Matthew part 43

The Last Judgement

Today marks the last teaching of Jesus before he goes to the cross. As we consider his last message, we cannot take it from the context of the message that starts in Matthew 24:3. And so, before we dig into today’s passage, let’s do a quick recap.

First, after Jesus drives out the money-changers and castigates the religious leaders for allowing such blasphemy in the temple, he gives a series of woes, or curses, against the Pharisees. He and the disciples leave the temple grounds, and the disciples remark about the buildings of the temple complex. Jesus tells them the temple will be destroyed and not a single stone will be left. The disciples ask when this will happen.

Then, Jesus begins teaching them about the end of the age. He provides signs of the impending end, but reminds them to not allow themselves to be deceived. Many will come professing to be the Christ. There will be tribulation, wars, and “the love of many will grow cold.” But, the end will not come until the gospel of the kingdom is proclaimed throughout the whole world.

Next, in verse 15, the teaching shifts a bit to reinforce the prophecy from Daniel concerning the “abomination of desolation” that will arise at the end. And though Christians can get stuck on that phrase, Jesus’ main point is two-fold. First, the Lord will continue to guide and support His people even in the darkest times of the tribulation. Second, we will not miss the coming of Christ. It will be very visible, and in fact, in verse 30, Jesus says the nations will mourn when even they see the Christ.

In verse 36, Jesus tells the disciples very plainly no one knows the day or hour He will return. And so, he calls the disciples (and us by extension) to remain faithful and vigilant till the day arrives. Verse 45 begins this teaching on what it means to be faithful till the end. This teaching moves into chapter 25 with two parables explaining faithfulness and readiness for the returning Christ.

And now, we can turn our attention to 25:31-46, the passage that many of your Bibles might have labeled “the sheep and the goats.” But who are these ‘sheep,’ and who are these ‘goats’? And more importantly for us individually, how can I know which category I will be in?

The Judgement of Humanity | Matthew 25:31-46

“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. 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. 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.’ 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?’ 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.’

“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Matthew 25:31-46

My first observation might be the most obvious, but I also think it is one of the most important. Notice the finality of this scene. The Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him. All of the signs, all the cosmic upheaval, and all the roaring of nations is over. If we compare this scene with other prophetic passages, this is the end of the end. After this separation of sheep and goats, the sheep are ushered into eternal life and the goats to eternal fire.

The Bible gives absolutely no hint towards a second chance for the lost when Jesus returns.

Secondly, notice the connection between our response to God and our response to the “least of these.” In the baptist tradition, we have a strong “salvation is by faith alone” stance. And rightly so, apart from the work of Christ, there is no salvation. Additionally, there is not a single thing we can do in this life to earn or repay the work of Christ. But, unfortunately, I believe this stance has allowed a different sort of heresy to creep into our minds and midsts. The opposite of a works-based salvation is what is known as “antinomianism.” It is the belief that since God forgives all sin, I can continue sinning as a I please. The glaring problem with this idea is the Bible describes the faithful Christian as one in whom it does not please them to sin.

The sheep in this passage are saved by grace alone. They have put their lives in the hands of Christ. Jesus is just as clear on the need for repentance and the cross as Peter, Paul, and the other New Testament writers. But notice how Jesus does not describe the sheep as those who prayed a prayer and got dunked in water. Nor are they described as regular church attenders. In fact, back in chapter 23, Jesus gave 7 curses against those who trusted in their religious rituals rather than God.

The sheep are described as those whose whole lives testify to the faith they proclaimed.

They did righteous deeds for God and unto God. And they don’t even really know all the times they helped God. The Lord has to say, “When you did something for the least of my brothers, that’s when you did it for me.” When the Lord prompted them to contribute to the kingdom and live as He designed them to live, they did just that. Are these perfect sheep? Of course not, they’re still sheep. But their lives were lived faithfully, and that is why they will inherit eternal life.

Last, look once again at the goats. These poor souls did not live faithfully at all. And again, the emphasis is not on their lack of belief nor is it on a lack of religious ritual. The emphasis is placed on how they responded to the “least of these.” They visited no prisons, gave no meals nor clothes, nor did they visit any sick. I am sure they found time to give or visit those who could repay them, but they neglected the ones who offered no social reward.

And we see the same surprise in the goats as the sheep. The King tells them he was present with those who were truly in need, but the goats never bothered to help. Their lives exhibit a lack of concern for their fellow humans and a lack of concern for what God thinks of their lives.

The goats are described as those whose whole lives testify to their lack of care for the Lord or His people.

Every once in awhile, a Bible-reader will attempt some logic argument to ease the doctrine of condemnation. Throughout the ages, Christians have always said, “no one likes the idea of hell.” It is a disturbing teaching for many people, and that is well understood. No one has returned from the pit to give us testimony, but the illustrations, metaphor, and imagery used in the Bible does not give hope for those who are condemned.

Someone may ask, “Why does hell even exist?” The answer is in verse 41. Hell exists because that is the place reserved for the devil and his angels. The demonic forces who first brought ruin to this world have no place in the kingdom of God. These are rebellious creatures that will be sent outside the kingdom for eternity. For those who live their lives apart from God and in rebellion to God, there is no place for them except the same one reserved for the devil and his angels.

There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, "Thy will be done," and those to whom God says, in the end, "Thy will be done." All that are in Hell, choose it. Without that self-choice there could be no Hell. No soul that seriously and constantly desires joy will ever miss it. Those who seek find. Those who knock it is opened.

- C.S. Lewis

I may not be able to tell you who all is in heaven nor who all is in hell, but I can say whichever a person truly desires will be seen in the way they live their life. The biggest marker is illustrated in this passage. How does the person treat the Lord and the people of the Lord? Is there honor given to the ones the world has deemed dishonorable? Is their love for the unlovable? Is there forgiveness for the unforgivable?

Look closely again at the categories of people mentioned here. The King mentions the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, and the imprisoned. What do all of these have in common? They all are people that every “upstanding citizen” would say, “Why can’t they take care of themselves?” These are not people for us to look down upon. These people are opportunities for us to put action to our faith. And as the Book of James says very clearly, where there is no action, there is no faith.

Here is another Lewis quote for you just because he says it so well.

A cold, self-righteous prig who goes regularly to church may be far nearer to Hell than a prostitute.

C. S. Lewis

One of the lines I hear often from people is, “Well, God knows my heart.” Yes. Yes, He does. But I wonder if we know our own hearts sometimes. The older we get, the easier it becomes to see where our heart lies. What is the pattern in our life? Is it a pattern of love for fellow man, for offering forgiveness to those who have hurt us, for offering aid to those society has turned away? Or is it more of a pattern of self-indulgence and avoiding the responsibilities of the faith we proclaim?

Last week, we looked at the parable of the talents, and I remind you again this week, the Lord has given each of us a set of talents. Our talents consist of the time we have in this world, the finances we are blessed with, the skills we attain, and the opportunities we have to use those talents for the Lord.

Do not bury those talents! Do not be a goat that chooses to spend his days taking care of No. 1. Give your life, your whole life, to Christ who saves and Christ who will reign as King on the day of judgement.