Matthew 25:31 – 36

The Sheep and the Goats (1)

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.

33 And 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.’

Verse 31 verifies this topic is the “day of judgment” and Christ will be the only judge of the people of the world.

Acts 17:30 - 31(Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, 31 because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.”)

2 Thessalonians 1:7( and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels,)

Sitting on the throne of his glory means he will be sitting on the throne of Judgment.

Verse 32 indicates all human beings which have lived on this earth from the beginning until the end will be judged at that time. Jesus Christ will be the only judge. All will be divided into two groups, the faithful and the unfaithful, there is no other category.

This reference to the sheep and the goats is for the illustration based on the practices of the shepherd who is getting ready to move his flock into a permanent shelter, while his sheep were feeding on the open range, goats may have mixed in with his flock, he would not want goats in the permanent fold, so he would separate them before they went into the fold.

There is no moral value to right and left but for the effect of illustrating the separation it is used to show the difference.

While Jesus is the Judge, he will pass sentence on individuals based on His agreement with the wishes of God the father.

This place of Joy and salvation has been in the plans since before the world and universe was created. God has always intended for those who have qualified for the crown of salvation to have a place to live eternally, a place full of joy and happiness.

On the day of Judgment those who have qualified for it will be invited to enter in and reside there eternally.

In verse 35 Jesus begins to explain the good works which qualify one to enter the heavenly kingdom.

Giving food to the hungry and drink to the thirsty is classed as “good works” and “hospitality” is also named as a good work in Hebrews 13:2 (Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels.)

Verse 36 continues the good works, giving clothes to the poor and visiting the sick are those good works.

However visiting those in prison is not the same as visiting criminals who have been incarcerated. Jesus is referring to visiting those Christians who have been incarcerated because of their belief in Christ. Those who have been arrested and detained for the purpose of persecution, or if a follower of Christ has been arrested because of a false accusation.

Paul, although in a rented house, was a prisoner because he was chained to an officer, and in that situation Onesiphorus visited him.

2 Timothy 1:16 – 18 (16 The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain; 17 but when he arrived in Rome, he sought me out very zealously and found me. 18 The Lord grant to him that he may find mercy from the Lord in that Day—and you know very well how many ways he ministered to me at Ephesus.)

Look for the next session to continue this lesson.