the case that there is a—the greatest thing that you will experience is that union with Jesus Christ that we do not yet fully know.

It is a mystery. And so, on that day, when we are evaluated as sheep or as goats, based on the way we have treated others in their union with Jesus Christ, it will be perplexing to us because it is still a mystery to us and will be revealed at that time.

If you remember from the Old Testament, Joash was given by Elisha—well, he was given the instruction to strike his arrows against the ground, and so he struck three times, and the

Syrians were only struck three times. And he said, if you had struck more times, it would have been completely destroyed. The implication is there.

Many people look at that and they say, how was Joash supposed to know he was supposed to do it so many times? He was supposed to know.

He did not know the implications. And so he was supposed to strike many times.

You are supposed to know that you do not know the implications, that you will be perplexed on that last day.

Operate as one who understands that he does not have a complete understanding of his brothers and sisters' unity with Jesus Christ, and so should serve them and love them in such a way that he recognizes that the implications of that will be far greater than you can imagine right now while it is still a mystery.

That shared identity with Jesus Christ implies a shared offense.

This is a very real offense when one offends one who is a citizen of that kingdom of heaven.

Acts 9 .4 says, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting the church? Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?

Christ counts that as a personal offense against him. This is a very, very serious thing.

Zechariah 2 .8 says, For thus says the Lord of hosts, After his glory sent me to the nations who plundered you, for he who touches you touches the apple of his eye.

Now, we still use that phrase, apple of one's eye, from the scriptural passages.

What that's talking about is the pupil, one of the most tender and precious parts of the body it's able to see.

It is also not just sensitive to light, but very sensitive to touch. It is not something you would want to touch.

I, in particular, am pretty grossed out by the idea of touching an eye. I can't imagine ever using contact lenses.

Whenever I go to an optometrist, that part where they have to check your eye pressure just really, just really bothers me.

You know, they have a special tool that measures it without using the thing that does that little vibrating push.

And my insurance doesn't cover that, and that costs like an extra $40 or $50. And I just sit there thinking, man,

I can't believe I'm not willing to pay $50 so that someone can touch my eye.

It's just very—I do not like having my eye touched. But you can imagine what easier way would there be if you were in armor, etc.,

for someone to attack you. They could touch your eye. They could just ruin you so quickly.

So it is with Christ. The one who touches His servant touches the apple of His eye.

Just as a husband would take personal offense to his wife being harmed or his children being harmed, anyone in his family, so there is an identity with Jesus Christ that He takes that personally.

And there are great consequences for this action. Talks about eternal punishment.

Many people believe that that eternal punishment is an eternal nothingness. That is not the punishment of which

Scripture speaks of. If we go off into life forever and ever, and the

Bible speaks of the torment that the wicked will experience forever and ever, so it is that that torment is not something that is just to the end of the age, as many people would argue.

That parallel between forever and ever of the one means the forever and ever of the other. It is an eternal torment that happens.

The consequences are incredible. And who could bribe that king on the last day, that king who has everything?

You could not bribe him, not only because he is righteous, not only because you have nothing that he would want, but also because he is the plaintiff.

He is the one bringing the charge and bringing the evidence. How often do you have a courtroom case where the king, the judge, is the one bringing the evidence?

But that is what you have here, is that Jesus Christ is the one bringing the evidence.

Could you imagine how a defendant would feel standing in the courtroom?

If the judge got down and he's doing both roles, clearly you're going to lose, clearly.

I would encourage you sometime after the service, don't distract yourself now, but read the quote

I have from Roland Stedman. Stedman, this is a, I think he was a

Puritan, but he was an early nonconformist. He has this great quote about how awful it would be for those who offend

Christ's servants. He speaks to the unbelieving. This is something I find very interesting in older sermons, old

Puritan sermons. They would frequently speak to the unbelieving as ones who understand that they are unbelieving and yet recognize the implications of their actions will have eternal importance in God's heavenly courts.

