Where’s Jesus?
Pastor Mathew Magera – 6/5/16 – Sermon 169
St. Thomas Lutheran Church, Trufant, MI
To God be the Glory!
Grace and peace to you from
God our Father, from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
What do you get when you
cross a sheep with a goat? Wait. I really wanted to start my sermon off with
some humor but when it came to that very question, I was more drawn to
seriously answering that question because, to my surprise, there actually lives
an animal that is a cross between a sheep and a goat. It’s called a geep. I
know people breed many things together now-a-days and I often wonder why, but
when I came across this delightful little geep on the Internet, it was hard to
turn away from it. I’m going to make a point about this in a little bit but in
the meantime I’ll let you chew on that.
As we hear this parable
today, I would like to pose a question I believe the unrighteous were likely to
ask the king. First they ask him, "When did we brush you aside,
Lord?" and the king replies, "You did it every time you brushed them
aside." This is where the conversation ends in Scripture but let's wonder
about how this conversation might develop. The unrighteous on the left are
standing there having just been told, "all that you have not done to the
least of these you have not done to me", I imagine the next thing out of
their mouth would be something like, "Well, how were we supposed to know
that? If we have known it had been you all along, Lord, we would have acted
differently! Why didn't you tell us it was you all along?" This is exactly
where that conversation would go. You've just been placed in a group that you
do not wish to be in, having just been judged by the ultimate Judge of the
world, you might feel you deserve to know what exactly is going on here.
"If we had known it was you, Lord... why didn't you just say
something?" Where's Jesus? That seems to be the question taking place in
this parable. When were you hungry? When were you thirsty? When were you sick?
When were you in prison? We didn't see you. Where were you?
By this point it is already
too late to be asking this kind of questions, so let's back things up a bit.
How likely are you to do something kind, neighborly for someone you know? I'd
say there is a good chance you'd try to find a way to help them out or at least
point them in a pretty good direction. Now, what about someone you don't know?
How likely are you to do something kind, neighborly for a stranger? I'm
speaking of a random situation where someone comes to your door and
legitimately asks for help, someone you don't know. I don't want to assume too
much but I'd say you are less likely to help that person even if they were
seeking the same help as that someone you did know. It's not as common is it?
It's more likely for you to go out to eat with someone you know and decide to
pick up their check than it would be for you to pay for some random table at
the restaurant. I went to Subway on Friday after a busy morning and a guy
walked in behind me and the employee was doing some work in back and didn't
notice that we came in together so he asks if we were on one order. For a brief
instant, I considered saying yes and being nice to a random guy, but at the
same time we both said 'no'. I have no idea of his situation. I could have
judged that by the fact that he came into the restaurant that he had money to
pay but who was I to know whether he was choosing gas for his car or lunch? I
could have offered but didn't even when the opportunity was given to me. If
someone I knew walked in, there’s a better chance I would have said yes. None
of us are immune, not even me.
A few months ago we had a
lock-in here at the church and as an outing with the kids we took them each to
a different fast food restaurant in Greenville and they would go inside, order
something and then, in addition to paying for themselves, pay for the person
standing behind them in line. It was a way to help out a fellow person, one
they didn't know. Some of the kids were thanked enthusiastically. Some were
commented on by the employees of the restaurant. Now, if I were to ask them if
the person they helped was Jesus, they'd likely say no it wasn't. If a stranger
came to you and asked for help or if you helped a stranger on your own and you
were asked if it was Jesus, you'd likely say no. They guy behind me at Subways
wasn’t Jesus. So, back to the question at hand, "where's Jesus?" If
we had known it was you, Lord, we would have responded differently. If the guy
who walked in behind me at Subway was Jesus and I could know without a doubt
that it was Christ who followed me in looking for a $5 footlong, you bet I
would have spoken up. But, the thing of it is, and as this parable is telling
us, it is him. We’re all made in God’s image and that puts Jesus in each and
every one of us. That guy behind me was Jesus. The people that the kids served
at those other fast food restaurants in Greenville, they also were Jesus. Why
didn't you tell us it was you?
