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I’m deeply indebted to Robert Fararr Capon and his commentary Kingdom, Grace, Judgment: Paradox, Outrage, and Vindication in the Parables of Jesus for insight into Sunday’s text.  We had little notes because we simply read and engaged the two parables of servants from Luke 16:1-13 and Matthew 18:23-35.  It was a difficult message and I know many had questions.  Looking at Luke 16 seeing a master who has servants deep in debt there is a savior who stands between the judge and those who are guilty.  The only “right” way out is judgment and punishment.  Grace robs judgment of its punishment.  We considered in this light we realize that grace is not what we expected or deserved.  Capon captures this by revealing that the Christ figure in this parable is the dishonest manager.  The dishonest manager is the one who meets those in debt beyond their means and forgiving their debts at his own cost with the master’s generosity.  It’s not to say that Christ is dishonest but that his grace is so unexpected it’s scandalous.  His deal of grace robs the law as Romans 8:1-2 says, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.  For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.”  Grace is not what we deserved, but we’ve become so used to it that grace is robbed of its surprise and scandal.  In spite of our inability to understand or appreciate it, grace works.

“Thankfully we don’t have to deal with a just steward .”

- Robert Farrar Capon

Matthew 25:31-46 can be a rather troubling read it appears that judgment is pretty definitive and decided by performance in one issue.  A read through the New Testament reveals that the saving relationship is enabled by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8) yet, this passage seems somewhat contradictory.  It appears to determine salvation by works for the poor and disenfranchised. How do we reconcile these two seemingly opposite ideas? I’m not sure we have to, but I will try to give a framework that we can use to hold these ideas together in tension and draw one message from them.

Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 7:16 (echoed elsewhere in scripture including James 2:18) reveals that we will know people by the fruit they produce. Certainly it is not up to us to judge and God is the ultimate and only true evaluator of our fruits (for some are hidden from our earthly view). One of these fruits we can see, maybe the most important fruit, is the way we take on the personhood of Christ through compassionate service (Philippians 2:8).   If we are Christians, shouldn’t we look like Christ and bear the fruit he did?  We must live lives that bear fruit in keeping with the character and ministry of Christ (Matthew 3:8). This is not “works salvation” for our works do not save us, they simply display our salvation!  If cautiously evaluated our fruit can become a health check-up for us to examine our own Christlikeness.  This check-up is available to every believer who would examine their own fruit for its consistency with Christ’s.

A checkup is designed to evaluate and motivate.  It let’s us know where we stand and what we should improve.  Perhaps that’s why this passage is so frightening, it’s designed to motivate those who fail the evaluation (or just fail to evaluate).  It is always a challenge to examine a passage of scripture like Matthew 25 which is so full of hyperbole and judgment. But it’s written with strong language for a reason, it’s hyperbole shocks us out of complacency and into action.  The challenge is to hear this passage (and others like it) on its own terms.  We must first allow it to teach us something (in this case about compassion) before we explain it away as hyperbolic. We are often far too quick of dismissing passages like these as being out of touch with grace and miss their challenge to bear fruit for God which is to our loss. By justifying and explaining away this text we fail to evaluate our lives and miss out on the motivation to greater works for Christ.

Let us embrace this passage, let us fear this passage, but above all let us hear this passage.  For it is in hearing this passage that we hear the call of Christ in the least of these.

“See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. ^Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is.”

- 1 John 3:1-2

This is what awaits those who can put their guilt down and pick up the grace of God.  Several people commented Sunday, “How do you leave guilt behind?”  I replied, the same way you put off any sin – daily.  Everyday we must wake up and choose to leave our guilt behind.  It will be there waiting for you, but instead of clothing your self with guilt, clothe yourself with grace.  We will be just like the recovering addict who commits to remaining sober for just one more day.  Every day we make the commitment to leave our guilt behind.  In order to do this we will learn new ways of living, new ways of thinking, new ways of being.  No longer will our guilt shield us or drive us, we will be exposed and confused.  Leaving behind our guilt is not an easy task, but a necessary one.  Therefore be encouraged that if you are in Christ, God no longer calls you guilty, but child.  This means that you’re not being called to be someone you’re not, but recognize who you really are in Christ.