A Daily Devotion for Thursday, January 15
- ontrakk
- 4 days ago
- 2 min read
Matthew 25:31-46
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 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. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 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, 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.’
“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“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.’
“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. 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, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
“He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life. ”
This teaching from Jesus can read like a warning, and be a bit intimidating. We certainly are not capable, as individuals, to feed and clothe every person in need. But we are able to make an effort. God sees both our effort and our lack of it. Sometimes we are successful in living out our promises to God, and sometimes we fail. What gets in my way when I decide not to get involved? Why do I choose sometimes to not participate in a worthy cause? These are important questions for me to think about. I can’t do everything, but I know I could do more.
Holy Lord, help me to see and hear when I am making a “less than Jesus” decision. Help me to see when my own selfish desires are getting in the way. I want to live my best life with you. Amen
Becky, transforming
Thursday, January 15th, 2026
THE TABLE IS SET
(Focus: Feeding Ministries
Today’s Reading
Matthew 25:31-46
Matthew 25:35
For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,
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Matthew 25:31-46 The Table is Set
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Matthew 25:31-46
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