The Separation Of The Sheep And The Goats

Speaker: Archbishop Loren Thomas Hines

November 27, 2023

in Spritual Growth

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November 26, 2023

Readings: Ezekiel 34:11-17
1 Corinthians 15:20-28
Matthew 25:32-46

26th Sunday of Ordinary Time 2023

The events happening today are actually a manifestation of the prophecies of the Old Testament. Today’s Gospel talks about the 2nd coming of Christ and how we will be judged. Psalm 110:1
A Psalm of David. “The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.” Matthew 22:44 “The Lord said to My Lord, Sit at My right hand until I put Your enemies under Your feet.” 1 Corinthians 15:28 “And when all things have been subjected to Him, then the Son Himself will be made subject to Him who put all things under Him, so that God may be all in all.”1 Corinthians 15:24 “Then the end will come, when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father after He has destroyed all dominion, authority, and power.”
This could mean that the next great event would be the crushing of all authority under His rule. Matthew 28:18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Ephesians 1:22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church. Hebrews 2:8 You have put in subjection all things under his feet. For in subjecting all things to him, He left nothing unsubject to him. But at present not yet do we see all things having been subjected to him. Zechariah 14:9 Then ADONAI will be king over the whole world. On that day ADONAI will be the only one, and his name will be the only name. Daniel 7:14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.

Ezekiel 34:17 This is what the Lord GOD says to you, My flock: ‘I will judge between one sheep and another, between the rams and the goats. Matthew 25:31 – 35 When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 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. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 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. 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.

The ones on the left are the “fat sheep,” and represent those who have been in control of the world. Those who have been in control of the economy. People who were only thinking of themselves because of greed and did not help the lean sheep. Those who did not feed the hungry, who did not give drink to the thirsty, who did not give shelter to those in need. To the ones on the right He will say, “accept the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” God has made a covenant with us. He does not and will not break His covenant. He will keep it. In a covenant, if a person does not fulfill it, he will die. This is how He will judge us. It is the manifestation of what He has given to us. It is not enough to believe. We need to manifest this belief into action. The church is so divided now because man has divided it. Different denominations are not in unity with each other. But we should realize that it is not man’s church, but Christ’s. He is the head and not man. We are here for a purpose. To cultivate and keep the earth, subdue and rule. Colossians 3:9 “Do not lie to one another, since you have taken off the old self with its practices.”

What we do to the least of the brethren, we do it unto Him. When we feed the hungry, clothe the naked, minister to the needy, we are doing this to the Lord. The divisions that have taken place are not of God. He will judge us by what we have done with our lives to help others. One of the best examples is a tiny nun called Mother Teresa, who gave up her privileged life to live a life for others. For the poor, the destitute and the dying.

When we allow the enemy to influence us, we will have to face the consequences. When the enemy is destroyed, we are dragged along with him. We need to be what God wants us to be. Let us strive to be the lean sheep, the ones on the right. And may we live our life for Him.