1 00:00:03,920 --> 00:00:11,680 Today's scripture comes from Matthew 25:31 46 when the Son of 2 00:00:11,680 --> 00:00:17,040 man comes in his glory and all the angels with him, he will sit 3 00:00:17,120 --> 00:00:18,880 on his glorious throne. 4 00:00:19,600 --> 00:00:22,360 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will 5 00:00:22,360 --> 00:00:25,400 separate the people from one another as shepherd separates the 6 00:00:25,400 --> 00:00:26,320 sheep from the goats. 7 00:00:27,010 --> 00:00:30,290 He will put the sheep on his right hand and the goats on his left. 8 00:00:31,650 --> 00:00:36,770 Then the king will say to those on his right, come, you who 9 00:00:36,770 --> 00:00:38,450 are blessed by my Father. 10 00:00:39,090 --> 00:00:42,649 Take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the 11 00:00:42,649 --> 00:00:43,970 creation of the world. 12 00:00:45,090 --> 00:00:48,690 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat. 13 00:00:49,490 --> 00:00:52,450 I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink. 14 00:00:52,450 --> 00:00:54,850 I was a stranger and you invited me in. 15 00:00:55,330 --> 00:00:57,890 I needed clothes and you clothed me. 16 00:00:58,210 --> 00:01:01,010 I was sick and you looked after me. 17 00:01:01,490 --> 00:01:04,610 I was in prison and you came to visit me. 18 00:01:06,370 --> 00:01:11,129 Then the righteous will answer him, lord, when did we see you hungry 19 00:01:11,129 --> 00:01:13,650 and feed you or thirsty and give you something to drink? 20 00:01:13,970 --> 00:01:18,050 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in or needing clothes 21 00:01:18,050 --> 00:01:18,930 and clothe you? 22 00:01:19,250 --> 00:01:22,810 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you? 23 00:01:24,650 --> 00:01:31,050 The king will reply, truly I tell you, whatever you did for one 24 00:01:31,050 --> 00:01:35,090 of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for 25 00:01:35,090 --> 00:01:35,450 me. 26 00:01:37,530 --> 00:01:43,090 Then he will say to those on his left, depart from me, you who 27 00:01:43,090 --> 00:01:46,330 are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his 28 00:01:46,330 --> 00:01:46,810 angels. 29 00:01:47,840 --> 00:01:51,760 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat. 30 00:01:52,320 --> 00:01:54,840 I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink. 31 00:01:54,840 --> 00:01:57,200 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in. 32 00:01:57,360 --> 00:02:00,560 I needed clothes and you did not clothe me. 33 00:02:00,800 --> 00:02:05,600 I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me. 34 00:02:07,440 --> 00:02:13,720 They will also answer, lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty 35 00:02:13,720 --> 00:02:17,480 or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison and 36 00:02:17,480 --> 00:02:18,400 did not help you? 37 00:02:19,810 --> 00:02:26,130 He will reply, truly, I tell you, whatever you did not do for 38 00:02:26,130 --> 00:02:29,970 one of the least of these, you did not do for me. 39 00:02:31,010 --> 00:02:35,410 Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous 40 00:02:36,050 --> 00:02:37,250 to eternal life. 41 00:02:43,010 --> 00:02:44,370 Jesus told stories. 42 00:02:46,060 --> 00:02:49,700 He told stories to help us understand how different the kingdom 43 00:02:49,700 --> 00:02:54,700 of God is from the world in which we live that's governed by 44 00:02:54,700 --> 00:02:55,100 sin. 45 00:02:56,460 --> 00:03:00,140 To help us to not see the world through sin's distorted eyes, 46 00:03:00,140 --> 00:03:04,980 but from the perspective of how God sees the world and how God 47 00:03:04,980 --> 00:03:10,300 designed us to live and to love and to relate and to flourish. 48 00:03:11,520 --> 00:03:17,400 And so he told stories to help us to understand that most of them 49 00:03:17,400 --> 00:03:22,080 begin the kingdom of heaven is like and it goes on to tell us of 50 00:03:22,400 --> 00:03:23,680 a good Samaritan. 51 00:03:24,000 --> 00:03:29,320 It tells us of a sower in the field, tells us of an unforgiving 52 00:03:29,320 --> 00:03:29,840 servant. 53 00:03:30,800 --> 00:03:33,680 Well, the story today doesn't begin the kingdom is like. 54 00:03:35,520 --> 00:03:40,090 Because the story today is exactly how the kingdom is. 55 00:03:40,970 --> 00:03:42,570 It is a statement of fact. 56 00:03:43,210 --> 00:03:47,450 It's not a story of a metaphor, of a teaching principle. 57 00:03:48,730 --> 00:03:52,970 When Jesus tells stories of the parables, he's always talking 58 00:03:52,970 --> 00:03:56,970 a world that's upside down from what we assume it is not just 59 00:03:56,970 --> 00:04:00,330 a little different from the world we live in, but totally different, 60 00:04:02,010 --> 00:04:05,480 as different as heaven is from hell. 61 00:04:07,240 --> 00:04:11,880 And the process to understand this is what we've been singing each 62 00:04:11,880 --> 00:04:13,160 week to day by day. 63 00:04:14,120 --> 00:04:22,760 See him more clearly, but love him more dearly and follow him more 64 00:04:23,400 --> 00:04:24,120 nearly. 65 00:04:25,000 --> 00:04:26,040 That's our prayer. 66 00:04:27,080 --> 00:04:31,000 And I've held this parable till the end of this semester. 67 00:04:31,000 --> 00:04:34,670 We've got one more week next week, I mean week after next, toward 68 00:04:34,670 --> 00:04:35,550 the end of the semester. 69 00:04:35,550 --> 00:04:39,270 Because until we begin to think in kingdom ways, it's hard 70 00:04:39,270 --> 00:04:43,030 to grasp the reality of how hard this truth is. 71 00:04:43,590 --> 00:04:47,470 And if you're ever going to pay attention to anything, pay attention 72 00:04:47,470 --> 00:04:52,230 the next 30 minutes, because it's going to make all the difference 73 00:04:52,230 --> 00:04:53,270 in your destiny. 74 00:04:55,270 --> 00:04:57,910 This parable is that important. 75 00:04:58,870 --> 00:05:01,540 Today's parable is about the final judgment. 76 00:05:02,340 --> 00:05:04,020 The parable, the sheep and the goats. 77 00:05:05,860 --> 00:05:10,740 Suppose tomorrow was your day of final judgment. 78 00:05:12,180 --> 00:05:18,260 Tomorrow you would stand before God and he would say, why 79 00:05:18,260 --> 00:05:20,100 should I let you into heaven? 