1 January 11, 2009 Play Matthew 25 DVD clip. Sheep, Goats, and Wolves Matthew 25:31-34, 41 Please turn in your Bible to Matthew 25. I ll read verses 31-34 and 41. (31) "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. (32) Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. (33) And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. (34) Then the King will say 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. (41) "Then he will say to those on his left, Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. If you have a red-letter Bible, the words I read to you appear in red ink. That means Jesus said these words. Just before his death, the Master spoke about the future. I don t know about you, but when Jesus speaks, I listen carefully. Soon, Jesus would die for the forgiveness of our sins. Then, he would rise from the dead and ascend into heaven, where he is today. In verse 31, Jesus discussed events that would occur after he ascended into heaven. These events have not taken place, but I hope they happen soon. Come quickly Lord Jesus. In Verse 31, the Son of Man is a name for Jesus. Jesus talked about coming back to earth. When he comes again, he won t come humbly as a baby in a barn. He will come in his glory, and the angels will be with him. 1 Thessalonians 4:16 tells us that an archangel will announce his appearance, a trumpet will sound loudly, and Christians will rise from the dead. Jesus will come back in his glory. He will come as a King. He will come to rule. He will arrive with an entourage of angels. He will come as Lord. He will come in glory that no Hollywood sound stage can replicate. Jesus appearing will be indescribably magnificent. Verse 31 tells us Jesus will sit on his glorious throne. We should not take the word throne literally, as if there would be a material throne or seat for the King of Zion. The word
2 throne expresses the idea that he will come as a king and judge to assemble his subjects before him and appoint rewards and punishments. Verse 32 tells us that a great gathering will take place. I suspect that people will not come by car, bus, train, ship, or airplane. Miraculously, God will gather the population of the earth to appear in front of Jesus. Jesus will separate people into two groups as a shepherd separates different types of animals. Those who have accepted Jesus as Savior are the sheep. Are you a sheep? Those who have not accepted Jesus as Savior are the goats. Are you a goat? Here s a little hint. It s much better to be a sheep than a goat. Verse 33 tells us that Jesus, the Great Shepherd, will place the sheep on his right. The right hand is the place of honor, and it denotes the status of those who are honorable and virtuous. Jesus will place the goats on his left. The left is a tragic location. In Jesus day, it was the place of dishonor and condemnation. Here s another hint. It s much better for Jesus to place you at his right than his left. Remember this; you want to be a sheep on the right, not a goat on the left. Let s see why it s better to be a sheep on the right. In Verse 34, we see that Jesus, the Son of Man, is a King. Revelation 19:16 says, "On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords." King Jesus will have a message for the sheep who have accepted him as Savior. Jesus tells us there is a great reward for the sheep on the right. Before God created the foundation of the world, he had a future reward banquet in mind. What will the sheep receive for accepting the Savior? We will inherit God s kingdom. That means we will receive an eternal address in heaven. We will exit the kingdom of this world and reside in the kingdom of heaven. God has already prepared a place for us in heaven. One day in the future, King Jesus will invite all sheep to heaven. Imagine eternity in God's presence. Think about the most peaceful peace. Visualize the most comforting comfort. Envision the most contented contentment. Picture the most worshipful worship. Heaven will be much better. Jesus will return in his glory, and he will call his sheep to him. Will he call your name? If you believe that he is the Savior and confess with your mouth that he is Lord, he will call your name. You will inherit the kingdom of heaven if you are a sheep, a believer.
