The sheep and the goats
Jesus's parable should be a wake up call to those in power today
I’ve been deep in the study of the book of Matthew lately. The Sermon on the Mount has captivated me in new ways and Jesus’s parables have come to life for me as well.
This morning I was reading in Matthew 25 which has three parables in it. One is about virgins waiting for the bridegroom and some are prepared, while some are not. Another is about the master who gives three of his servant’s talents. Two of them use their talents and multiply them, while one servant who lives in fear, buries his talent. Big mistake! But the one that I re-read over and over today was the parable of the sheep and the goats.
It talks about the day that the Son of Man comes back to reign on earth, and how he separates all the people of the world into two categories: the sheep and the goats, just as a good shepherd would.
He congratulates the sheep first:
‘Come, you who are blessed by 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 something to drink; I was a stranger and you took me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed me; I was sick and you took care of me; I was in prison and you visited me.’
37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and take you in, or without clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick, or in prison, and visit you?’
40 “And the King will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
Then he turns to the goats in anger:
‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire 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 didn’t take me in; I was naked and you didn’t clothe me, sick and in prison and you didn’t take care of me.’
44 “Then they too will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or without clothes, or sick, or in prison, and not help you?’
45 “Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
Isn’t it interesting that both groups asked the exact same question to the Lord? Both of them asked, “Wait a minute…when did we see you??” The difference is that the sheep didn’t realize that the people they were helping were God, but they helped anyway. It shows the true nature of their hearts. I believe it shows that their spiritual eyes and ears were open and the saw the inherent image of God in the people that they helped and knew it was the right thing to do.
The goats on the other hand, couldn’t see the image of God in “the least of these” and turned their backs on them. Their hearts were hardened and their spiritual eyes and ears closed. I would bet some of the goats were even spiritual leaders, such as the Pharisees and Sadducees. They were probably government leaders as well.
The way I see our current administration here in the United States turning their backs on “the least of these” is a big warning sign for me. They don’t care how badly they are hurting those in the margins. They only care about being in power and they are using every trick in the book to keep that power.
For instance, Congress passing the ironically named SAVE act is actually their newest way to limit people’s access to vote. Who are they limiting? Women, senior citizens, citizens overseas, low-income and rural citizens, and even military will be affected by this. My friend
just posted an essay on this and I highly recommend you taking the time to read it:
This administration doesn’t even care that they are deporting people who are in the United States legally and with no due process. I’ve seen video after video of people being detained illegally, some literally being nabbed off the streets by men in masks and whisked into unmarked vans. It’s like watching something happening in a third world country!
I was at least grateful to see that the Supreme Court has ordered the Trump administration to facilitate the return of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, a Maryland man who was mistakenly taken to El Salvador and remains in custody there. How would you feel if someone you loved was mistakenly grabbed by US officials and sent to a prison (that looks eerily like a concentration camp) in El Salvador with no due process! Seriously… think about it for just a moment. You would be enraged! “This is so wrong!” you would scream. However, even though the Trump administration has admitted it was a “clerical error” their response has been “Oopsie.. sorry. Can’t do anything about it now.” — THIS IS INSANITY. They certainly found a way to bring the violent, misogynistic, homophobic Andrew Tate and his brother back to America. Surely they can bring an innocent man home. It’s the right thing to do. However, the Trump administration has shown over and over again that they don’t care about doing the “right” thing if it doesn’t help their agendas.
This administration isn’t leading us with compassion, humility, integrity and love. They are leading us by attempting to manipulate us, anger us, and stoke fear. Those are very powerful tools in getting people to follow you and I see it working for too many good Americans. They use smokescreens to convince people they are “making American great again” while they are actually dismantling our entire constitution and democratic way of life.
It just breaks my heart to see so many good Americans being harmed by what the Trump administration is doing. I pray that people will begin to see that he is indeed a “goat” who has consistently ignored the teachings of Jesus. Following this man is the wrong road, friends. He is doing evil things presented as if they are good things. He is skillful at presenting actions or outcomes that are morally wrong or harmful as beneficial or even virtuous. Please look beyond the surface and dig deeper. Scour your heart and pray upon these things. I know you will find the truth.
Love to you all… M
P.S. I don’t really believe God divides us into sheeps and goats, but that’s a topic for another day! :-)