80 00:05:22,260 --> 00:05:25,720 And I think your answer would probably be, because I believed in. 81 00:05:26,030 --> 00:05:26,510 In you. 82 00:05:26,910 --> 00:05:29,550 I had faith in you alone. 83 00:05:29,790 --> 00:05:34,670 It was only by your grace and your death of your son on the cross 84 00:05:34,830 --> 00:05:37,230 that I have been redeemed and restored. 85 00:05:38,190 --> 00:05:40,350 I did not do anything to earn this. 86 00:05:40,990 --> 00:05:43,310 I do not bring any list of good works. 87 00:05:43,310 --> 00:05:48,750 I just have accepted your grace, and because of that, I am 88 00:05:48,750 --> 00:05:49,150 saved. 89 00:05:50,350 --> 00:05:52,030 And he said, that's exactly right. 90 00:05:53,150 --> 00:05:54,030 That's exactly right. 91 00:05:54,030 --> 00:05:55,630 You can't earn your way in here. 92 00:05:56,430 --> 00:06:00,710 You can only accept the free gift of grace that restores you to 93 00:06:00,710 --> 00:06:01,550 a holy God. 94 00:06:01,630 --> 00:06:05,150 But then he's going to ask a second question, and that's what 95 00:06:05,150 --> 00:06:06,190 the parable tells us. 96 00:06:06,590 --> 00:06:10,670 The question is essentially, what evidence do you have that you 97 00:06:10,670 --> 00:06:14,510 love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul and 98 00:06:14,510 --> 00:06:17,070 all your mind, which is the greatest commandment in the Bible? 99 00:06:18,120 --> 00:06:20,680 What evidence do you bring? 100 00:06:22,440 --> 00:06:23,480 What's your answer? 101 00:06:27,000 --> 00:06:28,360 I'm not asking theoretically. 102 00:06:28,360 --> 00:06:29,800 I'm asking real right now. 103 00:06:29,800 --> 00:06:35,720 What's your answer to what evidence you bring standing before 104 00:06:35,800 --> 00:06:42,000 the seat of judgment for eternity, that you love the Lord 105 00:06:42,000 --> 00:06:46,330 your God with all your heart, your soul and your mind. 106 00:06:49,130 --> 00:06:52,690 This parable is not like the others because it's Describing what 107 00:06:52,690 --> 00:06:55,210 is actually going to happen. 108 00:07:02,090 --> 00:07:07,610 And that can be welcoming and thrilling, or it can be absolutely 109 00:07:07,930 --> 00:07:08,730 terrifying. 110 00:07:10,260 --> 00:07:13,260 There are three categories of people that Jesus talks about in 111 00:07:13,260 --> 00:07:13,940 this parable. 112 00:07:14,260 --> 00:07:19,860 Those who truly believed and accepted with grace and lived with 113 00:07:19,860 --> 00:07:23,180 kingdom priorities that had transformed their lives because they 114 00:07:23,180 --> 00:07:24,180 loved God that much. 115 00:07:25,540 --> 00:07:28,580 Second group are people who profess to be disciples of Christ 116 00:07:28,900 --> 00:07:31,940 and professed to be Christians, but it never really guided 117 00:07:31,940 --> 00:07:32,580 their life. 118 00:07:32,980 --> 00:07:35,540 Jesus was never really Lord of their life. 119 00:07:36,710 --> 00:07:39,190 And then there are going to be those who say they never profess 120 00:07:39,750 --> 00:07:41,190 to follow Christ at all. 121 00:07:42,470 --> 00:07:45,990 The parable is primarily speaking to the second two categories, 122 00:07:46,230 --> 00:07:48,070 but especially the second one. 123 00:07:48,390 --> 00:07:52,390 People who say, I'm a Christian, but there's no evidence 124 00:07:53,190 --> 00:07:54,470 on that day of judgment. 125 00:07:54,470 --> 00:07:58,390 There's no evidence to bring to Jesus and say, here's the evidence 126 00:07:59,030 --> 00:08:00,230 that I'm a Christian. 127 00:08:01,920 --> 00:08:04,000 Well, if you've got to bring evidence, that raises an important 128 00:08:04,000 --> 00:08:05,040 question, doesn't it? 129 00:08:05,600 --> 00:08:10,000 Are you saved by faith or by works? 130 00:08:11,360 --> 00:08:12,880 It can't be both, right? 131 00:08:13,680 --> 00:08:14,560 Yes, it can. 132 00:08:15,360 --> 00:08:16,560 It is both. 133 00:08:18,080 --> 00:08:20,560 You come to Christ only by faith. 134 00:08:20,640 --> 00:08:24,400 You are forgiven of your sins only by his grace. 135 00:08:24,480 --> 00:08:29,480 You're restored in fellowship with God only by his goodness and 136 00:08:29,480 --> 00:08:30,800 your faith in Him. 137 00:08:31,120 --> 00:08:34,000 That alone brings you to fellowship with God. 138 00:08:35,680 --> 00:08:41,680 But our love for him, how much we love him and how much he has done 139 00:08:41,760 --> 00:08:46,960 to transform us and to redeem us and to save us, flows out in our 140 00:08:46,960 --> 00:08:47,600 works. 141 00:08:49,040 --> 00:08:54,120 And our works have to be evidence that Christ is Lord of our 142 00:08:54,120 --> 00:08:54,400 life. 143 00:08:55,350 --> 00:08:56,230 Our works matter. 144 00:08:57,990 --> 00:09:01,990 You see, if there's no result of our faith, if I just say I accept 145 00:09:01,990 --> 00:09:06,350 Christ and nothing changes and nothing in our outlook changes and 146 00:09:06,350 --> 00:09:09,990 we never get into kingdom understanding that we've talked about 147 00:09:09,990 --> 00:09:12,790 these weeks, then our faith is just empty. 148 00:09:13,670 --> 00:09:18,550 It's what I call religion, going through the motions, but it 149 00:09:18,550 --> 00:09:19,110 doesn't matter. 150 00:09:20,880 --> 00:09:24,120 Or maybe you have a whole bunch of good works, but you don't 151 00:09:24,120 --> 00:09:28,640 have any faith because you didn't understand the price Christ 152 00:09:28,640 --> 00:09:37,520 paid on the cross because sin needed to be needed justice, and 153 00:09:39,440 --> 00:09:41,520 he took our sins for Him. 154 00:09:41,840 --> 00:09:44,920 If you don't understand that, then the works don't matter either. 155 00:09:44,920 --> 00:09:46,240 It's just empty as well. 156 00:09:47,110 --> 00:09:48,790 It's just religion or doing good. 157 00:09:50,710 --> 00:09:53,510 So he talks about three portions in this scripture, and I 158 00:09:53,510 --> 00:09:56,190 want to walk through them in some detail with you because they're 159 00:09:56,190 --> 00:09:57,830 all very important. 160 00:09:58,470 --> 00:10:01,670 The first is this, the final judgment. 161 00:10:02,150 --> 00:10:04,790 He describes to us the final judgment. 