What did Christ mean when He commanded Peter to  strengthen the brethren? Was Christ telling Peter and the other disciples to go out over the cities, country, and the world, and make sure the brethren have plenty of food to eat, in order for them to be strengthened so they could endure to the end? Is this what Christ was referring to when He said, "Strengthen the brethren?" Christ, also in Mat. 25:44-46,  judged certain evil servants as goats for not feeding His brethren who hungered. What did Christ mean when He said, "man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God," Mat. 4:4? What is the primary and most important need that Christ is concerned about for His called and chosen brethren?  Is it feeding hungry brethren food or is it feeding the brethren the Word of God and its understanding? As Christ traveled the cities and country during His ministry, didn't He say His will and work was to find the lost sheep--brethren, and then feed and strengthen them, Luke 19:10, Luke 4:18? Was He referring to physical food, or was He referring to His Word, about Him as Savior, and His Gospel -His message of salvation?

       To understand Christ's message to "strengthen the brethren," one must first understand who are the brethren of Christ. Christ answered that question in Matthew 12:49-50, "Whosoever shall do the will of My Father, which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother." Luke 8:21 records this same statement of Christ as saying, "My mother, my brethren are these which hear the Word of God, and do it," To be Christ's brethren, one must become converted to do God's Word which is to obey God's will. One does not do this by following man's words,  man's will through a church government and his stumbling theology but to obey Christ's theology and His commands. Then after a servant becomes converted, in order for him to grow  in the love of God he must desire to help feed others that are called of Christ, to strengthen them to do God's word, to live by trusting faith in His Word in order to fulfill the Father's will. Faith is built by believing and doing what God's commands.

        Christ in Matthew 25, gives to us 3 outstanding examples  by parables of brethren hearing and doing, and brethren hearing and not doing the Word of Christ. The first parable of Mat. 25:1-13, is about the church consisting of wise and foolish brethren, or virgins. The wise, church brethren are disciples of Jesus Christ, and are not disciples of men. The wise virgins have Christ living in them, through His Spirit, and His Word, meaning they hear Christ's Word and do it, it becomes their life, and they live daily by it by continually calling upon God to fill them with His Holy Spirit to do so.  John says the true brethren of Christ know that they know Christ, and He knows them because they keep His commandments, I John 2:3-4, and in verse 5, and by their keeping His Word, and doing it, the love of God in them is perfected.

      The foolish virgins on the otherhand,  do not have Christ living in them, because they live by the teachings and words  of men, which are more important to them,  than what Christ commands in His Word. They compromise and minimize God's 10 commandments. They call God's righteous virgins, legalists, and  condemn them as being too strict and refer to them as being judgumental or "self-righteous." Christ says He will reject these foolish  virgins, Mat. 25:12, because He does not know them with their evil and slanderous heart. These foolish virgins were not strengthening the brethren, because their life was not one of living by every word of God, but only by what each of them throught was important. They were more concerned about strengthening themselves in the ways of the flesh, cornering the tithe market, and what other fleshly lust they could persue. Their life consisting of dealing in the flesh rather than mortifying the deeds of the flesh, Rom. 8:13. Christ said He does not know them, Mat. 25:12 and will reject them at His coming.

        The second parable in Matthew 25: 14-30, is about brethren, "servants," to whom Christ gave of His goods, He referred to as talents, or pounds. Christ's servants were to accomplish and grow by these goods Christ gave unto them, first in individual growth, and then their growth was to multiply, to be profitable, by reaching out to help and strengthen the brethren, to grow in His Spirit. The servants of Jesus Christ in this parable, have been given the power and responsibility of stewards over the Lord's money, His tithes and offerings, along with being given God's Spirit, and the availability of its power, to do the Lord's work. All of this is of Christ's goods,  along with any other special gifts he gives and these goods of Christ are to be used to grow and mature in His Spirit, and to be profitable, by helping to strengthen  Christ's brethren, to help them come to full maturity, as the Sons of the Living God. Matthew 24:45-47, "Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord has made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?" V. 46, "Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he comes shall find so doing." V. 47, "Verily I say unto you, that he shall make him ruler over all his goods." The servants that do not see and understand this, and is not doing anything in the way of being a good steward of the Lord's goods, Christ says what he has will be taken away from him. Why, because of his unprofitable, lazy and  complacent heart and his lack of zeal to do God's work. Christ says, "The unprofitable servants shall be cast into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, " Mat. 25:24-30.

