Tag Archives: judge

JESUS SAID – 4

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John 12:47-48 NLT
[47] “I will not judge those who hear me but don’t obey me, for I have come to save the world and not to judge it. [48] But all who reject me and my message will be judged on the day of judgment by the truth I have spoken.”

We have, somehow, developed the idea, that, on Judgment Day, when all people stand before God to give an account of their lives, God will interrogate them thoroughly, digging through all their words and actions to uncover attitudes and motives. This sounds like a very long process, given the vast number of all who ever lived and will still live. Imagine the terror of having to wait your turn!

What does the Bible say about Judgment Day?

First, Jesus said that we will be judged by His words…

John 12:48 NIV
[48] “There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; the very words I have spoken will condemn them at the last day.”

He also said that we would be judged by our words!

Matthew 12:36-37 NIV
[36] But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. [37] For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

As I was pondering this statement, several Scriptures came to mind.

First, everyone will judged by the standard of God’s Word, Jesus Himself.

Revelation 19:13, 16 NIV
[13] “He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God…
[16] On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: king of kings and lord of lords.”

Second, what about our words? Jesus asked His disciples one question that everyone must answer…

Matthew 16:15 NIV
[15] “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”

Every human will have to give an answer by which he/she will be judged.

John 3:18 NIV
[18] “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.”

Paul said,

Romans 10:9 NIV
[9] “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

This is the only response God requires of us to be saved from the ravages of our sin.

However…this confession is only the first step. Some words spoken can be empty, that is “idle” or “careless”. To authenticate this confession, there must be a lifetime of confirmation.

Luke 6:46 NIV
[46] “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?”

Matthew 7:21-23 NIV
[21] “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. [22] Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ [23] Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

To stand before the Judge, then, and to be declared, “Not guilty!” requires only two steps…

Faith in Jesus as Lord,
Obedience to His word.

Long before we ever face the Lord on judgment day, the Apostle John assures us…

1 John 3:19 NIV
[19] “This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence:”

1 John 3:23 NIV
[23] “And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us.”

The New Covenant has condensed all of the 613 laws and requirements of the Old Covenant into two simple commands.

The evidence that our confession of Jesus as Lord is true, lies in the way we have obeyed His teachings and confirmed our union with Him.

John 14:18-21 NIV
[18] I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. [19] Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. [20] On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. [21] Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”

Jesus speaks of an intimate union with Him that demonstrates the truth of His declaration,

John 15:5 NIV
[5] “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; APART FROM ME YOU CAN DO NOTHING.”

Judgment Day, then, is not about how good or bad we have been. For the unbeliever, his sinful life will expose his unbelief in Jesus as Lord. For the believer, his union with Jesus as close as a branch in the vine, will be on display by the fruit of that union…God’s love at work through him.

Let’s look at it this way. Simultaneously, every person appears before the Lord. What does He see? Light and darkness…that’s all. Those who have embraced Jesus as Lord and lived by His Word will be alight with His light. Conversely, those who rejected His word and loved by their own standards will be in darkness.

1 John 1:5-7 NIV
[5] “This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. [6] If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. [7] But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.”

And so, Paul encourages us,

Ephesians 5:8-10, 12-13 NIV
[8] For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light [9] (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) [10] and find out what pleases the Lord.
[12] “It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. [13] But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light.”

Joyfully or reluctantly,

Philippians 2:10-11 NIV
[10] “… At the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, [11] and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

…those who are proved true disciples according to His Word and our words, or those who are judged and condemned by the Word.

PRAYING GOD’S WAY – 16

Prayer, ,

ATTITUDE

Someone recently told me about a radio program she tunes into on her way to work. A marriage counsellor mentioned that he listens for one thing when a client is telling his/her story… contempt. This exposes the attitude of the counsellee towards the other person.

Think about it. When we have a conflict with another person, regardless who they are, we stand apart from him/her and point fingers… contempt!

Jesus said we must pray for our enemies. That’s a loaded requirement! Sometimes our prayers can be full of contempt. What are we doing? We are setting the standard for our own judgment AND for our own punishment.

‭Matthew 7:1-2 NLT‬
[1] “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. [2] For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged.”

What should be our attitude when we pray for others? Believers who have fallen into sin? Family members who are at loggerheads with us? Marriage partners who treat us badly? Enemies who get in our hair? Unbelievers who offend us by their wicked behaviour? Government officials who fail? I quote, “The world is a magical place full of people waiting to be offended by something” (or someone – added)!

Two examples from Scripture, prayers from two people who had every right to be offended, who were unjustly and cruelly executed.

