Context: In the passage from Matthew that follows this post, the setting is: the end of the world. Jesus is acting as the final judge and is separating those who will get into heaven from those who will not. The rationale for who gets in and who doesn't is that those who helped "the least of these" will get in, and those who didn't, won't. In fact, Jesus identifies himself with those "least of these": serving them is the same as serving him.

Question: What motivates Christian ministry?. Is it fear of hell? I'd like to think not, although I haven't decided why that kind of motivation is problematic to me. I guess I don't like the idea of living in fear of God. Because what does that say about God? It makes God into a supernatural cop, or else Santa Claus. So, the tenor of that relationship becomes fear and/or trying to get away with things.

But God doesn't seem to work that way, as far as I can tell. For instance, Jesus points out: "The rain falls on the just and the unjust." Whether you like rain or not, everybody gets treated the same. At least in this lifetime, some people get away with bad things on a regular basis (case in point--I haven't gotten my laptop back-see below), and some people get in trouble for demonstrating humilty, integrity, and honesty.

I guess another take I might have on this set of verses, is that it's not so much about what will happen at the end of time, but what we need to keep in mind as priorities now.

Kind of wishy-washy, huh?

Well, maybe. But the garbage-in garbage-out formula applies to ministry as much as anything else. If fear is my motivation, then I'll be fearful in my work. Quote from Office Space: "That'll only make somebody work just hard enough not to get fired." Or, in this case, just hard enough not to go to hell.

But then life becomes something of a living hell, because how is one to know when enough is enough? Doing something you don't want to do, in order to try to be sure of escaping punishment doesn't sound like a lot of fun, much less like redemption.

The end of the world part gives the story extra oomph, as in, we mean it: taking care of those in need is the most important thing you can do! Living out the kingdom of God--being a disciple of Jesus--means that you will make a material difference in the lives of the least of these.

So, can I come up with a better motivation than "do this or you'll go to hell?"

Here's where I'd like to find my motivation: by seeing Christ in the people I serve.

Acting out of love toward the divine being that provides for us, loves us unconditionally, and seeks a relationship with us, seems like a much more life-giving approach to ministry. Of course, it all depends on out personal images of God. If your idea of what the Christ is like is a guy who is going to judge you if you screw up, then that creates a problem: Who really, deeply, in their hearts, wants to help someone that crabby?