Matthew 25:31-46 – Pandemic Pause: Living Seasonally
Overview
Our current worship series is called Pandemic Pause. We use the words, “Time out!” to pause a game when it’s getting a bit overwhelming, or we use those words to take a breather when we need to step back and consider the bigger picture. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could call a “time out” after living through this pandemic now for three-quarters of a year? But unfortunately, this pandemic isn’t a game. Still, as people of faith who lean on the wisdom of God to get through these times, we do have the opportunity to pause, step back, and look at the bigger picture. This worship series covers four ways a life of faith gives us a fuller perspective that empowers us not only to survive, but also thrive, in a pandemic-gripped world. Each week during this worship series, I’m offering a brief (ten- to fifteen-minutes long) video called a Brief Bible Dive about each Bible topic. The purpose is to get into the depth of the Bible story for the week, but within a manageable timeframe.
This Week
Matthew 25:31-46 is a reading that falls on the annual church holiday called Christ the King Day, or as some prefer to call it, Reign of Christ Day. This festival is the last Sunday of the church season. It is a time to reflect on the seasons, the cycles of life. In terms of the reading from Matthew, we recognize the seasonality in how our actions really do affect our futures, just as carefully planting seeds and tending crops well increase the possibility for a successful harvest. Jesus shared a vision in this account that teaches us the importance of looking after the people most on the margins of society – the hungry, thirsty, stranger, naked, sick, and imprisoned. To make the point more clear, he said if we treat them well, we treat him well, and if we treat them poorly, we treat him poorly, and that there are massive consequences involved. In other words, we are to consider what type of spiritual harvest our actions today are preparing us to experience in the future.
For those without online viewing capacity, please contact Deborah in our church office at office@bslcmi.org or 248-646-5041 for a printed transcript.