Are you a sheep or a goat?? Matthew 2:31-46

Matthew 25:45,46 says, "“He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.' "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”


I love this scripture, and today I just want to put it in simple terms that we can all understand. Jesus here is actually talking about works of compassion. He talks about seeing people hungry, thirsty, sick, hurting and in need and doing something to help them. A lot of us help others with monetary and tangible needs, but do we help them with spiritual needs? Do we minister to those who are in need? 

I know, good deeds are not the reason that we are save. You are absolutely correct in that, as Jesus died on the cross so that we may be saved. His sacrifice is how we are saved, but how we live our lives is evidence that we are saved! We all have salvation, but not all of us use it. Imagine soap in the bathroom. It is available to all of us, but some use it and some choose not to. That is the same with salvation, some will use it and some won't!

There is evidence that we have received salvation. It is not a halo or wings suddenly appearing, or a booming voice from a burning bush (although that would be nice). So what is the evidence that we are saved? We become Spirit-filled and Christ-like, plain and simple! What does it mean to become Spirit-filled and Christ-like?


Galatians 5:22-25 says, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit we must also follow the Spirit."


So, we are to follow my modified Golden Rule: "Treat others better than you would want them to treat you and your loved ones!" We are to avoid temptations and use restraint and self-control. We are to forgive others as we would want them to forgive our loved ones! Finally, we are to follow the calling of the Holy Spirit no matter how uncomfortable the calling is.


Followers of Christ will treat others this way. Those who do not follow Christ will not. So I ask you, how do you treat others? Do you forgive them, or do you hold grudges? Do you accept people, or are you judgmental? Christ came to save the sinners, not the saints. We too are meant to minister to the sinners. The saints don't need us!  So we lead by example and reach out to those who are hurting, following the example of Christ. He fed and healed them before He preached to them.

We too should reach out to those in need and first take care of their physical needs before their spiritual needs. That is being a sheep. A goat will only take care of part of their needs, the fleshly part, and not all of their needs. If we take care of all of their needs, follow the lead of the Spirit inside of us then this scripture tells us that we will have eternal life. The goats will receive eternal punishment!

Today reflect on how you help others and how your lifestyle affects the people that you come into contact with. Either choice you make is an eternal choice, which do you choose? They will know you by your love, compassion and your walk! So I ask you, are you a sheep or a goat???? Don't choose wrong!!