The Bible brings to light several offices with which Jesus is invested, for He is not only Savior and Lord, but He is also King and Judge. Most people prefer to dwell on His capacity as Savior, but in His role of the Judge of all mankind He is hardly recognized or even mentioned. This one-sided perception of Jesus will change soon, as the investigative judgment wraps up in the courts above.
The book of Revelation, as well as several others, do bring to light the fact that Christ, as our Mediator is not biased nor partial in His assessments, neither is He a respecter of persons, as if anyone could curry- favor Him into favorable determinations. The basis of His kingdom is truth, righteousness, mercy and justice, all being blended into one indivisible whole, by which final judgments are to be made either for or against the human agent.
Therefore, it is necessary to lay out in plain simple terms, that which we will all must confront sooner or later. To begin with, there are some misnomers which of necessity must be shaken down from their popular perch for they will greatly impede our basic understanding of what is involved in the judgment.
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God does not permit mercy to interfere with justice.
First of all, individuals who would be saved in God’s kingdom will be saved because of Christ’s death and His righteousness bequeathed to those who believe and obey. Even though some may have erroneously depicted Christ as one-sided in character, as being a God of love, without attributes of justice, yet this is a false representation, and all those who embrace it will be subject to a very great disappointment, and surprise.
God does not permit mercy to interfere with justice, neither does He permit emotionalism to get in the way of executing that which is necessary. When it was time for our salvation to be cemented in stone, Jesus became the recipient of the full extent of The Father’s justice, as He suffered and then died on the cross. This was done, even though The Father felt very sorry for Jesus and suffered with Him.
Again, there are many instances in the Bible where The Lord showed mercy to the sinner, and even the mercy seat was located above the law in the earthly sanctuary. But in every single instance where mercy was dispensed because of sin, it was always against the backdrop of justice, that would be meted out to Jesus Christ in due season. That’s because all sin will be prosecuted to the full extent of the Law, one way or another.
The word “forgive” means to cancel a debt. In one advertisement it is stated that Liberty Mutual does not hold grudges, and they won’t raise your rates for the first accident. Thus, the additional premiums one would have incurred are absorbed by Liberty. At times, individuals who have run deep into debt, and can’t pay, receive some sort of reprieve from the credit card company, by which much of the debt is cancelled.
Again, during the financial melt-down of 2008 some borrowers went under, and loan forgiveness was offered, whereby mortgage debts were cancelled. But, in each and every instance mentioned above, the cost of extending mercy to a person is absorbed by the lender, or the insurance company, because mercy, forgiveness, and the cancellation of debts, always carries a cost.
Thus, God forgives us our debts by transferring the penalties, and the wages of sin to Jesus Christ, who suffered on the tree, and thus forgiveness has been granted to all. But the sin itself must always be paid for in full. Always! In fact, the apostle Paul bids us behold soberly, both the goodness, and justice of God.
In other words, if the forgiveness offered through Jesus is not accepted nor appreciated, the offer of mercy will be withdrawn, and individuals will then have to bear the full brunt of the wages of sin, which will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
After pleading, in tender tones with the people of Noah’s day for 120 years, The Holy Spirit was finally withdrawn, and justice, unmingled with mercy was administered. If the antediluvians had accepted the forgiveness of God, then the justice which their sins had called for would be postponed until Calvary, for God’s mercy is never permitted to interfere with justice. Let’s read:
Romans 11:21 For if God spared not the natural branches take heed lest he also spare not thee.
22 Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.
In the case of Jesus, God’s justice was delivered on the cross, and the strict justice then meted out was leveled at The One who is described in the Bible as being God’s “Darling” and His “Fellow”. Now, if God dealt strict justice to His “Darling” just imagine what the end will be for those who despise His law and His grace. Let’s read:
Isaiah 53:4 Surely, he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows, yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
Now, if God dealt as such with Jesus, who knew no sin, then it tells us that due judgment will be meted out in full to those persons who reject the gracious overtures made by God to us in Christ. This sobering aspect of the gospel is hardly ever referenced to by popular, smooth-talking preachers of the day, and it is an aspect of God’s character that the multitudes, in general prefer not to hear. But let’s read:
Hebrews 10:26 For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more sacrifice for sins,
27 But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation which shall devour the adversaries.
28 He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses.
29 Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden underfoot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?
31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
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His assessments are impartial and just.
