““When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.” Matthew 25:31-33 ESV
Reflection: how can you know whether you are you a sheep or a goat?
We don’t like to talk much about it, but there is a final judgement coming. And we all will be part of it. We all will be judged. We don’t know when, we just know it will happen. How? Because Jesus said so. He actually gave a pretty lengthy description of this, recorded in Matthew 25:31-46. This text about the final judgment is obviously critical for us to understand, because eternity is at stake. So let’s invest a bit of our time. I suggest to read these 16 verses before proceeding. And, let’s try to put aside any preconceptions, even what we might have heard preached before, and focus on what Jesus is said in this text. Nothing else really matters. Once we get through it, then you can decide what you believe and if you need to make any changes in your life.
Jesus starts out by stating very clearly that He is coming back. And, we see here that He is coming in all His glory as King, accompanied by ALL His angels, and will take His glorious kingdom throne. Why is sitting on the throne here important? Because He will judge ALL the nations. All people. Notice carefully here that there are no exceptions. It is all nations, all people. And, then we see the result of the judgement – a separation of people. No longer does earthly nations matter, only whether you are a sheep or a goat. And, “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”Matthew 25:34 ESV.
Oh, don’t we who follow Jesus long to hear those words!
But wait. The King is not finished. He continues, and adds an explanation of WHY specifically these people are on His right, and will inherit the kingdom. He says “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’” Matthew 25:35-36 ESV. We see here the separation criteria, of who are sheep versus goats. It is based on what they have done. Based on action, or works. That may seem quite shocking to many, and is very different than what most churches preach, right?
But isn’t this basically the same as “salvation by works”, or a works-based religion?
Not at all. And this is exactly where so many get confused, where there is so much false teaching. The question each of us has to answer is, how has the knowledge of truth changed us? In other words, when we received Jesus, when we declared that He is Lord of our lives and we follow Him, did anything change? Or did we just say those words, but continue to follow our own selfish ways? James explained this perfectly, saying “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?
So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” James 2:14-17 ESV.
Jesus mentioned a few examples of what righteous works look like. He said that HE was hungry, thirsty, a stranger, naked, and so on, and HIS needs were met through the works of those on His right hand. While this is often interpreted as helping those with physical needs, most likely He is referring to filling the spiritual needs which is even more important than the physical needs. And, this is how He will know who are the sheep who have truly received the truth, repented, and kept the commandments of Jesus. As He told Peter in John 21, to feed my lambs and my sheep, to tend to them.
And, the final point to consider is to notice that feeding and tending the lambs and the sheep is not a burden. It is not even thought of as work by the followers of Jesus, who respond to the King “Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ Matthew 25:37-39 ESV. They didn’t even realize they were doing the work of the Father.
Because, the knowledge of truth had changed them.
“And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’”Matthew 25:37-40 ESV. There are so many who preach that the only thing that matters is to say a few words, then you are saved and all is well. But Jesus paints a very different picture here. He sees to the heart. So the question for each of us is, how has the knowledge of truth changed us? Are we becoming more and more like Jesus, feeding and tending even the weakest and least of His lambs, His sheep?