Matthew 25:31-46

Introduction

English Standard Version Chapter 25

The Final Judgment

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. 35 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, 36 I was 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, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’

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. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ 44 Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ 45 Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ 46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

This week we reach the conclusion of Jesus’ Olivet Discourse. A conversation between Jesus and his disciples that began with a prophecy of the Temple’s destruction and ends with a warning of judgement at his second coming. While much of chapter 24 contained prophetic and apocalyptic language, chapter 25 is filled with parables concerning Jesus’ second coming. And his admonition has been simple, to be ready at a moments notice.

That Jesus’ parousia (his second coming) will not be marked by signs like the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem will be, but that no one will know the day or the hour. That many will be carrying on without any concern, drinking, eating, marrying and giving in marriage, until Christ’s return comes upon the whole world like the flood in Noah’s day. Some being saved while others are taken in judgement.

The theme of chapter 25, and even the latter half of 24, is simply to be ready, to stay awake, to be on-guard for Christ’s second coming. The parables in these chapters build upon one another, each one expanding upon what it means to be a ready. One parable emphasized the necessity of being faithful, to being found faithful at Jesus’ return. The parable of the ten virgins emphasized our need to be prepared, to be dressed for action, and not to procrastinate our obedience to Christ. Then in the parable of the talents we were taught that we have a responsibility to Christ, that he has entrusted to all of us certain resources while he is away, and that we’re expected to put those resources to work for his kingdom and for his glory.

So, when Christ returns, the question is will we be found faithful? Will we be prepared, dressed for action at his coming? Will we have something to show for the resources given to us in this life? Will we be found fulfilling our responsibilities and obligations to our Lord? And finally, today, this text should cause us to ask ourselves, have we loved Christ by loving his church? Because part of Jesus’ criteria for judgement will be whether you loved the brethren or not. This is the heart of this particular passage and how it fits within the broader context of chapters 24 and 25. How else ought we to be ready for Christ’s return? We must be intimately concerned about Christ’s bride, found loving his bride as we profess to love Christ. That’s what this text is about.

What the text doesn’t mean

Now, this also means that this text is not a general and indiscriminate call for Christians to feed the hungry, or to clothe the poor, or to visit those in prison. There are plenty of texts that call us to these kinds of actions, but this particular text is not one of them. And I point this out not to diminish our obligation to do these things indiscriminately, but simply so that we don’t miss the point of this particular text.

For instance, in Luke 10:25-37 Jesus gives his famous teaching of the Good Samaritan and loving your neighbor, answering a lawyer’s attempt to justify himself when he asks, “And who is my neighbor?” As if the lawyer could justify not having to love certain “neighbors,” but Jesus demonstrates to him in his Parable of the Good Samaritan that he must love his neighbors, even the ones he doesn’t like.

Then in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount Jesus tells his disciples,

English Standard Version Chapter 5

43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.

The Apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the Galatians (6:10) that,

English Standard Version Chapter 6

as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.

So there’s no debate as to whether or not we’re intended to do good to all men regardless of their affiliation to Christ, believer or unbeliever, but for us to grasp the intent of this text here in Matthew 25 we have realize that Jesus is concerned specifically with how we treat those who are a part of the household of faith.

This is not a text demanding mere acts of philanthropy, at least not by our modern definition of that term. While secular humanism teaches that all people are a part of a common brotherhood, the Bible restricts brotherhood to the household of God, or to the family of God. Not all people, by biblical standards, are called children of God, only those who are born again, by faith in Christ, are considered a part of God’s family. We’re united to one another because of our union with Christ. Spiritually speaking, we’re not united to one another by our genetics, or by bloodlines, but by our faith in Christ.

How we treat one another within the church

And we know this text is talking, specifically, about how we treat those within the church in a couple of ways, 1) look again at verses 34-40,

English Standard Version Chapter 25

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. 35 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, 36 I was 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, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’

Notice that last verse, “as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.” Jesus is concerned in this text with how we treat one another (our brothers and sisters) within the church, who are described as the least of these.

In fact, if you were here while we were in Matthew 18, Jesus told his disciples that they must become like little children in order to enter the kingdom of heaven, and then he went on to refer to his disciples as these “little ones”, which is what he’s referring to here in chapter 25 when he calls his brothers “the least of these”. Jesus is continuing his earlier description of his followers as those who are the least, or those who are his little ones, like children. It’s an endearing description intended to communicate their childlike trust and the status that his disciples would have to be willing to have in the eyes of the world in order to enter the kingdom of heaven. That there was no room for pride.

