Judgment of the Nations
Category: Evangelism & Soul Winning
Key Passage: Matthew 25:31-33
Speaker: Paul Chisgar
Date: September 18, 2022
Turn in your Bibles, if you would, to Matthew chapter 25. Matthew chapter 25 in God’s Word tonight. I’m playing up here with this thing here. Brother Anthony has got me a new little pointer, and I wanted to check out how to use it before I got there.
But Brother Gregory McCoy, it is all his fault we’re preaching on this subject tonight. Some of these young guys, they’re intelligent; they know their Bible. Every once in a while, they ask a little text or something on a question, and I’m like, why do they ask me all the hard questions?
I gave a quick answer, but I thought I need to look over that thing myself. I just felt like the Lord wants to cover it tonight. If you don’t like the message, blame it all on Brother Gregory McCoy. He’s not here tonight. He said he would watch it on YouTube later, or he couldn’t be here. I think I meant to send him the YouTube link, but I didn’t do it. Anyway, Matthew 25. I’m trying to put all the blame on somebody else if it’s not good.
The judgment of the nations is what we’re going to talk about—judgment of the nations. Or just to get people interested, we could say, “Why Trump didn’t make it into the White House.” Boy, that got you interested. I said this morning why he didn’t win; I believe he did win. I think he got much more votes. Nobody could convince me otherwise, friend. I just can’t do it. I think we got a whole lot more votes, but he didn’t make it to the White House. Nonetheless, I’ll tell you why many people think that, and it could be part of it, for sure. We’ll look at it in just a minute. Maybe we’ll put that on the Internet or something; maybe that’ll get some attention. We may have people out here with picketing signs next year. Sometimes something going on draws attention. So we’ll see what happens with all that. But Matthew 25 is where we’re at in God’s Word tonight.
By the way, one more thing before we get to God’s Word: there is a buzz in our church about something new coming to the area called Dunkin’ Donuts. Did you notice at the gas station? Right across from the new building, there will be a Dunkin’ Donuts. Brother Joel, that’s pretty close to revival. I’m going to cut the rug. Amen. There you go. Miss Melissa says she doesn’t know. But sometimes they put a Lowe’s up; they’re going to put a Home Depot next door—Walgreens, CVS, all that. So maybe Dutch Brothers will be covered right out. We’ll have to see. Then we’ll have competition. We’ll see what happens with all that.
Matthew 25. We’re going to start in verse 31 of God’s Word tonight. Would you stand, please, just briefly as we read three verses? This is Jesus’ Olivet Discourse, some will call it. It’s his last sermon he preaches here on earth before he went to the garden and the cross—the last sermon. This is the last part of the sermon, and that is a little significant to me: His last sermon foregoes the cross, and it is the last part of that sermon. The Sermon on the Mount is so often mentioned, and that’s rightfully so, but this is the last sermon and the last part of it.
Verse 31, Matthew 25, verse 31: “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, and the goats on the left.”
We’re basically just going to go verse by verse for the most part tonight. Let’s go back to verse 31, the first verse we read tonight. Matthew 25, verse 31. He says, “When the Son of Man shall come in his glory and all the holy angels with him”—he talks about that over in chapter 24; we won’t take time, but the angels come with him—“then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory.” So he’s coming in glory, and he’ll sit on his throne of glory.
Let’s quickly establish when this judgment of the nations is going to happen. Brother Marle, if we get that little chart up there just for a moment. This is the judgment of the nations. Thank you, Brother Martin. We just kind of want to get a timeline of what’s going on here: the judgments of the nations.
We read verse 31 so far. Look at verses 32 and 33. Matthew 25:32, 33: “And before him shall be gathered all nations.” That’s very key—not individuals, but all nations gathered together. “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, and the goats on the left.” This is interesting. I’m not sure exactly how he does it—maybe just with his hand—but he sets them. Perhaps those nations are trying to get over here on his right hand. They are trying to go to the right side of Jesus. He says, “That nation is Russia, maybe?” They have not been too friendly, maybe. Maybe just with his hand, he sets them. But he separates the nations. Right now there are 195 nations in the world, at least. There’s already been so much happening, so many wars in the Tribulation period. I don’t know what it looked like at that time, but all the nations would be gathered to him, and he’ll set the sheep. Maybe he picks them up just by the power of his word.
Look at verse 34: “And 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.”
When you are born again and you die, you get your inheritance. There is the judgment of Christ, or the Bema Seat judgment. But often in the Tribulation period, they have occurred in the presentation of the gospel during the Tribulation period. Jesus’ kingdom reign, the millennial reign, the thousand years of reign—you inherit the kingdom prepared from the foundation of the world.
By the way, you are saying now, “We won’t be a part of that; we’ll be with him.” There will be that crowd coming back with him. What does the Bible say? We shall reign with him. Keep your finger there. Revelation 5:10: “And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.” We will reign on the earth. He is sitting on the throne, but we will be part of the kingdom. A wonderful, wonderful time.
