Twenty-sixth Sunday after Trinity

Judgment Day is coming. When we hear these words, we tend to think of a wild-eyed preacher wearing a sandwich sign on a street corner, but these are the words of Jesus. No man knows the day or the hour, but the Day of Judgment is coming. Jesus says, “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 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” (Mt 25:31–32). This passage is often called “The Parable of the Sheep and the Goats” but it’s not a parable; it’s not a metaphor. Jesus is telling us exactly how it will be on the Last Day. Just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, so our Lord will separate all people one from another. Judgment means separation. The sheep are blessed; the goats are cursed. The sheep are children of God; the goats are followers of the devil. The sheep have done many good works in life; the goats have not. Sheep are not goats, goats are not sheep, and Jesus knows the difference.

Many Christians are confused by this passage, because it appears to be teaching salvation by works. Jesus lists all the good deeds of the sheep and welcomes them into heaven. He rebukes the goats for their failure to do good works, and sends them away to the place prepared for the devil and his angels. But wait a minute – doesn’t the Bible teach that we are saved by grace through faith and not by works? Yes, it does. And there is no contradiction in the Scriptures. There is only one way to heaven – faith in Christ and his work on the cross. How then, should we understand Jesus’ words about the Last Day?

Jesus is speaking about faith. The sheep are believers in Christ. The goats are unbelievers. Here is the basis of God’s judgment, and this judgment occurs at the very beginning of this passage: The Son of Man sits on his glorious throne and separates the sheep from the goats. The separation of believers from unbelievers happens first – before there’s any talk about good or evil works. Faith comes first and then faithful works follow. Here’s the thing: Only God can see faith. We can’t see it. We can see the evidence of faith. You can look at a fellow Christian and see that she attends church, reads her Bible, is kind and generous, and speaks often of Christ. You can see the evidence. You can see her faithful works, but you can’t actually see her faith. But God can. He doesn’t need evidence. He looks directly at the heart.

Think for a minute of our justice system. Wouldn’t it be so much easier if our judges could look directly into a person’s heart and see who’s guilty and who’s innocent? But they can’t. So, in our courtrooms we must begin with evidence. A person’s works give us a clue about what it in his heart. After all the evidence has been presented, then the judge announces the verdict. It’s not a perfect system. Sometimes we get it wrong, but it’s the best we can do.

God’s courtroom runs in reverse. He can read the thoughts and intents of every heart, so he has no need for evidence. He begins his trial with the verdict: Innocent or guilty, sheep or goat, faith or unbelief. After the verdict then the evidence is presented. You might ask, “Why does God even need evidence?” He doesn’t, but we do. We can’t see faith or the lack of it. But in order that every eye may see that God is a just judge, he presents evidence that angels and men can see. And in response “the great multitude in heaven, [cries] out, “Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for his judgments are true and just!” (Rev 19:1–2). In order that every mouth may bear witness to his righteous verdict, the King presents the evidence that we can see after the judgment has taken place.

He says 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. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me” (Mt 25:34–36).

The righteous are surprised. They don’t remember doing these good works, and this is more evidence of faith. All of their trust in life was in Christ. They weren’t expecting these works to get them into heaven, so, frankly they don’t even remember doing them. “Lord, when did we do all these good things?” Their hope was in Christ and his work on the cross. They weren’t keeping a catalogue of every righteous deed. In fact, the righteous are generally more aware of their shortcomings than any good works. But even so, they do many good and faithful works and God rejoices in these. Good works don’t make you a sheep. Only Christ and his blood can do that. But after God makes you a sheep, you will do many good works. Those who have been forgiven much love much. It’s what sheep do.

What does a good work look like? It’s hard for us to tell. Believers and unbelievers often do things that appear to be exactly the same, but the Scriptures say: “Without faith it is impossible to please God” (Heb 11:6). A good work is a faithful work. In fact, St. Paul tells us that anything not done in faith is sin (Rom 14:23). A man could give billions of dollars to charitable causes, yet without faith in Christ, it is nothing but sin. He will stand condemned on the Day of Judgment. Unless he has faith in Jesus, unless his sins have been covered by the blood of Christ, he is an unbeliever and stands condemned. He is a goat. On the other hand, a believing mother may never do anything that the world considers a good work. Yet, every time she changes a diaper, God rejoices in her faithful service. Every time she gets up in the middle of the night to comfort her crying child, Jesus says to her, “You have done it unto me” (Mt 25:40).

Everything then depends on faith in Christ. This is the central message of the Scriptures: Salvation by faith in Jesus. You were born into sin, born as an unbeliever, born a goat. And you must be reborn as a sheep. Well how does this happen? “Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith?” (Gal 3:2). St. Paul asks this question, and you know the answer. Jesus said to Nicodemus, “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the Kingdom of God” (Jn 3:5). A lifetime of charitable works won’t get you there, but Holy Baptism does. Here at his font, by the power of his Word, God gives you his Holy Spirit and you are reborn as his child. The Lord is now your shepherd and you are his sheep. And what do sheep do? They follow their shepherd, and they listen to his words. Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them” (Jn 10:27).

God has promised you in Holy Baptism that when you stand before him on the Last Day, he will not say to you, “Depart from me. I never knew you” (Mt 7:23), for your Shepherd does know you. You have nothing to fear on the Day of Judgment, for Christ has already born the judgment of God on your behalf. There is no debt still to be paid, no sin remaining to cover, no accuser left to throw a stone. The Good Shepherd laid down his life for his sheep, and by his perfect work he makes our imperfect works holy. We don’t trust in our works; our trust is in Christ. We follow our Shepherd and listen to his words. But on the Last Day, we will be surprised to learn that our many mundane and forgettable works in this life were actually good and faithful works done unto Christ. And on that day, the righteous Judge will say to you, “Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world” (Mt 25:34). Amen.