Lesson #54

THE PARABLES OF JESUS CHRIST
LESSON #54
THE PARABLE OF THE SHEEP AND THE GOATS (MAT 25:31-46)

• MEMORY VERSE: MAT 12:50

• THE PARABLE OF THE SHEEP AND THE GOATS (MAT 25:31-46)
• THIS PARABLE IS THE MOST MIS-UNDERSTOOD, THE MOST MIS-QUOTED, THE MOST MIS-INTERPRETED, AND OFTEN MIS-REPRESENTED PARABLE IN MAT 24 AND 25.
• KEEP IN MIND THAT THIS PARABLE ALSO REFERS TO THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST AS DID ALL THOSE IN MAT 24 AND 25. IT IS ALSO AN EVENT OF JUDGMENT.
• READ MAT 25:31-46
• READ REV 11:15-19 FOR BACKGROUND.
• THE FIRST THING TO NOTICE ABOUT THIS PARABLE IS THAT IT TELLS US THE TIMING OF THE INTERPRETATION OF THE MESSAGE OF THE PARABLE IN VERSE 31.
• THE EVENT IN THIS PARABLE OCCURS AFTER THE TRIBULATION PERIOD OF 7 YEARS, AT THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST, AND BEFORE CHRIST SETS UP HIS MILLENNIAL KINGDOM ON EARTH.
• WHO IS BEING JUDGED?
• ALL NATIONS ARE BEING JUDGED.
• THE GREEK WORD INDICATES ETHNIC GROUPINGS ON THE EARTH AT THE TIME OF THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST.
• THIS IS NOT AN INDIVIDUAL JUDGMENT.
• THIS IS NOT THE JUDGMENT SEAT OF CHRIST WHERE BELIEVERS ARE JUDGED AND REWARDED FOR THEIR WORKS. (WE DISCUSSED THIS JUDGMENT IN OUR LAST LESSON OF PARABLES.)
• THIS IS NOT THE GREAT WHITE THRONE JUDGMENT WHERE NON-BELIEVERS ARE JUDGED AFTER THE MILLENNIUM.
• THIS IS A JUDGMENT OF ETHNIC NATIONS.
• READ JOE 3:2, 11-12
• THE PARABLE SPEAKS OF 3 GROUPS OF PEOPLE BEING JUDGED.
• WHO DOES THE SHEPHERD REPRESENT?
• THE SHEPHERD IN THE PARABLE REPRESENTS JESUS CHRIST.
• THE GOATS AND THE SHEEP:
• THERE ARE MANY POINTS OF SIMILARITY BETWEEN GOATS AND SHEEP IN A SYRIAN FLOCK, SO THAT IT TAKES THE PRACTICED EYE OF THE SHEPHERD TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN SYRIAN SHEEP AND SYRIAN GOATS.
• WHO DO THE GOATS REPRESENT IN THE PARABLE?
• THE GOATS REPRESENT THE NON-BELIEVING NATIONS.
• THESE ARE ETHNIC GROUPINGS OF NATIONS THAT HAVE A HISTORY OF OPPOSING ANYTHING CONCERNING GOD.
• WHO DO THE SHEEP REPRESENT?
• THE SHEEP REPRESENT THE BELIEVING ETHNIC GROUPINGS OF NATIONS THAT HAVE A HISTORY OF PROMOTING GOD’S WORD AND THE TRUTH OF JESUS CHRIST.
• READ JOH 10:11
• WHO DO THE “BRETHREN” IN VERSE 40 REPRESENT?
• CHRIST’S BRETHREN ARE GOD’S CHOSEN ONES.
• READ MAT 12:49-50
• THE JEWS ARE CHRIST’S PHYSICAL BRETHREN.
• THE CHRISTIANS ARE CHRIST’S SPIRITUAL BRETHREN.
• THEREFORE, IN THE PARABLE “THE BRETHREN” REPRESENTS JEWS AND CHRISTIANS.
• WHO DOES THE KING REPRESENT?
• THE KING REPRESENTS JESUS CHRIST. JESUS NEVER BOASTED OF BEING A KING, BUT IN THIS PARABLE HE ALLUDES TO THE FACT.
• THEREFORE, JESUS CHRIST IS BOTH THE SHEPHERD AND THE KING IN THIS PARABLE. WHY?
• THE TWO POSITIONS DESCRIBE HIS CHARACTER:
• THE SHEPHERD DESCRIBES HIS LOVE AND MERCY.
• THE KING DESCRIBES HIS JUSTICE AND AUTHORITY.
• WHAT IS THE CRITERIA FOR THIS JUDGMENT?
• CHRIST WILL JUDGE THE ETHNIC GROUPS AS TO HOW THEY TREATED THE JEWS AND THE CHRISTIANS THROUGH HISTORY AND ESPECIALLY DURING THE TRIBULATION PERIOD OF PERSECUTION.
• BOTH JEWS AND CHRISTIANS WILL BE GREATLY PERSECUTED, HUNTED AND KILLED DURING THE TRIBULATION PERIOD. MANY WILL BE MARTYRED AND ENSLAVED. HITLER’S HOLOCAUST WILL BE MILD IN COMPARISON.
• IN THIS JUDGMENT GOD WILL FULFILL A PROMISE HE MADE TO ABRAHAM.
• READ GEN 12:3
• WHAT DOES THE PHRASE “INHERIT THE KINGDOM” MEAN? (34)
• THOSE ETHNIC GROUPS (THE SHEEP) AND THEIR LEADERS WHO TREATED THE JEWS AND CHRISTIANS WITH LOVE WILL BE ETHNIC GROUPS OR NATIONS THAT WILL EXIST IN THE MILLENNIAL KINGDOM. THEY WILL HAVE A FAVORED NATION STATUS.
• READ 2TIM 2:12
• WHAT IS THE RESULTS OF THE JUDGMENT FOR THE GOAT NATIONS?
• VERSE 41 INDICATES THAT UNBELIEVING LEADERS ARE CAST INTO HELL. (41, 46)
• IN OTHER WORDS, THE LEADERS OF THOSE EVIL GOAT NATIONS AT THE TIME OF THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST WILL BE QUICKLY KILLED AND WILL JOIN ALL OTHER NON-BELIEVERS FROM ALL OF HISTORY IN TORMENT WHERE THEY WILL WAIT FOR THE FINAL INDIVIDUAL JUDGMENT AT THE GREAT WHITE THRONE AFTER THE MILLENNIUM.
• IN THE MILLENNIUM THESE GOAT NATIONS WILL BE IN DARKNESS DURING CHRIST’S REIGN. WHATEVER NATIONS STILL EXIST WILL HAVE TO DEMONSTRATE THEIR LOYALTY DURING THE MILLENNIAL REIGN OF CHRIST.
• READ ZEC 14:16-19