162 00:10:04,790 --> 00:10:07,990 The day you and I will stand before God. 163 00:10:08,150 --> 00:10:11,350 It will happen when Christ comes again. 164 00:10:12,640 --> 00:10:17,840 He says he will not come as a humble servant, a humiliated savior. 165 00:10:18,000 --> 00:10:21,440 He Won't come as a baby born in Bethlehem in a borrowed stable. 166 00:10:22,640 --> 00:10:27,280 He won't walk and talk among a bunch of disciples and have to deal 167 00:10:27,280 --> 00:10:30,720 with all that goes on in society and kind of maneuver through 168 00:10:30,720 --> 00:10:30,960 that. 169 00:10:30,960 --> 00:10:35,880 He won't let himself be humiliated by the power of Rome to 170 00:10:35,880 --> 00:10:40,040 crucify him in a bloody, blood, gruesome death where they 171 00:10:40,040 --> 00:10:43,160 thought they won, but they really lost. 172 00:10:44,760 --> 00:10:46,840 That's not how he's coming back. 173 00:10:48,520 --> 00:10:54,199 He says when the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels 174 00:10:54,199 --> 00:10:59,640 with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. 175 00:11:00,920 --> 00:11:02,360 He will come as a ruler. 176 00:11:03,000 --> 00:11:04,920 He will come as a judge of all. 177 00:11:06,480 --> 00:11:13,560 He will come in the majesty of who Christ is, as God, not as God 178 00:11:13,560 --> 00:11:16,480 and man, but as God alone. 179 00:11:17,440 --> 00:11:18,840 He will come in glory. 180 00:11:18,840 --> 00:11:19,840 The scripture says. 181 00:11:19,920 --> 00:11:21,120 Well, what's that look like? 182 00:11:22,000 --> 00:11:24,440 We have trouble seeing that because when we think of Jesus, we 183 00:11:24,440 --> 00:11:28,960 think of him walking around in sandals with his disciples and doing 184 00:11:28,960 --> 00:11:31,880 some miracles, maybe with fish and loaves or walking on the water. 185 00:11:31,880 --> 00:11:33,160 That's pretty amazing. 186 00:11:33,320 --> 00:11:36,120 And we think of him telling stories and teaching all that. 187 00:11:36,760 --> 00:11:39,960 We hopefully think of him on the cross, but we don't think of 188 00:11:39,960 --> 00:11:41,240 him in his glory. 189 00:11:42,520 --> 00:11:47,880 Well, we know what that looks like because John the disciple John, 190 00:11:48,040 --> 00:11:54,960 his closest friend later in his life was exiled to the island 191 00:11:54,960 --> 00:11:55,800 of Patmos. 192 00:11:56,280 --> 00:12:01,490 And on Patmos, John had a vision of what the future is about. 193 00:12:03,330 --> 00:12:09,170 And in that vision he describes what he saw of who Jesus 194 00:12:09,170 --> 00:12:10,930 is in his glory. 195 00:12:11,730 --> 00:12:13,250 He describes it this way. 196 00:12:13,970 --> 00:12:18,010 He said he was wearing a long robe with a gold sash around his 197 00:12:18,010 --> 00:12:18,450 chest. 198 00:12:19,170 --> 00:12:23,410 His head and his hair were like white as wool, as white as snow. 199 00:12:23,570 --> 00:12:25,810 His eyes were like flames of fire. 200 00:12:26,510 --> 00:12:29,630 His feet were polished bronze, refined in a furnace. 201 00:12:29,790 --> 00:12:33,470 And his voice thundered like mighty ocean waves. 202 00:12:34,430 --> 00:12:38,190 He held seven stars in his right hand and a sharp two edged 203 00:12:38,190 --> 00:12:39,750 sword came from his mouth. 204 00:12:39,750 --> 00:12:43,870 And his face was like the sun in all its brilliance. 205 00:12:46,830 --> 00:12:48,030 When I saw him. 206 00:12:48,670 --> 00:12:50,190 This is his best friend. 207 00:12:51,150 --> 00:12:52,670 This is his best friend. 208 00:12:52,830 --> 00:12:57,310 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as if I were dead. 209 00:12:59,550 --> 00:13:02,830 But then he laid his right hand on me and said, don't be afraid. 210 00:13:03,630 --> 00:13:05,150 I am the first and last. 211 00:13:05,790 --> 00:13:07,150 I am the living one. 212 00:13:07,630 --> 00:13:12,030 I died, but look, I'm alive forever. 213 00:13:13,469 --> 00:13:18,670 And I hold the keys to death and the grave. 214 00:13:20,510 --> 00:13:22,930 That is what Jesus looks like in. 215 00:13:23,000 --> 00:13:23,720 In his glory. 216 00:13:24,040 --> 00:13:28,520 That is who we will stand before on the Day of Judgment. 217 00:13:30,520 --> 00:13:32,920 In all his majesty, in all his glory. 218 00:13:32,920 --> 00:13:35,640 And he says all the angels will come with him. 219 00:13:35,640 --> 00:13:36,600 Millions of them. 220 00:13:36,600 --> 00:13:38,120 We don't know how many millions. 221 00:13:38,600 --> 00:13:41,880 Millions of angels will come and be with him. 222 00:13:43,400 --> 00:13:48,970 And then he says he will be ruler over all, to judge them as 223 00:13:48,970 --> 00:13:50,690 a testimony to his deity. 224 00:13:51,010 --> 00:13:54,490 You know, when he said this, the religious leaders of the day 225 00:13:54,490 --> 00:13:57,450 thought he was a horrible heretic because he essentially was 226 00:13:57,450 --> 00:13:58,690 calling himself God. 227 00:13:59,970 --> 00:14:01,170 And he was God. 228 00:14:04,690 --> 00:14:09,250 And now we see him fully God on that day of judgment. 229 00:14:09,330 --> 00:14:13,090 The mediator between God and us. 230 00:14:13,650 --> 00:14:18,050 The mediator who redeems our sins and forgives us and reconnects 231 00:14:18,050 --> 00:14:20,490 us to a holy God who loves us so much. 232 00:14:20,490 --> 00:14:21,450 He created us. 233 00:14:22,810 --> 00:14:24,730 That's who Jesus will be. 234 00:14:24,890 --> 00:14:29,170 He'll come in his majesty with all the angels to rule over and to 235 00:14:29,170 --> 00:14:31,130 judge the whole world. 236 00:14:31,850 --> 00:14:34,170 And he gives a picture of that judgment. 237 00:14:34,810 --> 00:14:38,610 He says all the nations will be gathered in his presence, and 238 00:14:38,610 --> 00:14:42,370 he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from 239 00:14:42,370 --> 00:14:42,890 the goats. 240 00:14:43,480 --> 00:14:48,680 He will place the sheep on his right hand and the goats on his left. 241 00:14:49,800 --> 00:14:54,320 All the nations of the world think of the most powerful people 242 00:14:54,320 --> 00:14:55,080 you know today. 