I'm Sure Of It (At least, I Think I Am)

1            Jesus said some strange things.  No, really.  Stranger than strange.  Stuff that will whack you out if you stop to think about it.  If you stop to think.
            The latter part of Matthew 25 is one of those strange sayings.  Now, in and of itself, it's not that strange at all.  In fact, it's quite clear.  It only becomes strange in light of other things Jesus said.  So, if this was all He'd ever said, we'd be like "Okay.  I guess that's how it works."  But, because He said more than these few verses, we've got some strangeness to deal with.  So, without further ado, I welcome you to read on.
 
31 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy 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 them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. 33 And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of 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 drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’
37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’
41 “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: 42 for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; 43 I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’
44 “Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ 45 Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ 46 And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

            Jesus gathers us by nation and divides us into two groups.  One destined for eternal life, the other for everlasting punishment.  The basis for this judgment is how we treated people.  How we will spend eternity is on the line here.  Pretty straightforward, right? 
            Let me share some questions that have come to my mind about this passage.  Maybe I'm the only one to think about this stuff.  I doubt it.    

1. Are nations lumped in together for judgment?  What if you met Jesus' standards, but others in your nation didn't?  What if 49% treated people well and 51% didn't?  Does the whole nation go to everlasting punishment?  (How proud would you be to be an American if that day came today?) 

2. Isn't this salvation by works?  Can you prove from this passage that it's not?

3. Both sheep and goats refer to Jesus as "Lord".  Are they all Christians?  Can Christians be sent to everlasting punishment?  (If this is indeed about entire nations being judged, haven't we already said this is an option?)

4. Who are "the least of these"?  Some say they are Jesus' disciples.  If so, why include this in Scripture at all since they've been dead for the last 2000 years.  I can't treat them well or badly at this point.  Others say "the least of these" refers to the Jewish people.  If so, then what should we make of God rescuing the Christians out of Jerusalem before the Romans destroyed it in AD70?  How could they have helped the Jews if God removed them from the situation?  Same thing applies if this is yet future.  How can we care for the Jewish people during the Tribulation if we've been raptured? 
                 
            Do you see what I mean?  It's a strange thing to say in light of the rest of the New Testament and it raises a lot of questions for the inquisitive mind.  Some find certain proof of doctrines in this passage.  I'd be really careful to use this passage to prove any doctrine. 
            So, passages like this have led me to ask, "Is it okay to read Scripture and leave with more questions than answers?"  Yes.  I'm learning to be okay with that.  That's why I want to write a few blogs exploring the concept of "certainty".  What does it mean to be certain about something?  In particular, what does it mean to be certain about particular doctrines?  Does that mean we have no questions about them at all?  Does that mean there are no nagging doubts?  None at all?  What if I'm 90% certain Matthew 25 teaches that Jesus will cast entire nations into everlasting punishment based on their works?  Is that enough?  What if I have some doubts about what this passage teaches?  Is faith based on 100% certainty? 
            Oh, I know.  "The Bible says it.  I believe it.  That settles it."  If so, then why call us to "reason together" (Is. 1:18)?  Why give us minds at all?  In fact, if that saying is true, it would seem to be of benefit not to ever think for ourselves.  Indeed, "brainwashed" as the atheists declare.  Does God save only those who don't think things through?  Is ignorance not only bliss, but also an attribute God is looking for in people?  Is there a way to know you're 100% certain about something?  More questions.
            I'm guessing some of you really hate that I'm raising this topic.  Perhaps you're still angry about my jab at "The Bible says it...".  But this blog isn't so much for you (though I think there's benefit for all of us here).  This is especially for those who do have questions and doubts.  If that's you, hang in there and keep your eyes out for my next few blogs.