Sheep, sheep, sheep, GOAT!
Even though people will eventually answer to these labels, this isn’t really a game. Instead of getting up and chasing a friend around a crowd of compatriots, the person labeled differently from the rest will scamper off to fire and brimstone and an eternity of flames and torture. Perhaps they won’t go willingly. I’ve never seen an obedient goat. The few we had at my uncle’s ranch when I was a child were obstinate, irritating beasts that did as they willed. We never had any sheep, but my experience with them left me with an equally poor impression of the creatures.
Both types of animal smell. Each is stupid. Sheep will escape through a hole in a fence. Goats will make a hole then get out. Sheep bite. Goats bite and can kick, unless they’re fainting goats- one of the few animals that clearly argue against Darwinist evolution because who knows how their kind survived to reproduce if they just get scared stiff all the time. If I was a predatory animal, I’d eat fainting goats and get fat because little effort would be necessary.
Goats and sheep both suck at life. They seem to exist to feed humans but annoy the crap out of them before becoming food or clothing or creating it in any number of awkward ways.
★ ★ ★
Matthew 25 finds Jesus comparing people to goats and sheep. I think this may have been a tongue-in-cheek means of telling all people that we are stupid, sinful, carnal beasts that do as we please. He may have been referring to an odor issue as well.
The distinction between goats and sheep wasn’t what the crowd expected. The sheep fed and clothed Jesus when He was hungry. They brought Him water. These people visited the Son of Man in prison and spent time with Him when He was ill.
The goats made no attempt to nurse their Savior back to health. They probably thought less of Him because He was in prison. They drove right by Him when He stood outside of Wal*Mart with His cardboard sign asking for food.
Jesus didn’t condemn the goats because they got drunk, swore, stole or committed any kind of sin that Christians today view as having irreparable impact on their exceedingly important character; the sheep fell into the same types of sin. He denounced the goats because they showed no love for Him.
Both groups protested that they never saw Jesus hungry, thirsty, naked, in prison, or sick.
This story ends with our amazing Lord placing Himself in the shoes of any starving, incarcerated, thirsty, sickly and poorly-clothed human ever created in His image. He did this to illustrate the significance to taking care of each other. He didn’t talk sin but still condemned a group of people to Hell because they showed no love.
What does this do to our exaggerated, American view of sin?
Hey–kinda sorta posted along the same lines yesterday. God has been showing me for years now to stop getting so upset/heated (translated: critical/judgmental) over the sin of others.
And also–I’m less stinky than I used to be. 😛
Tammy, I loved your post. Like I said there, God has been talking to me about holiness in comparison to religion and love. It’s amazing how these things truly work together, but how much we really miss the point in any of them!
I think you hit the nail on the head with the word love.
We get hooked on appearance in this culture. Seriously, we correct the person who is drunk or swearing because they look bad, not because we love them and want better for them. Even when we are tolerant of these things, it is more out of whether or not we LOOK intolerant if we speak up than love.
If we can just act out of love no matter the circumstance….
I like the way your posts make me think. 🙂
Helen you’re right. We can LOOK so bloody holy but in the end, if our internal processes consist of judgment rather than love, what good are we? I’d rather let my flaws show and love people AND BE LOVED in spite of it than pretend to have my crap together!
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I think it means we’re pretty much screwed…if not for Grace.
Kathy, this is true. Sin may not kill us after our introduction and relationship with Christ has begun, but it certainly can kill anyone who doesn’t know Him. It’s all about Jesus and we can’t get distracted by anything that could detract from our relationship with Him.
I think our American view of sin is kind of off-kilter. Yes, a lot of what we consider sin is bad and we should avoid it. But all throughout scripture you see God putting more of an emphasis on taking care of the widow, orphan and alien than you do about people drinking or sleeping around. He even put his people into exile over their lack of love for those in need.
Maybe our idea of sin and God’s idea of sin are completely different.
You’re right, Jason. Sin means something different for a believe than it does a non-believer. We get so caught up in being holy (sometimes and some of us- I can’t say this about everyone) that we forget that love is a more common commandment than holiness or purity. It’s stupid- Especially when we allow this desire for the holy things to get in the way of loving each other as we should!
I actually left my former church over an issue just like this. Some of the leadership was propping up an idea of holiness that all leaders should attain to (that I don’t really think was biblical anyway), and it would have hindered me from taking communion when I ministered in Europe. I could not stand behind a rule that stopped me from taking communion with my brothers and sisters in Europe. It’s sad to see churches put that much emphasis on a rule as opposed to being on love.
Jason, that’s really interesting. What on earth could any leadership propose that would keep you from participating in communion? I understand that relationally, we have to be right with Christ to participate, but there aren’t a ton of verses about communion and why it shouldn’t be taken…. 1 Cor 11 talks about doing it in a worthy manner, were your European friends doing it with beer and chips? I had some friends do that one time……. I wouldn’t be brave enough to THAT…..
Either way- It isn’t about sin once we’re saved. It’s all about sin before-hand because it literally has the power to kill us. We just miss out on that sometime point sometimes
I’m not sure if your posts mean to be as deep as they are, but this is a subject we could discuss forever, I don’t even want to go there, but I have to read and study your words every time because they have depth beyond your average conversation among Christians, good job my friend. I might come back to this and give some more input than I am capable at this point, maybe I’m brain dead right now… Or maybe your doing what God has called you to do?
Floyd, let me start with “Thank you” for the amazing encouragement. Sometimes, this whole process isn’t excessively rewarding and it’s difficult. Second, you hit on some amazing thoughts and philosophies on your site, so hearing that from a man I’m coming to respect while reading his stuff… it means a lot.
I just want to live like God wants me to. I don’t think any of us has it entirely right, so I get to yell about it to everyone else and hope they listen 🙂