The Sheep and the Goats

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’ “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life. Matthew 25:31-46 NIV

In the Gospel of Matthew Chapter 25 a parable of the sheep and the goats is recorded. Surprisingly enough, the both groups of sheep and goats bewildered at the Lord’s final pronouncement in the King’s Court. To the righteous (the sheep), the King said, "Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." To the unrighteous (the goats), the King said, "Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me."

What does it mean to do for one of the least of these? Well, it means whatever we do in our ordinary routine lives. It could be saying a kind word to a child who looks grumpy, yielding a way to a naughty driver on the streets, visiting someone who is in a nursing home, giving a hand to someone who is in need, talking to a friend who needs a buddy, writing a letter to friends and families, making a phone call to ask what is going on in their lives, praying patiently, or many others. One remarkably common thing among them is that they are all deeds.

Apostle John bluntly said, “Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you. We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death. Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him.” (1 John 13-19 NKJV)

There is a remarkable story recorded in the Gospel of Luke Chapter 16 which pertinently illustrates who is the least of these brothers and sisters in the Lord (Luke 16:19-31). The Lord Jesus Christ didn’t explain why the rich man was in torment in Hades and Lazarus in the bosom of Abraham. In that story, Lazarus was a beggar sitting at the rich man’s gate and wishing to be fed. Was he not the least of the brothers for the rich man? Is it not for our Lord Jesus Christ saying to the rich man, “I have given you the plenty of opportunity to feed the least of the brothers, but you have neglected all of them?”

What a sobering revelation for all of us! How many times do you and I pass the opportunities to do a little thing for the needy and poor? God delights those who cheerfully give to others (2 Corinthians 9:6-7). We have received freely, so we shall give freely (Matthew 10:8).

This parable was given by the Lord Jesus Christ to teach us how He will judge the nations. He will not judge the peoples of the nations based on what we performed religiously but on how we lived, especially how we responded to the God-given opportunities in our midst. Do we give our bodies as living sacrifices with gratitude and overflowing thankfulness? (Romans 12:1)

This we shall do diligently in season and out of season because as Prophet Isaiah cried out. “All people are like grass, and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the Lord blows on them. Surely the people are grass.” (Isaiah 40:6-7 NIV) The Day of the Lord will come suddenly and stealthily (2 Peter 3:10, 1 Thessalonians 5:2, Revelation 16:15).

Apostle Paul admonished the saints in Rome to be awake because the day was near. “And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.” (Romans 13:11-14 NIV) How much more nearer and closer to the Day of the Lord we are?