LEARNING DAILY

 

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth. And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord; Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit; Born of the Virgin Mary; Suffered under Pontius Pilate; Was crucified, dead and buried; He descended into Hell; The third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven; And sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; From thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit; The Holy Christian Church, the Communion of Saints; The Forgiveness of sins; The Resurrection of the body; And the life everlasting. Amen.   The Apostle’s Creed

 

John 5:26-27, “For as the father has life in Himself, so has he granted the Son to have life in Himself, and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man.

 

Acts 10:42, And He commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that it is He who was ordained by God to be Judge of the living and the dead.

 

Acts 17:31, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained.  He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.

 

Most people enjoy hearing preachers preach the love of Jesus because often knowing that He is the definition of love makes me feel good.  I have been accepted by God because He loves me and took my place, the place I deserved, on a cross to take the penalty of sin for me.  I am so thankful for that!  But to preach this same Jesus is going to judge the world, the living and the dead, is not a ”feel good” sermon and most people do not want to hear about it.

 

The truth is a day is coming when the Lord Jesus, who sits at the right hand of God, will judge what people believe about Him and what they have done with their life after their confession that they are sinners and that He died on a cross for their sins.  I have dealt with the two judgment seats in detail in previous blogs.  Let me briefly review them.

 

There is a time that the Lord will gather those who have placed their faith in Him.  Your decision to follow Him placed your name in His Book of Life.  He chose you and you decided to follow Him.  The Judgment Seat of Christ is not about salvation; it is about rewards for what you have done with your life since that important decision was made.  Read 1 Corinthians 3:5-15 with emphasis on verses 11-15.  They explain that the work you have done for Jesus Christ will be burned.  That which is left – the gold, silver, and precious stones – will be the basis for your rewards.  Yes!  There are rewards in heaven!

 

The second judgment is called the Great White Throne Judgment and is found in the book of The Revelation in chapter 20.  This judgment is for all those dead and alive who chose not to place their life in the hands of Jesus.  They instead chose to mock Him and ignore Him and live their lives according to their own desires.  Does that sound familiar?  That is what people did to Jesus as He was crucified and what people still do today.  They laugh at the thought of judgment! 

 

There is a day coming “that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and those of earth, and those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10-11).  Can you imagine the terror for those who have not placed their trust and faith in Him will experience at that time?

 

Notice that Acts 17:31 states that a day has been appointed for judgment to happen.  Only the Father knows the time when this will occur.  Believers are told to watch and continue to live for Jesus, sharing the Gospel with others.  The day is coming! 

 

Judgment is not an enjoyable topic.  However, it is part of the doctrines in the Bible.  Knowing this, will it help you live your life differently?  I do not live my life to avoid hell; I choose to live my life because my home is a heavenly home!

 

 Do you know someone who has not placed their life into the hand of Jesus?  If so, feel free to pass this blog on. 

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