The Parable of the Sheep and the Goats

--posted by A.M. Kisly--

Where do you stand in relation to the Shepherd of your soul? Are you a sheep or a goat, saved or lost? Until you come to the place in your life that you find yourself among the sheep, until you are saved by faith, through the grace and mercy of God, you will never find true and lasting peace with God.

Jesus is the gate to the sheepfold. There's no other way in to eternal life, but by Him. And He hasn't made the way closed or hidden. The gate is open and there's always room for more.

Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.  (Matt. 11:28-30)

Come on home and lay down at the Shepherd's feet.

Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. (Isaiah 1:18)

Consider Matthew 25:31-46 (KJV) - The Parable of the Sheep and the Goat

“When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me. Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.”

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A Study in Paul’s Epistle to the Romans – “On the Road of Righteousness” Chapter Five:

~ By James Fire

Chapter Five: The FAITH, HOPE and LOVE in the REIGN of Grace as found in Romans Five

It’s long been said that when you encounter a “therefore” (or even a “wherefore”) in the Scriptures, you have to find out what it’s ‘there for’; in other words, these two words are transitive. They relate a previous thought with the one that follows and that is the case here in Romans chapter Five. Let’s back up a bit and review the last couple of verses in chapter Four:

ROMANS 4:22-25
And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.

Because Abraham “staggered not at the promise of God” (vs. 20) it was “imputed to him for righteousness” (vs. 22). This imputed righteousness means that the LORD God, by propitiation and atonement by the blood of Christ Jesus (ROM 3:25) and His resurrection (ROM 4:25) has justified us, and because of this justification “therefore… we have peace with God through our LORD Jesus Christ”.

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CHRIST’s COURT: Soon In Session – Part 1

Co-authored by James Fire and Anne Kisly

Be sure to check out the following teaching by pastor Sonny Islas of SHINE BRIGHT Church (Tucson, AZ) regarding the false doctrine of annihilationism as recently (December of 2025) promoted by Kirk Cameron.

There is one source for spiritual truth in this world: that is the Word of God, the Holy Scriptures; there are innumerable sources of lies propagated in the world today, from innumerably apparent sources in religion, philosophy, psychology, science falsely called, etc. Ultimately however these derive from the one source of lies that presents the major contention for the Christian, which is the “father of lies” or Satan.

SAVING THE UNIVERSE?

One manifestation of false doctrine that promotes certain lies that have in the past infiltrated the church, and even more so in these present days, is Universalism. What does this doctrine declare?
“The ultimate restoration of all sinners to happiness and the favor of God is maintained by Universalists (q.v.) on the ground that the final exclusion of any soul from heaven would be contrary to the illimitable love of God; that the wrath of God is only exercised against sin-repentance, even in the future life, bringing about a restoration to his love.”

The above quote is taken from the Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature, Volume 10, 1895, pp. 109-33, Rev. John McClintock and James Strong.

We will refer to this work by McClintock and Strong again, later.

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The REALITY Of The RAPTURE

By James Fire  

Having completed the 6 part series of The RAPTURE: The WHO and WHEN of it ALL, I decided that there were some loose ends to tie up, and points that could be honed to a finer point, and therefore prove useful for the reader.

This article will hopefully provide these.

TWO FAMILIES -

In any view of eschatology, the two groups of people, namely Israel and the Church, will inevitably come up. From a dispensationalist (and this is a loaded term that can mean many things to different groups) view point there are many that make assertions as to the differences between these two that could be considered unwarranted, even extreme in light of the whole Word of God. Yet distinctions there are. These must be clearly understood, otherwise there will arise confusion regarding the applicability of scripture to the one group or the other.

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The Simple and Serious Gospel of Salvation - Part 3

By James Fire

The Salvation Solution –

There is a dreaded disease far more destructive and insidious even than A.I.D.S., and has a far higher mortality rate as well. This disease has effected every man, woman and child on the planet. A.I.D.S. results from HIV which can incubate for up to 15 years without symptoms showing. This deadlier disease always results in death, and everyone has tested ‘positive’.

Indeed, we are all S.I.N.+ and symptoms show almost immediately in our existence.

Sin is so devastating that it’s affected the heart (that is, the core essence of one’s being or “spirit”) to such a detrimental level as to be considered irreversible.

We find this passage in: 

JEREMIAH 17:9 –10
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? (10) I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.

The Hebrew word for “desperately” means “incurable”!

Even God can’t cure a heart that has been ruined by sin? No, even God is unable to accomplish this, as incredible as that sounds.

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