• WHAT IS THE CENTRAL TRUTH OF THE PARABLE?
• GOD HAS ALWAYS BEEN CONCERNED WITH HOW PEOPLE TREAT JEWS AND CHRISTIANS. HE WILL JUDGE ALONG NATIONAL AND ETHNIC LINES AT THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST IN ORDER TO ESTABLISH NATIONAL IDENTITIES AND STATUS IN THE MILLENIAL KINGDOM.

• APPLICATION:
• EVEN THOUGH WE ARE CHRISTIANS, WE ARE ALSO STILL ACCOUNTABLE FOR OUR ATTITUDES AND ACTIONS TOWARD JEWS. IN REALITY, WE ARE MORE ACCOUNTABLE BECAUSE WE SHOULD KNOW THAT WE ARE TO LOVE ALL PEOPLE.

• APPLICATION OF THE PARABLE THE SHEEP AND THE GOATS (MAT 25:31-46)
• WHAT IS YOUR ATTITUDE TOWARD JEWS?
• WHAT IS YOUR ATTITUDE TOWARD ISRAEL?
• WHEN YOU EXERCISE YOUR RIGHT TO VOTE IN POLITICAL ELECTIONS, DO YOU CONSIDER A CANDIDATE’S VIEW:
• REGARDING ISRAEL?

• REGARDING CHRISTIAN PRINCIPLES?

• WHAT CHANGES DOES THE LORD WANT YOU TO MAKE IN YOUR LIFE IN LIGHT OF THIS PARABLE?

• PREPARATION FOR THE PARABLE OF THE GROWING SEED AND THE HARVEST (MAR 4:26-29)
• THIS PARABLE IS SIMILAR TO A PARABLE WE PREVIOUSLY STUDIED IN MAT 13:3-23 (LESSON #26) REVIEW YOUR NOTES OF THIS PARABLE.
• READ MAR 4:26-29
• WHO DOES THE MAN REPRESENT? WHY DO YOU THINK SO?

• WHAT DOES THE SEED REPRESENT?

• WHAT DOES THE GROUND REPRESENT?

• WHAT IS MEANT BY THE PHRASE, “SLEEP, AND RISE, NIGHT, AND DAY”? (27)

• NOTICE THE THREE STAGES OF THE KINGDOM: THE BLADE, THE EAR, THE FULL CORN. WHAT DOES IT MEAN? (28)

• WHAT IS THE CENTRAL TRUTH OF THE PARABLE?

• WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THIS PARABLE AND THAT IN MAT 13:3-23?

• MEMORY VERSE: HOSEA 10:12