A Lot to Learn

I am 41 years old, and I have a lot to learn.

In our SS class, we have started reading through the book of Mark, and I am discovering how little I know about a book of the Bible that previously, I would've said I knew a lot about. The truth is, I know a lot of general knowledge about the gospels, but I know little about what unique things they have to say about the life of Jesus.

So, I'm a little fascinated these days about the ministry of Jesus, particularly what HE had to say (not what I've always been taught) about what it means to be a Christ-follower, a child of God, one secure in the gift of eternal life. Bottom line, I want to know what Jesus had to say about how a person becomes a Christian. Today, I read the very familiar passage in Matthew 25:31-46. (It's a lengthy section of scripture, but I'll quote some major chunks of it):

Jesus speaking: "But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. And all the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right, 'Come, you who are blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.' Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we [do all these things]?' And the King will answer and say to them, 'Truly, I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.' Then He will also say to those on His left, 'Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry, and you gave me nothing to eat..."

You know, growing up a Southern Baptist, I've been to countless retreats, summer camps and revivals, and heard this question posed dozens of times: "When you die and you stand before Jesus, and He asks you 'Why should I let you into heaven for eternity?', what will you say?" Of course, the correct answer is something like: "I don't deserve eternity, but I believe that you, Jesus, are the Son of God, who died on the cross for my sins so that I can be reconciled to God."

While I think the above question is a valuable one to reflect upon, nowhere in the Bible does Jesus suggest that He's going to ask us this question. In fact, according to Matthew 25, it seems to me that it's much more likely that He might have a different question to ask... something like: "What have you done for Me lately?" Or: "Where is the LOVE?"

I am not suggesting that our WORKS earn us a place in heaven. I am simply reading the very words that proceeded directly out of the mouth of Jesus that said, "If you love me, tend my sheep."

And I am - for the first time in my life - realizing that what I have believed about what it means to be a Christian has come from what other people have told me. I am attempting to scrutinize these beliefs by comparing them to what Jesus Himself had to say on the matter.

So far, there are surprising differences....