Saturday, July 2, 2011

Fundamental Teachings Part 25

As far as what the judgment itself will include, and what the principles of this judgment will be, it is once again incumbent upon us as children of God to go to His word and discover the truth. One thing we must understand from the start is that the judgment of God will not be based on supposition, rumor, hearsay, or innuendo, but rather on truth.

Romans 2:2, “But we know that the judgment of God is according to truth against those who practice such things.”

Nothing is hid from His eye, there is nothing man can do to shroud the reality of who they really are before an omniscient God. All His judgments will be based on truth, and for some the truth will be a rude awakening indeed.

The judgment of God will encompass what we did in this life here on earth, it will also encompass the words that we spoke, the thoughts we that we thought, and all things will be brought into the light, all things will be made known before His holy face.

Revelation 20:12, “And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.”

Matthew 12:36, “But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.”

1 Corinthians 4:5, “Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts; and then each one’s praise will come from God.”

God’s judgment will also be impartial, and it is one of the principles of judgment to which He will adhere.

Romans 2:11, “For there is no partiality with God.”

If we believe that our lineage, our service, our charity or giving will somehow sway God to overlook sin not repented of, if we think that just because we were related to a famous preacher, or an evangelist God will give us a pass, we must revisit this verse in Romans, meditate upon it, and see the truth that lies therein. There is no partiality with God dear friend, for as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law, will be judged by the law.

The last principle of God’s judgment I want to cover and this may be controversial to some, but it is nevertheless biblical, is that the judgments of God are in accordance with the measure of light that we possessed. To whom much is given, much is required, and this principle carries on into eternity.

Matthew 12:22-24, “But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you. And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you.”

In His rebuke of Capernaum, Jesus says something that we must not dismiss or ignore. He says that if Sodom had seen all the miracles and all the mighty works that Capernaum had seen, it would still be around; it would have repented and therefore not have been judged of God. As such, because those of Capernaum had seen the power of God and did not repent, because they had seen the mighty works and it did not compel them to seek a closer walk with God, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than it will be for them. Because they were shown much, because much had been revealed to them, God will require more of Capernaum, and judge it more harshly than He will Sodom.

There is one overriding truth that we must take into account whenever speaking of the judgment of God, and that is if we judge ourselves now, if we look into our hearts, if we look at our lives subjectively, if we repent of those things we know we ought to repent of, and weed out those things we know are spiritually harmful to our spiritual growth, then we will not be judged of God.

Rebellion is always at the heart of our unwillingness to repent, to bow our heads and bend our knees and humbly ask the eternal God of all for forgiveness and restoration. The word tells us that rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, something God abhors and detests, and if our rebellion keeps us from judging ourselves if our pride keeps us from seeing ourselves in the light of God’s word and acknowledging our need for forgiveness that can only come by way of the blood of Christ washing us clean, then yes, we will be judged together with the world on that great and terrible day of the Lord.

We are, all of us, given ample time to repent, we are, all of us given ample time to receive and accept the grace of Christ freely given to those who open their hearts and see themselves as God would see them. If we choose the way of disobedience however, if we choose the way of rebellion, then we will most assuredly be judged, because our God is a holy God, our God is a just God, our God is a righteous God, and as I said before, He judges without partiality.

The world seems to be falling apart around us, those who are to be representatives of Christ in this present world seem to have been caught up in the things of the world, the love of many is growing cold, and the truth of God’s Word is being dismissed en masse. We are witnessing unprecedented times dear friends, times of upheaval, and heartache, times of trials and persecutions, but it is in these times that the power of God must be all the more evident in the lives of His children, it is in these times that the power of God must be all the more evident in the lives of those who claim Christ as Lord and King. It is also in these times of uncertainty and chaos that we must know that our foundation is sure, that we are standing on the rock of Christ, that we have received all that there is to receive from His hand, that we are equipped for every good work, that the spirit of God dwells in us, and that we are walking in the victory that He has promised.

These fundamental teachings which we’ve been discussing over the past twenty five posts are a good and solid foundation to build upon, but from here, we must go on to perfection.

In closing, I just want to reiterate the few verses that sparked this entire series, as a reminder of why we’ve traveled this long road, and why we must appropriate the knowledge that we’ve amassed to our daily lives.

Hebrews 6:1-3, “Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, of the doctrine of baptisms, or laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. And this we will do if God permits.”

Indeed, now that we’ve discussed the elementary principles of Christ, if God permits we will build upon them and go on to perfection in Him. Yes, we can walk in the holiness of God, yes we can walk in perfection as Paul calls it, because if it were not so, then God would not have demanded it of His children. Be holy, for I am holy said God; be holy in all your doings. If He demanded it of us, then holiness is attainable, if He demanded it of us then holiness is achievable. It is only when we consider ourselves wiser than God, and dismiss His word, when we discount that which He has commanded, that we see the yoke of Christ as heavy, and not light, and the narrow path of faith as difficult rather than easy. It is not burdensome serving God my brothers, and so we must serve Him with gladness of heart.

With love in Christ,
Michael Boldea Jr.

2 comments:

rleigh said...

Amen, and thank-you once again for your faithful and true teachings! How bright His light shines as the darkness deepens! How He has honored us to be chosen for these times! What a gift He has given the body of Christ to raise up faithful and fearless men to teach with power! Thank-you Brother Michael, and God bless and protect you!

Bonny said...

Dear Michael, you are one of the few that I read because you remain faithful to the Word and I am grateful. The fundamental series has been great, and I need to go back over it, because I always miss something! These times are hard. I know that for me it is always a fight to overcome the worries and cares of a busy life, which at present I am not able to change. If not for the Lord, it would be impossible. Harder times are ahead, which should come as no surprise to true lovers of the Lord, who hear His voice and love His Word. And your dear brother is meeting me on Sunday! I am looking forward to my wonderful visit.