Faithfulness counts and will be rewarded by God on the Last Day.

Every person is responsible for being ready for Christ's return.

The call to salvation in the Gospel will be received by few, but rejected by many.

The message of The Kingdom will either break men in repentance or crush men in their sins.

It is not enough to hear the truth. We have to live by that truth.

God's standard of reward is different from human standards of payment. Work in the kingdom is not rewarded based on merit, but on grace.

The two central points of this parable are: 1)The gift of salvation is immeasurably great, and 2)God's mercy is not effectual in unforgiving people.

The actions and attitude of the Shepherd mirror God's and should be present within the community of believers.

Separation in this parable is a major point of emphasis. The Jews could not eat all types of fish (Leviticus 11:9-12). Some were good, or edible, and some were bad, or inedible, and had to be thrown away. Separation also indicated that there are two responses to the gospel: some will receive and believe; others will reject and disbelieve. Jesus will also separate the sheep from the goats (Matthew 25:33).

The kingdom of God, which includes Christ, the gospel, etc., is more valuable than anything thing this world has to offer and the kingdom of God is worth giving up all to acquire it.