Sheep & Goats? I Know You Are, But What Am I?

I love the words of Jesus, even though they seem a bit harsh at times. After all, Jesus is THE WORD, so anything he says, everything he says, is to be taken seriously. Not just the comfortable sayings or the convenient sayings, all of the teachings of THE TEACHER are not only to be believed, they are to form our own thoughts and perspectives, guide our personal values and decisions.

I don't know about you, but I tend to go to the Gospel of Matthew when I want a synopsis of the teachings of Jesus. Some would say that Matthew organized those teachings into five groups, almost like the five book of Moses. In any case, Matthew grouped the sayings of Jesus into helpful segments of truth, from the Sermon on the Mount, to the Sermon on the Mission, the Sermon of Kingdom Parables, the Sermon on the Church, and the Sermon on Judgment. That last sermon can be a bit scary, with "Woes" (judgment pronouncements) being spoken against the Pharisees, a prophecy about the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple, sayings about his eventual return and the need to be ready, and finally, a parable about final judgment. 

This last parable of Jesus (in Matthew) paints a picture of the Son of Man coming as the King, in all his glory and with his holy angel. He is coming to sit on his glorious throne and pronounce final judgment. As is true of all parables, this one is not intended to give an exhaustive teaching about final judgment but rather to paint a picture of one aspect of that judgment, to make a specific point to those gathered. 

I'm not a shepherd but as it turns out, while sheep and goats may look pretty much alike to city slickers, there are some fundamental differences. While sheep tend to be docile, gentle animals, goats can be very unruly, rambunctious, and even aggressive. For that reason, sheep can find goats very upsetting, so while shepherds may herd sheep and goats together, they prefer to separate them to graze and to sleep at night. 

So the big question is, who are the sheep and who are the goats in this parable of Jesus? In his parables, it's not uncommon for Jesus to be referring to the common folk who are following him in contrast to a specific group of the Jewish elite, especially the Pharisees. In most sermons I've heard that address this parable in Matthew 25, the sheep and goats are individual people, certain kinds of people, sometimes even certain kinds of individual "followers" of Jesus. However, Jesus clearly identifies the two groups. They are "all the nations." In other words, at the last and final judgment, at the end of all things, the Judge and King Jesus will, among other things, judge the nations. The "sheep" he will put at his right hand, the hand of authority and blessing, while the goats will be placed on his left hand, the hand of defilement. It appears as though the sheep are about to be blessed and the goats punished. In fact, the King tells those on his right hand, "Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world."

If so, then the question is this: What criteria will Jesus use to judge the nations? Based on what standards will Jesus reward some and punish others? 

"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink. I needed clothes and you clothed me." Somehow these people noticed those who were destitute, who were without. And they responded with practical solutions. They provided food and drink and appropriate covering. They cared for those who would go without otherwise. They didn't judge them, ask for their life story, make them feel like losers. They fed them. They made sure they wouldn't go without They met their needs in practical ways. A particular attitude and commitment toward the poor is clearly in view. The Father's blessing, the inheritance of the kingdom, will belong to those who really see and practically care for the poor.

"I was a stranger and you invited me in." The Old Testament is literally filled with passages about God's attitude toward the stranger. In these passages, a "stranger" is not a strange person but rather someone living among the people of Israel who had no citizenship rights, a "resident alien," a refugee. Because Israel had been strangers in Egypt for 400 years, a distinctive aspect of their moral character was a commitment to welcome and show compassion to non-Israelites who came into their land. This characteristic was not just relevant to Israel; at the end the King will judge the nations based on how they treated the strangers among them. Those who "invited them in," those who welcomed them and embraced them, will be blessed. The word in the text for "invited me in" is the basis for the word "Synagogue." The sheep nations will be blessed because they made a place for, they gathered strangers into a safe, welcoming place. 

"I was sick and you looked after me." While the business of healthcare is a reality that must be reckoned with, the criteria used to judge the nations will be the simple fact of whether or not the sick were cared for. The idea of "look after" implies a genuine concern and compassion that results in real, practical care. It's not just effective care the sick need, they need real thoughtful, sensitive personal care. They need to not only be cared for in a way that results in health, they must also be cared for with dignity and respect.

"I was in prison and you came to visit me." In our society, we see prison as the just treatment of those who have broken the law. It is punishment. It is the way we remove certain people from civil society. "If you do the crime, you do the time." Somebody has to go to prison! But this statement in the parable paints a very different picture. A value is placed on people going out of their way to visit the incarcerated. They are not to be avoided but visited, treated as human beings who need help. In the ancient world, people were sent to jail only as a last resort. Even then, they were to be cared for, not ignored. The attitude of sheep nations to imprisonment will be a factor at the final judgment.

