Matthew 25:31-33 "But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. [32] "And all the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; [33] and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left.”

            What will be the basis on which Jesus will separate the righteous from the wicked of the nations for their eternal destinies? The parable of the sheep and the goats in Matthew 25: 31-46 shows that one’s treatment of God’s people in the tribulation will be a demonstration of one’s faith in God which is the key to entrance into the kingdom. When Christ returns to assume His glorious throne, all the nations of the earth will be gathered for a judgment which will result in either eternal life or to eternal fire, the basis of which will be their response to Jesus Christ as evidenced by their response to His “brothers”. Who then are these people?

THE TRUE FOLLOWERS

            Matthew 25:34-40 "Then the King will say to those on His right, 'Come, you who are 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 something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; [36] 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 feed You, or thirsty, and give You drink? [38] 'And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? [39] 'And when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?' [40] "And the King will answer and say to them, 'Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.'

            This passage is very helpful in clarifying the perspective in the Gospels in that inheriting the kingdom is defined in this passage as entrance into eternal life. Only the righteous inherit the kingdom and enter into eternal life. All unrighteous are destined for the reality of an eternal punishment of fire.

            Jesus used sheep and goats to picture the division between believers and unbelievers. Sheep and goats often grazed together but were separated when it came time to shear the sheep. The parable of the sheep and the goats shows that one’s treatment of God’s people in the tribulation will be a demonstration of one’s faith in God which is the key to entrance into the Kingdom.

THE SELF-DECEIVED FOLLOWERS

            Matthew 25:41-46  "Then He will also say to those on His left, 'Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels; [42] for I was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink; [43] I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.' [44] "Then they themselves also will answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?' [45] "Then He will answer them, saying, 'Truly I say to you, to the extent that 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 eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."

            The good works which the righteous perform are not the root but the fruit of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. God will separate His obedient followers from pretenders and unbelievers. That’s why we need to look to ourselves and be sure. The real evidence of our belief is the way we act. To treat all persons we encounter as if they are Jesus is no easy task. What we do for others demonstrates what we really think about Jesus’ words to us�"feed the hungry, give the homeless a place to stay, look after the sick.

            How well do your actions separate you from pretenders and unbelievers? One’s response to the Word of God even as expressed through others is viewed as synonymous with one’s response to God. It’s imperative that we know where we are for the judgment of God is final and unalterable.

            Have you just been going to church all your life because someone wanted you to be there? Remember that being in a church doesn’t make you a Christian just as being in a garage doesn’t make you a car. You have to be very sure where you will be spending eternity. Have you placed your personal faith in Jesus Christ’s death on the cross for your sins? Then now is the time to do so in order for you to be truly ready for the coming of the Lord.