Matthew 25.40 reminds us that as you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine you did it for Me.

The parable of the sheep and the goats is the major judgment scene painted by Jesus where what a person does determines where a person spends eternity.

We talk so much about being saved by grace apart from our effort that we minimize the importance of doing good works to please God.

This judgment story is a story of grace, not grace from God toward the undeserving sinner but grace from the sinner saved to another sinner. Every act of charity, every accomplishment of kindness, and every action done in love is in many ways an act of grace.

Grace is giving good to those who don’t deserve good.

The hungry and the naked should have worked harder; the prisoner should not have broken the law and on goes the list of reasons why people don’t deserve grace.

But God is gracious toward everyone despite everyone being undeserving of His goodness and love.

God therefore expects those who love Him to demonstrate that love for Him by being gracious to people.

Christians are to give generously of all they have to help people see and experience Jesus because they know nothing they have will last through eternity but what they give will be rewarded in eternity.

The Lord Jesus makes many statements demanding His people who love Him to forgive as He has forgiven, to serve as He served and to sacrifice as He sacrificed.

If we are truly the Lord’s sheep then we will follow the Shepherd’s example by being as gracious toward others as He has been toward us.