To make this judgment even more extreme, the King clarified who was to be included in the treatment of the poor, strangers, the sick and the incarcerated. "Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." The "least of these," literally, the smallest, the most insignificant, the most vulnerable and powerless, were the objects of the compassion and care in the sheep nations. In fact, the King went so far as to personally identify with the least of these: "you did for me." It's as if the King was personally present as one of those who was poor, a stranger, sick and in prison. The response to them was a personal response to the King.

For the goat nations who were judged as guilty and punished, the criteria were simple: They did not feed the hungry and give drink to the thirsty, they did not welcome the stranger or clothe the naked, they did not look after the sick and those in prison. "Whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me."

So if that is how nations will be judged in the end, it is valid for us to ask what values we are to promote in our time and place? And what behaviors will consistently demonstrate our loyalty to those value? What is God looking for in our nation? After all, it will make all the difference in the end. 

Freedom to Believe

I’ve always identified with the disciple called Thomas. The church has traditionally referred to him as “Doubting Thomas,” and not as a complement. Doubting does not get a lot of good press in the Bible. When Peter was walking on the water and began to sink, Jesus questioned his doubt (Matthew 14:31). Later, Jesus taught that faith not mixed with doubt would have the ability to move mountains (Matthew 21:21). Even after witnessing the resurrected Christ, “they worshipped him; but some doubted” (Matthew 28:17; Luke 24:38). The apostle James stated that one who doubts “is like a wave of the sea” (James 1:6). On the other hand, Jude advised those he addressed to “be merciful to those who doubt” (Jude 1:22).

“Doubt” is an interesting word. In the New Testament it usually refers to someone differentiating or discriminating, to making a judgment. In that sense, “doubt” is not necessarily a bad thing. However, in some cases (when used in the middle voice) it refers to someone doubting themselves, and thus vacillating, wavering, being uncertain. “Doubt” as a need for further evidence is not necessarily a bad thing. “Doubt” as a complete lack of certainty can be paralyzing.

Thomas had a lot of questions about this so-called “resurrection.” After all, on that first Easter Sunday evening Jesus had already appeared to the other disciples. In that first meeting, “he showed them his hands and side” (John 20:20). At first the disciples refused to believe the evidence standing right in front of them. Jesus had to specifically instruct them, “Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have” (Luke 24:39). And if that wasn’t enough, Jesus asked for a piece of broiled fish (I guess it’s even unhealthy for resurrected folk to eat deep-fried fish): “They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate it in their presence” (Luke 24:42-43). He wanted to demonstrate that he did not have some kind of totally new spiritual body; he could eat and digest food just like anyone else. Jesus had provided the other disciples with clear evidence of the reality of his physical resurrection. But Thomas was not present at that meeting. When the guys gave Thomas a report, he stated his personal need for evidence; he needed to have his own encounter with the risen Christ (John 20:24-25). Was that really so unreasonable?

As a young university student, I took the typical egghead position of a “soft-boiled agnostic,” i.e., I wanted to believe in God but didn’t think it would ever be possible to know for sure. Of course, my “knowing” had to be a “scientific,” evidentiary knowing. There was little room for faith, only for doubt. But because I wanted to believe in God, I began to search for evidence in good faith. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that if there is no God, if everything we are experiencing is the product of time plus chance plus nothing else, then there is no final meaning in life. There is no basis for truth or beauty or morality. Everything was purely arbitrary. Nothing made any sense. I was desperate to know. So one night I shut myself up in a little chapel in our dorm, wrapped myself in a blanket, and told the Lord that I would not leave that room until I knew for myself whether or not God existed and could be real in my life.

You might think that Jesus would have been upset with Thomas for asking for evidence of the resurrection. Instead, one week later Jesus reappeared to the disciples, and this time Thomas was with them (he had not abandoned them). Instead of rebuking him for his unbelief Jesus said, “Peace be with you! Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side” (John 20:26-27). Jesus offered Thomas the same evidence he had already given the other disciples. And Jesus, taking the time to show himself to Thomas in this way, liberated Thomas to believe. In fact, the response of Thomas is the most complete statement of faith and worship made by any of the disciples: “My Lord and my God” (John 20:28). The freedom to believe then released Thomas to be and do all Jesus purposed for him from that moment on.

I can’t fully describe what happened to me in that chapel so long ago; all I can say is that God visited me, that night and for many nights thereafter. I didn’t deserve it, but God empowered me to believe and gave me the freedom to go forward, not just by sight but more importantly, by faith. I still tend to question everything, but I am forever convinced that God is, and that God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him.

After showing himself to Thomas and liberating Thomas to go forward by faith, Jesus made this important statement: “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29). While you and I have never touched or eaten with the risen Christ, he has revealed himself to us in many important ways, and he has pronounced a blessing on us, those who have not seen and yet have believed. Our lives do not have to be dominated by doubt; we have been set free to believe, making abundant life possible. “Stop doubting and believe” (John 20:27).