What will be the basis for separation of people of the nations into sheep and goats?
Matthew 25:31 - 46
NKJV - 31 When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats.
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Asked December 27 2019
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Rotimi EWEDEMI
Supporter
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Tim Maas
Supporter
First, I would say that although Jesus speaks of the nations of the earth being gathered before Him, the separation of those people into the sheep and the goats to whom Jesus refers will not be on the basis of their earthly nationality, but on the individual status of each person with respect to his or her own salvation. Some people cite the parable referenced in the question as an indication of the ability of humans to be saved by their works. However, I would say that the separation that occurs will, first and foremost, be based on faith in Christ. The Bible makes clear in passages such as Isaiah 64:6 that, apart from faith in Christ, all our works (even those that seem righteous by human standards) are as filthy rags in God's sight. Also, note that Jesus says to both the saved and the unsaved that the actions that they did or did not perform were either done or not done to Him. Only Christians/believers (the sheep in Jesus' parable) would have performed those actions in the name of serving Christ, as if they were actually ministering to Him. Such actions will have been evidence of their salvation, rather than the cause of it. The unredeemed (goats), by the very fact that they did not possess saving faith in Christ, will not have performed any of the works that they did as a service to Him.
Rotimi EWEDEMI
Supporter
The answer to the question: WHAT WILL BE THE BASIS FOR THE SEPARATION OF PEOPLE OF THE NATIONS INTO SHEEP AND GOATS is actually very simple to find! All one has to do is to read very carefully the words that Jesus spoke in Verses 40 and 45, of Matthew chapter 25. “And the King shall answer and say unto them, 'Verily I say unto you, "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."'” “Then shall he answer them, saying, 'Verily I say unto you, "Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me."'” So, the basis for separation according to Jesus the King and Judge is this: THE ATTITUDE OF PEOPLE OF THE NATIONS TOWARDS CHRIST’S BRETHREN, or towards Christ’s BROTHERS. Now, for the sake of emphasis, the king did not say to help the needy or the poor or our neighbours. The help is to be rendered to those that Jesus views as HIS BROTHERS. CONCLUSIVELY, any of the people of the nations who desire to be seen as sheep by the king must necessarily ask some questions: WHAT IS THE SCRIPTURAL MEANING OF THE TERM, CHRIST’S BROTHERS? WHO/WHERE ARE THEY? HOW CAN I IDENTIFY THEM? HOW CAN I HELP THEM? When one has found the right answers to these questions, then one should help them in the way that Jesus demands. Of course, it is not an easy endeavor to find answers to these above critical questions. However, focused scriptural search would lead sincere people to the answers.
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