Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Psalms 69-71

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 25:41-46
Jesus: At that He will turn to those on His left hand.
King: Get away from Me, you despised people whom My Father has cursed. Claim your inheritance—the pits of flaming hell where the devil and his minions suffer. For I was starving, and you left Me with no food. When I was dry and thirsty, you left Me to struggle with nothing to drink. When I was alone as a stranger, you turned away from Me. When I was pitifully naked, you left Me unclothed. When I was sick, you gave Me no care. When I was in prison, you did not comfort Me.
Unrighteous: Master, when did we see You hungry and thirsty? When did we see You friendless or homeless or excluded? When did we see You without clothes? When did we see You sick or in jail? When did we see You in distress and fail to respond?
King: I tell you this: whenever you saw a brother hungry or cold, when you saw a sister weak and without friends, when you saw the least of these and ignored their suffering, so you ignored Me.
So these, the goats, will go off to everlasting punishment. But the beloved, the sheep (the righteous), will go into everlasting life.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Wow! Harsh words from the Master. Eternal punishment for those who fail to show compassion to those around them. What are we supposed to do with that? Does Jesus expect us to give up everything to feed the hungry? Does He want us to sell our homes or open the doors to every hobo that walks down the road? Does Jesus want us to spend all our free time at the prison talking to inmates? Will He list us as part of the herd of goats if we don’t?

I have to tell you, I think we have gotten pretty hard-hearted and dispassionate in our country in some respects. Oh, we pour billions of dollars into disaster relief when catastrophes happen like the tsunami in Japan or the earthquakes in Pakistan or the hurricanes in Gulf of Mexico. We find it easy to throw money at problems and ease our conscience and say we are compassionate and care for people. But do we?

I think one of the problems in our society comes from the fact that a small percentage of evil people figured out how to take advantage of compassionate people and make a pretty extravagant living from it. Seven figure salaries from charitable organizations or journalists with hidden cameras following the panhandler on the street corner change from his rags into his khaki pants and polo shirt before climbing into his new Cadillac and driving to the golf course and on to his half million dollar house.

The few crooks that make it into the news sour us against those that legitimately need our help. But then we look at the taxes that come out of our paycheck and think, “Isn’t that what the government is supposed to do? Don’t they have programs to help the down and out? Haven’t I paid enough?” So we pass them by thinking we’ve done our part in the supporting the social programs the government lays out for all those who should receive help. Surely, the government will take care of anyone that needs help. All they need to do is apply and if they don’t get help, they probably don’t deserve it, right?

Well, I have a question for you. When is the last time you sat down at one of the tables in a homeless shelter and listened to the story of one of the mothers there? How did she happen to end up on the street with her two or three children? Or the guy with the Masters Degree in economics? What happened to him that caused him to live on the street under a bridge? Or the veteran that should be able to get help through the Veterans Affairs for the nightmares that plague his sleep and make it impossible for him to function during the day? When is the last time actually talked to one of them? Would that make a difference in how you feel about “those” people?

Yes, there are some crooks out in the world who would take advantage of us. Yes, there are some people who make a living by deceiving others and weaving sad-song stories to get handouts so they don’t have to work and pay taxes. Yes, our government is creating a welfare society in which we are quickly relying on the government instead of ourselves for support. But the vast majority of those in real need are not among that number. And I really think God’s Spirit in us can help us sort those out if we truly listen to Him. He can help us discern the sheep from the goats, even among that crowd.

So if we can have compassion for the animals the humane society shows on their commercials with “Amazing Grace” playing in the background, can’t we begin to have some compassion for the people around us that need a little lift in their world? The price for walking by could be pretty high. Remember Jesus’ words, “whenever you saw a brother hungry or cold, when you saw a sister weak and without friends, when you saw the least of these and ignored their suffering, so you ignored Me.”

Those are harsh words I don’t want to hear.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
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