So it is, if you do not trust in Jesus Christ, know that the more you harm his children, the more you will face consequences for this.

Now, that shared identity likewise implies a shared kindness, a shared sense of the pleasure, the joy and thankfulness, the gratitude that will happen when there is a kindness towards someone.

A kindness towards one of Christ's children is a kindness towards him. The same analogies can be made here.

If you were to protect someone's eye from harm, they would be very thankful. If you were to protect someone's wife or their children from harm, they'd be very thankful.

If you're good to them, they would be very thankful. I think a passage that's helpful here is a passage that was part of the preaching text from yesterday.

If you go ahead and turn to 1 John 4, I would like to walk you through this passage. 1

John 4 explains a little of this dynamic of the way that you would act towards one who is one of Christ's children.

I'll start in verse 8, 1 John 4, 8. Anyone who does not love does not know

God because God is love. In this, the love of God was made manifest among us that God sent his only son into the world so that we might live through him.

Okay, so a couple of truths to stop there and think about. God is love. No one can see

God, right? No one can see his love except his love was made manifest. That means it's made visible.

God's love is made visible in his sending the son into the world.

Verse 10, and this is love, not that we have loved God, but that he has loved us and sent his son to be the propitiation for our sins.

Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God, but if we love one another,

God abides in us and his love is perfected in us. It was, once again, this contrast between not being able to see

God and yet in some way being able to see him, him being manifest. We cannot see

God, but his love, he being love, is manifest as we love one another, as we are perfected in his love.

By this, we know that we abide in him and he in us because he has given us of his spirit. And we have seen and testify that the father has sent his son to be the savior of the world.

This is the apostle speaking. Remember at the very beginning of this book, he talks about what we have seen, what we've heard, what we've touched with our own hands, right?

He is speaking as one who has seen Christ. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the son of God, God abides in him and he in God.

So we have come to know and to believe that the love that God has for us, God is love and whoever abides in love, abides in God and God abides in him.

By this, love is perfected with us so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment because he is also, as he is, so also are we in this world.

There is no fear in love but perfect love casts out fear for fear has to do with punishment and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.

We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, I love God and hates his brother, he is a liar for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love

God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him, whoever loves God must also love his brother.

So that verse there, verse 20 says, for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love

God whom he has not seen. I think the way many people interpret that verse in their head and the way that I often thought about it was maybe it's saying that it should be easier to love someone that you can see than someone that you can't see.

But if you think about it, that really doesn't seem to be the case. Often it is easier to idealize in your head someone that you haven't seen.

You know the statement, never meet your heroes. Why is that? Uh, it's because, it's because once you get to know them, it's harder to love them, right?

And so what this is getting at is not so much that it would be easier to love someone that you can see, but rather the way

God's, God himself is manifest is in the one who is being perfected by love.

No one can see God, but his love is made manifest in Jesus as he has loved us, and that is love that he loved us, and because he loved us, we love, and now his love is being manifest in us.

The most visible picture you have of God on this earth, as his son makes him visible, the most visible picture you have of Jesus Christ is in his brothers and sisters, in your brothers and sisters.

And if you claim to love God, but then when you see him, you do not love him, what does that say about your love for God?

You don't really love God because you're not loving him when you see him, because you are supposed to be seeing him in your brothers and sisters that are being perfected in love.

This is a, this is part of that reality that when you are kind to your brothers and sisters, you are kind to Jesus Christ.

When others are grateful for your goodness to them, Christ is grateful for your goodness to him.

Hebrews 13, 2 says that by hospitality, some have entertained angels. Now, a lot of people take that as a promise that you could experience an angelic presence in your home today.

I do not believe that is even suggesting that that's a possibility, it's just talking about good blessings having come to those in the past and Genesis 18, other passages where Lot is visited,

Abraham is visited, Manoah is visited, et cetera. Now, some have entertained angels, but every single person who entertains a brother or sister has entertained

Christ. If you, if your kindness towards a brother or sister is a kindness towards Jesus Christ, and when you entertain a brother or sister, you are hospitable to a brother or sister, you are being hospitable to Christ.

