Stepping Stones For Victorious Christ Centered Living: Six Ways To Send Treasures Ahead

 

Sending Treasures Ahead or Not

In Matthew 25:34-40 and in Matthew 25:41- 46 Jesus is crystal clear on how we store up heavenly treasures for a life well lived,  and how we miss out on getting positive rewards. In these two passages Jesus gives us six ways to receive Heavenly blessing from activities here on earth, which demonstrated we are actually Christ Followers and six ways leading to regret. 

People on The Right

As the Judge of Heaven addressed these who were standing before Him, He judged them favorably, and they received their inheritance: He said to them,

1. "I was hungry, and you gave me food."

2. "I was thirsty, and you gave me drink."

3. "I was a stranger, and you invited me in." 

4."I needed clothes, and you gave me clothes."

5. "I was sick, and you visited me."

          6. "I was in prison, and you visited me." 

Now, what is interesting about this is that these folks were surprised to hear this, and so they asked, "When"?  And they asked "When" about all six of these things. They didn't remember ever doing any of these for Jesus, the Judge.  Here's the answer that was a blessing, a guarantee of their Heavenly inheritance, and a complete surprise to them.  Jesus said, "When you did this to the least of these, my brothers, you have done it unto me."

Even though this caught these folks off guard, the following is clear. Yes, they had made Jesus the Lord of their lives, and He transformed them. Apparently the Two Greatest Commandments kicked into overdrive: It is self evident that they truly loved the Lord their God, with all their hearts, all their souls, all their minds and all their strength; additionally, they loved their neighbors as themselves. They certainly had been walking on "Stepping Stones For Victorious Christ-Centered Living." They possessed a rock-solid foundation in the quicksand world surrounding them. Needless to say, Jesus was commending them for doing all these six things to people around them, and as far as Jesus was concerned, when they did this to others, He considered it being done unto Himself. Yes, Indeed, they had successfully done some Heavenly banking. They had sent their treasures ahead.

People On The Left

Now we come to the left of center kind of people: Same scenario. It's judgement time. Same six issues were discussed with these folks. But, they didn't get any good news. Listen to what Jesus said to each of these folks:

1. "I was hungry, and you gave me no food."

2."I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink."

3. "I was a stranger, and you did not invite me in."

4. "I needed clothes, and you gave me no clothes." 

5. "I was sick, and you did not visit me." 

6. "I was in prison, and you did not visit me." 

Like the previous group they asked the "When" question regarding all these six things, and Jesus said, "When you did NOT do this unto the least of these, by brothers, you did NOT do it unto me." It's clear the folks on the left were busy living life and doing stuff, but apparently demonstrating their love for God and for their fellow human beings was not a part of their life. They were traveling on the a self centered life basing their lives on a foundation of quicksand. They were not walking on "Stepping Stones for Victorious Christ Centered Living." And they had sent zero treasures ahead..

Your Challenge

As a Christ Follower.  Is there a homeless shelter you can support --or be a part of-- where hungry people are fed, thirsty people are provided drink, broken strangers are invited off the street, clothing is provided, sick are cared for, where people are helped to get back on their feet?  Is there a prison ministry you can be a part of, like Kairos Ministry? Or is their a jail near you where you can connect with the Chaplain, or other leader, to see how you can help?  Maybe you can support Samaritan's Purse or some other local and global outreach?  Salvation Army can also be a place to make a difference. I really don't know where you are in the world, but I know that, wherever you are, if you really want to send some treasures ahead by demonstrating your total love for God, and by demonstrating loving your neighbor as yourself, you will figure this out, by the grace of God. Keep in mind, as you serve in God's Kingdom these ways, Jesus takes this all VERY personally.

S o J o u r n e r