243 00:14:55,800 --> 00:15:00,360 People with all the money, all the power, all the ego. 244 00:15:01,160 --> 00:15:04,840 They will stand before God just like you and I will. 245 00:15:06,280 --> 00:15:09,540 All of them, every single one of them. 246 00:15:10,100 --> 00:15:15,900 All the nations and the most forgotten people, the one society 247 00:15:15,900 --> 00:15:16,820 is discarded. 248 00:15:17,540 --> 00:15:21,340 The ones who just barely make it through, they will also stand 249 00:15:21,340 --> 00:15:23,620 in the same place of judgment. 250 00:15:24,739 --> 00:15:26,660 He gives this picture of judgment. 251 00:15:27,060 --> 00:15:30,580 See, Christ will administer judgment. 252 00:15:31,540 --> 00:15:34,180 God is a God of justice. 253 00:15:35,290 --> 00:15:36,810 You will get justice. 254 00:15:37,770 --> 00:15:41,210 Last week we talked about forgiveness, and I said, don't feel 255 00:15:41,210 --> 00:15:44,010 like you've got to go get justice every time. 256 00:15:44,330 --> 00:15:45,850 Trust God to do it. 257 00:15:46,730 --> 00:15:47,850 God's got this. 258 00:15:48,330 --> 00:15:51,290 Well, God may bring about justice to the person who hurt you 259 00:15:51,290 --> 00:15:54,890 in this life, but I guarantee you, on the day of judgment, they 260 00:15:54,970 --> 00:15:59,610 will get justice because God demands justice. 261 00:16:00,260 --> 00:16:05,300 You see, the wheels of God's justice grind very, very slowly sometimes, 262 00:16:06,980 --> 00:16:08,820 but they grind very fine. 263 00:16:10,020 --> 00:16:15,860 And you can't escape God's justice and God's judgment. 264 00:16:17,860 --> 00:16:23,540 He says he will separate the wicked and reward the righteous on 265 00:16:23,540 --> 00:16:24,100 that day. 266 00:16:25,220 --> 00:16:27,140 That's the picture of his final judgment. 267 00:16:27,400 --> 00:16:29,720 That should be a great encouragement to believers. 268 00:16:30,280 --> 00:16:33,720 Finally, the kingdom is coming fully. 269 00:16:34,040 --> 00:16:37,040 We don't have to fight the battle with sin anymore, because 270 00:16:37,040 --> 00:16:41,240 the kingdom is fully embracing us in that day. 271 00:16:42,760 --> 00:16:47,240 And for unbelievers and for people who say, I'm a Christian, 272 00:16:47,480 --> 00:16:53,160 but they know Jesus is never lord of their life that day. 273 00:16:53,320 --> 00:17:00,240 Thinking about that should be absolutely terrifying, because when 274 00:17:00,240 --> 00:17:02,880 Christ comes again, he comes to judge all. 275 00:17:05,680 --> 00:17:10,760 This is a hard truth about judgment, and we have to grapple 276 00:17:10,760 --> 00:17:11,200 with it. 277 00:17:12,319 --> 00:17:15,120 These are the words of Jesus. 278 00:17:16,240 --> 00:17:17,680 It will happen. 279 00:17:19,040 --> 00:17:22,800 This is not some prophecy teacher with A bunch of slides and 280 00:17:22,800 --> 00:17:27,720 stuff and pulling out verses out of Daniel and Ezekiel and Revelation, 281 00:17:27,720 --> 00:17:30,880 trying to create some scenario of what the future is going to be. 282 00:17:30,880 --> 00:17:35,720 No, this is simply the words of Jesus, how exactly the day of 283 00:17:35,720 --> 00:17:37,320 judgment will happen. 284 00:17:38,600 --> 00:17:40,520 It's a bluntness of facts. 285 00:17:42,120 --> 00:17:44,440 The final judgment will come. 286 00:17:45,240 --> 00:17:48,840 This is not theoretical, this is a statement of fact. 287 00:17:50,290 --> 00:17:54,570 Well, the second part of this scripture is about the judgment of 288 00:17:54,570 --> 00:17:55,170 the righteous. 289 00:17:56,690 --> 00:17:58,050 Judgment of the righteous. 290 00:17:58,850 --> 00:18:02,410 The king will say to those on his right, come, you who are blessed 291 00:18:02,410 --> 00:18:05,570 by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the 292 00:18:05,570 --> 00:18:06,770 creation of the world. 293 00:18:07,250 --> 00:18:10,170 For I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty, you gave me to 294 00:18:10,170 --> 00:18:10,530 drink. 295 00:18:10,530 --> 00:18:12,690 I was a stranger, you invited me into your home. 296 00:18:12,690 --> 00:18:14,490 I was naked and you gave me clothing. 297 00:18:14,490 --> 00:18:16,180 I, I was sick, you cared for me. 298 00:18:16,180 --> 00:18:18,780 I was in prison and you visited me. 299 00:18:20,300 --> 00:18:23,420 And then the righteous will reply, and get this, this is really 300 00:18:23,420 --> 00:18:23,820 critical. 301 00:18:23,820 --> 00:18:24,380 Watch this. 302 00:18:24,700 --> 00:18:29,980 The righteous will reply, lord, when did we ever see you hungry 303 00:18:30,619 --> 00:18:33,180 and feed you or thirsty and give you something to drink? 304 00:18:33,180 --> 00:18:36,540 Or stranger and show you hospitality, or naked and give you 305 00:18:36,540 --> 00:18:37,020 clothing? 306 00:18:37,020 --> 00:18:40,140 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you? 307 00:18:40,950 --> 00:18:45,590 And the king will say, I tell you the truth, when you did it to 308 00:18:45,590 --> 00:18:49,510 one of the least of these brothers and sisters, you were doing 309 00:18:49,510 --> 00:18:51,590 it to me. 310 00:18:53,110 --> 00:18:55,270 Well, there are three parts to this we need to pull out. 311 00:18:55,270 --> 00:18:55,990 First is this. 312 00:18:56,309 --> 00:19:00,550 The righteous are blessed by God, the righteous are blessed by 313 00:19:00,550 --> 00:19:00,950 God. 314 00:19:01,270 --> 00:19:05,590 Come, you who are blessed by the Father, you are redeemed. 315 00:19:06,320 --> 00:19:07,200 You're made whole. 316 00:19:08,240 --> 00:19:12,280 You have the purity of God, that you can have fellowship with 317 00:19:12,280 --> 00:19:13,520 God for eternity. 318 00:19:14,080 --> 00:19:18,640 So you are blessed in that because of God's grace, not because 319 00:19:18,640 --> 00:19:21,600 of anything we did, but because of God's grace. 320 00:19:22,240 --> 00:19:24,560 Second, he says you're going to inherit the kingdom. 321 00:19:25,680 --> 00:19:28,840 Inherit the kingdom that was prepared before the beginning of 322 00:19:28,840 --> 00:19:29,280 the world. 323 00:19:31,280 --> 00:19:34,850 Now the heaven is not out there in the clouds someplace. 