TURNING OVER A NEW LEAF

~Matthew 25:31-46~

In-person service at

Second Baptist Church

2412 Griffith Ave.

Los Angeles

William S. Epps, Senior Pastor

Sunday, November 26, 2023

³¹When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: ³²And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: ³³And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. ³⁴Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: ³⁵For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: ³⁶Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. ³⁷Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? ³⁸When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? ³⁹Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? ⁴⁰And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, In as much as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me. ⁴¹Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: ⁴²For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: ⁴³I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. ⁴⁴Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee hungry, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? ⁴⁵Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, In as much as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me. ⁴⁶And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal. Matthew 25:31-46

Introduction

This is a familiar passage of scripture about the sheep and the goats being separated by the Lord. The sheep fulfill what the Lord intended for them as His followers and the goats are those who did not fulfill what Jesus intended for them as His followers. 

Those who take seriously these words with their poignancy (a keen sense of sadness or regret) engage in social ministries of compassion to the needy and benevolence to the less fortunate. They see those who are described as less fortunate described as those who are hungry, thirsty, a stranger, naked, sick, in prison. The question is asked, when did we see you hungry, thirsty, a stranger, naked, sick, in prison. Jesus said,

as you have done it to “the least of these, you have done it unto me.” 

The Lord’s teaching on the final judgment challenges every disciple of Jesus to be a representative of God’s kingdom in a broken world. God’s kingdom is the rule, reign and realm where the Lord is in charge and the Lord’s directives are followed by those who believe and have faith in what the Lord has done in the life of Christ. We are to mimic and mirror the life of Jesus as the one who came as the representative of what happens when people embrace the kingdom of God. 

Consider what it means that disciples of Jesus are

representatives of God’s kingdom in a broken world.  

Monday, November 27, 2023

The image of the Son of Man coming in glory reflects imagery from Daniel 7:13-14 and recalls other places in Matthew’s Gospel where Jesus foretells the coming judgment (24:30-31; 26:64). The portrait of Christ as King has all the nations of the world gathered before him. This imagery recalls Zechariah 14:1-21, where every nation will recognize the kingship of the Lord as the Lord stands upon the Mount of Olives — Jesus’ own location as He teaches His disciples (Matthew 24:3).

The king separates like a shepherd the sheep from the goats. The sheep receive the inheritance that has been prepared for them because they have demonstrated their faithfulness with attitudes and behavior and conduct of loving compassion and kindness. Jesus’ ministry was to the disadvantaged, the poor, needy, sick and isolated.  In this Gospel, Christ has announced the arrival of God’s kingdom while he cures the sick (e.g., 8:28-9:8, 9:18-38; 12:9-14; 14:34-36; 15:29-31), welcomes the despised (9:9-13), and provides food for the hungry (14:13-21; 15:32-39). Jesus orders His disciples to carry on His ministry by doing likewise (10:5-15, 40-42).

Fascinating, don’t you think, that the righteous did what they were doing without realizing they were ministering to Christ. Jesus says that whenever they gave food to the hungry, welcomed a stranger, clothed the naked, or visited the sick or imprisoned, they acted in kindness toward Jesus himself. Jesus can identify with the least of these because He has walked in their shoes (cf. 8:20).

Those who have failed to see the needs of the disadvantaged have acted as though they have never seen Jesus. They have not followed in Christ’s footsteps. They have not continued to do the work that the Master has called them to do (24:45-51). They have not displayed who the real King is. “The difference between followers of Jesus and those who do not know Jesus is that those who have seen Jesus no longer have any excuse to avoid ‘the least of these.'” Stanley Hauerwas. (Matthew (Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible; Grand Rapids: Brazos Press, 2006), 211.

Consider what it means that those who follow Jesus,

 see Jesus in the plight of the least of these.

The blessed ones are those who have seen a King who is not like the kings of this world. They are blessed because they know a King who brings real peace, who sees the needy, and who hears the cries of the oppressed. In God’s kingdom, no one is hungry, naked, sick, or alone. To bear witness to Christ as King is to be a messenger of this kingdom–to serve others and thereby profess the invasion of God’s glorious kingdom. Jesus taught us to pray, “thy kingdom and thy will come on earth as it is in heaven.”  We are to mirror the kingdom and will of the Lord here on earth.  



The righteous are not commended for seeing Jesus in the poor, the hungry, the prisoners. Even the righteous did not see Jesus in the least of these. They just treated all such folks with love. Jesus reminds us with His actions, behavior and conduct that the love of God and the love of your neighbor as yourself are the trademarks and pillars of those who embrace Jesus. Treat everyone like you want to be treated was a feature of Jesus’ ministry, thus the Lord says, “do unto others as you would them do unto you.” (Luke 6:31)

Imagine the goats saying, “If we had known it was you, Lord, we would have responded differently. Why didn’t you just say something!? What was up with all those disguises?" Jesus makes it unequivocally clear that life is an interlocking network of dependences. We are all interdependent upon one another. “Any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved with mankind;” is the way the poet put it. 

