Throughout the past month our Gospel readings have all been from Matthew chapter 25. It is a chapter that turns our collective focus to the promised return of Christ at His great second coming. Parable after parable we have been called to watch, to be ready, and to be found faithful at His return. We have contemplated the image of the ten virgins who go out with their lamps to meet the bridegroom. Five of them are wise and five foolish. We heard the call to “Watch, for we know neither the day nor the hour of His coming.” Then we turned our attention to the parable of the talents, the three servants who are entrusted with the master’s property while he goes away. Two invest it, use it, and trade with it, while one buries it in the ground. To the faithful who use the Master’s gifts, we receive the words we all long to hear, “Well done good and faithful servant.” So, we have been reminded of our Lord’s return. We have been called to keep the vigil, to be found ready, and even to use what He has given us while we wait. Then today, we are called to ponder a new scene. The image is that of the Last Day, the final judgment where all the nations are called to appear before the throne of God.

Imagine, if you will, this scene. The countless hosts of all humanity are spread out before the Son of God. They are not there to pay homage to Him, or to sing His praises, but to be judged, to be examined for how they have conducted themselves in this life. As they mingle around with each other, imagine the questions, the worries, the conversations in hushed tones. What is going to happen? Have I done enough? Do I deserve to enter the wedding feast, into the blessings of eternal life? The Lord’s actions are swift and decisive. It begins with what feels like confusion among the masses gathered. People are being moved, slowly but surely into two distinct groups. Like a shepherd separating sheep from goats, the King is dividing the crowd and keeping them separate as the judgment is to be rendered. In time, the result will be clear. The sheep are gathered on the right hand of the King and the goats are on the left. And in that moment, they must all be filled with fear and worry and anxiety, left wondering, what is coming next?

Then the King rises and turns to those gathered on His right and says, “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.” Now, that is an amazing statement. They are blessed, blessed by the Father to inherit what was prepared for them from the foundations of the world. The Kingdom is theirs, always will be theirs. There is certainty and assurance in this word. Why? Why do they inherit such a gift? Well, they took care of the King in times of suffering. In times of need and sorrow, they were there for Him.

Next, He says to the goats on His left hand, “Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels. For I was hungry, and you gave me no food, I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink, 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.” This group is the polar opposite of the ones gathered on the right hand. All the things the sheep have done, the goats have failed to do. They failed to serve the King, to care for Him in His time of need, to support Him in His sorrow and suffering. They fail with regard to compassion and mercy. So, they are condemned to the eternal fire prepared for the Satan and his minions.

Of course, this scene is certainly shocking. The long-awaited day of the Lord’s return will be a time of judgment, an event marked by separation. This should be a familiar image to us. We have heard about the winnowing of the grain from the chaff, the sifting of the wheat from the weeds, and here, the dividing of the sheep from the goats. Yet, the beautiful thing in this text is the complete ignorance on the part of the sheep and the goats as to what is happening. Those who are called righteous because of their acts of service actually have no idea they have served the King at all. They say, “Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? And when did we see You a stranger and welcome You, or naked and clothe You? And when did we see You sick or in prison and visit You?” They do not recall doing any of this! And the same goes for those on His left hand who are condemned. They have no recollection of failing to serve the King in any way.

This is huge! The knowledge of either group is not the issue. The King is not highlighting how they cleverly made decisions to go out of their way to serve Him and are rewarded. He is saying something much more profound about who they are at their core. The sheep on the right hand did the things sheep are supposed to do: They served the King. The goats on the left hand did goat things and did not serve. This is like our Lord saying the good tree produces good fruit and a bad tree bad fruit. The difference is much deeper than the visible actions on the outside. The fruit becomes the proof we see, but it is not the means for making one a good tree or a bad one, or in our text today, it does not establish one as a sheep or goat. If it did, they would be cognizant of their choices, of their works, of their great acts of faithfulness, but they have no idea. What our Lord is doing here is pulling back the veil, allowing us to see something which is hidden from us in this age.

Behind the veil we see stunning truths. The King says to the faithful sheep who are confused about their works, “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to Me.” As you took care of one another, as you provided for the least of the children of God, so you cared for the King Himself. This means He is present. Jesus is here with His people, and not just here in our victories, in those glorious moments of triumph and happiness. No, He is found in your suffering, in your trials, in your pain, and turmoil. When you have nothing, no strength left, no ability to go forward, He is there. For when a brother or sister comes along side of you, when there is a word of hope and compassion, when you have that one who will weep with you and fight alongside of you, there is the King of glory Himself. There is our Lord Jesus Christ. When you stand with each other you stand with Christ. When you have compassion, you serve the King.

This is what Jesus shows you behind the veil. He shows you His own presence in your lives of faith. You are not just filling your days with aimless deeds to await Judgment Day. No, your moments and days are full of meaning and purpose. You are producing the fruit of faith, faith given by Christ, faith nourished by His gifts, faith strengthened by His promises. And this fruit is crucial to the lives of those around you. They need what you have been given. They need your love, compassion, and confidence in the works of God. You are made sheep of the Good Shepherd by His actions, by His sacrifice and forgiveness. The fruit does not make the tree good, rather it is the great working of God that has made you what you are. And now you live out the lives of sheep.

Therefore, know this my friends, know that this very day you live out lives of great meaning and purpose, for you live in service to the King of kings and Lord of lords. You serve Him not by laying your works at His feet on Judgment Day, but by turning your care, provision, compassion, and welcome to one another, to your brothers and sisters. For though it may be hidden behind the veil of this dying age, here in this fellowship is the enduring work of those who have inherited the Kingdom of Heaven.