Goats to the Left of Me and Sheep to the Right
Matthew 25:31-46
Matthew chapters 24 and 25, otherwise known as the Olivet Discourse, contain the most detailed description of events that are to occur in the future among the Lord’s recorded teachings. As the Lord and His disciples walked out of the temple, which at the time was still under construction, the disciples pointed out the various buildings and commented on their beauty.
Luke 21:5 (NASB95): "…some were talking about the temple, that it was adorned with beautiful stones and votive gifts..."
Jesus responded with His prophesy of the temple's destruction, telling them, Matthew 24:2 (NASB95): ..."Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down."
This statement was overheard by many and was later used by His enemies to justify condemning Him, but it also piqued the disciples curiosity, so that after they made their way up the mount, Matthew 24:3 (NASB95): As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?"
So, what we have in chapters 24 and 25 of Matthew is the Lord's detailed answer to the disciple's question. In Chapter 24, He spoke of the signs of His coming, warning them that false messiah's will come and try to deceive them. There would be wars, famines, earthquakes, and persecution of His followers culminating in a Great Tribulation and the appearance of the Son of Man returning in the clouds to gather His elect. Several times He warned His followers to watch and be ready because His coming would be at a time when everyone, even His own people, would least expect it.
In chapter 25 He began to illustrate the need to remain ready at all times by the use of three parables. The parable of the Ten Virgins which highlights the importance of being spiritually prepared. Then the parable of the Talents, which emphasizes using God-given resources wisely, and finally the parable of the Sheep and Goats which speaks to the coming day of the Judgment of the Nations.
Now strictly speaking, the Sheep and Goats isn't like other parables, and it is best understood as an eschatological teaching rather than a parable or a metaphor. This is because it describes the final judgment in a straightforward way, giving us a direct prophecy of what will happen when the Son of Man returns in glory.
And He will return, but no one knows the day or the hour. That is why we are encouraged to remain ready because when Jesus comes back there will be no time left to get ready! At His second coming, He will set up His kingdom and sit as judge over the nations. Evil will finally be exposed and punished. Righteousness will be revealed and rewarded, and Jesus will be vindicated in the place where He was rejected.
In our world today, evil is often hidden, and when it is not hidden, it is extolled, praised, and the evildoers themselves are most often rewarded and promoted. All we have to do is to open our emails, look at our Facebook or X accounts, and we see this very thing all over our country today. Look at what is happening with DOGE. Corruption, theft, misuse of public funds are being exposed left and right, but the most mind-boggling thing about it all is that so many are angry that it's all being exposed! Can you believe it?
Friends, there is a day coming when everyone will stand before the Judge. When that day comes, nothing will be overlooked, and everyone will be held accountable for what they've done, what they didn't do, and the true condition of their heart.
No longer will the people of the Lord be marginalized, forgotten, ridiculed, or persecuted. Those who have served others with hearts of compassion will be remembered by the Lord and rewarded for their efforts, and the Lord Jesus Christ will be vindicated. He who was despised and rejected, will return in glory and power. The Father will not allow the cross to be the world's final memory of His Son! He will return for His people. He will establish His kingdom.
To the world that nailed Him to a cross, He will return as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He came once as a Lamb, but He will return as a Lion. Once as a Savior, He will come again as the Judge who will sit on His throne to judge the nations.
I. The Sovereign Seated
Matthew 25:31-33 (NASB95): "But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. 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; and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left."
As you think about what the Lord just said here, I want you to remember the context. Jesus spoke this promise, probably on Wednesday of Holy Week. In less than 48 hours He would be nailed to a Roman cross. To the disciples, the Son of Man coming in glory and sitting on His throne to judge the nations was totally out of sorts with what they would witness in the coming hours as He was arrested, tried, and then crucified. How could a dead Savior come again?
Jesus knew all that was to come. He knew with perfect foreknowledge who the traitor was. He knew about the Judas kiss, trumped up charges, bogus trial, the mocking, humiliation, scourging, spitting, crown of thorns, pain, degradation, the weight of the sins of the world, etc. He knew it all and saw it with perfect clarity. He also knew of the disciples coming struggle with His death, their rejoicing over His resurrection, their wonder at His ascension, and the trials and hardships of their spreading and growing the church. He knew that His church would roll on through the generations, which would turn into centuries. That empires would rise and fall, kings would come and go, and false religions and phony messiahs would come against His church and try to draw away His followers.
