THE LAST JUDGEMENT
Though Jesus came to the world to save humanity, his second coming will be to judge the nations. The Father has entrusted the judgement of the world to his Son (Jn 5:22). That will be based on one’s own choice of belief in Jesus or not. “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (Jn 3:18). The last judgement is to separate the good from the evil who have been living together in the world (Mt 25:31-46). He will look for the impact of his teachings on the disciples’ lives and judge them according to the fruits of their practice of faith.
Jesus presented how he will come and evaluate his faithful in Matthew 25:31-46. “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit upon his glorious throne, and all the nations will be assembled before him. And he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats” (Mt 25-31-32). He will be then coming as judge and king (Mt 25:34). Jesus considers the charity we do to the hungry, thirsty, stranger, naked, sick, and prisoner as we do to him (Mt 25:35-40). Those who abandoned the poor “will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life” (Mt 25:46).
REFLECTION
The Lord identifies with the poor and the suffering in the world. When Jesus was physically in the world, he cared for them and showed himself as a model for us. Let us see Jesus among the less fortunate people in the world regardless of whether or not they are suffering because of their fault.