Being judged by God through the lens of the Ten Commandments would be terrifying if you are found guilty.
Why shouldn’t it be? It’s inherent to human beings that we desire to see justice served, everytime we hear a politician lying through his teeth or hear about innocent people murdered there’s something deep inside us is a desire to see justice served. There is no real meaning to doing “the right thing” if there is no real justice. A God who loves, a God who is good, must demand justice and make all things right.
If we are honest enough we can admit our short comings, though it is difficult to get clarity on how weak and evil we can be. Despite our weaknesses that lead to sin, God loves us and he has supernaturally provided a detailed and historical explanation of the need for a divine solution for Salvation. That is the Good News, the Gospel.
While it is true, God gifted us with freedom of choice and He also provided us with an eternal soul. We can choose to spend eternity with God or separated from God. No one will stay in relationship with God who does not want to keep that relationship. As a loving Creator and Heavenly Father, though, God patiently awaits for the return of his prodigals. Yet, as a Holy God, it is essential for Him to judge sin.
Judgment that leads to separation can be avoided
Scripture expresses how God desires a restoration of the relationship with His creation, and also how God is Holy and Righteous. God cannot force you to act against your own will, yet He is merciful and loving to send His Son on a mission to save us from the direction our sin will otherwise take us.
The Bible is not only full of instruction but also serves as above letter to His Creation, full of hope and promises but also tears, pleading and exhortations. Jesus, who spoke the Truth plainly, warned how sin will separate us from God but shared the Good News that death and separation from God can be avoided by trusting Him through the power evidenced by His Death for our sins and Resurrection.
The Gospel of Jesus Christ requires faith and belief, acceptance of Christ’s redeeming work, that will secure an eternity that is better than everything you can hope for in this world.
However, with sobriety, unless we have genuine faith in Christ, we must anticipate the reality of judgment, which is God’s wrath and the separation that waits for all who will choose life apart from the One True and only living God.
The benchmark for Judgment
I will not go into the Ten Commandments in this article but all moral law is defined by the Ten Commandments. It’s the failure to obey the Commandments that is an indication of the huge chasm between us and God. What constitutes who is a “good” person (e.g Sermon on the Mount, Mark 10:18, Luke 18:19 and other passages). Most people in their self-righteousness cannot perceive is how sinful sin is and how Holy God is, hence we need a Savior because works account for nothing towards Salvation.
Fear God, not idols
As a result, Jesus sought to teach us what is worthy of “fear.”
What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in yourear, proclaim upon the housetops. And do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. – Matthew 10:27-28
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Like every prophet who had been in the near presence of God, Isaiah offers his vision and experience of becoming overwhelmed when in proximity to God in a visible realm. It’s not something you can pretend to build up some defense of.
In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, with the train of His robe filling the temple. 2 Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. 3 And one called out to another and said,
“Holy, Holy, Holy, is Yahweh of hosts;
The whole earth is full of His glory.”
4 And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called out, while the house of God was filling with smoke. 5 Then I said,
“Woe is me, for I am ruined!
For I am a man of unclean lips,
And I live among a people of unclean lips;
For my eyes have seen the King, Yahweh of hosts.”
6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal in his hand, which he had taken from the altar with tongs. 7 And he touched my mouth with it and said, “Behold, this has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away, and your sin is atoned for.”
There is an immediate sense of being stripped of any pretense that a man or woman may have when in the presence of a Holy God. Yes God is HOLY, even the angels in heaven need to triple down on how holy God is, even the Seraphim use one pair of wing to cover their eyes and two to cover their feet to be in the presence of a holy God.
This can be literal or it an be symbolic, but I believe what Isaiah wrote truth. What’s important is they point to the truth that is evident throughout Scripture that God is Holy… and we are not. We are not God, we are a creation of God.
Anything that humans create, from the Tower of Babel to AI farms in space, to pocket atomic power plants, will ever compare to God. The creation can never surpass the Creator, to emphasize that, Satan thought he could usurp God’s authority. However, we should give glory to God for all our discoveries and inventions, being careful to deploy them without malice.
Extraordinary, Miraculous Power
God created the entire universe, intentionally so miraculously and far reaching, how preposterous it is for any of us to presume that, as technologically advanced of humans it is to position an AI farm in orbit, that we can compare to the smallest toe fungus in regards to the power, intelligence. grandeur and wisdom of God. This is not to belittle the accomplishments of man, but it is to understand the worthiness of God and the focus of worship the should be on Him.
Humble yourselves to the Eternal Lord, the God of all Creation! He who fed ten thousands of people by merely speaking it into existence. Jesus rebuked the wind and the waves. Jesus has and will raise the living from the dead and most of whom will face Judgment at the end of world history.
10 But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you view your brother with contempt? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. 11 For it is written,
“As I live, says the Lord, to Me every knee shall bow,
And every tongue shall confess to God.”
12 So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God. – Romans 14:10-12
Back to Isaiah, a righteous man by Israel and mankind’s standards, is immediately spiritually stripped bare in his uncleanliness, fallen, sinful nature, ready to condemn himself for being a wretched sinner from a people in wretched sin. He is painfully aware of that this state permeates human condition without the grace of God. God’s grace is illustrated in how the seraphim, using the hot coal, offers atonement so that Isaiah can then have the Truth revealed to him and he be able to respond as a man not hindered by his own unrighteousness. In true humility, contrition and worship, Isaiah is commissioned as useful as a servant of Almighty God.