324 00:19:35,250 --> 00:19:39,410 Heaven eventually will be the restoration of this world where we 325 00:19:39,410 --> 00:19:42,450 will live in the way God originally designed it to be. 326 00:19:43,330 --> 00:19:45,410 That is what heaven will be. 327 00:19:46,370 --> 00:19:51,850 And so we will inherit that kingdom prepared for us not to live 328 00:19:51,850 --> 00:19:54,930 there as guests, but to own it. 329 00:19:55,890 --> 00:19:58,610 You see, if you inherit something, you own it. 330 00:19:59,170 --> 00:20:00,690 You don't just get invited in. 331 00:20:00,850 --> 00:20:05,610 You're not just there as a visitor, you are there because it's 332 00:20:05,610 --> 00:20:06,130 yours. 333 00:20:07,090 --> 00:20:08,610 And so we have that promise. 334 00:20:10,130 --> 00:20:14,130 And then thirdly, he says, it's not by works you're going to 335 00:20:14,130 --> 00:20:14,530 get in. 336 00:20:15,490 --> 00:20:18,130 It's not by what the good deeds you did that you're going to 337 00:20:18,130 --> 00:20:18,610 get in. 338 00:20:19,650 --> 00:20:22,690 Salvation is by grace, faith alone. 339 00:20:23,490 --> 00:20:27,370 It's critical to understand that salvation is only by. 340 00:20:27,600 --> 00:20:29,320 By faith and grace alone. 341 00:20:29,320 --> 00:20:31,880 And the easiest way to understand that is to think about 342 00:20:31,880 --> 00:20:32,880 the thief on the cross. 343 00:20:34,320 --> 00:20:37,840 The thief on the cross was dying next to Jesus. 344 00:20:39,360 --> 00:20:43,120 He had never probably ever read a scripture. 345 00:20:43,439 --> 00:20:45,120 He'd never been to a Bible study. 346 00:20:45,920 --> 00:20:48,080 He'd never probably prayed a prayer in his life. 347 00:20:49,520 --> 00:20:56,770 He had done nothing except he asked God, who was on the cross beside 348 00:20:56,770 --> 00:20:59,210 him in Christ, to have favor on him. 349 00:21:00,410 --> 00:21:07,530 And Jesus said, today, today you will be with me in paradise. 350 00:21:09,530 --> 00:21:12,970 Well, that thief on the cross didn't do one thing to earn that. 351 00:21:13,290 --> 00:21:16,330 And that thief on the cross couldn't have done anything after 352 00:21:16,330 --> 00:21:20,890 that because he was going to be dead in the next few minutes, 353 00:21:21,130 --> 00:21:22,490 hours at most. 354 00:21:23,770 --> 00:21:25,850 It was only by faith alone. 355 00:21:26,490 --> 00:21:29,770 So when we come to the final judgment here in this scripture, 356 00:21:29,770 --> 00:21:33,850 Jesus doesn't say, okay, give me a list of the good stuff you've 357 00:21:33,850 --> 00:21:34,090 done. 358 00:21:34,170 --> 00:21:35,210 I want your list. 359 00:21:35,210 --> 00:21:36,730 What are the good works you've done? 360 00:21:38,810 --> 00:21:39,930 Jesus doesn't do that. 361 00:21:40,010 --> 00:21:44,730 He says, I'll list your good works for you before you even ask, 362 00:21:44,730 --> 00:21:46,010 I'll list them for you. 363 00:21:46,520 --> 00:21:50,240 For I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty, you gave me to 364 00:21:50,240 --> 00:21:52,440 drink, I was a stranger, you invited me in, et cetera. 365 00:21:52,520 --> 00:21:55,000 Jesus said, that's what you did. 366 00:21:56,680 --> 00:21:59,920 And then they say, when did we see you hungry? 367 00:21:59,920 --> 00:22:01,480 They didn't even know they did it. 368 00:22:02,360 --> 00:22:03,880 They didn't know it was on the test. 369 00:22:04,600 --> 00:22:06,360 They didn't know that was the standard. 370 00:22:07,240 --> 00:22:13,810 They did it because they loved him so much that his love overflowed 371 00:22:13,810 --> 00:22:18,690 in their life that they love the least of them around them. 372 00:22:23,170 --> 00:22:24,610 This is pretty remarkable. 373 00:22:25,330 --> 00:22:29,730 You see, it's not by works, it's by faith alone. 374 00:22:29,890 --> 00:22:35,810 But faith produces works in our life as the evidence that Jesus 375 00:22:35,970 --> 00:22:37,170 is Lord. 376 00:22:38,450 --> 00:22:45,170 If you genuinely love God, then you will love his people because 377 00:22:45,170 --> 00:22:49,170 that love overflows when you have been genuinely forgiven. 378 00:22:49,970 --> 00:22:54,530 Then you forgive others when you genuinely have been cared for. 379 00:22:54,930 --> 00:22:58,770 When you're hurting, you care for others when they're hurting. 380 00:23:01,570 --> 00:23:07,720 You start to see people around you with kingdom vision, you see 381 00:23:07,720 --> 00:23:11,960 your love for others is a measure of your love for Christ. 382 00:23:12,120 --> 00:23:17,320 The scripture says there was evidence that you love God. 383 00:23:18,440 --> 00:23:20,200 Jesus says there has to be evidence. 384 00:23:20,760 --> 00:23:25,640 If there's not evidence, it didn't really change your life. 385 00:23:25,720 --> 00:23:27,000 It didn't impact you. 386 00:23:27,720 --> 00:23:32,010 If you genuinely love Christ, you can't help but love others around 387 00:23:32,010 --> 00:23:32,370 you. 388 00:23:33,650 --> 00:23:36,850 And not just love the ones who are easy to love, but love the least 389 00:23:37,250 --> 00:23:37,970 around you. 390 00:23:38,930 --> 00:23:44,530 The fruit of love is loving those who are lonely, loving those 391 00:23:44,530 --> 00:23:50,170 who are marginalized, loving those who are disadvantaged, loving 392 00:23:50,170 --> 00:23:51,250 those who are wounded. 393 00:23:52,530 --> 00:23:57,410 If you love Christ and you are redeemed by him and forgiven by him, 394 00:23:57,570 --> 00:24:01,050 you treat people in a different way because you see them 395 00:24:01,050 --> 00:24:03,750 as a child of good and you love them in that way. 396 00:24:03,750 --> 00:24:06,750 It's an outflow of your love for God. 397 00:24:07,390 --> 00:24:10,270 It's not a list of works that you did. 398 00:24:10,670 --> 00:24:12,430 It's a natural outflow. 399 00:24:12,430 --> 00:24:18,310 They didn't even know they did was so natural in who they were because 400 00:24:18,310 --> 00:24:19,630 Christ was lord of their life. 401 00:24:19,870 --> 00:24:21,870 There has to be evidence of our faith. 402 00:24:22,750 --> 00:24:25,150 We talked last week about the fruits of the Spirit. 403 00:24:26,430 --> 00:24:30,960 If you're really a Christian and Christ has redeemed you and Christ 404 00:24:30,960 --> 00:24:34,520 is living in you, there will be fruits that grow in your life 405 00:24:34,520 --> 00:24:39,360 that are evidence of that relationship of love, joy, peace, 406 00:24:39,520 --> 00:24:44,040 patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self 407 00:24:44,040 --> 00:24:44,399 control. 