The history of the antediluvian world, and the flood of waters which subsequently engulfed the entire planet, shed light on the accuracy, and impartiality of His assessments, because, after close and factual observation of all the thoughts and actions of men at that time God correctly concluded that only eight persons could justifiably be saved.
Therefore, even though God delights in mercy, yet eight is eight, and nothing else. His assessments are not swayed by sheer numbers even though it was in great sadness that God destroyed the then-known world of approximately 7 billion people. Thus, He destroyed it anyway, because it was the right thing to do at the time. Feeling sorry for persons does not prevent God from doing what is right. Let’s read:
Genesis 7:1 And the Lord said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation.
4 For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth.
This was one of His “Strange acts” but because it is dirty work, God does not refrain from doing it. The argument was put forth in the days of Noah that it is contrary to God’s character to destroy, and thus, those who should have heeded the warning given, shrugged it off as a gross misinformation campaign on the part of the one who delivered the message.
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Good intentions alone are not sufficient to exonerate anyone.
In the days of Noah there were several other people who were employed in the building of the ark, but many of them either died before the flood, or were buried in the watery grave. Good intentions must be coupled with concrete actions for persons to be saved in the day of judgment, because it is not the hearers, but the doers who will be saved. Let’s read:
Matthew 21:28 But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go work today in my vineyard.
29 He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he repented, and went.
30 And he came to the second and said likewise. And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not.
31 Whether of them twain did the will of his father? They say unto him, The first. Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you.
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Sin has to be paid for. Either by Christ, individuals, or satan.
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
There is no such thing as sin without consequence, and thus, it behooves us to consider carefully God’s gift to us through Christ by which justice, mercy and truth were blended for our salvation. But there are many who may not see the necessity or the urgency in partaking of the proffered gift, and thus, although Christ has paid the debt for the entire world, such persons will have to pay for their own sins.
Thus, with these few pointers in mind, let’s turn to the topic at hand: “Judgement Day Is Coming”. In the days of Moses, and throughout the history of the Hebrews, God had ordained that judges be put in positions of trust to apply the law of God without impartiality. These judges were given the work of administering judgments that were written in the law of God.
And since the conscience of a nation is seated in its laws, it was, and still is, absolutely necessary that the administration of justice be predicated on those principles that are written in God’s word. Therefore, the judges were strictly warned against interpreting or applying the law in a way that would show bias, preference, or respect of persons, or favoritism.
This in turn would assure equal rights and justice for all, so that no individual would have occasion to feel unfairly treated by the courts, and as a direct result, the populace would have great trust in their judicial system. Thus, the judiciary, under God were given a charge to be faithful and unbiased in the execution of judgment. Let’s read:
Deuteronomy 1:16 And I charged your judges at that time, saying, Hear the causes between your brethren, and judge righteously between every man and his brother, and the stranger that is with him.
17 Ye shall not respect persons in judgment; but ye shall hear the small as well as the great; ye shall not be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment is God's.
Deuteronomy 16:18 Judges and officers shalt thou make thee in all thy gates, which the Lord thy God giveth thee, throughout thy tribes: and they shall judge the people with just judgment.
19 Thou shalt not wrest judgment; thou shalt not respect persons, neither take a gift: for a gift doth blind the eyes of the wise, and pervert the words of the righteous.
20 That which is altogether just shalt thou follow, that thou mayest live.
2nd Chronicles 19:5 And he set judges in the land throughout all the fenced cities of Judah, city by city,
6 And said to the judges, Take heed what ye do: for ye judge not for man, but for the Lord, who is with you in the judgment.
7 Wherefore now let the fear of the Lord be upon you; take heed and do it: for there is no iniquity with the Lord our God, nor respect of persons, nor taking of gifts.
But throughout much of the history of the Hebrews, the taking of bribes, and the practice of preferential treatment based upon race, creed, class, and wealth became a cancer that ultimately destroyed the very fabric of justice, and before long, the right seemed wrong and the wrong seemed right.
Moral darkness was put in place of light, and bitter instead of sweet, and folks became so blinded that a sense of justice was effectively destroyed, and the once-sensitive conscience, became desensitized to the grossest evils. That’s how Barabbas came to be chosen instead of Christ, and those who slew God’s servants thought they were doing Him service. Let’s read:
Matthew 27:15 Now at that feast the governor was wont to release unto the people a prisoner, whom they would.
This practice of pardoning a known criminal, for no just reason, did not have its foundation in justice, but was instead an abuse of executive power. But the minds of the people had become so blinded to a sense of justice that the practice had become set in stone, and socially acceptable.
