Rev.
Jeffrey T. Howard
Beaver
Dam and Pitts Creek Churches
November
23, 2014
Today
I will conclude my series of sermons drawn from Jesus' teaching
during Holy Week. Our setting is on the Mount of Olives with the
Jerusalem Temple rising across the Kidron Valley. The sun has set
and Wednesday has begun. The Passover is tomorrow and Jesus and his
disciples with gather for one last meal together. This is the last
time Jesus will have to sit with his disciples and teach them about
the Kingdom of God. And what Jesus says is surprising. When he
comes again he will come in a disguise. We will get to this, but
first let's pray.
Almighty God, reveal to me the greatness of your power, that I may
see your presence among the lowly and the lost and know the authority
and sovereignty of your love in Jesus Christ, our Lord, who is also
our humble brother. Amen.”1
In
the 1980s I owed retail stores. When you own more than one store it
is impossible watch what is happening in the all the stores. You can
only be in one place at one time. So what you must do is find a way
to find out what is happening in the stores while you are away. You
do this by getting a “secret shopper”. A secret shopper will go
into a store in disguise. They pretend to be an ordinary shopper.
But they are not. They look around and see how the store looks and
what the employees are doing. The buy something and observe how the
employees treat customers. Then they report all of this to the owner
who then takes whatever corrective measures are need. And according
to Jesus, secret shopper is one of the disguises he will be using
when he returns. Let's hear what he says.
Matthew
25: 31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels
with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will
be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from
another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will
put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34 “Then the King
will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my
Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the
creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something
to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a
stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed
me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came
to visit me.’
37 “Then the
righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and
feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we
see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe
you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
40
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one
of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
41 “Then he will
say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into
the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was
hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me
nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I
needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison
and you did not look after me.’
44
“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or
thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and
did not help you?’
45
“He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for
one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
46
“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to
eternal life.”
According
Jesus, when he returns, he will be wearing four disguises. The first
disguise will be as a superhero. Like Superman, Jesus will fly
through the air as he comes from heaven to earth. In doing so, he
will be fulfilling a vision of Daniel.
Daniel
7:13
“In
my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son
of man,[a]
coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days
and was led into his presence. 14
He
was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and
peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an
everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one
that will never be destroyed.
We
will see Jesus as the superhero, the Son of Man, riding the clouds
from heaven to earth. When this happens all believers will assemble,
including those who have died who will be resurrected from the dead.
It will be a glorious day for all who believe in Jesus Christ.
Jesus
will come disguised as the superhero, Son of Man, but then he will
also wear a second disguise. He will become a shepherd. A
shepherd, in the first century, would allow his goats and sheep to
graze in the field together during the day. But at night the
shepherd would gather the goats into his cave because they could not
tolerate the cold as well as the sheep. The shepherd did this
because he loves both the sheep and the goats. And so to with us.
Jesus loves us and will shepherd us, both goats and sheep, all
believers, into the warmth of his presence. And we will sing with
the psalmist:
Psalm
23 1
The
Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. 2
He
makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters,
3
he
refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s
sake. 4
Even
though I walk through the darkest valley,[a]
I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff,
they comfort me. 5
You
prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint
my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6
Surely
your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I
will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
So
Jesus will come disguised as a superhero and a shepherd. But thats
not all. Jesus will also come disguised as a person living in a
homeless shelter. He is hungry. He is thirsty. He is looking for a
job. He is trying to learn English. He is trying to support his
family. When we meet this person we won't know that it is Jesus.
Jesus is coming like a secret shopper to see how we respond. Will we
give him something to eat and drink? Will we help him find a place to
stay? Will we help him find a job? Will we invite him to our
church? Will we obey God's command:
Leviticus
19:10
Do
not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes
that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I
am the Lord your God.
So
we have seen that Jesus will come disguised as a superhero, a
shepherd and a homeless person. But there is one more disguise he
will wear. He will look like a king. And as king he will assemble
the believers together and separate them into the sheep and goats.
The sheep are those who will be useful in the Kingdom of God because
they care for the widow and orphan and poor and the alien, and the
old, and the sick, and injured. The goats are those who choose not
to care for others and therefore are useless in God's kingdom. The
goats will be cast out into darkness. But for all who obey God's
commands to love God and love your neighbor as yourself you will
inherit the kingdom.
We
don't know when Jesus will return. He might be here already. He
might even be living in Samaritan Shelter. Jesus might be a single
mother trying to support her family on minimum wage and food stamps
who hopes to receive a basket on Christmas. Jesus might even be a
inmate at Eastern Correctional Institute. We don't know what
disguise Jesus might be wearing right now. So let's be thankful that
Jesus is returning to establish the kingdom of God. And let's be
church, caring for those who need our help while we wait for Jesus to
return. Let's pray.
Lord
Jesus we thank you for blessing us with life and health and families
and homes and church. Help us to remember to share our blessing with
those less fortunate. Soften our hearts so that we may love the
poor as much as you do. This we pray. Amen.
1Feasting
on the Word Worship Companion: Liturgies for Year A, Volume 2 ©
2014 Westminster John Knox Press p265.
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