3 Woe to the goats on the left. Verse 41 describes a tragic picture. King Jesus will dismiss the goats, the unbelievers, from his presence. I can't imagine life without the presence of God. It gets worse. When the goats depart from Jesus, they will be cursed to eternal fire. This awful fire wasn't created for people; it was prepared for the devil and his angels. God doesn't want anyone to dwell in eternal fire. He doesn't want anyone to perish. He wants all people to accept his Son and inherit heaven, but we are people with the ability to choose. Goats choose to reject Jesus. Goats will depart to eternal fire. Forever, goats will hear the echo of Jesus' words, "Depart from me, me, me, me." The prophet Daniel discussed sheep and goats in Daniel 12:2. "And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt." Sheep receive everlasting life. Goats receive everlasting contempt. The Apostle John described sheep and goats this way in John 5:28-29. "Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment." Sheep receive eternal life. Goats receive judgment. The Bible is clear that there are sheep and goats in the world. The Bible is clear that it's better to be a sheep than a goat. It's better to be a believer than an unbeliever. Are you a sheep or a goat? You can become a sheep and receive the kingdom of heaven if you believe in Jesus. There is a third type person in the world. There are wolves in the world. In the New Testament, a wolf symbolizes a false teacher, who comes in to drive the sheep away from sound teaching. God hates wolves. Matthew 7:15 reads, "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves." These wolves trick the flock into straying from God's truth and following ungodly falsehood. The Apostle Paul knew about wolves. In Acts 20:29 he said, "I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock." For our purposes this morning, I want to broaden the definition of a wolf. Let's view wolves this way. Wolves are people who snip at and sometimes attack the sheep and goats. In this context, a sheep can be a wolf and a goat can be a wolf. Anyone who uses words or actions to hurt someone is a wolf. Are you ever a wolf? There are three types of people in the world: sheep, goats, and wolves. Tragically, there
4 are three types of people in the church: sheep, goats, and wolves. At LBC, we have people who are sheep, people who are goats, and people who sometimes are wolves. Next slide. Our church has Pastors and elders who are shepherds to the Lockmar congregation. The job of the shepherds is to lead the sheep, convert the goats, and stop the wolves. Last week we talked about taking the land. To take the land originally referred to the Jewish nation entering the land of abundance that God had promised. For us, it means to experience all of the abundance that God has for us. Taking the land includes experiencing peace, contentment, and fulfillment. Taking the land includes abiding in God's presence, possessing God's promises, and receiving eternal life. A church's shepherds have an important role in taking the land. To take the land, the shepherds must lead the sheep, convert the goats, and stop the wolves. Most of you are sheep, because you have accepted Jesus as your Savior. You should be growing toward allowing Jesus to be the Lord of all aspects of your life. The shepherds of Lockmar are here to lead sheep to maturity in Christ and service in God's kingdom. Being a sheep doesn't mean that you look, smell, or act like a sheep. It doesn't mean that you have the fearful nature or minimal intelligence of a sheep. A sheep is a symbol for those who believe in Jesus. Last week I offered five goals to the sheep: really pray, really care, really commit, regularly invite, and regularly share the gospel message. That is advice for living and an example of a shepherd leading sheep. The job of the shepherds is to lead the sheep. For several Sundays, I taught about prayer. For two months, I told you how to enter spiritual disciplines such as study, prayer, fasting, simplicity, giving, and meditation. I have presented several teaching on our beliefs. I have informed you about the importance of unity and the words we say. Almost every Sunday, I stand before you as a shepherd whose goal is to lead sheep to a more abundant life. To take the land shepherds must lead sheep. The job of the shepherds is to lead sheep. The job of the shepherds is to convert the goats. If you haven't accepted Jesus as your Savior, you are one of the goats in the Scriptures we read earlier. Being a goat doesn't mean you look, smell, act, or think like a goat. A goat is just an animal that is different from a sheep. Woe to the goats. Jesus will come back. He will put the goats on his left and then tell them to depart to the fires of hell. Goats will spend eternity in torment, away from God's pres-
