What's wrong with being a goat?
What’s Wrong With Being A Goat?
This is NOT a parable- Jesus says: When the Son of Man comes -
"When" ---- Not "If"- As you listen to this forshadowing of the end of history- put yourself in a mental place where you grapple with the fact that this will happen- and you will be a part of this story- on one side or the other.
Matt 25:31-46- 31 "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34 "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
37 "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'
40 "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
41 "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'
44 "They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'
45 "He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'
46 "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."
Who is a Goat?
What’s Wrong with Being a Goat?- That’s what we will be looking into
Those who were hoping for a zoological ethics sermon today will be disappointed
We are looking at the spiritual meaning of being a goat.
Unable to See Christ-
Who is a Sheep?
Definitely something that would be difficult to determine here on earth
Unless we could see each action of every person and judge if they are serving the least of these- when they have opportunity
Right off we can tell that neither a goal or sheep is based on dogmas.
Not based on Doctrine-Based on Action
So in order to figure out what’s wrong with being a spiritual goat we will also consider What’s Right with Being a Sheep?
What makes these two groups different?
Conviction- Goats Lack Christian Conviction-
To be Christian means: becoming Christ-like.
To have Christian Conviction- simply means- in the truest sense- that you have a conviction to be like Christ.
Christian Conviction is Not first and foremost a set of religious or political values.
It is first and foremost the fruit of being in a relationship with Jesus Christ. Believing in Christ Jesus- his life, teachings, death and resurrection- and praying to Christ Jesus will produce a conviction to be Christ like
The Goats lack this initial fruit. They may have a set of values- but they may have no relationship with Jesus- no conviction to become Christ like, to become a selfless servant of others.
Goats may have convictions. But values don’t save people. Only Jesus saves. Only a relationship with God saves you. We become servants because we see Christ in the scriptures and see that He was a servant. We see that God in the flesh took time to feed the poor, heal the sick, weep with the grieving, make the blind see and the lame walk.
In serving others, even though we will not be seeing the historical face of Jesus we will be seeing the actual face of Jesus.
Vision phrase: We do what we do for an audience of one-
We do what we do for an audience of One
We may not end poverty, we may not cure a disease, we may not feed all the hungry- and I say "May" because by God’s grace we may solve some of these problems- cure some disease- But We may be depressed if troubles rage on- despite our service- but we will serve, because we are convicted to love others- because Christ has loved us.
We serve For the Glory of God- for an audience of One.
Believing in Christ- means believing that God is a God of love
Being a Christian- means putting in an operating system that calls you to love- to see people and to see their needs
Irony- the sheep are so committed to the vision of christ- when it is all said and done they don’t realize that they have been serving Christ the whole time-
How does one get there?
You don’t get Conviction to be a servant by excessive knowledge
We don’t want to be a notebook church- where we come and fill our brain but we don’t serve and change the community
Knowledge without loving action is self righteousness
Conviction to be Christ-like comes from an obvious source. It is a free gift of God. If we sincerely spend time with Christ in reading the gospels and in prayer. Christ will give you conviction.
Here’s my illogical deep thought: You know you have enough conviction to be christ-like when you know you can never have enough conviction to be Christ-like.
Curse vs. Blessing- Sheep Bless others, Goats curse others by their inactions and are Cursed to punishment
v41 Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
46 "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."
To forget that there are needs- that there are hurting people, starving people, imprisoned people- lost folks- is perilous-for them and for you.
Church folk can become hardened- Church folk are so "saved" they forget what it is to be lost- The Gospel is not one dimensional. It is not merely a get out of hell free card. Life with Christ- drawing closer to Jesus is a way of life.
A way of life that leads us out of cursing the world and into blessing the world
The Goats would never have cursed Christ to his face- if they had ever seen him
They were surprised that He said that they had seen Him- they were confident in their version of reality.
It is a cursed life if you are living in your own version of reality. We can’t= we aren’t able to determine what is ultimately real
My testimony from the U of C- -- "God spoke to my heart, my mind, my soul and said, "I am real, I am here and I will never leave you."
God is here- God is real- God is- according to this scripture- in and around the people of this world.
