Righteous Sheep Honored
Or
Unrighteous Goats Punished
Sunday Dec. 11, 2022
Scripture To Consider:
“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. 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. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left.”
“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: 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; 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 gave You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 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.’”
“Then He will say to those on His left hand, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the everlasting 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 take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’”
“Then they will also 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?’ 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.’ And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” Matthew 25.31-46
Something To Consider:
Not if, but when Jesus comes in His glory and with all the holy angels, the entire earth’s occupants, both past and present will see Him sitting upon His throne of glory. And at Christ’s coming, all the nations will be gathered and then separated into two distinct groups. One righteous, and one unrighteous!
The Noah Webster Dictionary of 1828, defines the word righteous as; “Just according to the divine law [Word of God].” The author further wrote, “The righteous, in Scripture, denotes the servants of God, the saints.” Would we be considered righteous servants or saints of God by God or unrighteous?
The unrighteous are described by Noah Webster as; “Not righteous; not just; not conformed in heart and life to the divine law [Word of God]; evil and wicked.” And in our Scripture to consider, in the end, the righteous sheep-like individuals are honored, and the unrighteous goat-like individuals are to be punished for all eternity. How sad and so unnecessary for the many to experience the judgment of God for all eternity!
Something Else To Consider:
The righteous nations that are likened unto sheep will be positioned on Christ’s right hand, a place of honor, power, and blessing. The unrighteous nations that are likened unto goats will be positioned on His left hand awaiting their overdue but much deserved punishment.
David, in Psalm 37, wrote of both the righteous and the unrighteous in verses 18-20. “The LORD knows the days of the upright [or righteous], and their inheritance [reward] shall be forever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time. And in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.” According to the Word of God, the days of famine are associated with the end times! Do we believe the Word of God? Are we therefore, prepared in some degree for the coming end time events which will include famines, according to the Word of God.
David also made some predictions of the unrighteous. “But the wicked shall perish; and the enemies of the LORD, like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish. Into smoke [of eternal punishment] they shall vanish away.” Again, do we believe the Word of the Lord? Have we made our final eternal arrangements? Have we made our eternal decision as it pertains to the forgiveness of our sins and our eternal destination? And if not, why not?
Something More To Consider”
At that time the fate of all nations will be sealed and there will be no time for repentance or reprieve. The unrighteous nations are then punished and banished from the presence of God forever because of their rejection of God’s Son Jesus. Are our thoughts, deeds, and attitudes rejecting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of our lives? If so, time is fading to be found looking unto Jesus! Have we made Him the author and finisher of our true born-again faith?
The righteous acts of the righteous nations, such as feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, taking in strangers, visiting the sick and those in prison, does not make a person or a nation righteous. But these actions are spiritual fruit that help prove a person or a nation to be righteous by God’s standards.
Which nations will be given the eternal title of righteous; only God knows, and only time will tell? Someone has said, “One person’s vote may not change the course of a nation, but one person’s righteous prayer can. What will be our prayer today? Will we be found praying for God’s will or for what we prefer to take place in our lives and in our nation?
According to 2 Chronicles 7.14; “If My people [the righteous], shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” The nations of the earth have much sin to be forgiven. But, this instruction is directed toward God’s people, the righteous.
A Few Final Words:
Do not be deceived by the evil demonic doctrine of once saved always saved. It has no biblical basis! Do not be deceived by a pre-tribulation rapture or American so-called escape plan. It has no biblical basis! “If My people [God’s people] shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I [God] hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” Yes, righteous sheep are honored, but only as their sins are forgiven according to God.
And according to Jesus in Mark 11.25, “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him [or her], that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses [those evil actions that make us all unrighteous].”
And with the very next verse Jesus spoke in opposition of the false once saved always saved message of man, by stating; “But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses [those evil actions that make us all unrighteous].”
Righteous acts of kindness and compassion shown to the hungry, naked, sick, and incarcerated, are rewarded in time as if done unto Jesus of Nazareth. For according to Jesus, “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.’”
Prayer:
Our Father in heaven, as sheep who have all gone astray, and yet made righteous in Christ, point us to the least of our brethren to feed, clothe, and visit in time of their trouble. Help us not to be deceived by demonic doctrines proposed by so-called theological goats in sheep’s clothing. Teach us the importance of our being found looking unto Jesus in these end times. In Him Always, Amen!
According to Jesus 