I have chosen the Gospel of John as the subject. These articles will not run contiguously on this blog but peppered throughout and in the midst of other articles (though some might be posted consecutively). I pray that these will be a blessing and an edification for the saints.
JOHN 5:22,27-30
22 For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son:
27 And hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man.
28 Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
29 And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.
30 I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.
Daily we read the news, and examine social media and find ourselves assaulted with current trends, political events, and social entities that grieve our hearts, because it grieves the heart of GOD, for all the rebellion against Him and His Word.
We are reading about law suits against those who refuse to bow the knee and address those transgenders as their preferred identity. We read about not only full term abortion, but legitimate dialogue about infanticide - the killing of babies already born!
We witness the euthanizing of the elderly but not even in a humane method of putting them to sleep first and then lethal injection (which is bad enough!) but by slowly starving them to death?
We hear of the pedophilia community (it's grievous even to think that there is an entire community of such people) demanding the same rights that homosexuals demanded some decades ago.
Islam and foreigners are given preferential treatment (lavishly provided for, courtesy of our tax dollars) over Christians (whose land this once was, as a godly nation that esteemed GOD and His Word) and war veterans who served our country, many of them at great cost.
Democrats are increasingly destroying memorials and monuments that spoke of our Christian heritage, who despise our Constitution, who are enacting ungodly laws that are an affront to a holy GOD. And on and on and on . . . with no apparent end to this chaos in sight.
But there will be an end! The Judge is coming and Court Will Soon Be in Session!
It's the same Man Who is the Savior of the world, that GOD the Father has authorized to be the Judge of the whole world. He is Judge because He "is the Son of man" - the perfect, sinless man, successfully holy and eligible to judge all according to that holiness. Some would object that because He is GOD, He is perfect, and we cannot be as perfect because we are not GOD.
While that is true, it is also true that there isn't a sinner who ever lived who couldn't be accounted as holy as the Son of man, if by faith they received salvation, for that one is covered by "the robe of righteousness" (ISAIAH 61:10).
Not Judge only however, but also Executioner - that is, the Avenger of Blood (Sorry Captain America, JESUS is the original AVENGER!) Judgment will center around the quintessential question:
"Who do you say that I, the Son of man, am?" MATT 16:13-17.
If you acknowledge Christ as LORD and Savior and believe from the heart and confess this truth, you will receive salvation, grace, mercy and peace with GOD (ROM 10:9-10; ROM 5:1)!
Refuse His salvation, and you will know Him as your LORD and Judge.
Since GOD is Creator of all things, all things belong to Him, thus as Owner, He is the rightful Sovereign and LORD, and as LORD He establishes Law and thus is the worthy and qualified Judge. He as the Holy GOD of all, must judge sin - He would be unjust not to do so, and that is contrary to His nature.
Yet His nature also includes His heart of love and mercy. Thus He extends salvation as the Supreme Sacrifice for our sins by imputing our debt of sins into His own account and imputing Christ's wealth of holy righteousness to our account!
These holy offices of GOD as Creator, LORD, Judge and Redeemer are covered in the following series.
Life on this terrestrial ball is short-lived; James states that it's like a vapor that appears in an instant and then is gone (JAMES 4:14): that is the eternal perspective. Next to forever, 70 or 80 years is just a puff of smoke!
I think of standing at the shoreline of the ocean, watching wave after wave washing ashore and disappearing - and each wave is a generation of humanity washing upon the shores of eternity.
We will all face eternity and find ourselves facing destiny in one of two places: heaven or hell. What determines that destiny is who we decided to pledge our allegiance to in this life: either the LORD Creator Who made us and offered salvation from sin, death and hell through Jesus Christ - or an allegiance to ourselves 'as the captain of our own destiny' - that will land us in eternal flame of eternal judgment - something Christ shed His own blood to prevent, if only we by faith, pledge our hearts and loyalty to Him and His Kingdom!
The Son Who is in perfect unity with the Father (JOHN 10:30) cannot conduct Himself independently of Him (and the Holy Spirit for that matter!), and rather than proving Jesus to be lesser than God the Father (as Jehovah's Witnesses and others state), this shows that He is equal with the Father and "one" with Him because who could be united in heart, in purpose, in will and deed with GOD in perfectly except GOD?
This is why, when JESUS as JUDGE will perform this office on the Day of Judgment, He will conduct Himself in such a way as to find absolute ratification and agreement by the Father.
While we will all face judgment one Day, judgment for the sinner and saint will be radically different.
The sinner, who has refused Christ's offer of salvation will know judgment by the Holy Law of GOD:
1 TIMOTHY 1:8-10
8 But we know that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully; 9 Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, 10 For whoremongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind, for menstealers, for liars, for perjured persons, and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine;
ROMANS 3:10-20
10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: 11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. 12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. 13 Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: 14 Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: 15 Their feet are swift to shed blood: 16 Destruction and misery are in their ways: 17 And the way of peace have they not known: 18 There is no fear of God before their eyes. 19 Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. 20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
For the saint, our sins were judged at the cross, where Christ Himself willingly took the Father's punishment for our iniquities and offenses (ROM 8:3). We will stand before what's been called the Bema seat judgment:
1 CORINTHIANS 3:11-15
11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; 13 Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. 14 If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. 15 If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.
ROMANS 14:9-11
9 For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living. 10 But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. 11 For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.
2 CORINTHIANS 5:9-11
9 Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one 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; but we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your consciences.
Eternal life and heaven are gifts of GOD freely given through salvation and faith in Christ, wholly apart from works of our own making. Crowns and rewards are not according to grace in the sense that they are unconditionally given; these are given based on performance - however, and this must be clearly understood - even our performance of good works (EPH 2:8-10) are empowered by the same grace that enables our justification as well as by the word of GOD working in our lives by the Spirit (2 TIM 3:16-17; 1 THESS 2:13).
So if you are growing weary, beloved saint of GOD, from seeing the wickedness that is growing, seemingly unchecked, just remember: There is no such thing as eternal injustice. JUDGMENT IS COMING, by the JUDGE JESUS - Who is LORD, CHRIST, KING, REDEEMER, AVENGER and EXECUTIONER!
Meditate on PSALM 37 for more on this subject, and consider what attitude the righteous should have with the wicked as well as their own conduct in the light of injustices perpetrated by the wicked.
For more about this, consider this article from The RED PILL Consortium:
LIVING In LINEAR ASSUMPTIONS
Next time, FROM The MIND of FIRE: JOHN 5:31-34, 37 - WITNESS PROTECTION
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