Matthew 25:31-46: The Hidden Jesus

What’s surprising about the resurrection of the body on the Last Day is that every physical body ever born will rise. Jesus will show to all that He DID take away the sins of the entire world when He physically died on the cross and physically rose from the grave. That’s why every person ever born will physically rise on that Day.

Jesus didn’t die on the cross to save only some. In His flesh, Jesus embodies everyone–just as Adam, our first father, embodied everyone into disobedience and death when he fell into sin. “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ will all be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:22). That becomes real on the Last Day.

Now, what that life will look like will drastically differ. For some, it will be life as a child of light, delighting in God’s full and glorious presence, not only in soul, but also in body. For others, it will be what Scripture calls an “eternal punishment” (Matthew 25:46). But everything in its proper time.

So, why does Jesus physically resurrect everyone from the grave? It’s because He’s the savior of everyone, not just some. And why does Jesus physically resurrect everyone from the grave? It’s because He’s the savior of our bodies, not just our souls.

But Jesus also comes as judge. For although Jesus died and rose to bring forgiveness and salvation to everyone, not everyone will benefit from what He did. And so Jesus sorts them: He separates those who have faith in Him from those who don’t. Jesus sorts the sheep, believers, to the right and the goats, non-believers, to the left.

But why does Jesus sort them that way? He sorts them based on what they are–not on what they did! What they did or didn’t do merely reflected their identity, what they are. It’s as Jesus said, “Make a tree good, and its fruit will be good” (Matthew 12:33).

To the sheep, King Jesus will say: “Come, you who have been blessed by my Father! Inherit the kingdom prepared for you before the foundation of the world.” God blesses them with a kingdom that was theirs before He created the world. That was long before they could even do anything, one way or the other. That’s the point!

The sheep receive a kingdom as an inheritance. You don’t earn an inheritance. You get it based on the family you’re born in, and someone dying in that family who wills something to you after he has died. That family is God’s family and that someone dying is Jesus.

And so Jesus also does the sorting. But notice that He doesn’t mention a single word about what anyone has done until after He’s done sorting. That’s because works have nothing to do with whether someone is a sheep, a Christian, or a goat, a non-believer. But now let’s find out what happens after Jesus finishes separating them.

Jesus tells the sheep: “I was hungry, and you gave me food. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you welcomed me. I was naked, and you clothed me. I was sick, and you took care of me. I was in prison, and you visited me.” Now you hear about what they did. Those sheep fed the hungry, gave drink to the thirsty, welcomed the stranger, clothed the naked, and visited the sick and imprisoned.

But Jesus’ words puzzle the sheep. They’re not sure what to make of the King’s words. Oh, they know that they did do such works. That’s why they didn’t say, “When did we do those deeds.” But what they didn’t see was King Jesus on the receiving end of their deeds as they did them. He was hidden from their eyes.

And so the sheep asked, “When did we see you hungry, thirsty, a stranger, naked, sick, or imprisoned?” Now, why would they ask that? Here’s why: The faith that God gives a Christian doesn’t do anything for self-gain or glory. Such works are like a tree bearing its fruit. That’s what a tree does. Those sheep, those Christians, served those whom God had brought into their lives, knowing that all was taken care of in Christ Jesus. They knew that God didn’t need their good works–but their neighbor did. And so that’s how they lived their lives.

And it’s then that Jesus chooses to reveal more of the mystery of the Faith. He says, “I assure you: Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” Through others, they were serving Jesus. That’s something only the Christian can do. Why is that? Doesn’t Scripture tell us that Jesus is the beginner and completer, the founder and finisher, of your faith (Hebrews 12:2)? Doesn’t Jesus Himself say that He is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and end (Revelation 1:8, 21:6, 22:13)?

And that’s what Jesus is: He’s not only the source of your faith; He’s also the receiver of it. And so when you have faith in Jesus, He’s on the receiving end of every good work you do. But on both ends, Jesus is hidden. On the front end of faith, Jesus is hidden within His Word and Sacrament, giving to you Himself and His forgiveness for your salvation. And on the receiving end of faith, Jesus is also hidden–not to save, but for you to serve. He’s there in the person you help.