        The third parable of Matthew 25: 31-46, is the teaching of Christ, that He gives to His church, which begins first, with His coming to separate the righteous from the unrighteous, the sheep from the goats. Christ preceeds to show His brethren why some are sheep and why some are goats.  Those who hear Christ's voice, who listen and act on His Word, are His sheep, His righteous ones, and Christ tells them to come and inherit the kingdom. On the other hand, the goats, the unrighteous, are told to depart into everlasting fire. Christ proceeds to tell why these two groups are judged as the sheep and the goats.

       Jesus Christ uses the different, precarious predicaments that people get themselves into in life, such as being hungry, being thirsty, being a stranger, needing clothing, being sick and being in prison to describe by anology the brethren to whom He has begun living in their life, and their beginning spiritual needs in their life, and how they are helped and strengthened by His righteous servants. He also shows how His lowly, little ones are dishonored, neglected, rejected, abused, disfellowshipped, and a stumbled block of offense put before them by the unrighteous servants, Christ refers to these servants as goats.

       The righteous servants did not know how much good and help that they were providing for Christ's least ones by their statement, "When did we see you hungered, thirsty, a stranger, naked, sick and in prison, and come unto you?" This means their help and strengthening of the brethren was not recognized by them, only by Christ. Why, because their attention was not on what great things they were doing and were not calling  the brethren's attention to what they were doing in regard to doing God's Work. It was without doubt, by what the righteous servants said, taught, wrote, and the example of light  and salt they set  before the brethren regarding Jesus Christ being in them and the confirming of His Word by their life. This was what strengthened, encouraged, and caused Christ's least of His brethren to become perfected in His Spirit and life, and that left a lasting example of Christ's faith and grace in these least of Christ's brethren.

      Christ in this parable, is focusing on His called and chosen little ones, who have hungered and thirsted, yearned for His Word to understand the spiritual, to understand Christ's Gospel, to understand what it really means to be born again, and the meaning of grace,  to understand true repentance, and the keeping of His law, as it relates to and is God's love. These called and chosen in Christ, who hungered were strengthened by the words of encouragement of God's righteous servants. Christ's brethren who thirsted were strengthened by being watered with God's Spirit, and were taught how they could be filled with His Spirit through the  love and concern of God's righteous servants. Those brethren who were strangers were taken into the righteous servants' fellowship and communication and were strengthened. Those brethren who were naked and in need of the righteous clothing of Jesus Christ were instructed and strengthened how they could be clothed with His righteousness. The brethren that were sick were healed, restored, and strengthened  by knowledge pertaining to health, how they could maintain good health and those who were in prison to their sins of depression, guilt, mental anguish, fear, excessive worry and anxiety or a body illness were shown how they could be released and made free and were greatly strengthened by the love and encouragement of Christ's righteous servants.

        Any disciple, or brethren of Jesus Christ who hungers, and is in need of food, or clothing, a true servant of God will supply, James 2:15-16. However, that need is continuing, and cannot  ever be filled, because its need of being supplied is only temporarily. The need of spiritual food and water, and when it is supplied, is everlasting, whereas, a brother or sister will not be hungry or thirsty again. Christ verifies this in John 4:13, when He told the woman at the well, "Whosoever drinks of this water shall thirst again. V.14, But whosoever drinks of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst: but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing into everlasting life." Christ in John 6:35 said, "I am the bread of life: he that comes to me shall never hunger: and he that believes on me shall never thirst." Christ tells His disciples, "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled," Mat. 5:6.

        The main focus of all Christ's teaching and His parables is about calling the lost, giving to the spiritual needs of converting the brethren, and strengthening the brethren. Christ fills that need by working through His righteous servants. Christ  commands His righteous servants to  proclaim  His Gospel and to"strengthen the brethren."