God’s judgement is quite different to the contrary, because His pardoning of known criminals, is always based on justice, for mercy is never to be arbitrarily administered at the expense of justice. Therefore, in every instance where we see Jesus forgiving folks, it was, and is always in the context of the justice that was meted out at Calvary. Not so with the Hebrews who had lost their sense of justice. Let’s read:
Matthew 27:16 And they had a notable prisoner called Barabbas.
17 Therefore when they were gathered together, Pilate said unto them, Whom will ye that I release unto you? Barabbas, or Jesus which is called Christ?
20 But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude that they should ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus.
It would be well if the miscarriage of justice ended in the days of Christ, but alas, perverted judgement as a stage 4 cancer, has currently metastasized into an open putrefying wound, a deadly infection that is threatening the stability and viability of government and people alike.
Evils, from which we once recoiled as a nation do not raise an eyebrow anymore, and the practice of telling lies in high and low places, has proliferated to the point where the people have come to accept it as being normal. Fraud, and respect of persons, with favoritism, stalk the streets unrebuked and the truth has succumbed to fake news.
Justice is being made subservient to political, or to financial interests, and it seems as if the fear of God and our sense of right and wrong has now become so benumbed that we have essentially traded Christ for Barabbas. Thus, as a nation, we might be doing well financially, but morally, we’re in the toilet, and therefore the prophet Isaiah correctly describes the current situation in our world. Let’s read:
Isaiah 59:1 Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear.
2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.
3 For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness.
4 None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.
6 Their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.
7 Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths.
8 The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace.
9 Therefore is judgment far from us, neither doth justice overtake us: we wait for light, but behold obscurity; for brightness, but we walk in darkness.
10 We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noon day as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men.
11 We roar all like bears and mourn sore like doves: we look for judgment, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far off from us.
12 For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us: for our transgressions are with us; and as for our iniquities, we know them;
13 In transgressing and lying against the Lord, and departing away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.
14 And judgment is turned away backward, and justice stands afar off, for truth is fallen in the street and equity cannot enter.
15 Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the Lord saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment.
Therefore, God is about to take matters into His own hands, for if we continue to pervert judgment, if we continue to call evil good, and good evil, then The Lord will have no choice but to intervene, and when He does it will be quite traumatic, because, true to His history, He will not stop until He has made a full end. Let’s read:
Isaiah 59:16 And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore, his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him.
17 For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak.
18 According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, fury to his adversaries, recompense to his enemies.
Jeremiah 25:29 Should ye be utterly unpunished? Ye shall not be unpunished: for I will call for a sword upon all the inhabitants of the earth, saith the Lord of hosts.
30 Therefore prophesy thou against them all these words, and say unto them, The Lord shall roar from on high, and utter his voice from his holy habitation; he shall mightily roar upon his habitation; he shall give a shout, as they that tread the grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth.
31 A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth; for the Lord hath a controversy with the nations, he will plead with all flesh; he will give them that are wicked to the sword, saith the Lord.
32 Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Behold, evil shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind shall be raised up from the coasts of the earth.
In lieu of these somber warnings, it is necessary that the truth about the coming judgments be told, for all persons must stand before the judgement seat of Christ. There is a hymn that is sung, “Take my life and let it be”; the truth is that Jesus will take all of our lives one way or the next either for destruction or preservation, but He will take it.
This fact has nothing to do with whether individuals profess to believe in Jesus or not, for we belong to God both by creation, and redemption. And thus, it is not necessary for one to believe in Christ for Him to have jurisdiction over his/her life. Let’s read:
2nd Corinthians 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that everyone may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
11 Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men.
Again, many misinterpret God’s grace and mercy as being a weakness in His character, and because He is not willing that any should perish, some people have concluded that He will not do good or evil. But the scriptures caution us against such deductions. Let’s read:
Ecclesiastes 8:11 Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.
12 Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him.
13 But it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his days, which are as a shadow; because he feareth not before God.
Psalms 50:3 Our God shall come and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him.
4 He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people.
5 Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.
6 And the heavens shall declare his righteousness: for God is judge himself.
Therefore, after all the lies have been told, after all the drugs have been sold, after all the sexual abuse by clergy and laity, and after all the violence, and after all the distortions of marriage in high and low place, let us always remember that judgment day is coming soon, a day in which the final reckoning will take place, which will forever determine our own destiny. Let’s read:
Ecclesiastes 12:13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.
God Bless!