The sheep asked, “When did we see you hungry, thirsty, naked, sick, a stranger, or imprisoned?” Think: When was Jesus ever like that? He was that way on the cross. That’s where Jesus became the least of all to save us all. He was there: hungry, thirsty, naked, sick, imprisoned, and a stranger to this world–all to save the world!

And so we learn to see the world through the lens of the cross. For the cross of Christ reveals a hidden mystery: Jesus is in the least and the lowly of this world, just as He was on the cross. It’s as Jesus says: “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.”

But God’s judgment is different for the goats. Jesus tells them, “Get away from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels!” Note that Christians inherit what God had planned for them before He created the world. But for unbelievers, God only prepared the eternal fire for the devil and his angels–not for people. God never predestined anyone to hell.

What does that mean? It means that salvation is 100% God’s doing. That’s what an inheritance is. You can’t earn an inheritance. You have to be born into the right family and then you get it when someone dies. The Christian is born into the God’s family by the water and Word of holy baptism. It’s as Jesus told Nicodemus: “Unless one is born of water and Spirit, he cannot inherit the kingdom of God” (John 3:5). And on the Last Day, Jesus gives that inheritance that He earned for all on the cross.

But for unbelievers, it’s different. Damnation is 100% their doing. God only prepared hell for the devil and his angels, not people. People don’t belong in hell; God prepared no one to go there. If you wind up there, it’s because you put yourself there, not God.

So, how can we make sense that salvation is 100% God’s doing, but damnation is 100% the person’s fault? We can’t, not completely. That’s part of the mystery of salvation that we can’t fully understand on this side of eternity.

So, Jesus’ words didn’t only surprise the sheep; they also surprised the goats. Jesus told the goats: “I was hungry, and you gave me no food. I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink. I was a stranger, and you didn’t welcome me. I was naked, and you didn’t clothe me. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t take care of me.”

Seeking to justify themselves, the goats cry out, “When?” When did we see you hungry, thirsty, naked, imprisoned, sick and did not serve you? When did we see you? We never saw you, so how could we serve you? How can you blame us for something that we never had the opportunity to do?

Of course, they didn’t see Jesus. They didn’t have faith. And so Jesus was never on the receiving end of their works. Even if they did do good works in the eyes of the world, even if they visited the sick and fed the hungry, Jesus was never on the receiving end of their works. They never served Jesus.

On the cross, Jesus forgave everyone! But only those brought into His family, those with faith, benefit from what Jesus has done. For the Christian, that means that the sin infecting his good works is made sinless by the blood of Jesus. And because Jesus’ blood made those works sinless, they were holy and acceptable for Jesus to receive them. Indeed, Jesus is the beginner and completer of someone’s faith.

But for the non-believer, when he helped others, his sin was still contaminating his works. Oh, those works were good works in the eyes of the world, and the world was better off for them. But Jesus was not on the receiving end of those works. They didn’t do them with faith in Christ, and so sin still made then unacceptable to God.

Christ is hidden. Jesus, enthroned at the right hand of the Father as both God and man, is always hidden in this world. He is hidden in the Word: The preached Word, in the Word and water of holy baptism, and in the Word united to the bread and wine of His Supper. He hides Himself in such ways to save you, to rescue you from sin and death. But it doesn’t end there. Jesus is also hidden in your neighbor, in the least and the lowly of this world, not to save you, but for you to serve. Only faith can see that.

You are a sheep in the good Shepherd’s flock. He has baptized and fed you, forgiven you in His grace. The Word declares it to be. Believe it, for it is true. And when you leave this place and go into the world, see everything through the lens of cross. When you do that, you will see something astounding. Jesus will be in the least and the lowly with His promise: “Whatever you do for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you do for me.” Amen.