Spiritual Survival Guide
8: Bible Studies for Inside and Out
Prisoners in the Bible: I Was in Prison
READ
31 Jesus said, “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom pre- pared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ 41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
LISTEN
Life is a wonderful gift from God. But life is also hard. Often it’s a struggle just to make it through the day. Sometimes we’re the ones who are in need and suffer, and sometimes it’s the people around us. And all of this neediness and suffering this raises two important questions: How much does God care about people in need? And much do we? In this passage, Jesus talks about the great “sorting-out” process that he’ll be in charge of at the end of time. In the process, he gives us some crucial insights into how he answers those questions. 1. Jesus deeply cares about everyone in need, and he expects those who say that they know and follow him to care about them too. 2. Jesus specifically cares about prisoners, and he expects those who say that they know and follow him to actively care for them too. 3. Jesus not only cares about prisoners, he personally identifies with them. He is not only for them, or with them. It goes deeper: He is them. 4.What we think about Jesus is measured by how we treat those in need. As we read and discuss Jesus’ teaching, ask yourself if God has a word of comfort, encouragement, or warning for you today.
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