Dear saints, last week we heard about what will happen as the end draws near. Next week will bring a parable about our Lord’s return. This morning we hear a parable that wraps up our Lord’s final discourse on the End Times. Last week’s lesson was a warning for us to be prepared. Today, we hear of the Day of Judgment. More precisely, we heard the Lord’s announcement of the judgment that has already taken place.
Jesus comes in glory and sits upon his throne. All the nations are gathered before him. And the people are separated from one another. Sheep go to the right; goats go to the left. The sheep are welcomed into heaven and the goats are cast into hell. After hearing this parable, many will ask the question, “Have I been good enough to be a sheep?”
There is only one problem with that. It is the wrong question. But for a moment, let us try to answer it anyway. Jesus describes what sheep do: They feed the hungry. They give the thirsty something to drink. They welcome the stranger. They clothe the naked. They visit the sick and go to the prisoner.
And so, have you done that? Any of it? Some of it? All of it? How much do you have to do to be considered a sheep? What if you have not even had the opportunity to do some of those things? Are you even able to be a sheep? Remember the standard under God’s Law. He is perfect and commands that we also be perfect. So, even if we assume you are exempt from fulfilling the things you have not had the opportunity to do, have you served the listed people perfectly every opportunity you have had to serve them? Have you slipped up even once? Then no. You have not done enough to be a sheep.
To answer the question, “Have I been good enough to be a sheep?” can and will only bring anxiety or conceit. You will either realize you are not good enough and bring upon anxiety and despair, or you will deceive yourself and become boastful and conceited in thinking you are better than you are.
The only good thing I can think of when considering this wrong question is that it reminds us that none of us are good enough to be called sheep. None of us have loved our neighbors good enough to be a sheep. By failing to help your fellow brother or sister, you find you fit the description of a goat instead.
So let us consider the words of our Lord in the parable and see how we may know that we are, indeed, sheep: Jesus says 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.”
The sheep are confused. They do not seem to understand. They answer and say, “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?” Notice that there is no surprise that they are sheep. The surprise is what our Lord tells them they have done. They do not recall doing any of these things. And Jesus responds, “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.”
Our Lord’s attention then turns to the goats. “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.” Like the sheep, the goats do not seem to understand: “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?” And he answers them, “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.”
If the lesson this morning is not about doing good works and showing yourself worthy as a sheep, then what is it about? First, I want to look at how the sheep and the goats are addressed. The sheep are called blessed by the Father and the goats are cursed. The sheep are those declared righteous. They are the ones who trust in Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Because they are blessed and declared righteous, they inherit the kingdom which was prepared for them. This is why the sheep are surprised at what they hear next. They know they put their faith in Jesus, and not their works, for their salvation.
The goats, on the other hand, are cursed. Rather than being washed and clothed in righteousness, they remained estranged from the Lord. They rejected the call to trust in Christ. And so, when given the opportunity to love and serve Him, they declined. Yet they are still surprised to hear the judgment. They do not recall seeing the Lord in need and failing to care for him. Because they have no faith, they are cast into the eternal fire. But notice that this fire was not created for them. It is not supposed to be where they are sent. It was created for the devil and his angels, but they go there too.
The sheep in the parable are not sheep because of the works they did. The goats are not goats because of the works they did not do. Each are what they are because they do or do not trust in the Lord. Those who are baptized, who believe that Jesus has died for them and has taken away their sins, who try to do good, are Christian. They are righteous. Or, as the parable would speak of them, sheep. But those who do not believe that Jesus is the Messiah, even if they are baptized or try to do good things, are not Christian. They remain unrighteous. They are goats.
The parable is not about works. The parable is about being declared by God what you are. The sheep are made sheep by the power of God and His Holy Spirit. The goats remain goats because they reject God and His Word. The good works that the sheep have done must be put into their proper context, or else we might falsely believe that our works have somehow merited our salvation.
The author of the epistle to the Hebrews says, “without faith it is impossible to please God.” Serving your neighbor is a good work only if you have faith in Christ. Good works are the evidence of faith. They are the indicator that faith is present. It is impossible to have faith but not have good works. Yet these works do not save; rather they are the fruit of faith.
This might make some of you uneasy. Perhaps you are afraid you have not born much fruit. Think about it this way: If you give to the congregation because you support the mission of the Church and want to see the Word preached and the Sacraments administered, you are supporting Christ. If you made a dish for a potluck, you are feeding Christ, for those who eat of it are part of the Body of Christ.
If you have changed a diaper, you have clothed Christ. If you have carried that child to the Baptismal Font, you have carried Christ. The list goes on: If you have fed your children, given them clothes, spoken words of comfort to the sick or mourning, or any of the many other good works that you do because you are God’s child, you have done it to and for Christ Jesus.
Of course, these works are not done perfectly. How many of us have muttered to ourselves changing that blow-out diaper? Or got frustrated that some of your kid’s new clothes have been ruined after a single use? Or been wearied by yet another request from someone in need? Here we see God’s Law instructs us even as it accuses us. We see and do what we know to do because we know we are God’s redeemed. But we see how poorly we do these works and repent of not doing better. Or for thinking that what we have done is ‘good enough.’
Repent, but do not despair. Your status as a sheep does not rest upon you. You are what you are because of the mercy of your Savior, the King who rules over all things. It is He who has taken on your flesh and was born of the Virgin. He is the one who kept the Law perfectly. He is the one who, out of love for you, took on your sins and purchased you with His shed Blood and His death on the cross. And in that love, he rose again that you would enter His eternal kingdom with Him.
Because Jesus is your Savior, it is Jesus who makes you a sheep. He takes your ‘goat nature’ and covers it with his perfect nature as the Lamb of God. He has remade you in His own image. And this extends to the works you do. God sees your works and sees them done for Him. He does not see your sins, for they are hidden from his sight. What you do in weakness and sin, he perfects in himself and his righteousness.
On the cross, Christ Jesus became the sin of all men that all men might be redeemed. Any who are clothed in Christ have been made to be Him in disguise. Thus, the good works of His saints, His sheep, overflow with His glory.
But that does not work for the goats. They may have mighty and noble works that appear to be selfless acts of charity. We can see that throughout the world. But they reject Christ. They do not believe the work done for them in the death and resurrection of Jesus. Thus, they also reject His presence and serve their god, the devil. Their good deeds, lacking faith, are nothing but stained and filthy garments in the eyes of God.
But for you, dear sheep of Christ, your every action shines like the very Light of Christ. God’s Final Judgment is made, and it is for you. You are the righteous ones. You are those whose lives are made perfect in Christ. You are innocent and pure. So, you will be crowned with everlasting honor, bestowed upon you through the merit of Christ. You will enter the Kingdom of Glory, prepared for you by your Father from the foundation of the world. Amen.
Rev. Brent Keller
Peace Lutheran Church
Alcester, SD
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