Christian Living

Jesus Judge of All

by Thomas Kirkpatrick
01/18/22
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“For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil.” (Ecclesiastes 12:14)

Jesus came to us as God in the flesh. Two reasons for this are humanity cannot relate to a spiritual being while struggling with the corrupted flesh. One, because of humanity’s fallen state, they cannot directly communicate with God the Father or walk and talk with Him as before the fall. Two, God can now identify with the spiritual battle with the evil heavenly forces. God can now identify with the temptations and pitfalls Satan’s schemes use to distract humanity from their Creator. God cannot be tempted and or contemplate disobedience to His Word. Jesus, as God, has experienced trials of temptation, mockery of humanity against righteousness, and weakness of the flesh for the lust of the world. Jesus can identify with us and better allow us to identify with Him.

Jesus’ ascension forty days after His resurrection is a great blessing to those who follow Him. Jesus is the firstborn of the redeemed. “For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren.” (Romans 8:9) For thirty-three years, Jesus lived in the world from the moment of birth in the feeding troth till His faithful followers watched Him taken up in the clouds to sit at His Father’s right hand. Jesus is beside the Father as our High Priest. We cannot talk to the Father as we are not yet perfected and go through our Priest Jesus. “Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.” (Hebrews 4:14-15)

Jesus will return to this world. His first coming was to seek and save, but he will come to judge the quick and the dead on His return. “But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.” (Matthew 25:31-32) His righteous life, sacrificial death, resurrection, and ascension are proof Jesus is the Son of God and will return to justify humanity. “Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.” Acts 17:30-31)

King David’s twenty-fourth Psalm reveals to us that Jesus as the God-man has authority to open the gates of Heaven and enter as the first of the redeemed. “Lift up your heads, O gates, And be lifted up, O ancient doors, That the King of glory may come in!” (Psalm 24:7) Only Jesus is worthy, as no other humanity has lived or can live a righteous, holy life. As the Apostle Paul writes to Timothy. “He who was revealed in the flesh, Was vindicated in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Proclaimed among the nations, Believed on in the world, Taken up in glory.” (1 Timothy 3:16)

In the gospel of John, the writer makes the case with these words from Jesus. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) It is one of the most popular verses in the bible, many have heard it, and few have taken it seriously. The truth is that on the cross, Jesus paid the sin-debt of the world. There is no sin committed that humanity should perish for. Jesus paid the entry fee, and by His grace, He offers salvation to whoever will believe in Him for who He is and trust His Word on faith.

There is no excuse any can offer God for their rejection of His word or the disobedience in their lives. No one can say they did not know, as, from the beginning, God has revealed Himself in His creation, His Word, and sent His Son to display the way. Yet, as our father Adam, most have chosen to go their own way. “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.” (Romans 1:20-21)

In my wisp of time, I have seen how people have forsaken the absolute truth for the truth of their reality. The truth of their neighbors is only a popular opinion. To believe that sinful humanity can create a moral superiority to God’s Law is nothing more than living a law they won’t break. Yet, they cannot keep it or keep the Ten Commandments. Humanity can no longer accept absolutes in anything, as they are so wrapped up in themselves, knowing they cannot control their word either. “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.” (2 Timothy 4:3-4)

The balance is still just and cannot be altered as God is the justifier. God is absolute, His Word is absolute, and His judgment is absolute. Therefore, it is still righteousness versus unrighteousness, and Heaven or Hell, a love from a Savior or the pain of hate without Him. “But because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who will render to each person according to his deeds: to those who by perseverance in doing good seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life; but to those who are selfishly ambitious and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, wrath and indignation.” (Romans 2:5-8)

We live in a world of choices, but there is only one with eternal value. We are here in this world inside one-hundred-twenty years and then our eternal destination. Only a lifetime here to decide what our eternal destiny will be. It is the most critical decision we will make to live in the freedom of life or an eternity of God’s wrath. “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness.” (Romans 1:18)

Jesus came the first time to save those lost in unrighteousness from the wrath of God. Some ask why and the answer is God is love. God the Father loves us so much He would sacrifice His Son to save us from His wrath. We cannot imagine the glory of Heaven, and neither can we the wrath of God. God loves us greater than His wrath. God’s gift of salvation is free by His grace. None of us could pay even if we could. Salvation itself is not free, as it cost the life of God’s Son and the price of holy blood untainted by sin. Salvation is free, and it is simple to receive. “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Romans 10:13)

No one is sinless, and none could be. Therefore, we have only one plea, guilty before a holy God. The answer is to accept Jesus at His Word, follow Him in the faith of His Word. Rejecting Jesus is a life of living in fear of death, living life under judgment, and an eternity of God’s wrath. “He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” (John 3:18) The Children of God will never know God’s wrath. They will never see it, as they are sinners but forgiven and covered by the blood of Christ. “See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.” (1 John 3:1)

Jesus is coming again, and I believe it is immediate. He is not coming to give the world another chance, as His sacrifice was sufficient. Jesus is coming to judge the world in righteousness for what is righteous and unrighteous. His throne is prepared. “But the LORD abides forever; He has established His throne for judgment, And He will judge the world in righteousness; He will execute judgment for the peoples with equity.” (Psalm 9:7-8) Jesus was and is the cornerstone of His church. It is a stumbling block to most, and upon the stone, they will fall. Peter said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:18). It is better to stand on that rock than fall upon it. “Behold, I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, And he who believes in Him will not be disappointed.” (Romans 9:33)

If you have not accepted Christ as your Savior, now is the moment of decision, as God has given you this time. I wasted most of my time pondering and never committed to my future. I realized that the next moment is a mystery that never may unfold in this realm. “At the acceptable time I listened to you, And on the day of salvation I helped you.” Behold, now is “the acceptable time,” behold, now is “the day of salvation.”  2 Corinthians 6:2)

Thomas N Kirkpatrick

First Baptist Church of Durant, April 21, 2021