So, now, if If Jesus is in
everybody and the goats are sent away because they didn't help Jesus when he
was hungry, thirsty, etc. then where do you think this would put us? How many
times have we turned Jesus away or avoided him, rejected him, ridiculed him,
judged him? If you were beginning to ask yourself during this parable if you
were a sheep or a goat, I think you may have just gotten your unfortunate
answer. Not only would we be on the left but everybody in the world past,
present and future would also be on the same side.
Fortunately, the parable
isn't about just goats, it's about sheep and goats. We have to remember that
the Bible teaches salvation by grace through faith. What this parable tends to
bring to mind is an idea we call works righteousness. Works righteousness is
the idea that the good deeds we do for other people are not only pleasing to
God but they earn us salvation. The more good works we do, the more pleased God
is and the better paradise we can expect to live in after we die. But, when
Jesus died and rose from the dead, that method of salvation was gone. It was no
more. The new life began. That new life is one where we are saved not by our
works but by our faith on account of God's grace. Our brains don't want to
think about this when we read this parable, but we can put it there. The fact
that the sheep are even there shows us that God is gracious. The righteous did
help their fellow neighbor but they did not do it with Jesus in mind. They did
not do it with salvation in mind. You'll notice that the one thing that is
similar between the sheep and the goats is that they both never recognized
Jesus in their actions or lack of action. Both of them were asking, “where’s
Jesus?” The fact that the sheep didn't see Jesus in their good works could be
partly because they didn't need to see him. They were not doing good works as a
way to seek God's approval but because they saw a fellow human being made in
God's image who was in need and they took care of that need.
This parable is reminding us
that salvation does not depend on anything we do, it is given freely because of
him who is able to provide for others. The only reason there are two sides,
sheep and goats are because of God's grace. The Bible tells us that none are
righteous, no not one. It might sound contradictory but God who, in Paul’s
words tells us we are unrighteous, changes us into righteous people through
Jesus. The only reason there are sheep in this parable is because there is a
Savior. The only reason there are those who are considered righteous is because
of the only one who is truly righteous. The only reason the righteous are
welcomed into eternal life is because the one who had it gave it away and he
did so freely. The reason that we have any hope of being called to God's right
side is not based on anything we have done or could ever do but based
completely and solely on everything that Christ has done for us. Through our
belief that we are in extreme need and that Jesus saw our need and provided for
us reminds us the essence of this parable is not about doing good things for
other people as a means to an end but that because Jesus was the means to the
end, our salvation, we enact the same attitude toward the rest of the world
that is also made in the image of God.
So, while we may read
through this parable and quickly ask ourselves if we are sheep or a goat, it
might be worth noting that a conversation about that could go on and on and on.
We should really be asking ourselves, "Where's Jesus? And what is his role
in the parable?" If he plays the biggest role as the savior, we're on
track to better understanding the story and seeing how he makes us his sheep.
However, if we look at ourselves playing the biggest role as the helper and the
servant and that it is all about what we do, we're on track to reminding
ourselves once again that no matter how hard we try, we're always going to be a
goat. So, it's a struggle. A constant never-ending struggle. Sheep, goat. Goat,
sheep. One and the same at the very same time. Can we be a sheep and a goat at
the same time? Yes, because we are still a part of this sinful world yet have
been redeemed by Jesus. Even Martin Luther said this. And yes, we can also be a
sheep and a goat at the same time because we would be called geeps and if
Martin Luther knew what a geep was, perhaps he would have called us all geeps.
So, where is Jesus? Jesus is
in each of us. Jesus is in all who are in need. Jesus is here to become for us
what we need, a word of hope, the forgiveness of sins, the bread and wine, a
sacrifice. Jesus is in those who are in need just as he is also provider for
our needs as well. It is only because of our belief that he has been able to do
far more than we could ever imagine that we are able to serve in whatever way
we can as a result of his grace. It is only because of his grace that we are
able to hear the words of the king when he says, "come, you who are
blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since
the creation of the world" not because we're perfect, because he is
perfect and his perfect love for us makes us his sheep. To God be the glory,
now and always. Amen.