408 00:24:45,200 --> 00:24:48,880 Those fruits of the Spirit listed in Galatians, those will be 409 00:24:48,880 --> 00:24:52,720 evident in your life if you are a follower of Christ. 410 00:24:54,490 --> 00:24:57,050 So there are two evidence markers of our faith. 411 00:24:57,530 --> 00:25:00,810 One are the fruits of the Spirit, which means the Holy Spirit 412 00:25:00,810 --> 00:25:02,810 is transforming us and growing us. 413 00:25:02,970 --> 00:25:06,010 Some of those fruits have grown up great, some not so far. 414 00:25:06,090 --> 00:25:07,210 They got more to go. 415 00:25:07,290 --> 00:25:09,610 It's a process and that's okay day by day. 416 00:25:11,210 --> 00:25:16,130 But the other evidence marker of our faith is that we love the 417 00:25:16,130 --> 00:25:18,410 least of God's people around us. 418 00:25:20,500 --> 00:25:22,180 That's the fruit of our love for Christ. 419 00:25:23,780 --> 00:25:27,060 And we're not talking in this scripture about generically caring 420 00:25:27,060 --> 00:25:27,780 for the poor. 421 00:25:28,340 --> 00:25:30,180 He talks about that in other places. 422 00:25:30,180 --> 00:25:33,060 He's talking about loving other Christians. 423 00:25:34,740 --> 00:25:39,940 Your love for them is the fruit of your love for me, essentially, 424 00:25:39,940 --> 00:25:41,300 is what he's saying. 425 00:25:42,180 --> 00:25:45,300 See, there has to be evidence in the Christian life, salvation 426 00:25:45,300 --> 00:25:49,620 is not one time fire insurance you buy and put in the drawer and 427 00:25:49,620 --> 00:25:50,180 forget it. 428 00:25:52,100 --> 00:25:55,940 There has to be evidence because you love God that much. 429 00:25:55,940 --> 00:25:59,140 If you love God, you'll naturally do what pleases him. 430 00:26:00,020 --> 00:26:02,660 Learn to see the world through a kingdom perspective. 431 00:26:03,300 --> 00:26:05,060 The kingdom of God is like. 432 00:26:05,220 --> 00:26:08,980 That's why we've been studying these, to understand how he sees 433 00:26:09,140 --> 00:26:09,780 the world. 434 00:26:11,780 --> 00:26:16,670 It's more about an allegiance to Christ, this understanding of 435 00:26:16,670 --> 00:26:18,630 this parable, than it is about kindness. 436 00:26:21,590 --> 00:26:26,070 When we see and we love Christ, then we look at others through 437 00:26:26,070 --> 00:26:26,710 his eyes. 438 00:26:27,830 --> 00:26:31,110 If you love Christ, you love people who are different from you. 439 00:26:32,470 --> 00:26:37,790 He says, love the least those who are not like me, those who aren't 440 00:26:37,790 --> 00:26:43,360 easy to love, those who are complex, those with whom I have few 441 00:26:43,360 --> 00:26:44,240 commonalities. 442 00:26:46,080 --> 00:26:47,600 It's easy to love certain people. 443 00:26:49,360 --> 00:26:53,480 I saw one of our football players Had a shirt about love of 444 00:26:53,480 --> 00:26:55,920 the all for the love of the team or something. 445 00:26:55,920 --> 00:26:59,720 It was a slogan and it should be teams love each other, they have 446 00:26:59,720 --> 00:27:02,360 that in common, they're committed to each other, they've 447 00:27:02,360 --> 00:27:06,080 given that sacrifice to each other. 448 00:27:06,080 --> 00:27:10,400 Teams have that and, and maybe residence halls have that, or friendship 449 00:27:10,400 --> 00:27:11,240 groups have that. 450 00:27:11,400 --> 00:27:12,440 And that's all good. 451 00:27:12,440 --> 00:27:14,160 Those people are easy to love. 452 00:27:14,160 --> 00:27:17,840 But Jesus says, if you see the world through my eyes, you'll see 453 00:27:17,840 --> 00:27:19,560 the people who are harder to love. 454 00:27:21,960 --> 00:27:25,240 And if you can't do that, you don't really love me. 455 00:27:27,160 --> 00:27:29,240 You know, one of the great things about Belle Haven University 456 00:27:30,680 --> 00:27:34,680 is we're probably one of the most diverse universities of small 457 00:27:34,680 --> 00:27:37,480 colleges in America, maybe big colleges too. 458 00:27:38,440 --> 00:27:39,160 On race. 459 00:27:39,880 --> 00:27:43,480 We are very, very diverse economic background. 460 00:27:43,960 --> 00:27:47,560 Some of you come from really well heeled families, others of you 461 00:27:47,560 --> 00:27:50,760 have next to nothing faith experience. 462 00:27:51,160 --> 00:27:55,280 Some of you come with a really mature developed faith you've studied 463 00:27:55,280 --> 00:27:57,440 over the years and others of you are just trying to figure it 464 00:27:57,440 --> 00:27:58,040 out still. 465 00:28:00,530 --> 00:28:04,690 So if you can't love here, where there are people so different 466 00:28:04,850 --> 00:28:08,690 from you, you can't love out there someplace. 467 00:28:10,450 --> 00:28:13,650 It's got to start right here. 468 00:28:16,290 --> 00:28:20,250 Jesus said you loved the people I loved. 469 00:28:20,250 --> 00:28:23,690 I tell you the truth, when you did it to the least of these brothers 470 00:28:23,690 --> 00:28:27,580 and sisters, you were doing it to me. 471 00:28:28,060 --> 00:28:32,300 There has to be evidence of our faith in how we love others. 472 00:28:33,420 --> 00:28:35,820 Well then he goes on to the third part of this story. 473 00:28:36,940 --> 00:28:40,380 Judgment of the false believers and the unbelievers. 474 00:28:40,940 --> 00:28:47,220 Two groups, one who called him Lord, but he wasn't Lord of their 475 00:28:47,220 --> 00:28:50,300 life, and others who were unbelievers. 476 00:28:52,250 --> 00:28:54,850 And the kingdom will turn to those on the left and say, away with 477 00:28:54,850 --> 00:28:59,210 you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil 478 00:28:59,210 --> 00:29:00,490 and his demons. 479 00:29:01,450 --> 00:29:04,170 For I was hungry and you didn't feed me, I was thirsty, you 480 00:29:04,170 --> 00:29:04,930 didn't give me to drink. 481 00:29:04,930 --> 00:29:08,090 I was a stranger, you didn't invite me into your home, I was naked, 482 00:29:08,090 --> 00:29:09,210 you didn't give me clothing. 