“You wicked servant!’ the king roared. ‘Your own words condemn you…” (Luke 19:22a NLT)
What comes first to mind when you think of God’s judgment? Is God’s judgment to be feared once you’ve yielded your life to Jesus? What is God’s standard for judgment?
In Hebrews 9:27, the writer says: “And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment, so also Christ died once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for Him.”
George Müller, a great man of prayer, wrote: “God judges what we give by what we keep.” That idea has real merit! Think about what we tend to keep – hold onto: money, grudges, forgiveness, love, hatred, revenge, possessions, people, habits, sins – the list is long. In my mind’s eye I envision a tightly clenched fist, squeezing that which belongs to ME! “It’s MINE!” I can almost hear those words in a thousand different scenarios.
As a pastor I stood in the presence of a lot of people who had suffered severe loss. They dealt with their loss in a lot of different ways. Some were quiet, introspective, gentle as the Lord seemed clearly to embrace and comfort them. Others were visibly angry at God and the world, for taking “what’s MINE!” Whether a person, a possession, a position – in whatever form the loss came – neither God nor anybody else had any right to take it away. Healing can’t easily come to a spirit of bitterness and hatred.
What does any of this have to do with judgment? A lot! The Bible is clear that to a large extent, what we get is based on what we’re willing to give, including judgment. In His “Sermon on the Mount,” Jesus spoke to all areas of our lives, primarily from the standpoint of taking initiative. From the Beatitudes in the beginning of His message, He essentially is saying: “Take the initiative by being humble, by hungering and thirsting for justice, by being merciful, by having a pure heart, by seeking peace, by accepting persecution for doing right.”
Then He hones in and makes it very personal when He talks about being salt and light, by obeying God’s laws, by controlling your temper, by controlling your thoughts, and on and on. What’s my point? There is no judgment for those who judge themselves. When we yield our life and allegiance to Jesus and seek with everything within us to allow Him to model His life in and through us as He modeled His Father’s life in and through His life, we illustrate in living color how magnificent Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross really was.
Please read Isaiah 53 with tissues in hand, in order to understand what real judgment looks like, the kind of judgment we deserve, but won’t suffer because “He bore our sins!” Because of Jesus and what He did in our place and on our behalf our “judgment” becomes our opportunity to be proactive in loving, giving, serving, forgiving, healing, helping, and on and on as we follow in the footsteps of our Savior.
Judgment is only an issue for someone who hasn’t yet given their life and allegiance to Jesus. And if you haven’t, what are you waiting for? You think Satan cares about you? Do you honestly believe if you had all the money and all the trinkets this world could offer, you’d be happy? Please stop believing the lies of the devil and let the Holy Spirit open your eyes and heart to Jesus.
Your judgment has already been given to Jesus. Let Him forgive and cleanse you of your sins. Please click the link below and see how you can know with certainty that you’re going to heaven when you die and have a life worth living while you’re here. https://hutchcraft.com/the-bridge-to-god
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 