Sun 31 Oct

The story of the sheep and the goats has intrigued me from the very first time I read it. WE rarely call someone a silly sheep. But we do hear the phrase, you are a silly old goat. Having grown up on a sheep farm, you get to realis that sheep are either the smartest animal God has put on planet Earth or they are the dumbest. What animal do you know tries to knock itself out by running headlong into a fence, lays on the ground and then gets itself up and repeats what it has just done. 

Goats on the other hand are excellent escape artists. They can get under or through or over most fences. Goats are about the only animal that will eat blackberry vines, thorns and all. 

I often ask why goats get the bad rap in this story Jesus tells. Perhaps part of it has to do with the fact that the scriptures often compare us to sheep. As Isaiah writes, “We all like sheep have gone astray, each of us have turned to his own way.” 

What the story does tell us is that when the King, Jesus Christ returns, there will be a judgement taking place based on what we have done or not done. There will be a separation taking place. One group will go away to eternal punishment. The other will receive their inheritance and eternal life. What an inheritance? If you desire eternal life then look no further than the life offered by Jesus Christ!