And so this promise that some have entertained angels, and you realize that the angels that it's talking about often are the angel of the

Lord who is the pre -incarnate Christ, you are actually entertaining the angel of the

Lord as he dwells in your brothers and sisters. And so that promise becomes much more, that statement of blessing becomes much more great when you realize, okay,

I might not be entertaining spirits in that way, but I am entertaining

Christ as I'm entertaining my brothers and sisters, as I am being hospitable to them.

It talks about there being, this being the case for even the least of these, even the least of these, my brothers.

This is not to say that there isn't a very real, a very real statement of,

I don't want to use the term hierarchy because that might imply authority, but a scale, right?

This is not necessarily promoting a kind of egalitarianism that says everyone is alike. In fact, that's kind of the point of it is that there are the least of those.

Matthew 10, 40 through 20 says the following, or 40 through 42, whoever receives you receives me and whoever receives me receives him who sent me.

The one who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet's reward. And the one who receives a righteous person because he is a righteous person will receive a righteous person's reward.

Whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly I say to you, he will be by no means lose his reward.

Now, you see at the end there, he says he won't lose his reward. He will have a reward. But there's a notion of a prophet's reward.

There's a notion of a righteous person's reward. This is not saying that the least are, that it's all equal, but it is saying that even the least, the reward that would come from being kind is so great that you would not want to miss out on it.

There is a shame that is involved in need. This is something

I was explaining to someone recently. A lot of people think of shame as, that shame has to do with your sin, right?

So if you sin, then you should be ashamed because of your sin. But really what shame has to do with the effects of sin, there's shame that has come about from the fall.

There are a lot of shameful things that have nothing to do with your own personal sin. You know, there's a man who's born blind.

It wasn't his sin or his parents' sin, but that's still a, there's a shame that comes with being blind.

There's a shame in scripture throughout it that comes with being barren. That is a shameful thing.

That doesn't mean it's a sinful thing on that person's part, but there's a shame that comes with it.

And because there is a shame that comes with these statuses of need, so there is also a shame with those who would enter into those statuses of need, giving of themselves to help those situations of need.

So when you see those who are in great need, there can be a lot of reasons why you would not immediately want to because you are entering into their shame, first of all.

Secondly, the reality of the world we live in with our brothers and sisters, a lot of their need is not just pure victimhood.

A lot of times it's a result of their own sin. So then there's the question you have to ask yourself of, you know, whether or not this person, whether or not you want to deal with them.

It may feel like a real burden to deal with, not just one who is a victim, but one who has, by their own sin, entered into a treacherous condition.

But these should not be viewed as burdens. They should be viewed as incredible opportunities.

Christ sits above the heavens. He sits on a throne at the right hand of the

Father. If you wanted to do some good for Him, what good could you do?

There's a question people ask, what do you get for the man who has everything? Usually they mean that in a very relative sense.

Christ has everything. He inherits all things. What do you get for the man who literally has everything?

Here's the answer right here. You are good to his children. You are good to his brothers and his sisters.

It is more blessed to give than to receive. We receive so much from Christ. But there's a limited blessing in receiving from Christ because we are not able to give to him.

But we are able to give to him in that. We give to him through blessing his brothers and sisters.

It is an incredible opportunity. As you see those situations where your brothers and sisters are in need, it can feel like a burden when you are to bear one another's burdens.

There is a sense in which they are literally burdens. Yet you should see them as wonderful opportunities because otherwise you would have no opportunity to ever give to Christ.

You would only have opportunities to receive from him. And it is more blessed to give than to receive.

On that day, when you're looking back at your life, your primary rejoicing will not necessarily be in a lot of the ways that you receive from him.

A lot of your primary blessings will be in the opportunities you had to give to him because it is more blessed to give than to receive.

