Are You a Sheep or a Goat?

Our Vision that All May Prosper

One of the primary goals of our brokerage is that all may prosper. It is literally our name. Obviously, profit matters. It is fundamental to the operation of a business. But we believe that chasing profit beyond all else and at the expense of other parties only leads to long-term harm to all involved. For example, if brokerage firms were to take such a large margin that the carriers they work with struggled to survive, eventually these carriers may have to shut down, leaving brokerage firms, the transportation industry, and society as a whole in a worse condition. Now, obviously, there are a multitude of complexities in business that this simple example does not account for, but the point still stands that commerce is inherently relational, and we who are involved in transactions of any kind are dependent on the success of others.

How this interdependence impacts us and steps we can take to create a more benevolent industry will be the subject of future newsletters. But today I want to discuss a more extreme extension of our company’s mission and the relational nature of humanity: the serving of the poor. A fundamental principle of our goal that all may prosper is the belief that all humans are valuable by their very nature. Notwithstanding the many notorious examples of this belief seemingly being ignored, you can find language speaking to the dignity of humans at the very foundation of the United States. The Declaration of Independence boldly proclaims, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights…”¹ And as Christians who believe that God knits together each person in their mother’s womb² and that each man is created in the image of God,³ the value of each human being cannot be ignored. All of this brings us to the question, how do we treat the people around us, and, more specifically, the most vulnerable?

What it Means to be a Sheep

In Matthew 25:31-46, Jesus emphasizes the importance of this question directly. He starts out by describing the end of the world, when He Himself will sit down and judge all people. The passage describes Jesus dividing all of humanity into two groups. Either you are placed with the sheep on His right or with the goats on His left. This being the final judgment of the world, you may have many ideas as to what the deciding factors may be that make one man a “goat” (those destined for eternal punishment) and another man a “sheep” (those who will inherit the Kingdom of God). But the simplicity of Jesus’ measure is striking. Describing those placed among the sheep, Jesus declares:

For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.⁴

Now this elicits a confused reaction among the “sheep,” as the passage goes on to say:

Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’⁵

And this question makes a lot of sense, particularly in today’s era where Jesus is not physically walking as a man among us. But Jesus’ explanation provides a great challenge for us today. He replies:

Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.⁶

A Call to Action

At this point you may be wondering, how does any of this relate to business, and, in particular, the transportation industry? At a surface level, whether you share our Christian beliefs or you simply desire to leave the world a better place than you found it, this is a call to look at your organization’s practices and think through how they may impact the most vulnerable in society and even the most vulnerable within your own company. You could also think of ways that your business could uniquely use its resources and talents to serve the poor. And if you aren’t in a position of power within your company to make such decisions, consider discussing your ideas with those who are.

But at a deeper level, this newsletter is a reminder to not get so caught up in the day-to-day of work that you miss the opportunities to do the truly meaningful things in life. As discussed earlier, you should care for those around you whose well-being may directly impact your own prosperity. For us, that involves the carriers and shippers we work with directly. Simply showing love to those you deal with is a massive improvement compared to many business interactions today and would make our industry and the world as a whole a better place. But how much more valuable is it to love those who cannot repay you? How much more impactful is it to give without any expectation of reciprocation? Whether or not you believe that how you treat the poor will impact your eternal salvation, if you truly think about it, I think you will agree with me that a world where people are willing to give freely, especially to those most in need, is a world that is desirable to live in. And we each have the power to individually do our part in bringing such a vision about. Let’s choose to be sheep.

References

1. The Declaration of Independence (1776).
2. The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, Psalm 139:13.
3. The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, Genesis 1:27.
4. The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, Matthew 25:35–36.
5. The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, Matthew 25:37–39.
6. The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, Matthew 25:40b.