"AFTER
THIS THE JUDGMENT”
"It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” -- Hebrews 9:27
There is a day coming in
which God shall judge all men. Every man will be judged according to exact
truth, righteousness and justice. The standard by which we shall be judged is
the holy law of God himself. We shall be judged according to the books of God,
in which are recorded all our earthly thoughts, words and deeds (2 Cor.
5:10-11; Rev. 20:11-12; Matt. 25:31-46).
Justice
In that great and terrible
day of the Lord, everyone will receive exactly what is justly due to him. None
will be punished who do not deserve to be punished. And none will be received
into heaven's eternal glory who do not deserve to enter in. Those who are found
guilty of any sin, or infraction of God's holy law, shall be cast into hell.
Those who are perfectly holy, holy as God himself, shall enter into heaven (Ps.
24:3-4; Rev. 21:27; 22:11).
In that day the Judge of all
the earth, who must do right, will do right. He who sits upon the great white
throne will not show any lenience, partiality, or favoritism. He will not bend
his law. At the bar of God there will be no mercy and no grace. The judgment
seat is not a place of mercy. It is a place of strict, unbending, unwavering,
immutable justice. Only the facts will be considered when we stand before God.
Guilty or not guilty, righteous or unrighteous, holy or unholy, these will be
the only matters of consideration in that day. "Evil pursueth sinners: but to the righteous good shall be repaid”
(Pro. 13:21). "The soul that
sinneth, it shall die” (Ezek. 18:20). He that "hath done that which is lawful and right shall surely live”
(Ezek. 33:16). God will by no means
clear the guilty. And he will not punish the righteous.
One Hope
In the light of these facts,
most plainly set forth in the Word of God, it is obvious that the only hope any
sinful person, any child of Adam, has of eternal salvation and acceptance with
God is that he might be saved by the infinite merits of an able, all-sufficient
Substitute. And that substitute is the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
Christ, by his precious blood, has completely washed away the sins of his
people, so that they are no longer recorded in the book of God's law and
justice against us (Isa. 43:25; 44:22; Jer. 50:20). And his righteous obedience
to God is imputed to all who believe on him, making us worthy of eternal life
(Rom. 5:19; Col. 1:12). Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and his righteousness
is yours. God help you to trust him.
AMEN.
Grace Baptist Church of Danville - Grace For
Today Radio Message #824
2734 Old Stanford Road -
Danville, Kentucky 40422-9438
Donald S.
Fortner, Pastor -Telephone 606-236-8235 - Email grace@mis.net