If you ignore this reality, you are living a cursed life- to say nothing of the curse that will await you after this life is over.
Calling separates sheep from goats
To the Goats- v. 41 he will say to those on his left, 'Depart
to the sheep- v.34 Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come,
Did you catch that difference?- God will only send those away who were running away from opportunities to love people in life. This is evidence that they have rejected the love of God.
God will call "come" to those who have been acting on opportunities to love.
This only makes sense. A person who chooses to be selfish in this life- to ignore God and to ignore loving God’s people- won’t enjoy heaven. Because heaven is an eternity of loving God and being with people who love God- serving God and serving God’s people
Oh we will serve in heaven. Did you know that? It is not inactive place. God cannot take people there who have rejected His sacrifice- it wouldn’t work.
We want God to call our name at the end of time.
But God is calling us right now. If you aren’t in a relationship with Christ- I hear him calling you to that relationship.
If you haven’t professed your relationship in Baptism- I hear him calling you to the water.
If you don’t have the eyes or heart to see that people in need could be Christ- God is calling you to open your eyes and serve
God is calling you. This is a deep conviction of mine.
This is why I am in Palouse. I believe I am called to help others find their calling and to encourage and build up those who have been called to serve the Lord in this community. I want to become more like Christ- and I want you to become more like Christ.
Calling- my story of being called to Palouse- is a story calling -
Did you know I really believe God made me to be here as your leader.
Don’t get me wrong- I am not saying I am God’s gift-
No, I simply, humbly believe I have been called here to be God’s servant and your leader.
I am here because I am called, because I can’t be anywhere else
I want to be here for at least the next ten years of my life- if you’ll have me
I want to help you be servants of this community-
I want to help you be people who serve the least of these
I want to reach this community for Christ
Along the years ahead of us we won’t keep track that we are serving little Jesus’s everywhere
because we will be people that are convicted to become more like Christ and in becoming like Christ we will be captured by the call of Christ to love others- and because we are captured by Christ’s love- we will do far more good than we measurably realize.
And at the end of time we will be assembled and by God’s grace we will hear, " 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
This is NOT a parable- Jesus says: When the Son of Man comes -
"When" ---- Not "If"- As you listen to this forshadowing of the end of history- put yourself in a mental place where you grapple with the fact that this will happen- and you will be a part of this story- on one side or the other.
Matt 25:31-46- 31 "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34 "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
37 "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'
40 "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
41 "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'
44 "They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'
45 "He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'
46 "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."
Who is a Goat?
What’s Wrong with Being a Goat?- That’s what we will be looking into
Those who were hoping for a zoological ethics sermon today will be disappointed
We are looking at the spiritual meaning of being a goat.
Unable to See Christ-
Who is a Sheep?
Definitely something that would be difficult to determine here on earth
Unless we could see each action of every person and judge if they are serving the least of these- when they have opportunity
Right off we can tell that neither a goal or sheep is based on dogmas.
Not based on Doctrine-Based on Action
So in order to figure out what’s wrong with being a spiritual goat we will also consider What’s Right with Being a Sheep?
What makes these two groups different?
Conviction- Goats Lack Christian Conviction-
To be Christian means: becoming Christ-like.
To have Christian Conviction- simply means- in the truest sense- that you have a conviction to be like Christ.
Christian Conviction is Not first and foremost a set of religious or political values.
It is first and foremost the fruit of being in a relationship with Jesus Christ. Believing in Christ Jesus- his life, teachings, death and resurrection- and praying to Christ Jesus will produce a conviction to be Christ like
The Goats lack this initial fruit. They may have a set of values- but they may have no relationship with Jesus- no conviction to become Christ like, to become a selfless servant of others.
Goats may have convictions. But values don’t save people. Only Jesus saves. Only a relationship with God saves you. We become servants because we see Christ in the scriptures and see that He was a servant. We see that God in the flesh took time to feed the poor, heal the sick, weep with the grieving, make the blind see and the lame walk.
In serving others, even though we will not be seeing the historical face of Jesus we will be seeing the actual face of Jesus.