And as you think about that shared kindness, that shared offense, it is important to understand his point here that this has to do with advancing his purposes, with kindness toward him in particular.

A lot of times we can advance his kingdom through evangelism, through making his gospel known to those who are unbelievers, through advancing his name.

Those are all legitimate ways of doing good to him. Of course, what is directly in mind here is the way that we would more frequently do good to him, which is by good to those who are already part of his kingdom.

And this must be done in sincerity. Not everyone who does good to one of Christ's brothers will be counted as part of the sheep because not everyone who does good to his brothers are doing it for the reasons of caring for his kingdom.

As it says in Matthew chapter 10, that I just read a minute ago, the one who receives a profit because he is a prophet will receive a profit reward.

Whoever receives a righteous person because he is a righteous person will receive a righteous person's reward.

Whoever gives to one of these little ones a cup of cold water because he is a disciple. There are a lot of people who will end up doing good to those who are

Christ's people. That does not mean that they will end up as a sheep. Maybe you have done good for Christ's people, but if it's not out of a sincere love of Christ himself, that it's not because they are being perfected in love and you are being perfected in love, these promises here are not true of you.

It is something that must happen sincerely. And so, as you are regarding who it is that you should do good to, you should do good primarily to those who are

Christ's people in ways that you know would advance his kingdom, in ways that you know would be for his good.

Galatians 6 .10 says, A lot of people don't like that second half of it.

I remember in Hillary Clinton's concession speech when she lost the 2016 election, she quoted that verse, and she left off the second half.

She said, as we have opportunity, you should do good to others, I'm reminded of the words of Galatians 6 .10, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and then stopped with the rest.

If you do good to everyone indiscriminately, you are not going to be one of the sheep. You must do good to everyone discriminately, especially recognizing the household of faith.

Do not make the soup kitchen error, where a lot of people think that what this is talking about, giving the cup of cold water, is having a soup kitchen where you invite all the lost to come and receive, etc.

Now, there are ways that that can be good for the purposes of Christ's kingdom, especially if you're preaching the gospel to them.

But if you think the kind of good that he's talking about here is good to those who are lowly of the world, of the earth's kingdoms, and not to the lowly of his kingdom, you are missing the point of this.

Mark 14 .7 says, For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good for them, but you will not always have me.

Not every opportunity to serve the poor is an opportunity to serve Jesus Christ. When I was earlier on my journey toward ministry,

I originally wanted to be a missionary. I originally had no interest in pastoral ministry. Part of that was because I imagined that God's people didn't really need me.

They already had Jesus. Obviously, these other people, they're the ones who really need me.

And so I had this disordered love where I thought it was better for me to love the lost than it was for me to love the saved.

Now, there are times when it is right to love the lost. It's good for some people to make their whole calling loving the lost.

But for me, it was a disordered love where I was thinking, I was discounting the importance of God's people and not counting their importance as I ought.

We should love God's people especially. And as Matthew 10 had said, we should love especially the righteous, the teachers, the prophets, etc.

These are good opportunities for you to especially help His kingdom. Do not take this as saying that you should care about the lowly in His kingdom and not about those who have offices in His kingdom.

Instead, it talks about you sharing in a prophet's reward as you care for those who have done especially good.

Third John 7 through 8 talks about those who have gone out for the sake of the name, not accepting anything from Gentiles.

Therefore, you ought to support people like these that we may be fellow workers for the truth. The one who is doing the most good for the kingdom, that's one who you definitely want to partner with.

You definitely want to do good for them and watch out for them. The point here is that even the lowest there will be great joys in serving them, not that there would be greater joys.

They're all equal joys. And you should care especially for those who are persecuted for the sake of the name.

There are many blessings that are promised to those who are persecuted. You should care about them especially.

Do you know why? It's because you would join in their blessings. Bible says blessed are the persecuted.

In Matthew, in Luke, it gives all the cursed you are, etc.

In Matthew, Matthew does not end up recording all Jesus' statements about you're cursed if you don't do those things.