Everything He spoke to His disciples was under the shadow of the cross. He would experience humiliation, but glory would come. One day, glory would come! And when it came--when He returned, it would be He, Himself sitting on that throne. It wouldn't be anyone else. Not Muhammed. Not Buddha. Not Hare Krishna. Not Moses. Not Confucius.
You know, in these days of pluralistic thinking we're told that all religions are equal. All religions lead to God. Everyone will go to heaven. We're told that the God of Christianity is the same God of Islam. But this is a lie of the Devil himself. When Jesus returns, it will be Him alone with His host. It will be to Him that every knee will bow whether willingly or unwillingly. It will be to Jesus that every tongue confesses, willingly or unwillingly, that He is Lord to the glory of God the Father.
There is only one God who has revealed Himself to man through His only begotten Son. He alone is the true God, and there is none beside Him. He has shown Himself to us as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and to worship anyone other than Him is blasphemy and idolatry.
Jesus Christ is Lord and He is God incarnate. There is no room for wiggle here. This is solid truth for our troubling times. Today He Revelation 3:20 ...stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me. Today He waits to enter the hearts of any who open the door to Him in faith, but in the day that He returns, the waiting will turn into thunder and fire, angels and trumpets.
And in that day, all the nations of the earth will stand before Him. Now, I'm not talking political entities, I'm talking about all the people of the world without regard to political affiliations, languages spoken, education achieved, wealth accumulated, and on and on. All the people will stand before the King and with His infinite knowledge, He will separate the sheep from the goats. The sheep, those who have believed in Jesus Christ and followed Him will be placed on His right hand, the place of honor while the goats will be moved to the left, the place of dishonor.
The picture on that day will be very similar as it is in our world today. The sheep and goats, the believers and unbelievers, are all mingled together. No one can really distinguish one from the other. They are sheep and goats in the same herd. They're the wheat and the tares, waiting for the harvest when the tares will be separated from the wheat and sent to the fire for destruction.
In our present world, the lost mingle with the redeemed. We sing the same songs. We watch the same TV shows and movies. We work in the same offices and attend the same schools. Only the Lord can tell one from the other because He knows His sheep. He knows them and they know Him, and He calls us by name. So, in that day, He will put His mark upon us, and we will be separated from the goats forever. After that separation, we will then see...
II. The Sheep's Service
Matthew 25:34-40 (NASB95): 34 "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 something to 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, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink? 38 And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? 39 When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 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.’"
I want you to notice first that Jesus is now referenced as "the King." When He came the first time, He was the humble servant. He was the Son of Man who would die as a sacrifice for the sins of mankind. But He returns the second time as King.
The second thing I want you to notice is that Jesus does not mention any traditional beliefs or practices associated with being heaven-bound, such as faith, salvation, grace, new birth, accepting Christ, or spiritual disciplines like Bible reading, prayer, or church attendance. There is no mention of specific denominations like Methodists, Catholics, Pentecostals, or heaven forbid, even Baptists. Nor is there any reference to tithing, small group ministries, or Christian education. The criteria for being heaven-bound, as stated by Jesus, differs from what we typically consider important in our religious practices.
It's surprising. It's disturbing. Taking Jesus' words literally can disrupt our theological beliefs. The things we have always considered crucial are not even referenced when it comes to either gaining access to heaven or facing eternal damnation. What is emphasized, however, are actions such as feeding the hungry, giving water to the thirsty, welcoming strangers, clothing the naked, visiting the sick, and attending to prisoners.
So, is Jesus now advocating for a works-based salvation? All the things He mentioned are works, good works, but still works. Is He telling us that salvation is not by grace through faith but by our human efforts? Is it based on the good that we do for others? No. Of course not. And I'll tell you why. It's because He said, Mat 25:34 ...Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
The sheep that Christ moved to His right side, these people were blessed of the Father, and they will inherit the kingdom that had been prepared for them from the foundation of the world. Now, that's exactly what He said, right? It wasn't prepared for anyone but His sheep, those who have believed, trusted in, and followed the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus said John 10:14 (NASB95): "I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me." His sheep know Him, and He knows them, and they won't follow anyone else because John 10:3-4 (NASB95): "...the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he puts forth all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice."
These are the ones He moved to His right side, the place of honor. The ministry that the Lord praised them for, the acts of kindness, feeding the hungry, visiting the sick, these things were done selflessly and without expectation of reward. And I know this because when the Lord tells them what they did for Him, they were surprised. They didn't recognize those things as worth remembering. In verses 37-39 they ask the Lord, "When did we see you sick, hungry, thirsty, etc?" These were things that they did simply because they were Christians. They had been born again. They had been made into new creatures in Christ, and so, these acts of kindness toward others just naturally flowed out of their faith and the new heart that God had given them.