‭Luke 23:34 NLT‬
[34] Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.”

‭Acts of the Apostles 7:59-60 NLT‬
[59] “As they stoned him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” [60] He fell to his knees, shouting, “Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!” And with that, he died.”

What was the difference between them and us? They changed the accusation from, “Look what they did to me!” to “Look what they are doing to themselves!”

We easily and quickly take offence and demand retribution when we think about ourselves first. Our prayers will reflect this attitude. Do some of David’s prayers come close to contempt?

‭Psalms 3:7 NLT‬
[7] “Arise, O Lord! Rescue me, my God! Slap all my enemies in the face! Shatter the teeth of the wicked!”

There is a place for God’s justice in His scheme of things. We anticipate the day when He will avenge all the wrongs done to His people. He promised a day of judgment when Jesus comes.

‭2 Thessalonians 1:6-8 NLT‬
[6]”In his justice he will pay back those who persecute you. [7] And God will provide rest for you who are being persecuted and also for us when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven. He will come with his mighty angels, [8] in flaming fire, bringing judgment on those who don’t know God and on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus.”

However, Paul is not praying for or gloating over the judgment to come on the wicked. He is stating the sober fact that it will happen to those who reject Jesus.

The Bible’s stance is compassion for those on whom God’s terrible judgment will fall. God grieved over His wayward people. He could not treat them as their sins deserved.

‭Hosea 11:8-9 NLT‬
[8] “Oh, how can I give you up, Israel? How can I let you go? How can I destroy you like Admah or demolish you like Zeboiim? My heart is torn within me, and my compassion overflows. [9] No, I will not unleash my fierce anger. I will not completely destroy Israel, for I am God and not a mere mortal. I am the Holy One living among you, and I will not come to destroy.”

Jesus wept over His enemies. He was more concerned for them than for Himself.

‭Matthew 23:37 NLT‬
[37] “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones God’s messengers! How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn’t let me… “

‭Luke 19:41-44 NLT‬
[41] But as he came closer to Jerusalem and saw the city ahead, he began to weep. [42] “How I wish today that you of all people would understand the way to peace. But now it is too late, and peace is hidden from your eyes. [43] Before long your enemies will build ramparts against your walls and encircle you and close in on you from every side. [44] They will crush you into the ground, and your children with you. Your enemies will not leave a single stone in place, because you did not recognize it when God visited you.”

‭Luke 23:28 NLT‬
[28]”But Jesus turned and said to them, “Daughters of Jerusalem, don’t weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children.”

It’s amazing how quickly one’s attitude changes from
contempt to compassion when one thinks of the destiny of those whose words and behaviour reflects their hearts. Perhaps we will move closer to the heart of the Father when we pray with compassion for the lost rather than call for their destruction.

‭‭Ezekiel 18:23 NLT‬
[23] “Do you think that I like to see wicked people die?” says the Sovereign Lord. “Of course not! I want them to turn from their wicked ways and live.”

‭2 Peter 3:9 NLT‬
[9] “The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.”

WE CHOOSE OUR DESTINY

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WE CHOOSE OUR DESTINY

“‘If anyone hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge that person. For I did not come to judge the world but to save the world.

“‘There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; the very words I have spoken will condemn him at the last day. For I did not speak on my own, but the Father who sent me commanded me to say all that I have spoken. I know that His command leads to eternal life. So, whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.'” John 12:47-50 NIV.

Could Jesus say any more clearly how intimately He related to the Father? His claim to oneness with the Father was spelled out and lived out in everything He said and did.

As human beings and according to the way we humans think, we have the mistaken idea that God will be our accuser when we stand before Him at the end of time. Yet the Bible teaches us that it is the devil, not God who is the accuser. We need to get rid of the notion that God will demand, ‘Why did you do this?’ or ‘Why did you do that?’ Enshrined in His gift of free will is the very judgment our choices will bring by the consequences of our choices.

There is a tendency in us to blame God when the choices we make bring the consequences we don’t like. Is there any logic in the outburst of the young girl, ‘Why did God allow this to happen?’ when her promiscuous behaviour produces either an unwanted pregnancy or worse? Did God tell her to sleep around? Did He force her to go to bed with every man she dates?

When she decides to get rid of “the products of conception” and then faces the shame, guilt and condemnation of a conscience she cannot silence, is it God’s fault that she feels so bad? Did He tell her to get an abortion? Did He hide the truth from her until the deed was done and then beat her with the consequences? Unfortunately, above and beyond the consequences of her disobedience lies the very word she has disobeyed, the word that will ultimately be her judge.