But you should imagine for every single one of the Beatitudes a curse that comports the blessing. Blessed are you when you are persecuted.

Cursed are you if you are not persecuted. Many people think that they can live the Christian life without persecution.

There is an implicit curse if you are not persecuted. You might think, well, I live a pretty comfortable life.

I'm not very persecuted in any significant way. If you care for those who are persecuted, then you yourself are persecuted.

You are participating in their persecution. Hebrews 10, 32 to 33 says, but recall the former days after you were enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, sometimes being publicly exposed to reproach and affliction, and sometimes being partners with those so treated.

Sometimes being partners with those so treated. That is in the same category. When you are mistreated for the sake of the name, that is in the same category as being, as caring for those who are mistreated for the sake of the name.

You are fellow workers for the truth, as it says in 3 John. So take those opportunities.

Prioritize these things. Those you would serve as people outside of the kingdom with the gospel, attending to their needs, giving them the gospel for the sake of advancing the kingdom, over here.

Those low of the kingdom, those doing excellent works for the sake of the kingdom, prioritize accordingly.

Prioritize accordingly. Do this discriminately. Do not do this as one who is foolish and has not listened to the commands that Christ has given or has some modern notion of equality or inclusivity that does not recognize what

Christ has said because you will be missing out on great blessings on that last day. And in the worst case, you would make the soup kitchen error where you think that having served the lost in a way that has nothing to do with Christ's kingdom is what he's talking about.

There are so many liberal churches out there who have rejected the gospel of Jesus Christ, who think that they are abiding by these commands by offering water to those in needs, but they are not the least of these, my brothers, my brothers.

Let that be a warning. Let that be a warning to all those who think they are on the right hand but are actually on the left hand, who think they are the sheep but are actually the goats.

If you have failed to join with those who are truly persecuted, there is an eternal punishment awaiting.

But if you would join us, the ones who are being perfected in the love of Jesus Christ, there is an eternal life to be enjoyed in him.

In this is love, not that we loved him, but rather that he first loved us.

What I am calling you today, if you are currently among those who, in your current trajectory, you would be counted as one of the goats because you have not loved

Christ's brothers as you ought. What I am telling you today is not by your service to his people that you will earn a place in heaven.

What I am telling you is that if you turn to him, his love for you is something that results in a love for his children, such that you will be able to enjoy all the blessings of not just having been blessed by him but having had an opportunity to bless him yourself.

There is a great salvation in Jesus Christ. It goes far beyond the forgiveness from the guilt and shame that you bear.

Rather, there are wonderful blessings and hopes. For those who are already serving

Christ, believing in Christ, consider ways to do this strategically. Consider how to be benevolent, caring for even the least of these, your brothers.

There are several ways of doing this. One is through the church, through regular giving to the church.

I believe this should be the primary way that you are doing this. A lot of people will give partially to, they'll give to a lot of different organizations, but then not to the church.

Christ has instituted his church. This is the primary way that this should be happening.

In Acts 4, you see that the disciples lay all their goods at the apostles' feet, the apostles functioning as the first elders of the church as the primary way that this should be happening.

We have a lot of room to grow in this church. We have no deacons currently.

Deacons are ones that can distribute such benevolence funds.

Elders can, of course, too, but limited capacity to do so. And there are, so consider whether or not

God would call you to such an office if you're a man growing in the faith. Likewise, there is a great need among even our current generation by generation,

I mean just everybody on this planet right now, there's just a lot of debt. There's a lot of poverty that does not get recognized as poverty because there are so many things covering it.

This is a way for us to grow, too. If there is anything weighing you down materially, come talk to me.

I would love to figure out how to help you in your situation and do so in a responsible way as the institution that God has made for this primary thing.

Now, you may be benevolent individually towards one another as they have need.

That is certainly a kindness that is toward Jesus Christ. You want to be aware of several things. First of all, that you're not needlessly enabling someone to continue in their sin.

