“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind. When it was full, men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into containers but threw away the bad. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Matthew 13:47-50

Some of the parables of Jesus presented an uncomfortable truth in a familiar story. The listeners of His day knew the difference between a good and bad fish. Jewish law prohibited the eating of any sea creature without scales or fins-

These you may eat, of all that are in the waters. Everything in the waters that has fins and scales, whether in the seas or in the rivers, you may eat. But anything in the seas or the rivers that does not have fins and scales, of the swarming creatures in the waters and of the living creatures that are in the waters, is detestable to you.

Leviticus 11:9-10

Some will say that we are not under the dietary restrictions of the Old Testament and miss the point of the parable. This is not about fish, but about human beings. Some will be saved and experience eternal life, but those who do not follow Christ will receive judgment and eternal punishment.

As I write this I am reminded of some of the people I know and care for who do not currently claim to follow Christ and I fear for the outcome of their lives. The end will come for every single one of us and so we should live each day as people who follow Christ at all costs.