Consider what it means that the righteous did not see Jesus in the poor,

hungry, naked, sick, imprisoned, but were moved with compassion

to alleviate what those who were less fortunate were experiencing.

Firstly, our challenge is to see the true humanity, the image of God, in the needy people of this world.

Do we take care to remind ourselves of that fundamental, basic identity of the poor and the marginalized as creatures made in God’s image and fashion in the Lord’s likeness? It seems that too often we are content to talk in generalities–in broad strokes that conveniently let human specificity fall away. We put people in categories so we can characterize them with pejorative labels that demean, demonize, and devalue their humanity as one made in God’s image and likeness. We focus on distinctions as a way of dividing so we can dismiss and disparage those we want to discard as worthless and no good - of no benefit except to be controlled, manipulated and used. Rather than see the personal worth of each individual, we label and disvalue those who have made choices that have brought less than desirable consequences into their lives. We demean people in still-developing countries with vitriolic, venomous language, and deny them the ability to achieve their potential for productivity.

Jesus is suggesting that we see God and Jesus in the people around us as creatures made in God’s image and fashioned in God’s likeness. We are to love the Lord with all our heart, mind, soul and strength and our neighbor as our selves.  Jesus said to love one another as I have loved you. John 13:34. Remember, it can’t be said enough, Jesus taught us to pray, “thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6:10 

Consider what it means that your response to the

needy of the world is the way you respond to Jesus. 

Secondly, we need to turn over a new leaf about seeing the Lord in the least of those. 

This word from the Lord reminds us of the essential reality of believing in Jesus, and following His example. Turning over a new leaf about being a disciple is what is implied in this scene where Christ the King separates the sheep from the goats. This idiom is one of the more charming phrases: turn over a new leaf. It’s an oldie but a goodie, and it has nothing to do with beautiful trees or autumn walks to collect dead leaves. This expression is a message about change and personal growth. 

Life is all about change, and this phrase captures the essence of it. When someone says they’re going to turn over a new leaf, they’re not heading out to rake the garden.

But they’re actually speaking about making a fresh start or changing their behavior for the better. It’s a hopeful phrase, full of optimism about future possibilities. The Bible reminds us that, “if anyone is in Christ, that person becomes a new creature, old things pass away and all things become new.” (II Corinthians 5:17). Imagine growing in Christ day-after-day, discovering what it means to, “increase in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and people.”  

The phrase, turn over a new leaf came out of the 16th century when leaf was a common term for a page in a book. So, to turn over a new leaf initially meant to flip to a fresh, unwritten page, which is supposed to be symbolic of a clean start or a chance to write a new story.

The beauty of this phrase is its versatility across different tenses. Whether you’ve turned over a new leaf in the past, you’re turning over a new leaf now, or someone habitually turns over a new leaf, life is about perpetual growth and development.  

Growing and maturing in Christ is being conformed to His image, and therefore it is walking as He walked. “As we have received Christ, so let us walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as we have been taught abounding in thanksgiving.” Colossians 2:6-7

Consider what it means to turn over a new leaf as you foster

your faith by seeing Jesus in the least of these with a

response that alleviates their condition. 

Thirdly, we need to see Jesus in people as creatures made in God’s image and fashioned in God’s likeness.  

The ultimate act of God’s love for us was when God sent Jesus to die on the cross for all of us as sinners who have fallen short of the glory of God and raised Him from the dead. ⁹“Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name

which is above every name: ¹⁰That at the name of Jesus every knee should

bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth.”  Philippians 2:9-10

God meets our deepest needs and the longings of our hearts. There is nothing we could ever do to earn this love or stop God from loving us. 

^“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

If we take Matthew 25 seriously and more-or-less at face value, then we cannot help but be reminded of the famous prayer of St. Francis of Assisi:

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace: where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy.

O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console,

to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

The questions to be answered are... When you see Jesus hungry, do you feed him;

when he is thirsty, do you give him drink; when he is a stranger do you take him in; when he is naked do you clothe him; when he is sick do you visit him; when he is in prison do you come to him.

“And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, In as much as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”

Consider what it means to see Jesus in the least of these who

are experiencing life without what is necessary to live.  

Lord help us to see in all of humanity your image and know that as we treat one another we are treating you in that way. If we see Jesus in people, we would not demonize and dehumanize them by labeling groups of people in pejorative ways that are demoralizing and damaging in order to dismiss them altogether.

Conclusion

Lord, I want to be a Christian / In my heart, in my heart;

Lord, I want to be a Christian In my heart.

Lord, I want to be more loving / In my heart, in my heart;

Lord, I want to be more loving / In my heart.

Lord, I want to be more holy / In my heart, in my heart;

Lord, I want to be more holy In my heart.

Lord, I want to be like Jesus / In my heart, in my heart;

Lord, I want to be like Jesus

In my heart. In my heart, in my heart;

Lord, I want to be more loving /In my heart.

Consider what it means to become more like Christ in responding to those who are the least of these (hungry, thirsty, stranger, naked, sick and in prison). 

Second Baptist Church Los Angeles

2412 Griffith Ave

Los Angeles, CA 90011 

Phone: (213) 748-0318