And he will separate them one from another,
as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
The LORD is the Good Shepherd. He will not force those who don't want his guidance to receive it. Goats that do not want to be shepherded need not live in the kingdom of the shepherd. These goats shun the shepherd by shunning the poor, the sick, and the weak. Sheep that choose the shepherd and his kingdom love the image of the shepherd in all of his people. They choose the shepherd and his kingdom every time they choose to love. Goats that cannot do this are not suited to life in a kingdom where everything is based on love. They opt out of living in this kingdom by their choices both implicit and explicit. But do they realize the consequences?
And these will go off to eternal punishment,
but the righteous to eternal life.
Goodness is to be found in the Good Shepherd and his kingdom alone. He is the source of all goodness. There is no place for the goats to find it apart from him. It's frightening to know that we can all be stubborn goats at times. But it is not too late. It is the time of mercy where we can choose to belong to Christ more and more.
so too in Christ shall all be brought to life,
but each one in proper order:
Christ the firstfruits;
then, at his coming, those who belong to Christ;
then comes the end,
when he hands over the kingdom to his God and Father,
when he has destroyed every sovereignty
and every authority and power.
When we see clearly we realize that our shepherd king is wonderful. We see how foolish we are when we choose anything but him. We may be distant from him. We may be lost. But he is the shepherd that leaves the ninety-nine to seek the one. He is searching even now for us. He desires a more complete surrender of our hearts to him.
As a shepherd tends his flock
when he finds himself among his scattered sheep,
so will I tend my sheep.
I will rescue them from every place where they were scattered
when it was cloudy and dark.
If we want to come to the green pastures of repose promised to the blessed we need to choose Christ now. We live in the time of mercy but we do not know how long we have. Judgment is certain and time will eventually run out. We need to choose him freely now. If we aren't all the way converted he'll do the rest. He'll destroy every sovereignty and power in our hearts as well as in the world. And as long as we cling to him we not only survive that judgment but we experience deep union with God himself beyond anything we can imagine.
When everything is subjected to him,
then the Son himself will also be subjected
to the one who subjected everything to him,
so that God may be all in all.
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