483 00:29:09,290 --> 00:29:11,690 I was sick and in prison and you didn't visit me. 484 00:29:12,730 --> 00:29:15,050 And they'll reply, lord, when did we see you? 485 00:29:15,050 --> 00:29:18,620 Hungry or thirsty or stranger or naked or sick in prison did not 486 00:29:18,620 --> 00:29:18,860 help. 487 00:29:18,860 --> 00:29:23,020 And he will answer, I tell you the truth when you refuse to help 488 00:29:23,020 --> 00:29:28,060 the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to 489 00:29:28,060 --> 00:29:28,740 help me. 490 00:29:30,260 --> 00:29:35,460 And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous 491 00:29:35,540 --> 00:29:38,740 will go into eternal life. 492 00:29:40,740 --> 00:29:42,740 Take three things out of this section. 493 00:29:42,900 --> 00:29:48,240 First of all, Jesus commanded those who were not true followers 494 00:29:48,240 --> 00:29:52,040 of him to depart from him, get out of God's Presence. 495 00:29:52,680 --> 00:29:54,840 You didn't want God's presence in your life. 496 00:29:54,840 --> 00:29:57,960 Now you're sure not going to have it in eternity because he's 497 00:29:57,960 --> 00:29:58,840 not going to allow it. 498 00:30:03,960 --> 00:30:06,920 There are people who just want to play around the edges of faith 499 00:30:07,240 --> 00:30:09,680 and have just enough faith so they hope they get to heaven. 500 00:30:09,680 --> 00:30:12,760 But if God is not Lord, the test is very clear. 501 00:30:12,760 --> 00:30:17,240 There has to be evidence of our faith that God is Lord. 502 00:30:18,520 --> 00:30:21,880 So the first thing he says is, you're not going to be in the presence 503 00:30:21,880 --> 00:30:23,240 of God for eternity. 504 00:30:24,360 --> 00:30:29,240 All the overarching good of the world that God has put in the 505 00:30:29,240 --> 00:30:31,320 world of what's right and wrong, that's all going away. 506 00:30:32,680 --> 00:30:35,600 All the comfort that's in the world, even if you're not a believer, 507 00:30:35,600 --> 00:30:36,600 that's all going away. 508 00:30:37,230 --> 00:30:39,470 The presence of God is completely gone away. 509 00:30:39,710 --> 00:30:40,990 Depart from me. 510 00:30:41,310 --> 00:30:43,070 Depart from the presence of God. 511 00:30:43,630 --> 00:30:46,470 If you don't want him now, you don't want him then, and you won't 512 00:30:46,470 --> 00:30:47,150 have him then. 513 00:30:48,670 --> 00:30:53,309 Second, we see he sent these people to the same place of punishment 514 00:30:53,470 --> 00:30:56,990 that he created for the devils and fallen angels. 515 00:30:58,510 --> 00:31:01,950 That's how serious God takes sin. 516 00:31:05,560 --> 00:31:07,320 That's how serious sin is. 517 00:31:07,400 --> 00:31:11,600 If we understood how serious sin is, we wouldn't play around with 518 00:31:11,600 --> 00:31:11,880 it. 519 00:31:12,760 --> 00:31:16,960 And some people trying to be Christians are still trying to play 520 00:31:16,960 --> 00:31:17,800 around with sin. 521 00:31:21,400 --> 00:31:23,080 God doesn't play around with sin. 522 00:31:25,640 --> 00:31:29,430 He sent them to the same place of punishment that he created for 523 00:31:29,430 --> 00:31:31,310 the devil and the fallen angels. 524 00:31:32,430 --> 00:31:36,830 And then we see some people will say, but I'm a Christian. 525 00:31:39,070 --> 00:31:43,430 And Jesus will say, but you never embraced it because there was 526 00:31:43,430 --> 00:31:43,950 no love. 527 00:31:44,750 --> 00:31:46,830 You were a Christian in a selfish way. 528 00:31:46,910 --> 00:31:49,270 You were a Christian because you wanted me to help you, but you 529 00:31:49,270 --> 00:31:50,350 didn't help anybody else. 530 00:31:50,750 --> 00:31:53,710 You were a Christian because you wanted to be saved, but you didn't 531 00:31:53,710 --> 00:31:55,310 want to care for anybody else's needs. 532 00:31:56,090 --> 00:31:59,130 You are a Christian because of what it did for you, not because 533 00:31:59,130 --> 00:32:00,170 you loved me. 534 00:32:00,730 --> 00:32:01,770 And because of that. 535 00:32:01,770 --> 00:32:06,970 There's no love that outflows to anyone else as a selfish face. 536 00:32:07,930 --> 00:32:10,730 It was never guided your priorities. 537 00:32:10,810 --> 00:32:12,810 It never guided your care for others. 538 00:32:12,970 --> 00:32:14,930 It never guided your objectives. 539 00:32:14,930 --> 00:32:18,330 In fact, some of you used the name Christian in order to get ahead 540 00:32:20,650 --> 00:32:24,420 and in the process mocked the name of God. 541 00:32:26,420 --> 00:32:29,740 And those people will say, yeah, but look, I never stole anything. 542 00:32:29,740 --> 00:32:30,660 I never cheated. 543 00:32:30,980 --> 00:32:32,500 I never did horrible things. 544 00:32:33,700 --> 00:32:35,300 And Jesus said, it doesn't matter. 545 00:32:36,420 --> 00:32:37,460 That's not the test. 546 00:32:38,580 --> 00:32:39,540 It doesn't matter. 547 00:32:39,540 --> 00:32:42,100 You didn't love my children. 548 00:32:43,220 --> 00:32:46,100 He's talking about the sins not that we commit. 549 00:32:46,500 --> 00:32:54,300 He's talking about the sins we Omit the sins we omit which are more 550 00:32:54,300 --> 00:32:57,980 important than the sins we commit at the day of judgment. 551 00:32:59,340 --> 00:33:05,420 The goats are not condemned for doing bad things, they're condemned 552 00:33:05,420 --> 00:33:06,860 for doing nothing. 553 00:33:08,460 --> 00:33:13,100 By failing to love other Christians, we don't demonstrate 554 00:33:13,100 --> 00:33:16,100 that Christ is the Lord of our life. 555 00:33:17,460 --> 00:33:18,740 That's the measure. 556 00:33:21,540 --> 00:33:23,980 Those people who say they're Christian, but it never lived out 557 00:33:23,980 --> 00:33:26,980 in their life, they never saw through kingdom eyes. 558 00:33:28,100 --> 00:33:31,900 They never saw the people around them as a child of God instead, 559 00:33:31,900 --> 00:33:36,060 somebody to be used or conquered or taken advantage of or 560 00:33:36,060 --> 00:33:37,220 that would be good for them. 561 00:33:37,620 --> 00:33:41,700 They never saw that God created those people for a purpose 562 00:33:41,700 --> 00:33:43,910 and their purpose is just as important as your purpose. 