5 ence. Eternity is a very long time. It's not a good thing to reject the Savior and remain a goat. To take the land we must show the unbelieving goats how to convert to believing sheep. Leading people to belief in the Savior is the most important thing we do to take the land. The job of the shepherds and the congregation is to convert the goats to become sheep. The job of the shepherds is to stop the wolves. As I discuss wolves, I'm using the broader definition of wolves. Wolves are people who snip at and sometimes attack sheep and goats. Wolves are very dangerous to the wellbeing of a church. A sheep who snips or attacks is also a wolf. A goat who snips or attacks is also a wolf. Wolves snip at other animals. They snip by gossiping. "Did you hear about Anthony's marriage? No? Well, I bet he has another woman. We need to pray." Wolves snip by saying veiled things deceptively designed to express their displeasure. Wolves pick and poke critically. Wolves go beyond snipping to attacking. They verbally assault others to wound and tear down. They try to undermine reputations and authority. They steal from the flock. They gather a small group and turn against someone outside the wolf pack. They are manipulative and controlling. They scheme to get their way at church and at home. Sometimes, wolves verbally attack pastors. Roast pastor is an especially tasty meal to a wolf. I wonder how God feels about wolves who bite pastors. The behavior of wolves saddens and angers the Great Shepherd. Are you a wolf sometimes? The job of the shepherds is to stop the wolves. When shepherds see wolves, they must confront their behavior for the protection of the sheep and goats. The Bible, in Matthew 18, says to go to the wolf in private. If the biting continues, take one or two witnesses, and confront the wolf again. If that doesn't work, expose the wolf to the church. If snipping doesn't stop, treat the wolf as an ungodly outsider. Wolves keep churches from taking the land. Shepherds must stop wolves. There are three types of people in the church: sheep, goats, and wolves. To take the land, the shepherds must lead the sheep, convert the goats, and stop the wolves. Next slide. Let's return to our discussion about goats. Goats are symbolic of people who have not accepted Jesus as their Savior. There are people here this morning who have not accepted the Savior. The Great Shepherd wants you to convert from an unbeliever to a believer. As the senior shepherd of this flock, I want to take the land of unbelief. Most of the world does not believe in Jesus as the Savior. Most of the world lives in the land of unbelief and the
6 kingdom of darkness. Perhaps you live in the darkened land of unbelief. I want to use God's Word to lead people from darkness to light, from unbelief to belief. Allow me to shine the light of God's Word to show the way from unbelief to belief. This is what God's Word says. If you haven't accepted Jesus as your Savior, please listen carefully. At the beginning of Bible, there is an account of God creating human beings. These humans lived with God in a garden of paradise until they disobeyed God's rules and sinned. Their ungodly sin separated them from a holy God. Sin always separates us from God. God initiated a way to cover sin. Priests killed animals and dripped their blood on the altar. The blood covered the sins according to God's plan. These sacrifices had to occur repeatedly, because people sinned continually. This form of sacrifice was cumbersome and temporary. When God determined it was the right time to change the method of dealing with sin, he sent his Son, Jesus, to be born in a barn in Bethlehem. Jesus lived a perfect life. He became the ultimate sacrifice through crucifixion on a cross. His blood is the final covering for sin. Once and for all, he died for our sins, your sins. Three days after Jesus died, God raised him from the dead. Sin could not defeat him, and the grave could not hold him. After his resurrection, Jesus walked on earth a few days. Then, he ascended to heaven to receive the glory he deserves. To go to heaven, you must believe what I just told you about Jesus, and you must confess that he is Lord. Romans 10:9-10 says, "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved." As we discussed a few minutes ago, Jesus is coming back to separate the sheep from the goats, the believers from the unbelievers. He will take believers to heaven. He will direct unbelievers to the fires of hell. Here's a hint. It's better to be a believer. To go to heaven, you must believe in Jesus. Do you believe in Jesus? To go to heaven, you must confess that Jesus is Lord. Will you come forward to confess that you want Jesus to be your Lord? Today, you can become a believer, with a guarantee of heaven. It's a matter of believing and confessing. It's a matter of life and death. Sheep, goats, and wolves. Only sheep go to heaven. Are you a sheep in the Great Shepherd's flock? Let's pray.