This morning we are veering off the lectionary for a week to study a passage that is near and dear to my heart. It gives us an understanding of not just our missional obligation as followers of God but a key into how we might gain a more personal relationship with God and actually experience the Holy in our daily life. Listen now for meaning to you in Jesus’ teaching of what is called the ‘Judgement of the Nations’.
(Read Matthew 25:31-40
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, 33 and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. 34 Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; 35 for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? 38 And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? 39 And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ 40 And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family,[a] you did it to me.’ The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.)
One of the benefits of attending McCormick Seminary was that I could take classes at the other 5 seminaries within the University of Chicago. I took preaching from the Jesuits, a course in Reformation History from the Lutheran Seminary, and every course this one older professor taught in Existential Theology at the UCC seminary in the Chicago Theological Seminary. I loved the study of Existentialism as to me, it made religion and our relationship with God not just something to be studied or observed, but a real relationship we can achieve in our lives.
Existentialism is a big word for something we all strive for in our faith journeys. It is studying how God is alive NOW in the world and in our daily lives. The first existential philosopher I read was in college. Jewish Theologian Martin Buber, in his book I and Thou, wrote that we can experience the Holy in our relationships with each other and within things in our daily lives. He wrote that most of our relationships are user ones and are about our interactions with others and our needs in the world. But when we lose ourselves in the relationship, whether it be our relationship with another who we love as in the 4th chapter of 1John or even while we pet our cat or dog, we can experience God.
OK…. That might be a little mystical for some of us. But, this reading from Matthew is even clearer in its teaching of how you can experience God in the other. If we want our faith to be alive and our churches to be vibrant, we have to be reaching out to others in our ministries and being Christ’s hands and heart to the world. Explicit in this story is that when we care for others, God is with us and we are not just doing God’s work, but we are ministering to God. WOW…. That is heavy! That is exciting! That is so Riviera!!!!
Our national church picked up on the fact that the vibrant churches in our denomination were the ones whose ministries pushed them out the doors of their churches to the communities where they were ministering to others, not just to themselves. Worship is vital, as is a good Christian Education Program and Fellowship with each other, but we must not hide behind stained glass windows as God’s chosen, but look outside and see our mission to a hurting world. The fact is vibrant churches are missional. Vibrant does not mean the megachurches of the ’80s but they are the churches of any size where God’s spirit is felt and is very much alive.
The Mission Committee of the church received all the information about the National Churches’ invitation to become Matthew 25 Congregations and decided that we are and can continue to be one. We will continue to offer each member of this church the opportunity to minister to people and to our world which are hurting and need to feel love and care modeled to us by Jesus. Through our mission programs and by doing God’s work we will encounter and experience God. How is that for a cool opportunity? So, we proudly are a Matthew 25 Congregation!
Two years ago this winter, my friend The Very Reverend Tracey Lind spoke at Riviera Church. You might recall Tracey was the Dean of Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Cleveland before being diagnosed with a form of dementia which affects the frontal lobe of her brain which controls her affect, her ability to speak, her memory, and eventually will affect her ability to walk and eat. With the help of her wife, Tracey is still able to travel around the country and speak out about dementia and help people to understand it and put a human component on it but with increasingly more and more help. In her blog she keeps about this life journey she is on, she writes about her growing need to depend on the care, understanding, and love of others as she declines in her cognitive and motor skills. She is realistic about her condition and has already made arrangements for when she will move into a care facility especially designed for people with types of dementia. This past summer Tracey rewrote the words to Matthew 25 and I saved it, thinking it is an important piece that I would want to share with you.
Missy:
I was trying to order in a restaurant but was confused by the menu, and you explained it to me. I wanted a bottle of water from the vending machine but could not figure out how it worked, and you got it for me. I did not recognize your face, and you reintroduced yourself to me without making a big deal of it. I became overwhelmed trying to cross a busy intersection, and you offered your arm. I could not understand how to operate the subway ticket machine, and you offered help. I needed a quiet place to swim, and you made it possible. I got confused in exercise class, and you gently assisted me. I was scared in a TSA line, and you spoke to me slowly. I was lonely and you came to my house and played music and games with me.
Mimi:
And the righteous will reply: “When did we see you in such distress and respond with such compassion? The Lord will answer, “whatever you did for the least of these my people, you did for me.”
Missy:
I stood in the deli lane unable to make a decision, and you grew impatient with me. I tried to wash my hands in a public restroom and couldn’t understand the automatic faucet, and you pushed me out of the way. I attempted to buy a movie ticket, and you rushed me. I needed to sit down on the bus, and you would not give up your seat. I felt self-conscious as I stuttered and shouted to make myself understood, and you laughed at me. I hesitated at a traffic circle, and you tried to run me down. I had a melt-down in public, and you berated me. I was lonely and distressed, and you refused to visit me.
Mimi:
They will also ask: “When did we see you in such a state of distress and fail to respond with compassion?” The Lord will reply, “Whatever you did not do for the one of the least of these, you did not do for me.”
Missy:
Friends, we have the opportunity to show our love and care for God every day. We are a Matthew 25 Congregation. God has placed before us a hurting world which needs to be tended, people among us who need a voice and a loving hand. These opportunities for mission allow us to be Christ’s hands and heart to others as we experience God in our lives. Amen.