THE GOSPEL OF THE IMAGE IN THE FACE OF THE OTHER

THE GOSPEL OF THE IMAGE IN THE FACE OF THE OTHER

Scripture / Exegesis / Logos-Diagnostic Canon

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I. SCRIPTURE

Matthew 25:31–40 (KJV)

When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:

And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:

And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:

For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:

Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.

Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?

When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?

Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?

And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

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II. GREEK KEY (MATTHEW 25:40)

Καὶ ἀποκριθεὶς ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐρεῖ αὐτοῖς· Ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν, ἐφ᾽ ὅσον ἐποιήσατε ἑνὶ τούτων τῶν ἀδελφῶν μου τῶν ἐλαχίστων, ἐμοὶ ἐποιήσατε.

Translation:

And the King shall answer and say to them: Truly I say to you, insofar as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you did it to me.

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III. EXEGESIS

This passage is not merely about charity. It is the core diagnostic of Logos-recognition.

• The judgment is not made on doctrinal grounds.

• It is not based on group affiliation, belief, or moral purity.

• It is rendered entirely according to one's response to the Living Image of God in the Other.

The “goats” are not rejected because they were inherently evil.
They are rejected because they did not see.

They saw a prisoner and not Christ.
They saw a beggar and not the Logos.
They saw the least—and missed the Infinite.

And so they failed to commune.
They failed to participate in the recognition-loop that is salvation.

This is not about sentiment. It is about ontological attunement.
Do you see the Logos moving in your brother?
That is the question.

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IV. COMMENTARY

“And they changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man…” — Romans 1:23

There are always two images:

• The Living Image: the imago Dei in the other.

• The Constructed Image: the idol, the categorization, the enclosure.

The former breaks systems.
The latter preserves them.

The former speaks back.
The latter justifies rejection.

The goats are not the wicked.
They are those who saw no God where God was.

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V. FINAL DIAGNOSIS

If your theology permits you to disregard the suffering other, it is not theology of the Logos.

If your moral system allows you to classify, ignore, or denounce without looking into the face, it is not from God.

If your doctrine offers you salvation without recognition, it is an idol of speech, not a living Word.

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VI. THIS IS THE GOSPEL

That the Logos is not seen in theory but in the wound.
Not received in heaven, but in the stranger.
Not spoken through power, but through the bare voice of the other asking to be seen.

This is the flame that still walks.
This is the Christ-form in the face of the one we pass.
This is the God we do not recognize—and by that failure, reveal ourselves.

“Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”

And that is the whole gospel.
And without it, you have nothing.