Readings: LV 19:1-2, 11-18; Responsorial Psalm PS 19:8, 9, 10, 15; Gospel MT 25:31-46
Getting into Heaven may not be as easy as some people think it might be. While God is merciful, there are also some expectations on us. As we hear in today’s Gospel reading, we are either sheep or goats.
He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
Then the king will say to those on his right,
‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father.
Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
Those on his right, the sheep, get into heaven, but those on his left, the goats, will not. What is the difference between being a sheep and being a goat?
For I was hungry and you gave me food,
I was thirsty and you gave me drink,
a stranger and you welcomed me,
naked and you clothed me,
ill and you cared for me,
in prison and you visited me.
The sheep ask, when they did those things for the Lord, and He responds:
‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did
for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’
While I strive to be a sheep, there are times I am a goat. I don’t do the things Jesus wants me to do.
I fear many people have come to believe, that they are a “good person” and that is all that is required to get into heaven. But what are they using to measure “good”? I think too many people use their own “measuring stick” instead of God’s “measuring stick”. And because of that, they may not be spending eternity, where they think they will.
So think about your life, and how you are living it. Are you doing the bare minimum or are you doing what God is asking you to do? Which measuring stick are you using to evaluate your life? Being a sheep, is a lot of work. But the payoff is better than you can imagine.
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