563 00:33:44,540 --> 00:33:48,380 They never saw that God loves them just as much as he loves you. 564 00:33:50,460 --> 00:33:51,580 They never saw that. 565 00:33:51,900 --> 00:33:54,220 And so they didn't go out in love. 566 00:33:58,860 --> 00:34:03,500 Christ is telling us love the people who come into your path. 567 00:34:04,220 --> 00:34:09,700 And on this campus, as diverse as we are, are all kinds of people 568 00:34:09,700 --> 00:34:11,100 who will come into your path. 569 00:34:12,990 --> 00:34:17,190 Who are the least of these people who are hurting, people who 570 00:34:17,190 --> 00:34:20,750 are lonely, people who need support and care. 571 00:34:21,390 --> 00:34:25,430 And you do it because God loves you that much that you want 572 00:34:25,430 --> 00:34:27,870 to be his extension in their life. 573 00:34:30,350 --> 00:34:35,070 Well, final judgment parable of sheep and goats is not easy to 574 00:34:35,070 --> 00:34:39,720 hear, but I want you to see one thing before we close up. 575 00:34:40,120 --> 00:34:44,560 Jesus used a very familiar image here, like in all the parables, 576 00:34:44,560 --> 00:34:48,560 you know, Sower, everybody knew what it was, the Good Samaritan, 577 00:34:48,560 --> 00:34:51,400 everybody knew where that pathway was. 578 00:34:52,200 --> 00:34:56,320 So he used a very common image here of separating the sheep from 579 00:34:56,320 --> 00:34:56,840 the goats. 580 00:34:58,040 --> 00:35:01,600 And in Palestine in those days, a shepherd at night, if it 581 00:35:01,600 --> 00:35:04,680 was safe and there wasn't a lion or a bear or something in the 582 00:35:04,840 --> 00:35:09,260 area, he would let the sheep continue to stay out the pasture 583 00:35:09,260 --> 00:35:11,740 overnight because that's where they were most comfortable. 584 00:35:12,700 --> 00:35:15,980 And the sheep somehow knew the shepherd was watching over them, 585 00:35:16,060 --> 00:35:17,260 so they weren't worried. 586 00:35:19,020 --> 00:35:20,780 They instinctively understood that. 587 00:35:21,100 --> 00:35:24,940 The goats, on the other hand, hated being out in the night. 588 00:35:26,060 --> 00:35:29,340 And so the shepherd would have to bring the goats in because they 589 00:35:29,420 --> 00:35:34,600 felt safer close together if they didn't have the warmth of each 590 00:35:34,600 --> 00:35:34,960 other. 591 00:35:35,760 --> 00:35:38,800 They got afraid and they needed that. 592 00:35:39,520 --> 00:35:42,080 They needed to be around the other goats. 593 00:35:44,080 --> 00:35:52,200 This world of goats, sin driven people feel safer when they're 594 00:35:52,200 --> 00:35:53,360 close to other goats. 595 00:35:54,960 --> 00:36:01,180 The devil makes us sin, feel safe if he puts us around other people 596 00:36:01,180 --> 00:36:02,220 who also sin. 597 00:36:03,420 --> 00:36:09,020 And then we tend to seek out people who sin or who are maybe just 598 00:36:09,020 --> 00:36:13,060 Christian enough that if they say they're Christian, then I must 599 00:36:13,060 --> 00:36:13,660 be in too. 600 00:36:13,660 --> 00:36:14,620 I must be okay. 601 00:36:15,820 --> 00:36:19,020 We tend to seek that out and in that we are totally fooled. 602 00:36:21,740 --> 00:36:23,260 The goats seek each other. 603 00:36:24,540 --> 00:36:26,380 That's why they had to be separated out. 604 00:36:27,590 --> 00:36:29,590 And they want to separate out even now. 605 00:36:31,190 --> 00:36:32,550 The bare truth is this. 606 00:36:33,350 --> 00:36:40,670 Jesus said, anyone who belongs to God listens gladly to the words 607 00:36:40,670 --> 00:36:41,270 of God. 608 00:36:42,470 --> 00:36:46,390 But if you don't listen, you don't belong to God. 609 00:36:48,710 --> 00:36:53,250 This is a hard parable to study, but it's critical to your 610 00:36:53,250 --> 00:36:54,490 future and mine. 611 00:36:55,050 --> 00:36:58,890 Because on the day of judgment, you and I will both stand 612 00:36:59,530 --> 00:37:05,530 before the glory of God in Christ and be judged. 613 00:37:06,090 --> 00:37:09,690 I pray you're listening carefully to what Jesus is saying 614 00:37:10,010 --> 00:37:11,450 about the sheep and the goats. 615 00:37:12,010 --> 00:37:18,980 And if today Christ is not the Lord of your life, this is the best 616 00:37:19,060 --> 00:37:20,020 time to start. 617 00:37:21,300 --> 00:37:26,340 Make him Lord of your life, and there will be evidence that on 618 00:37:26,340 --> 00:37:31,460 that day of judgment, Christ will know how much you loved him. 619 00:37:32,020 --> 00:37:32,980 Let's pray together. 620 00:37:39,220 --> 00:37:42,140 Lord, I pray for those right now who are in this room who say, 621 00:37:42,140 --> 00:37:42,700 I'm a Christian. 622 00:37:42,700 --> 00:37:47,300 But there's not much evidence and they know it. 623 00:37:50,420 --> 00:37:52,580 Speak to them and lift them up. 624 00:37:52,740 --> 00:37:53,380 Love them. 625 00:37:55,220 --> 00:38:00,500 Let them be drawn to you so that the fullness of their faith 626 00:38:01,380 --> 00:38:02,580 consumes their life. 627 00:38:04,100 --> 00:38:07,780 Lord, there may be some in this room who have never accepted 628 00:38:07,780 --> 00:38:09,220 the grace of your salvation. 629 00:38:12,310 --> 00:38:15,230 Let them know you stand ready to receive them into your loving 630 00:38:15,230 --> 00:38:20,230 arms, that what this world offers is not it. 631 00:38:22,470 --> 00:38:27,510 But the kingdom is like something completely upside down. 632 00:38:28,710 --> 00:38:32,470 And then there are many here who are followers of you. 633 00:38:32,710 --> 00:38:37,390 Their love overflows in you and help them to take encouragement 634 00:38:37,390 --> 00:38:40,710 and comfort, to know on that day of judgment, it's not a list 635 00:38:40,710 --> 00:38:44,150 of what they did or didn't do that God's going to look at. 636 00:38:44,150 --> 00:38:46,070 He's just going to say, did you love my people? 637 00:38:46,950 --> 00:38:49,670 And you're only going to hardly know that you did because 638 00:38:49,670 --> 00:38:53,750 it was so natural to the extension of how much we love you. 639 00:38:54,870 --> 00:38:59,070 Help us to love those people you put right in front of us, right 640 00:38:59,070 --> 00:39:02,290 here on this campus, right now. 641 00:39:03,170 --> 00:39:04,530 In your name, we ask it. 642 00:39:04,690 --> 00:39:05,250 Amen.