Week 21: Tuesday, The Eternal Divide

Sheep and goats are interesting animals. Certainly, they are mentioned

throughout the Bible and were very much a part of daily life in antiquity. In

first-century Palestine, sheep and goats often grazed together. However,

they would be separated at night due to their different needs. To connect

with the symbolic nature of sheep and goats, Jesus taught that they would

ultimately be divided–some on His right and some on His left.

Sheep and goats had particular symbolic meaning in the biblical world of

Judaism

Transcript

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Welcome to Hearing God's Stories, a daily devotional on the Parables presented by the Jekins Institute.

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Week twenty one, Tuesday The Eternal Divide Today's Scripture Matthew twenty five, thirty one through thirty three by Keith Harris and I'm Gavin Beardon. Jesus said When the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left Matthew twenty five thirty one thirty three. Sheep and goats are interesting animals, certainly. They are mentioned throughout the Bible and were very much part of daily life in antiquity. In first century Palestine, sheep and goats often grazed together. However, they would be separated at night due to their different needs. To connect with the symbolic nature of sheep and goats, Jesus taught that they would ultimately be divided, some on his right and some on his left. Sheep and goats had particular symbolic meaning in the biblical world of Judaism. Sheep were symbols of innocence, obedience, and righteousness. Goats, on the other hand, were often symbols of waywardness, stubbornness, and sin bearing. Think about Yom Kipper, the Jewish Day of Atonement. The sins of the people were symbolically carried off into the wilderness by a goat, the scapegoat, Leviticus 16. This made the goat a vivid image of sin bearing and separation from God. In his teaching, Jesus was calling attention to the judgment of God. He explained that there would be a day when the righteous and unrighteous would be divided into separate groups, the righteous on his right and the unrighteous on his left. This separation is incorporated in the context of serving others. As followers of Jesus, we must reflect on our lives and seek to live righteous lives. We must not only seek to avoid sin, but we must also actively seek to do good. Finally, we ought to always seek to bring honor and glory to God and Christ. On which side of the divide are you? Today I will live to honor Christ through my words and actions.

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