This is the judgment of the nations. Not everybody. Maybe you are just thinking, I see some smoke coming out of a couple of ears. That’s a good thing. Let’s keep going. What is the criteria? How does he judge in this judgment of the nations? By the way, later on is the Great White Throne judgment—the final judgment of the lost that never got saved. That’s the final, everlasting final judgment for the lost. This is the judgment of the nations. That’s the Great White Throne judgment. That will be later on in the timeline, after the Millennium reign. Then over there we have the Great White Throne judgment, where the small and great stand before God. This is the judgment of the nations.
What is the criteria for this judgment right here? Let’s look at this. Look at verse 35. Let’s just keep reading. I’m sorry, let’s just hit verse 34 quickly, then we’ll run this thing.
“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 hungered, 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 hungered, 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.” That is very important: “My brethren.” You have done it unto me.
Notice “my brother.” Jesus, here on earth, was Jewish. His mother Mary was a descendant of David—the Jewish people. His stepfather, Joseph, was Jewish; he was an Israelite. So his brethren are part of the Jewish people; they are the Israelites. The criteria of this judgment of these nations is how they treated the Jewish people. How they treated Israel is brotherhood, and that’s the criteria they are saying is very important in this judgment of the nations.
Look over in Genesis chapter 12, if you would please. This is the first time the word “nation” is mentioned singularly. Over here, Genesis chapter 12, verse 1. God is speaking to Abram, later Abraham. This is called the Abrahamic Covenant. Genesis 12, verse 1: “Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation.” That is the first time the word nation is mentioned regarding Israel. “And I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee.”
This over here, the judgment of the nations, is an ultimate fulfillment of when he said, “Those that bless you, I will bless them; those that curse you, I will curse them.” That promise is true today, and that’s not just America. We need to be so good to Israel because that promise has to be true. But the ultimate fulfillment of that is the judgment of the nations.
Look over in Joel chapter 3, if you would please. It gives us another glimpse of this judgment of the nations. Joel chapter 3. Joel chapter 3, look at verse 2: “I will also gather all nations.” Who is that? Israel. What is the criteria of this judgment of the nations? “For they have scattered my people for my heritage, Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations.”
Trump’s stance on the two-state solution—some on the conservative side, some on the liberal side—I’m not saying I don’t want him as president. You can argue about who you want to be. I just, man, I’d love to be a saved person, I would say that. Amen. The top running guy, for the most part, even on the public side, is not there, so it’s just out the window there, but they’ve still got to do it. That would be my first thing, to be honest with you. Maybe that is part of it. There is a curse when people start parting the line. God said that’s Israel’s land. I see it all one day in the judgment of the nations. Maybe that’s part of it; I’ll leave that up to you. But the criteria, man, you aren’t quite tonight. Come on now. I feel like it just took all the air out of the room now. Come on now. Let’s stay in there. I’m not even saying I won’t vote for Trump; I’m just saying God’s got to find out of the Bible. Let’s make sure we get close to the Bible.
By the way, praise the Lord, Trump was very good to Israel. In many ways, he moved the embassy to Jerusalem. That’s a good deal. But let’s just talk about the criteria. So the criteria is the treatment of my brother, really, my heritage from Joel, chapter 3.
God’s original intent was to work through the Jewish people; that was His people. He wanted to work in and through them. God deals with Israel first. God deals with the nations later. Israel backed away, said they wouldn’t have it. And so, Peter and Cornelius—God changed the focus. His people became His people. As many as received Him, they were the Gentile nations—the Church Age.
This doesn’t mean a Jewish person can’t get saved, but there are not very many. It doesn’t mean God won’t use a Jewish person, but there are not very many. We have to look pretty far.
During the Tribulation period, especially after the Jewish people first fall for the Antichrist, halfway through, at the Abomination of Desolation, their eyes open up. God goes back in Romans 11 and says that His gifts and callings are without repentance; He is talking about Israel. God goes back and uses His people, Israel, in a great way to evangelize the world—specifically the 144,000 Jewish evangelists.
The world sees the Antichrist and the False Prophet. If you are going to take the mark of the beast, you can’t buy or sell. Even those folks who get saved couldn’t take the mark if they couldn’t get saved. If you are Jewish during the Tribulation period, he is going to be after you. They are going to take the mark. Can you imagine how hard it will be to get food? No wonder the possible agents are going out.
Our job right now is to get the gospel out. Most of those Gentiles get saved through the witnessing of these evangelists. They are doing a great work for the Lord. How many have read The Hiding Place? You know how they made that secret compartment to hide all the Jewish people? Those people in that generation, if you are a Gentile and you didn’t take the mark, you got to say that you visited them in prison. You visited them. You gave them food. You gave them drink. “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” See, this is the judgment of the nations: how they treated Israel.