The sheep on the right weren't there by chance. They didn't work their way to that side. They were there because God had already planned for them from the foundation of the world, from eternity past. Ephesians 1:4 (NASB95): just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him.
All of the things that Jesus praised them for are common situations in life that demonstrated their heart. No great intellect involved. No theology degree required. No great acts of piety. Just simple, common, everyday responses that demonstrate the love of God working though them toward others. The fact that they were done to "the least of these" stresses even more that they are godly acts of love that were done without expectation of selfish gain, because folks, the implication of being "the least of these" is that they are helpless and cannot repay what has been done for them.
But remember, the Lord called "the least of these" My brothers. Jesus' true family, His true brothers are those who do the will of His Father. They are His disciples. His followers. Matthew 12:48-50 But Jesus answered the one who was telling Him and said, "Who is My mother and who are My brothers?" And stretching out His hand toward His disciples, He said, "Behold My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother."
So, in other words, "When you do good to my family, you do good to me." And the flip side of that is equally true, that when you do harm to my family, you do harm to me. Isn't that what He told Paul on the road to Damascus? When He said, Acts 9:5 ..."I am Jesus whom you are persecuting." Paul was persecuting the church, not Jesus. But Jesus told him that he was persecuting Him. So, whether you do good or harm to the Lord's people, you do it to Him as well.
Friends, the Lord is not telling us that everyone, even pagans, who do good deeds will be saved. It is His sheep that will be saved. It's His sheep that are "blessed of the Father." It is His sheep who are poor in spirit, who mourn over their sinfulness, who are gentle, pure in heart, and who hunger and thirst for righteousness. It is these who are the peacemakers of the world and who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake. His sheep are those who have seen their wickedness, cried out to Jesus for mercy and forgiveness, and have followed Him wherever He leads and into whatever He led them to do.
This is the Sheep's Service which highlights...
III. The Goat's Guilt
Matthew 25:41-46 (NASB95): 41“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; 42for I was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink; 43I 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.’ 44Then they themselves also will answer, ‘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?’ 45Then He will answer them, ‘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.’ 46These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
Folks, the end of the story is short, simple, and impossible to misunderstand. The goats go to hell. Hell wasn't prepared for them; it was prepared for the devil and his angels. But it's immediately apparent that those who follow him will join him and his angels in their final destination. These verses speak loudly and very clearly to some of the modern heresies we hear about in some churches. Heresies like universalism and annihilationism.
Universalism says that everyone will be saved. It's built on the vain hope that people can somehow live without or even against God in this life but will somehow end up in heaven anyway. The notion is absurd. It's so absurd that I'm not even going to quote scripture against it, but I will say this simply to illustrate the absurdity, "If haters of God who lived their entire lives fighting against God, end up in heaven with God and God's people, wouldn't that be hell for them? Is that showing mercy to them?"
Now, annihilationism says that the unsaved will not suffer an eternal hell, but that they will be destroyed and cease to exist. The thing is though, in verse 46, the Lord uses the same word "aionios", which is translated "eternal" when speaking of both heaven and hell. The sheep go to an eternal heaven, and the goats go to an eternal hell. Both bliss and punishment are equally eternal, everlasting, and without end.
God's love does not negate His other attributes. While He is love, His justice requires that people will face consequences one day. People are not condemned to hell because they were predestined for it, but because they did not accept God's provision for salvation through Jesus Christ. God could rightfully send everyone to hell, but He chooses to show mercy to those who repent, believe in His Son, and trust in Him.
God has provided a way for salvation, yet many reject it. As believers, it is our duty to share the message of God's work with others and spread the gospel to those who are lost. While we cannot force others to believe or be saved, it is ultimately up to the Holy Spirit to work in their hearts. If someone refuses the offer of salvation, it is their decision, not God's. Just like throwing a lifeline to someone in need, if they do not grasp it, the responsibility does not lie with you or God if they suffer the consequences.
We must consider where we stand in relation to God and our faith. It is a question we should continuously reflect on until we can confidently answer in the affirmative.
Will you be among the righteous or the condemned? Are you following Jesus and placing your trust in Him for eternal life? Can you declare with certainty that you are part of His flock?
