Who Are “The Least of These, My Brothers” (Matthew 25:40)
The Sheep, the Goats, and the Gospel
If you wanted to preach a message of dead works, there is perhaps no better parable than the one about the sheep and the goats.
You may know the story. At the end of the age, the Son of Man will return in kingly glory with all his angels, and the nations will be gathered before him. Like a shepherd, he will separate the sheep from the goats. The sheep will inherit a kingdom and eternal life, while the goats will go away to eternal punishment (see Matt. 25:31–46).
Here’s the bit that can lead to dead works:
Then the King will say to those on his right, “Come, you who are blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited me in; naked, and you clothed me; I was sick, and you visited me; I was in prison, and you came to me.” (Matthew 25:34–36)
The righteous sheep are surprised to hear this:
Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when did we see you hungry, and feed you, or thirsty, and give you something to drink? And when did we see you a stranger, and invite you in, or naked, and clothe you? When did we see you sick, or in prison, and come to you?” (Matthew 25:37–39)
And the King will reply,
“Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of mine, even the least of them, you did it to me.” (Matthew 25:40)
And the question we are left asking is, who are “these brothers of mine”?
Enter, the preacher of works. “The Lord’s brothers are the least, the last, and the lost. The sheep inherit eternal life because they ministered to the poor and needy.”
Which makes no sense at all. If eternal life is an inheritance, you can’t earn it. That’s not how inheritances work.
What makes a sheep a sheep?
It is good to share your bread with the needy, but you are mistaken if you think your charitable works can save you. Notice how Jesus refers to the sheep as “the righteous” before adding that they are blessed by the Father.
The sheep are not those who do good works; they are those who are blessed with the righteousness that comes from God. They inherit the kingdom, they don’t earn it.
The goats, meanwhile, are sent packing because they didn’t minister to “the least of these,” which seems to support the idea that you need to work your way into the kingdom. But the King calls the goats “accursed ones” (v.41). Just as the righteous sheep are blessed, the goats are cursed.
Why are some people blessed while others are cursed? We are blessed when we receive the free gift of God’s righteousness, but if we refuse that gift – if we prefer to trust in our own righteousness or morality – we curse ourselves.
Who are “these brothers of mine”?
The goats are in trouble because they neglected “these brothers of mine.” Jesus is not talking about poor people, but Christians. In Matthew’s Gospel, “brothers” almost always refers to spiritual brothers (e.g., Matt. 12:49, 18:15, 28:10).
(Sidebar: Although Jesus identifies with the poor, he never calls them his brothers. However, he did say, “Whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother” (Matt. 12:50).)
Christ reveals himself to people through Christians. He can even reveal himself through the least or most insignificant believer.
When Jesus sent out the twelve, he said, “He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives him who sent me” (Matt. 10:40). To receive a Christian in the name of the Lord is to receive Christ himself.
What are the rewards of serving these brothers?
The works preacher will say that you can earn salvation by serving the poor, but that is not what Jesus is talking about here. The rewards of receiving Christ’s brothers – Christians – are the rewards that come from receiving Christ.
When people welcomed the disciples into their homes, they got to hear the good news of God’s love and grace. By believing their message, they received the Father’s blessings, and at the final judgment, they will inherit the kingdom prepared for them from the foundation of the world.
You only need to look at your own life to know this is true. You received the gospel message because you received one of Christ’s brothers. It might’ve been a famous evangelist or someone who had only recently come to Christ – one of “the least of these”. It makes no difference. When you received the messenger as an ambassador of Christ, you received Christ.
Imagine if you hadn’t. Imagine if you had ignored that person when they started talking about the Lord. You might never have received the blessings of grace that God offers to all.
The end of the goats
Notice that the King does not condemn the unrighteous goats for their sins. There is no mention of envy, lust, quarrels, or tax evasion, because God does not hold our sins against us (2 Cor. 5:19).
The goats’ problem is not their sin but their stubborn, goatlike refusal to receive God’s saving grace. When Christ’s brothers came knocking, they didn’t want to hear about it. By rejecting the Lord’s salvation, they committed the only sin that cannot be forgiven—the sin of unbelief.
On the Mount of Olives, the disciples asked Jesus about the end of the age (Matt. 24:3). The Parable of the Sheep and the Goats is his answer to their question.
On the day the Lord returns in glory, he will separate the sheep he knows by name from the goats who don’t want to know him. The righteous will be welcomed into the Lord’s eternal kingdom, while those who scorned his brothers and rejected their message will find they have no place there.
Here’s the takeaway. If you are one of Christ’s brothers – a Christian – do not hesitate the share the good news with others. Even if you are the most insignificant Christian in the kingdom, you have the words of eternal life. You have the message that saves the lost and raises the dead.
Those who receive you, receive Christ, and they will be blessed by the Father.
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Read the Parable of the Sheep and Goats in full on the Grace Commentary.
Check out Paul’s grace-based take on all the Parables of Jesus. (It’s free!) And don’t forget to check out these 3 mistakes people make when reading the Parables.
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Escape to Reality 
Another awesome and enlightening message. Thank you!
Paul, alternatively, this passage in Matthew 25:31-36 concerning the judgment of the nations at the return of Christ, is a judgment based on works, not on faith in Christ.
Those being judged are those on earth who have survived the Day of the LORD; and this is when Jesus decides either to allow such survivors to continue alive into his Millennial reign on earth, or to be sent directly to the lake of fire:
Matthew 25:46 (Young’s Literal Translation)
“And these shall go away to punishment age-during, but the righteous to life age-during.”
The works that they did, or did not do, have to do with their treatment of believers during the Great Tribulation and the Day of the LORD.
The final great white throne judgment takes place at the end of the Millennial Age (Rev. 20:11-15); but the Matthew 25:31-36 judgment takes place at the beginning of the Millennial Age.
I prefer interpretations that are (a) scriptural and (b) simple. The parable makes it plain the judgement is based on whether one is a righteous and blessed sheep, or a cursed goat. It’s who you are, not what you do that counts, and the Shepherd knows his sheep (John 10:14).
You would have to reject the entire New Testament to suggest that the judgment was based on our works or that there are two judgments, one based on faith and the other on works. I mean, it’s ridiculous. How many works would you have to do to qualify? What if you were one good work short? What if you’d died young and lacked the time to rack up sufficient works? We are saved by grace through faith and not works (Eph. 2:8-9). Period.
As for the great tribulation, Jesus gave ten signposts and a specific timeframe for that event.