It’s going to be such a Gentile Christian thing that God’s working through the Jews. It doesn’t mean they can’t listen to my Lord, but very few Jewish people get saved. It’s kind of swapped, if you will. They are supposed to be financing and helping the Jewish people. He says those people are separated; they are put on the right side—those nations, because of the nations.
Here is the sad conclusion of this thing. Let’s keep going. We’re in verse 41. The sad part of this: “Then shall he say also unto them on the left, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire.” They will have the Great White Throne judgment later, where the lost are judged. But here, they are going to hell right away, if you will. “Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.” He just took care of them; that’s where they are. He just sent them in there.
“For I was an hungered, 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: or when I was sick, or in prison, and ye visited me not.”
Then shall they also answer him, saying, “Lord, when saw we thee an hungered, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?”
Then shall he answer them, saying, “Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.” As Jewish people, that gets polluting the world. Yes, it’s the only way. Please understand this: as far as salvation, it’s to heaven or hell; it’s all Jesus. Amen. One gospel. This is the judgment of the nations. He’s dealing politically with the world.
He says, “Every person in that nation was…” Well, just like today, the vast majority are Gentile, but there can be a Jewish person who would say, “Well, the nation as a whole…” Understand, it’s dealing with the nation as a whole. He says, “No, no. You did not have the Jewish people. You do not have the privilege as a nation to come into the kingdom. You go right here.” I am setting up my kingdom here on earth; I’ll have the nations I want in there. Amen. He is the King.
Verse 46 is the final part of his last message here, a conclusion to the whole sermon he has been preaching for a while. Verse 46: “And these shall go away into everlasting punishment.” Don’t believe the joke—it’s forever. Everlasting punishment. It’s the worst thing about it. “But the righteous into life.” Come on in. You have been saved, and you treated my people right. Come on in to life.
You didn’t come into the kingdom by works. By the way, those people who get saved in the Tribulation period—you talk about those that endure to the end shall be saved. If you live through it, you got saved, and you lived through the Tribulation period, you come into the kingdom. They will be hated. Mark describes it in Mark 13:13: “Ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” You come into the kingdom. You come in another way, but you are saved no matter what. Christ will be with them for all eternity.
Their job will be to use resources to help the Jewish evangelists spread the gospel. But our job now is for us to use everything—our resources, everything we have—to get the gospel out. You see, there is the first fruit, and then there is the main harvest. We are involved in the main harvest right now. Right now, we are to get the harvest, to get the saints, to fill up the Gentile bride, the Church. We are going to do all we can to get them in. We are supposed to use our resources, our time, our talents, our energy.
Some scholars, years ago, liberal theologians, said, “Well, see, that means the church is supposed to be feeding the hungry.” It is a good thing that we feed the hungry. That is not our job right now. Our job right now is to win souls. Amen. That’s the Great Commission. Pray for people. That’s a good thing. Let your life so shine. That’s not a bad thing; I’m not saying that. But our job is to get people saved. Amen. The Great Commission.
Look over here in Luke 16. We’re going to be there. Luke 16. To use our resources, what we can to get the gospel out. Preach the gospel everywhere, preachers. That’s your job, man. Look at Luke 16, verse 9:
“And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.” What is he talking about? Money. Mammon of unrighteousness. He says, take that money and make yourself friends. What kind of friends is he talking about? He doesn’t talk about it—that when you fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations. He says, take that money and your resources and make friends. The type of friends you talk about: when you die, they’ll receive you. Hey, you had a partner to get saved. Amen. That’s what we must do now. Take our resources, even our money, and yes, take care of you and your family—that’s the first thing. But beyond that, take that money and make yourself friends so that when your time is up, you have some people to welcome you into everlasting habitations.
That’s today. Now, one day, as far as the Gentiles who get saved, you’re like, “Man, take care of the Jewish evangelists.” Brother Stormer was at an art festival; somebody else told him before he even mentioned it, but he had gospel tracts on him out there. Brother Gregory was giving me a hard time when you were talking about that, but he was fair to the gospel. Just use our resources to try to gather the harvest. In a little time, the harvest will be over. Now is the main harvest. Right now, I’m using the Gentile. Let’s get the harvest here. Use your resources, man. Make some friends so that when your time’s up, you’ve got some people to welcome you into everlasting habitations.
Just be a good night for us just to sell out again. Just sell out again. Say, “Lord, I give my resources, but I give them all—not necessarily to the church or whatever, but to the Lord.” Just give them all to Him. Just a good night just to give you name and say, “I’m yours, Lord. My house is yours, my mind is yours, my parents are here, my kids are yours.” Just give everything. It’s a good night to sit down and say, “Lord, I’m yours. Would you use me in this main part?” Yes, a good night just to say, “Lord, I’m yours.”
Original File: Why Trump didn’t make it to the Whitehouse - Pastor Paul Chisgar - Sunday PM 09182022