Second Thessalonians talks about he who will not work, let him not eat. This is not a command to give to everybody who appears needy, but rather those who are truly in need.

Also, consider that there are many who would go around and ask people for money and that without any kind of coordination, they may actually be receiving a lot.

There's a lot of funny business that goes on with that kind of thing. So do not naively give to individuals without considering that as well, or even considering those who would grift on God's people knowing their generosity.

I've met a lot of people who come either to me personally or to the church for help and claim all kinds of persecution that upon a little investigation are clearly all fabricated, right?

They are just grifters looking to take advantage of God's people.

Be as gentle as does, but as wise as serpents. Now you may also choose to give to para -church ministries, some para -church ministries, a para meaning alongside of.

So those institutions that aren't churches themselves, but come alongside the church, for example, associations or missionary organizations, things like that.

Some are closer to the local church like associations. Some are further away from the local church like a lot of charity organizations.

Be very careful about these. Be very careful about these. Christ instituted the church for such purposes, gave elders and deacons with a particular requirement that they not be lovers of money.

Those requirements, the vetting, the way the keys of the kingdom are exercised, those are not practiced in other institutions.

Only Christ's church has that kind of guards around it.

Others can't even claim to have such guards because they are not being led by the spirit in the same way that Christ's church is being led.

So keep in mind too what Christ intended when he instituted his church with the offices of elders and deacons for the particular protection of the people.

If you just give to every organization you see thinking that they're gonna handle the money well, think again, there have been so many charity scams, so much, a lot of them will give maybe half of what they get to the poor and the rest goes all to administration costs, making those who are administering it all wealthy and it's very inefficient, all kinds of problems there.

Be aware of the way that you might be used. Just as one illustration, you know, if you give to the

Salvation Army that rings the bells at Christmastime, that actually is a church. That's not a parachurch institution, but it is a church that denies baptism in the

Lord's Supper, the church who rejects the sacraments. That's a, you may not realize it, that's the kind of thing you're supporting, but that's a good example of it's important to be as wise as serpents to consider what it is that you're actually giving to as you give.

Do not give naively thinking everyone who claims to be using it for good or claims to be in need is actually in need or is actually going to be using it for good.

Finally, stand especially with those who are persecuted. Some of these are just small ways. You might see someone in your life who is taking some heat, maybe it's in your workplace.

You have opportunity to stand with them or you have the opportunity to lay low and avoid any kind of crossfire.

If you see someone being persecuted, either in reproach or actual material goods being taken away, stand beside them, either in meeting needs materially or in being willing to be vocal along with them.

There is great reward to be had in that and those who out of cowardice would not, there are consequences for this as well.

There are implications for this as well. So Christ will, on that last day, divide people as He divides, as someone would divide the sheep and the goats.

One hand, the right, the righteous to eternal life, the left into eternal punishment.

If you are someone who has gone about your life not particularly caring for the people of God, thinking that you are a good person, but you're not joined with them, you don't care about your brothers and sisters, you're never with your brothers and sisters, you aren't doing good to your brothers and sisters, maybe you're living your life alone or you think that you're good to others, is the real

Christian life, you are deceived. Please turn to Jesus Christ. Join with His people.

Love the body because in doing that, you are loving Jesus Christ. If you are one who has trusted in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins and you are already loving

His body, then may you be encouraged to love Him all the more. May you be encouraged to do all the more good with all the more zeal to His brothers and sisters, to even the least of these, knowing that when you do so, you do also unto

Him because good works bless Christ, amen. Dear Heavenly Father, we thank you for this wonderful opportunity that we have to give to Christ.

The man who has everything is more blessed to give than to receive and you have given us the opportunity for the greatest blessing, to give to one who has everything, to give to one who is

God Himself. We thank you for this incredible blessing and we ask that you would grant us the humility to understand the limits of our own understanding and that we would eagerly obey your commands, knowing that your rewards will be greater than above anything we can ask or think.