In the Gospel of Mark, we learn that demons (fallen angels) fear God, through Jesus, God in a form of a man:
Then they came to the other side of the sea, into the region of the Gerasenes. 2 And when He got out of the boat, immediately a man from the tombs with an unclean spirit met Him, 3 who had his dwelling among the tombs. And no one was able to bind him anymore, even with a chain; 4 because he had often been bound with shackles and chains, and the chains had been torn apart by him and the shackles broken in pieces, and no one was strong enough to subdue him. 5 And constantly, night and day, among the tombs and in the mountains, he was crying out and gashing himself with stones. 6 And seeing Jesus from a distance, he ran up and bowed down before Him; 7 and crying out with a loud voice, he *said, “What do I have to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore You by God, do not torment me!” 8 For He had been saying to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!” 9 And He was asking him, “What is your name?” And he *said to Him, “My name is Legion; for we are many.” 10 And he began pleading with Him earnestly not to send them out of the region. 11 Now there was a large herd of swine feeding [b]nearby on the mountain. 12 And the demons pleaded with Him, saying, “Send us into the swine so that we may enter them.” 13 And Jesus gave them permission. And coming out, the unclean spirits entered the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea, about two thousand of them; and they were drowned in the sea. – Mark 5:1-13
What’s important to see here are that demons know and fear Jesus because Jesus is God. Although they had free reign over this poor soul of a man, they fall before God in fear, pleading for mercy. So demons are real and often hijack people’s souls. Also, it pays to understand how, since there is only One True Living God, all other gods are not real, but they are made real in people’s minds through demons who can manifest in ways that seem spiritual but are simple lies. Satan is the father of lies and demons do satan’s bidding.
Jesus speaks about the origins of lies as he chastises hypocritical religious Jews, and by extension, all false religions that turn people away or complicate the Gospel and leading people away from the Way the Truth and the Life which is Jesus Christ.
You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. – John 8:44.
Jesus warns us of remaining unrighteous before the judgment of God. Matthew 23 is in particular a scathing top to bottom rebuke of the religious leaders of the Israelites. It is loaded to the brim with more of this small snippet:
15 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves. – Matthew 23:15.
Is this the result of demons? Maybe in part. A few false teachers who know enough of the truth to manipulate it, causing an entire religion or cult to take people farther away from God.
Paul teaches us that all will be judged:
For all who have sinned without the Law will also perish without the Law, and all who have sinned under the Law will be judged by the Law. – Romans 2:12
But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you view your brother with contempt? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. For it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, to Me every knee shall bow, And every tongue shall confess to God.” So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God. – Romans 14:10-12.
The point of this artcle is two-fold. We will all be judged and without the grace of God it will be utterly terrifying.
The terror of being found guilty
Doesn’t your bullshit alarm go off when you hear very public figures lie out their teeth in covering their criminal tracks? Will these people ever get caught in their lies? I’m not concerned, there will be justice in this life or the next, but there will be Justice.
For the rest of us, we’ve all felt a small taste of this, every time we are on the cusp of realizing we are going to be caught doing something we knew was wrong but didn’t think we would ever be caught. Our complete response is tempered by the fact that we are still within a world system that judges in small measure and imperfectly. To some degree we can still toy with the world’s system of judgment, but this is not the case before God whose book on us never stops until the day we die.
Whether the resulting punishment for our crime is a 50 dollar parking fine or execution by firing squad, our punishment on this earth in of small consequence in comparison to the judgment of an omnipotent, righteous and holy God who is the measuring rod for all judgment.
Value in an eternal perspective
And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out and throw it from you. It is better for you to enter life with one eye, than, having two eyes, to be cast into the fiery hell. – Matthew 18:9. It’s not that we should not value our eyesight, but as Jesus points out losing your vision will be nothing compared to having your soul casted into hell (eternal separation in a state of torment). This is the opposite of being accepted into heaven where our bodies will be raised anew, powerful and unhindered by corruption and sin.
Judgment is not defined by the latest philosophy of another sinful human set as a standard for God’s holy judgment. Manmade solutions to peace has the effect of telling you the stove is safe to touch when it is still burning hot.
Jesus states it simply:
28 And do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. – Matthew 10:28
The terror is related to being unprepared to face the throne of Judgment when we will all meet God in his courtroom. Those who minds are clouded with evil and not simply innocent (e.g. an aborted fetus) will have fully functioning conscience upon judgment. There will be no hiding behind any pretense of society blaming or false religion, self-righteousness or worshipping of idols.
Some of the most frightening teachings provided by Christ are for those who think they are covered by religious works as a means of salvation:
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 22 Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, in Your name did we not prophesy, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name do many miracles?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’ – Matthew :7:21
I want to curtail the talk of terror now and leave you with the simple fact that we are saved by faith in God who is worthy to be worshipped and has left enough evidence to lead people to belief in Christ. The entire Gospel is based on faith is God, based on His grace. From the beginning with Abraham, God accepted those he calls by faith. And so must we take this passage to heart:
6 Then [Abraham] believed in Yahweh; and He counted it to him as righteousness. – Genesis 15:6.
If you believe, then you trust. The process begins of fulfilling our lives of becoming more like Christ within the protection of His righteousness before God.
Trust leads to repentance, obedience, and sanctification. But it all starts being counted by God as a righteous person because of our belief in the redeeming work of Christ.
Is Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior?
For a one minute explanation of the Gospel from the late Pastor John MacArthur, watch this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCP9UcC7BzE
For a review of the Ten Commandments: https://www.challenyee.com/the-ten-commandments/
All quoted excerpts have footnotes removed, usually from Legacy Standard Bible (LSB), sometimes from New International Version (NIV), on rare occasion the Amplified Bible (AMP).
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7-16-24