Vision phrase: We do what we do for an audience of one-
We do what we do for an audience of One
We may not end poverty, we may not cure a disease, we may not feed all the hungry- and I say "May" because by God’s grace we may solve some of these problems- cure some disease- But We may be depressed if troubles rage on- despite our service- but we will serve, because we are convicted to love others- because Christ has loved us.
We serve For the Glory of God- for an audience of One.
Believing in Christ- means believing that God is a God of love
Being a Christian- means putting in an operating system that calls you to love- to see people and to see their needs
Irony- the sheep are so committed to the vision of christ- when it is all said and done they don’t realize that they have been serving Christ the whole time-
How does one get there?
You don’t get Conviction to be a servant by excessive knowledge
We don’t want to be a notebook church- where we come and fill our brain but we don’t serve and change the community
Knowledge without loving action is self righteousness
Conviction to be Christ-like comes from an obvious source. It is a free gift of God. If we sincerely spend time with Christ in reading the gospels and in prayer. Christ will give you conviction.
Here’s my illogical deep thought: You know you have enough conviction to be christ-like when you know you can never have enough conviction to be Christ-like.
Curse vs. Blessing- Sheep Bless others, Goats curse others by their inactions and are Cursed to punishment
v41 Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
46 "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."
To forget that there are needs- that there are hurting people, starving people, imprisoned people- lost folks- is perilous-for them and for you.
Church folk can become hardened- Church folk are so "saved" they forget what it is to be lost- The Gospel is not one dimensional. It is not merely a get out of hell free card. Life with Christ- drawing closer to Jesus is a way of life.
A way of life that leads us out of cursing the world and into blessing the world
The Goats would never have cursed Christ to his face- if they had ever seen him
They were surprised that He said that they had seen Him- they were confident in their version of reality.
It is a cursed life if you are living in your own version of reality. We can’t= we aren’t able to determine what is ultimately real
My testimony from the U of C- -- "God spoke to my heart, my mind, my soul and said, "I am real, I am here and I will never leave you."
God is here- God is real- God is- according to this scripture- in and around the people of this world.
If you ignore this reality, you are living a cursed life- to say nothing of the curse that will await you after this life is over.
Calling separates sheep from goats
To the Goats- v. 41 he will say to those on his left, 'Depart
to the sheep- v.34 Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come,
Did you catch that difference?- God will only send those away who were running away from opportunities to love people in life. This is evidence that they have rejected the love of God.
God will call "come" to those who have been acting on opportunities to love.
This only makes sense. A person who chooses to be selfish in this life- to ignore God and to ignore loving God’s people- won’t enjoy heaven. Because heaven is an eternity of loving God and being with people who love God- serving God and serving God’s people
Oh we will serve in heaven. Did you know that? It is not inactive place. God cannot take people there who have rejected His sacrifice- it wouldn’t work.
We want God to call our name at the end of time.
But God is calling us right now. If you aren’t in a relationship with Christ- I hear him calling you to that relationship.
If you haven’t professed your relationship in Baptism- I hear him calling you to the water.
If you don’t have the eyes or heart to see that people in need could be Christ- God is calling you to open your eyes and serve
God is calling you. This is a deep conviction of mine.
This is why I am in Palouse. I believe I am called to help others find their calling and to encourage and build up those who have been called to serve the Lord in this community. I want to become more like Christ- and I want you to become more like Christ.
Calling- my story of being called to Palouse- is a story calling -
Did you know I really believe God made me to be here as your leader.
Don’t get me wrong- I am not saying I am God’s gift-
No, I simply, humbly believe I have been called here to be God’s servant and your leader.
I am here because I am called, because I can’t be anywhere else
I want to be here for at least the next ten years of my life- if you’ll have me
I want to help you be servants of this community-
I want to help you be people who serve the least of these
I want to reach this community for Christ
Along the years ahead of us we won’t keep track that we are serving little Jesus’s everywhere
because we will be people that are convicted to become more like Christ and in becoming like Christ we will be captured by the call of Christ to love others- and because we are captured by Christ’s love- we will do far more good than we measurably realize.
And at the end of time we will be assembled and by God’s grace we will hear, " 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
posted by Palouse Fed. Church at 4:15 PM
1 Comments:
This sermon wasn't too ba-a-a-a-a-d. We enjoyed it.
Casey & Cathy
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