Jesus once referred to the difficulty of telling the difference between sheep and goats. In those days sheep and goats were very similar to each other and it took an expert to tell them apart easily.
This week I was in Linlithgow on a nice fresh and sunny day and parked down by the lochside. There were swans and geese swimming about on the blue water as well as sunning and preening on the grass. At first glance I found it quite hard to tell the difference between them. And I wondered whether if Jesus had been telling that same story in Linlithgow that day if he might have used the Swans and Geese to illustrate his point instead of sheep and goats.
Jesus was saying that even though we might find it quite difficult to tell apart those who are members of God's family, from those who choose not to be in God's family, God wouldn't have any difficulty. He would find it easy to separate the sheep from goats, and no doubt the swans from the geese.
The sheep, and let's say the swans, are those who are Children of God. They feed the hungry, give a drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, give clothing to those with none, take care of the sick, and visit those in prison.
You can't tell them apart just by looking at them - only by the way they live their lives. Are you a goose or a swan?
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