In chapter 18 the disciples had been arguing over who would be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, and so Jesus responds to their argument by telling them that they will have to become like little children in order to enter the kingdom of heaven, and so he begins referring to his followers as his “little ones”, or as he says here in chapter 25, “the least of these.”

And so, again, we know this text is talking, specifically, about how we treat those within the church by what Jesus says there in verse 40 when he says, “as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.” And then the other reason we know this is because 2) Jesus always identifies himself with his people. Notice that last little phrase there in verse 40, “you did it to me.” Jesus associates himself with his brothers.

You might recall in the Books of Acts when we’re told that Saul was persecuting the church, and in Acts 9:1 we read that Saul had been “breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord.” Then just a few verses later we’re told that Saul is knocked off his horse by a bright light, and we read in verse 4 that,

English Standard Version Chapter 9

4 And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” 5 And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.

The point here is that how you treat Jesus’ disciples is how you treat Jesus. Jesus does not represent the unbelieving poor, and the unbeliever in prison but rather the members of his body, and how you treat the members of his body is how you treat Christ. The church is the earthly manifestation of Christ’s own body, therefore how you treat its members is representative of your concern, or lack of concern for Christ himself. Which gets at the heart of this particular text. When Christ returns will we be able to say that we loved his church in the same way that we professed to love Christ? Or did we profess to love Christ and neglect his church? Because service to Christ’s followers is service to Christ himself.

And I don’t think this can be emphasized enough because this problem is so prevalent in our world today. There are so many who profess to believe and follow Jesus but who care very little for his church. We often say that actions speak louder than words, and in this instance that’s precisely the danger. That we can so easily give lip-service to Jesus, but deny him by our actions or by our inactions, and not only in our personal lives but by our concern or lack of concern for the church. I personally know so many on this island who talk highly of Jesus but have zero interactions with his church, they give lip-service to Jesus but they have no interest to be about his business or to be around his people. They’re not concerned with the affairs of the church nor the affairs of Christ’s kingdom.

Love your brothers

The Apostle John writes in 1 John 3:16-18 that,

English Standard Version Chapter 3

16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. 17 But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.

Notice this text’s remarkable connection to Matthew 25. John not only gives us examples of what it looks like to love our brothers that are similar to what Jesus outlines in Matthew 25, but he even calls his fellow Christians “little children.” He uses the same phrase as Jesus does to describe his fellow disciples. It’s incredible to see the direct impact that Jesus’ ministry had upon John, even in his own letters to the church.

John goes on in 1 John 4:20-21,

1 John 4:20–21 ESV

If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.

And John’s probably referring to what he recorded Jesus saying in John 15:12 when Jesus said, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.”

So to sum up the point in Matthew 25, Jesus intends for us to know that how we treat the members of the his body, in this life, will reveal whether we love him or not, because we cannot love him without loving his people, no matter how imperfect they are. While we were yet sinners Christ died for us, and he expects us to be willing to do the same for one another. To repent and to forgive often, just as Christ forgives us.

Son of Man on the throne of glory

Now, I also want to highlight a few other important aspects of this text. This entire admonition for us to love the church, to treat her as you would treat Christ is couched in a warning of judgement. How we treat one another is part of the criteria by which we will be judged at Christ’s second coming.

Jesus describes his coming , starting there in verse 31, as,

English Standard Version Chapter 25

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.

What’s significant about this description of his second coming is that Jesus, for the first time, indirectly refers to himself as the ‘King’. Now, we know that one of Jesus’ favorites titles for himself was the ‘Son of Man’ which he uses there in verse 31, but then he says that the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, that he will judge the nations, and that he is the King who will separate the sheep from the goats.

So rather than using a parable to illustrate his coming he comes out and says that he is the Judge and that he is the King who will do this. Now, up until this point he’s only alluded to this in his parables, and for us looking back we always tend to read Jesus into the parables as portrayed usually as either the master or the king (and rightfully so,), but here Jesus removes all doubt. We miss the significance of what he just said here because we’re so accustomed to reading Jesus into his own parables that we just assume he’s been saying it all along, and in one sense he has, but in another he’s never been so direct.

