Matthew 25:41   This is one of the great wonders of the Word of God. The fires of hell are created by God. And for what purpose? To punish the devil and his hordes. Though God knows from the beginning what humans will end up there, he does not say it was prepared for them. Bible…

Matthew 25:40   As in other places, Jesus speaks of doing something for the least. By this, he emphasizes once again that there is no respect of persons with God. Everyone is important to Him. There is no person too insignificant to be noticed by Him. Because this is the practice of our Lord, Christians should always…

Matthew 25:39   Though we want to do good works, this idea of visiting those who are in prison might seem a bit confusing. In the case of those that are being judged here, those they will see in prison will have been put there by the antichrist and his minions. Visiting them will most certainly be…

Matthew 25:38   Christians should always seek to do good to all people. However, it is important to point out that the Bible generally talks about doing good proactively. As in these verses, good deeds are not done in reaction to begging. Instead, these good works are done for those who are in need without them having…

Matthew 25:37   I like to bring up tricky questions. They bring realism to our Bible study. Rather than running from thorny issues, it’s good to plow head-on into them. So, if the righteous are God’s people, why would they not already be aware of this passage of Scripture, and already understand and realize why the Lord…

Matthew 25:36   Doing these things for the Jews during the Tribulation Period will require a great deal of risk. The question is how much risk are we willing to take for others? This gives us a general principle that can be applied even today. Often, love for others will require a risk, a danger. More often…

Matthew 25:35   Keep in mind here again the context of this lesson. Jesus is describing actions carried out by those who will be living during the Tribulation Period. These good works, done on behalf of Jewish people in need during this time, will be meritorious toward these persons’ judgment. It is important to understand why this…

Matthew 25:34   Not only does King Jesus have no trouble recognizing the righteous, but He tells them that this reward has been prepared for them from the foundation of the world. How can this be? The answer is the simple foreknowledge of God. Jesus knows who are His, because He has always known who are His.…

Matthew 25:33   In ancient times, as well as some in the Middle East today, the right hand is a place of honor, whereas the left a place of dishonor. Thus, it would have been immediately obvious to the disciples what Jesus meant by mentioning these two sides. Furthermore, though a shepherd might allow his sheep to…

Matthew 25:32   This is the judgment of the nations. In other words, this is the answer to the question, “When is the end of the world?” This is the judgment that brings the world as we know it to an end, and ushers in the millennial reign of Christ here on earth. The nation’s existing on…