GOD'S APPROVAL

The Bible is replete with passages that give an indication of God's approval and His disapproval. One of such passages that I have been reminded of in recent times is Matthew 25:31-46.

“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.  All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats.  And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left.  Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’
 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’
“Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’
“Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” (NKJV)

This passage is an interesting one and like all other passages in the Bible, its message must be taken seriously. While the passage refers to the nations, let us not forget that nations are made up of individuals. Under the Levitical law, sheep and goats were both clean animals, so we should not be so fast to assume that the goats are unbelievers and the sheep are believers. Goats and sheep have different characteristics. Goats are not followers and are self-willed. The only individual the goat thinks about is himself or herself. The sheep, on the other hand, are obedient and always follow their master. One of the interesting things about this passage is that the goats and sheep are judged on the basis of their treatment of Jesus. The goats and sheep both called Jesus 'Lord' but the goats led hypocritical and self-centered lives. THE GOATS EARNED THE DISAPPROVAL OF JESUS, WHO IS GOD THE SON.

Many Christians today are like goats. They are opinionated and refuse to submit to authority. They see repentance of sin and acceptance of Jesus as Savior as the key to financial success and ostentatious living. Yet Jesus is not only Savior but also Lord.  They refuse to allow Jesus full reign over their lives. The Bible states very clearly that our lives are not our own; we have been bought with a price (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). Proper treatment of Jesus is rooted in obedience to Him. It is impossible to reach out to the poor, hungry, destitute, homeless, etc with true compassion if one is not abiding in Jesus and following Him every step of the way. Unfortunately in Christendom, we have both goats and sheep.
What are you, my brother  and my sister? You can only earn God's approval if you are like the sheep. Sheep have no agenda of their own and they love each other unconditionally.

A few days ago, the Holy Spirit drew my attention to Isaiah 58:10,11. I was really challenged.

"If you extend your soul to the hungry
And satisfy the afflicted soul,
Then your light shall dawn in the darkness,
And your darkness shall be as the noonday.

The Lord will guide you continually,
And satisfy your soul in drought,
And strengthen your bones;
You shall be like a watered garden,
And like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail."

All around us brethren are people who need help and the powerful Word of God. Will you be compassionate and go out of your way to help them? OR are you detached from the poor, needy and homeless? The issue is not whether they messed up their lives or not. The main issue is - what are you doing to help? Will you obey the still small voice of the Holy Spirit urging you to reach out to the down and out? IT IS ONLY THEN THAT WE WILL RECEIVE THE APPROVAL OF GOD.
It is important to note that God's love for mankind does not mean His approval. Those who are in hell and those who are headed for hell are loved unconditionally by God. It is His unconditional love that makes Him respect their decision to reject Jesus or live in ways that do not glorify God.

Galatians 5:19-21 says
" The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God." (NIV)

We cannot live anyhow and expect God's approval. We must exercise the gift of choice that we have received from God to do right and walk in His ways. We need to ask ourselves - How am I living? Do I have fits of rage? Am I jealous of someone? Do I pursue my selfish desires ignoring God's plan for my life? Am I constantly drinking and getting drunk? Or do I engage in sexual immorality? Am I prone to causing discord instead of contributing towards the peace?
LET'S EXAMINE OURSELVES, MY BRETHREN. Let's examine ourselves. God loves us unconditionally but I believe we cannot ignore the aspect of personal responsibility.

Finally may I remind us that Jesus is our perfect example.

"Now it happened, as Jesus sat at the table in the house, that behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Him and His disciples. And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to His disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” (Matthew 9:9-11, NKJV)

Jesus did not discriminate against the tax collectors and sinners. He sat down with them and ate with them. Isn't that amazing?  In fact the Pharisees were annoyed with Him because He ate with the outcasts. Let's get off superficial tendencies and follow Jesus without question. Then our hearts will become hearts of flesh responding with compassion to the needs of our fellow citizens. May God bless you as you read this note and seek to apply its message in your life. Amen.