The difference between God’s way and the devil’s modus operandi is this: God speaks the truth and does not hide the unpleasant consequences of our disobedience. He makes His requirements clear and warns us what will happen if we choose the path of self-will. He offers His grace but we must first make the choice to obey Him.

Satan, on the other hand, makes disobedience appealing. He lures us with self-gratification; he insists that it’s okay to satisfy our fleshly appetites now; he lies about the consequences; he waits until we have transgressed the boundaries and then beats us with condemnation. ‘You stupid fool! Look what you’ve done. You are a wicked person. You don’t deserve to live.’

Those who believe in Jesus can live life one of two ways. It all depends on whether or not we have embraced the truth of God’s word. We can be propelled into the future by our past, ashamed, apologetic, never knowing whether we have done enough to satisfy God’s requirements, acting like a slave who is bound to his master by rules and never able to accept God’s embrace and His affirmation, ‘My son; my daughter.’

On the other hand, we can be drawn into our future by God’s promises — believing the truth of His word and living up to who He says we are. He has cancelled our debt, and the written law with its demands and requirements. He knew we could never keep His law perfectly. He paid our unpayable debt, past, present and future and received us back into His family as greatly blessed, deeply loved and highly favoured sons and daughters.

He gave us the Spirit of sonship. We are no longer slaves but sons. We have all the privileges of sons. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. No condemnation! No guilt! No shame! No barriers! Every promise we believe and embrace draws us nearer to who we really are.

God has made us responsible for our own judgment. When we stand before Him, what will our lives reveal? Obedience to His word and eternal life or rejection of what He said and an eternity of consequences we brought on ourselves because we thought we knew better?

It’s up to us to decide.

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

GUARD YOUR OWN HEART

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GUARD YOUR OWN HEART

“Accept one another whose faith is weak without quarrelling over disputable matters. One person’s faith allows him to eat anything but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted him. Who are you to judge another man’s servant? To their own master servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.” Romans 14:1-4.

Is this really a problem today? Who cares what another believer eats or wears or even drives or lives in?

In the Apostle Paul’s day, it was an issue for both Jew and Gentile believers – Jews because their conscience was shaped by the dietary laws of their religion and culture, and Gentiles because they bought their meat from the market after it had been offered to idols.

There were two matters of conscience that had to be dealt with: What effect did the food they ate have on their spirits, and did meat offered to idols in a pagan temple have any power to influence them? But, for Paul there was another and more subtle problem – that of judging.

From God’s perspective, judging was more serious than what a person ate. Remember what Jesus said about food? Since it goes into the stomach and passes out of the body, it does not have any power over a person’s heart. It is from the heart, not from what one eats, that wickedness in all its forms originates, and what one eats cannot change the heart, for good or evil. On the other hand, judging another person is a subtle form of idolatry because the one who judges sets himself above the other person.

What about eating meat that had been offered to idols? Does that meat not have the power to influence the eater for evil? Was there not some sort of demonic transfer that took place when the meat was offered to the idol? It all depends on what a person believes.

Never forget that the devil is a liar and that the only language he speaks is the language of lies. Speaking to the Pharisees, Jesus said,

You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. John 8:44

The devil’s most powerful weapon is deception. He holds people captive to fear only if they believe that he still has power over them. Jesus exposed and utterly defeated him at the cross but he tries to hold people captive by suggesting that he has power over them.

It is up to every believer to decide who his master is? How tragic that many Christians still fear the devil although they say that they trust in Jesus. In the everyday, practical issues of life, we have to ask the question, “Did the cross work?” According to Jesus, when He cried out, “It is finished!” on the cross, He completed everything necessary to reverse what Adam did in the Garden of Eden. He made a public spectacle of the devil, unmasked and defeated him and took away his power to deceive and destroy.

“When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave all our sins, having cancelled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; He has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” Colossians 2:13-15.

What kind of food we eat and where we got it from should never be an issue because it has no power to influence our hearts except the power we give it when we act out of fear and not faith. However, when we judge someone who has no problem with what he eats because our faith is weak, we usurp the role of master and set ourselves up as the standard of judgment.

“Let it go,” said Paul. “He has a Master who will take care of him. It’s not your problem.” When we try to control someone else, we subtly expose our own insecurity. When we judge another, we expose our own guilt. Our mouths are the mirror of our hearts. By focussing on someone else’s supposed weakness or guilt, we deflect attention from ourselves in case we are exposed.

What is the solution? Rest in Jesus and take care of your own conscience. Trust God. You are not responsible for your brother’s conscience.

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.