-Matthew 25:40
An often-quoted verse of Jesus. A truth he didn’t just preach, but lived out as an example to us. He was always offering the most grace to the least, and the most discipline to the “big” people of the world. Do we? Let me ask you two more questions to answer that. Who are the least? More importantly. Are the least necessarily righteous people? Valid questions with dire ramifications.
If you read the whole passage, it indicates the least are the hungry, the unclothed, the isolated, and even prisoners. Clearly, the least are not necessarily righteous at all. This is an important detail to highlight, because church people seem to have a habit of shaming the unrighteous. Labeling them as the problem, not as someone with a problem in need of help. We have gotten so fixated on defining righteousness as an end goal that we seldom lift a finger to support the least in their struggles with the wholeness it requires to live righteously. Just like the Pharisees did, mind you. (Matt. 13:4) Yet we rarely teach wholeness as vigorously as righteousness.
Doesn’t this passage about the least of these also fit with his mission of "seek and save the lost?" (Luke 19:10) So why are so many seeking and shaming the lost?
Not that I'm saying this is purely a church problem. Just coming out of election season, clearly politics loves to use shame tactics as well. In many ways, social media has magnified the community of shame to critical mass. It’s full of memes and rants aimed at shaming a specific demographic or behavior. Sometimes it’s even directed at Christian’s. How do you respond to being questioned so harshly? Do you expect a different response in reverse? Clearly this is humanity’s default approach to correction. There is nothing holy about this; if anything, it’s more about the sinful nature of our flesh that we are all tempted by. The only difference is that Christians were taught better. Yet if we’re still emulating the world more than Jesus on this one, there's obviously a blind spot that needs attention. Such people shouldn’t be correcting anyone until they get that proverbial plank out of their eye. (Matthew 7:3-5)
Yet this leads us to why we tend to treat the least like the devil, rather than God himself. Assuming it’s not just a blatant superiority complex. We find the least difficult to deal with; they tend to make us uncomfortable. So we don't want to get close enough to discern the root issue behind the questionable behavior. Such attitudes indicate we are serving ourselves and our comfort, not God and his will as we claim.
Yet shaming others is ultimately a faulty methodology. I say this because even if it produces change, it’s not sincere change. It’s done only out of fear of judgment from the one shaming them, not God. So it will likely be short-lived. Since it’s natural to retreat from anything that causes continuous feelings of shame or unworthiness. So shame ultimately blocks communication and connection. Which closes the door to outreach and discipleship, instead of opening it. So why are we resorting to shame for anything but overt harm of the least? Why do we keep doing it when it’s only causing the church to shrink? Why do we think it will do anything but destroy our community, and our relationship with God?
So I’ll leave you with Christ’s closing words on the ramifications of neglecting this truth about the least.
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; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink; I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.’ Then they themselves also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?’ Then He will answer them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” -Matthew 25:41-46
An often-quoted verse of Jesus. A truth he didn’t just preach, but lived out as an example to us. He was always offering the most grace to the least, and the most discipline to the “big” people of the world. Do we? Let me ask you two more questions to answer that. Who are the least? More importantly. Are the least necessarily righteous people? Valid questions with dire ramifications.
If you read the whole passage, it indicates the least are the hungry, the unclothed, the isolated, and even prisoners. Clearly, the least are not necessarily righteous at all. This is an important detail to highlight, because church people seem to have a habit of shaming the unrighteous. Labeling them as the problem, not as someone with a problem in need of help. We have gotten so fixated on defining righteousness as an end goal that we seldom lift a finger to support the least in their struggles with the wholeness it requires to live righteously. Just like the Pharisees did, mind you. (Matt. 13:4) Yet we rarely teach wholeness as vigorously as righteousness.
Doesn’t this passage about the least of these also fit with his mission of "seek and save the lost?" (Luke 19:10) So why are so many seeking and shaming the lost?
Not that I'm saying this is purely a church problem. Just coming out of election season, clearly politics loves to use shame tactics as well. In many ways, social media has magnified the community of shame to critical mass. It’s full of memes and rants aimed at shaming a specific demographic or behavior. Sometimes it’s even directed at Christian’s. How do you respond to being questioned so harshly? Do you expect a different response in reverse? Clearly this is humanity’s default approach to correction. There is nothing holy about this; if anything, it’s more about the sinful nature of our flesh that we are all tempted by. The only difference is that Christians were taught better. Yet if we’re still emulating the world more than Jesus on this one, there's obviously a blind spot that needs attention. Such people shouldn’t be correcting anyone until they get that proverbial plank out of their eye. (Matthew 7:3-5)
Yet this leads us to why we tend to treat the least like the devil, rather than God himself. Assuming it’s not just a blatant superiority complex. We find the least difficult to deal with; they tend to make us uncomfortable. So we don't want to get close enough to discern the root issue behind the questionable behavior. Such attitudes indicate we are serving ourselves and our comfort, not God and his will as we claim.
Yet shaming others is ultimately a faulty methodology. I say this because even if it produces change, it’s not sincere change. It’s done only out of fear of judgment from the one shaming them, not God. So it will likely be short-lived. Since it’s natural to retreat from anything that causes continuous feelings of shame or unworthiness. So shame ultimately blocks communication and connection. Which closes the door to outreach and discipleship, instead of opening it. So why are we resorting to shame for anything but overt harm of the least? Why do we keep doing it when it’s only causing the church to shrink? Why do we think it will do anything but destroy our community, and our relationship with God?
So I’ll leave you with Christ’s closing words on the ramifications of neglecting this truth about the least.
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; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink; I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.’ Then they themselves also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?’ Then He will answer them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” -Matthew 25:41-46
