Matthew
25:31-46
Early on in the pandemic, one of our parishioners, I’ll call her Laura, wanted to make a difference. So she volunteered with a local organization to deliver food to those in need. One of the people Laura delivered food to was Ellen. Ellen was disabled and lived alone. And whenever Laura came by Ellen always wanted to talk. So, naturally, Laura spent some extra time chatting with her. Soon, though, Ellen discontinued the food service, but she kept in touch with Laura. She would sometimes run errands for Ellen and was happy to drive Ellen to various appointments. But as the months went by Ellen’s needs continued to grow. Laura would get texts from Ellen sometimes just to say hi, other times expressing her loneliness, eventually calling Laura her BFF - her Best Friend Forever. When Ellen mentioned that what she really needed a health care agent in case she became incapacitated that’s when Laura called me. She felt torn between wanting to help and, truthfully, wanting to stop.
Looking through the lens of the parable about the sheep and the goats, I wonder, how would Laura be sorted? Because of the help she provided Ellen would Laura be considered a blessed sheep? But what if she stopped? Would Jesus move her from his right to his left and make her an accursed goat? That can’t be right. Because God knows better than anyone that people don’t neatly fall into simple categories. No one is completely good or bad, right or wrong, sheep or goat. Rather the truth is that we are both. At least I am. Sure there are times when I do feed and clothe and welcome and care and visit someone in need. And there are times that I don’t. In fact, I know I have behaved as a sheep and a goat to some of the same people on different occasions. For the least of these, as Jesus calls them, are not just strangers who pass in and out of our lives never to be seen again. The least of these is anyone with a need whether it be physical, emotional or spiritual. We live our days surrounded by the least of these and yet we are often unaware.
One of the truths that this parable reveals to us is that whether we know it or know what we do in our daily lives matter. We make a difference. And that’s good news, isn’t it? Don’t we all want to make a difference in this world? But the bad news, or maybe I should say, the more sobering news is that we may not know if the difference we are making is for good or for ill. We may mean well, but that doesn’t mean we get it right. There’s always plenty to confess when we consider both what we have done and left undone. So this parable should keep us humble. But in addition to that the story offers us a glimpse of what we often can’t see with the naked eye, that is, that whenever we encounter someone’s need we are encountering the holy. We are encountering Christ. Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these...you did it to me.
But what gets lost in translation - literally - is that Jesus is not just speaking to us as separate individuals. What we miss in our English bibles is that the “you” throughout the story is plural. What Jesus really says is, “I was hungry and you [plural, as in “ya’ll”] gave me food, I was thirsty and [ya’ll] gave me something to drink.” Conversely, “I was a stranger and [ya’ll] did not welcome me, naked and [ya’ll] did not give me clothing…” One on one acts of mercy are good and right. But using our collective power and influence to address the needs of others is just as much a part of our calling and should not be ignored. Just as [ya’ll] did it to one of the least of these…[ya’ll] did it to me.
And the only way we, as individuals and as a community, can ever hope to make a positive difference in the lives of others is to pray for and be open to God’s help. As we surrender to the power of God’s love and mercy in our own lives we are then able to let that love and mercy flow through us into the lives of others, the least of these, whomever they may be. In Laura’s case, she discerned that the most loving thing to do for Ellen was to create healthy boundaries. She still reaches out to Ellen in measured ways while encouraging her to connect with other resources in the community. It’s not perfect. Nonetheless, it is holy for Christ is present. And Christ is merciful to us all.
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