Sheep and goats

And at his second coming he will separate the sheep from the goats. And as we’ve seen, part of the criteria for identifying the sheep from the goats will be how they treated his disciples. Now, while most of us could probably identify the difference between a sheep and a goat, that hasn’t always been the case, nor is it the case in certain locations around the world today.

Genetically speaking goats and sheep are very similar, in fact, many creation scientists postulate that the two species may have originated from a single created kind. There are even confirmed reports that on rare occasions goats and sheep can interbreed successfully. And my point is that goats and sheep are very similar, so similar that certain breeds of sheep look almost identical to goats, because not all sheep have enormous wool coats as they do today. People often selectively breed them to obtain either larger amounts or different kinds of wool.

And so in the ancient world it was common for flocks to have both sheep and goats mixed together, with only the shepherd skilled enough to recognize the difference between them. For instance, goats are notoriously stubborn and independent while sheep are far more docile and tend to follow the goats while they graze. So while those who aren’t shepherds would find it difficult to distinguish between them a shepherd knows the difference. And in like manner when Jesus returns he will, like a shepherd, separate the sheep from the goats. And what’s valuable about the Olivet Discourse is that Jesus teaches us the difference.

Jesus desires for us to be ready

Jesus wants us to be ready. He doesn’t leave us unto ourselves not knowing what our master expects of us, but rather he intends to prepare us. And this is why Jesus is the good shepherd, because he cares for his sheep. And the promise and reward we have is unimaginable. He says there in verse 33, that,

English Standard Version Chapter 25

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.

Unthinkable inheritance

A large part of the good news of the kingdom is that we will inherit the kingdom that was prepared for us from the foundation of the world. So first, as children of God we are made coheirs with Christ, we inherit what is his, we get to participate in his reward. The kingdom that is given to him is given also to us. Second, this kingdom have been prepared for us from before the foundation of the world. Jesus had us in mind before he had created anything, he intended from before the foundation of the world to redeem us for his glory and for our good, to rescue us from our own sin, to make us his own, and to purchase us with his blood.

Eternal punishment

However, if we spurn is offer of free grace, he says in verse 41, that,

English Standard Version Chapter 25

he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

Some have argued over the centuries of church history for a doctrine known as annihilationism, the idea that the last judgement will entail quick destruction of the wicked, but passages like these indicate otherwise. We’ve seen phases like “hell fire” and “eternal fire” up to this point in the Book of Matthew, used to describe God’s judgement against unbelievers, but then in verse 46 Jesus says,

English Standard Version Chapter 25

46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Jesus describes this judgement as eternal punishment, a punishment that envisions no end, one that is eternal.

Doctrines like eternal punishment run contrary to our Western culture which advocates for pluralism, that there is no truth, and that if there is a heaven that we’ll all be there. That love could never allow for such an unthinkable doctrine as eternal punishment. However, any crime against an infinitely holy and righteous eternal God could never be justly punished apart from it.

Our struggle to grasp how a loving God could punish rebels for eternity is due merely to our inability to grasp the magnitude of God’s holiness and his goodness. Hell is just, because the crime is that great, and we often struggle to see that because of how deficient our view of God is. We know that God is great, but Hell seems worse. Whereas the truth is, Hell is that bad, because God is that good!

Therefore, it’s not only a tragedy that anyone would snub their noses at God’s offer of free grace, it’s incalculably wicked. Back in Matthew chapter 11 Jesus began to denounce the cities of Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum for their unbelief. The Gospel was preached to them, and accompanied by many mighty works, signs and wonders, yet they still continued in their unbelief. So Jesus says to them “For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.” In other words, the greater the light, the greater the condemnation. Therefore, let us hold tightly to God’s offer of forgiveness offered through Christ. That we might inherit what we do not deserve, to be called children of God, and coheirs with Christ!

Prayer

Lord, we thank you for going to such great lengths to save us. To give us eyes to see the glories of your grace toward us. I pray that while we eagerly await your return that you prepare us for your coming, that we would be dressed for action, faithful, prepared, diligent with the resources you’ve given us, and eager to love your church as we profess to love you. Help us to be quick to repent and quick to forgive one another, knit us together with cords of love, cords that cannot be broken.