INHERITANCE by Dr. Shah, Clearview Church, Henderson, NC
Introduction: Few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to visit a sheep farm nearby. It was incredible! What got me was when the sheep saw their owner, they immediately went to him! Now, I was standing nearby but they kept eyeing me. It reminded me of what Jesus said in John 10:5 “the sheep will by no means follow a stranger…” Then the owner told me to step near and pet them. I did, and one by one they came near. What was most fascinating to me was how their owner knew each of them by name. To me they were all the same but he could tell the difference. Again, just like Jesus said in John 10:3 “he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.” So also, Jesus, our Good Shepherd, knows each of his sheep by name. You can pretend to be his sheep but there is a day of judgment coming when he will identify his own and the test will be acts of compassion done in his name. Those who belong to him will receive an inheritance but those who don’t will receive everlasting fire. In our series on the parables of Jesus, we come to the Parable of the Sheep and Goats, and the message is titled “INHERITANCE.”
Matthew 25 31 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. 33And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on His right hand, “Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ 37“Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feedYou, or thirsty and give You drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40And the King will answer and say to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’ 41 “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: 42 for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; 43 I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’ 44 “Then they also will answer Him, 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?’ 45 Then He will answer them, saying, “Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ 46 And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
Question: Which ones are you? Are you the sheep or are you the goat? Will you receive an inheritance or will you go into the everlasting fire? Are you saved?
Context: The Parable of the Sheep and the Goats is the 3rd of the 3 parables that Jesus gave in his famous Olivet Discourse in Matthew 24 & 25. If you remember from the last weekend, it was the message Jesus preached on the Mount of Olives where he explained to his disciples how things will be at the end of the age when he returns.
- The message of the 1st Parable of the Ten Bridesmaids was “Be prepared. Jesus is coming back at a time you’re least expecting.”
- The message of the 2nd Parable of the Talents was “Don’t just stand there. Use the money God has given to you to build his kingdom and make profit.”
- The message of the 3rd Parable of the Sheep and the Goats was Jesus is coming again but this time to judge and his judgment is not based on our confession but our compassion towards the least of these.
So, let’s examine the parable of the Sheep and the Goats carefully. (By the way, this is not really a parable like the others. It is more like a brief analogy with a long explanation. Hence, we will focus a lot on the explanation than the story.) Listen again to Matthew 25:31“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.” In other words, Jesus is coming again but this time it is not to be laid in the manger but to sit on the throne, the judgment seat.
First, let’s talk about the importance of judgment. Repeatedly, the Old Testament refers to God as the Judge. Genesis 18:25 “…Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” Psalm 75:7 “But God is the Judge: He puts down one, and exalts another.” Isaiah 30:18 “For the LORD is a God of justice; Blessed are all those who wait for Him.” Why is judgment so important to God? Because God’s judgment is the natural outflow of God’s holiness. Sin disrupts God’s holiness and judgment sets everything right. If you think that judgment is unnecessary, then you don’t understand the holiness of God nor the horribleness of sin. There is a connection between holiness and judgment. Listen to Isaiah 5:16 “But the LORD of hosts shall be exalted in judgment, and God who is holy shall be hallowed in righteousness.” Also, Psalm 50 1 The Mighty One, God the LORD, has spoken and called the earth from the rising of the sun to its going down. 2 Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God will shine forth. 3 Our God shall come, and shall not keep silent; A fire shall devour before Him, and it shall be very tempestuous all around Him. 4 He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that He may judge His people: 5 “Gather My saints together to Me, those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.” 6 Let the heavens declare His righteousness, For God Himself is Judge.”
Question: Do you believe there’s a judgment coming? Do you truly understand the holiness of God and the horribleness of sin?
What’s unique in this parable is that Jesus is given the role of the judge. Why? Because of the title “the Son of Man.” Listen again to Matthew 25:31 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.” It is also found a chapter later in Matthew 26:64 Jesus said to him (high priest), “It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.” That designation “Son of Man” implies that, as prophesied in Daniel 7, Jesus came as a representative of God. Not only that but lest anyone say “You don’t understand what we go through,” he was also fully man. Who has given him this authority? John 5 26 “For as the Father… 27 … has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man.”
What will this judgment be about? 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him…” Lot of discussion has been centered around those words. The Old Testament does talk about a “Judgment of the Nations.” Joel 3:2 “I will also gather all nations, and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; And I will enter into judgment with them there on account of My people, My heritage Israel, Whom they have scattered among the nations; They have also divided up My land.” So also, Isaiah 2 3 “…For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. 4 He shall judge between the nations, and rebuke many people…” Bottom line: God will deal with nations and peoples throughout history based on how they treated the people of Israel.
In the midst of this judgment, there will be a judgment of compassion. The sheep are put on the right side and the goats on the left. (By the way, this does not mean that sheep are better animals than goats. It’s just an analogy.) What is the basis of the positive judgment towards the sheep? Listen again to verse 34 “…Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.” The sheep are confused because they don’t remember seeing Jesus hungry, thirsty, stranger, naked, sick, or in prison. 40 And the King will answer and say to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.” Who are the least of these My brethren? Some think that they are Jewish people but their leadership was rejecting him. Others think that they are the disciples but he was speaking to them. Still others think that they might be Christians or even Christian missionaries. There were no “Christians” or “Christian missionaries” yet. There was one more group—the poor and the less fortunate. This made up the majority of the people who followed Jesus. This is where the context helps us. This is who Jesus had in mind. And, yes, many times, his own followers (believers) are poor and less fortunate even today.
How about those goats on the other side? Listen again to verse 41 “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: Why? Because they didn’t show any acts of compassion. They refused to help those hungry, thirsty, stranger, naked, sick, or in prison. In the process, they didn’t help Christ. 46 And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
For e.g. Someone refused to help me during a snow storm a couple of years ago. They wouldn’t even let me park in their driveway.
Big Question: Doesn’t this contradict the Pauline doctrine of justification by faith alone? This is the old Paul vs James debate. Galatians 5 13 For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Ephesians 2 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
Another big question: Doesn’t this bring condemnation to believers? Yes, we can have assurance of salvation—I Corinthians 3:15 “If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.” Don’t forget that this same Paul also said—2 Corinthians 5 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. 11 Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men…” Ultimately, Romans 8:1 “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.”
Invitation: Which group do you belong to? Are you saved or lost? Will you be able to stand on the day of judgment? How are your acts of compassion?
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