LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1981, Page 106

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106 ESSAYS ON STEWARDSHIP

he went.” One is reminded of Martin Luther’s obedient
response to the mystifying and mysterious ways of God
in leading him to the City. “He led me around,” says
Luther, “like a blind horse.”

Vv
Citizens of heaven possess by faith

a new life—in Christ,

a new hope—in Christ,

a new wealth—in Christ, and
a new security—in Christ.

They are different, distinctive, transformed people.
There is no life comparable to the life patterned after the
life of Christ. Such a life is rich toward God and bent on
service to mankind. Whoever abides in Jesus Christ
bears much fruit, Jesus says. “We are God’s workman-
ship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which
God hath before ordained that we should walk in them,”
says St. Paul.

That citizens of heaven are fruitful Christians is
demonstratred in the stark words of St. Matthew,
Chapter 25, verses 31 to 40. Let us listen to them, all of us
who are “blessed of the Father” even now through faith
in Jesus Christ:

When the Son of man shall come in His glory, and all the
holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of
His glory. And before Him shall be gathered all nations.
And He shall separate them one from another, as a
shepherd divideth his sheep from his goats; and He shall
set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left.
Then shall the King say unto them on His right hand,
Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom
prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was
an hungred, and ye gave Me meat; I was thirsty, and ye
gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and ye took Me in; naked,
and ye clothed Me; I was sick, and ye visited Me; I was in
prison, and ye came unto Me. Then shall the righteous
answer Him saying, Lord, when saw we Thee an hungred,
and fed Thee? or thirsty, and gave Thee drink? When saw
we Thee a stranger, and took Thee in? or naked, and clothed
Thee? Or when saw we Thee sick, or in prison, and came
unto Thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them,
Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one
of the least of these My brethren, ye have done it unto Me.

A citizen of heaven by the name of Martin Luther

once described the nature of our Christian liberty in this:
way in his Treatise on Christian Liberty: “We conclude,
therefore, that a Christian lives not in himself, but-in:
Christ and in his neighbor. Otherwise, he is not.a:
Christian. He lives in Christ through faith, in his
neighbor through love; by faith he is caught up beyond
himself into God, by love he sinks down beneath himself
into his neighbor.”

The “blessed of the Father” whom our Lord will :
welcome into His presence to inherit the kingdom
prepared for them from the foundation of the world will ;
be greatly surprised on two counts:

1. We will be surprised then and eternally by that.
great grace which brought us into His welcoming’.
presence; and

2. We will be surprised by the evidence Jesus cites ag:
to the presence of a faith active in love.

The “blessed of the Father’ will be surprised to learn
that they have fed the hungry Christ, have given drin
to the thirsty Christ, have shown hospitality to th
stranger Christ, have clothed the naked Christ, hav
visited Christ the sick one and the shut-in, and hav
gone into prisons to visit the prisoner Christ.

Surprised? Brother and sister, this is His description.
of your faith active in love, for “inasmuch as ye have.
done it unto one of the least of these My brethren, y
have done it unto Me.”

The “blessed of the Father” cannot feed a hungr
person without giving food to Jesus Christ. We cannot:
hold a cup of cold water to parched lips without looking:
into the eyes of Christ. We cannot show hospitality to’:
strangers without welcoming Christ into the circle of,
our homes. We cannot clothe the naked without coverin
the body of our Lord. We cannot visit the sick withou
touching the hem of His garment. We cannot go into
prison cells without having stepped into the sanctuar.
of God. :

Citizens of heaven have a great calling: to touc
their neighbor, who is the Christ in their midst, with th
love of God. That is our calling until He calls us home

M. L. Koehneke