Judgment

          “There I go again; I’m thinking of the time when I will stand, and look into the eyes of my redeemer”.      These are words from one of my favorite Christian songs, and I am truly looking forward to that time.

          Each of us has a record being kept in Heaven containing everything we have done in our lives.  This record contains the good and the bad. 

          Christian’s can rest securely in the knowledge that they are not going to be condemned when they are judged.  We will however be judged on what we have done for the furtherance of the kingdom of God.  We, by our belief in and acceptance of the Christ as our Lord and Savior, have been redeemed from the fires of Hell.  We are going to give an accounting for what we have done that either furthered or hindered the cause of Christ.  This judgment will determine our reward in Heaven. 

          It is true that Christian’s are not perfect; simply forgiven.  The term backslider refers to a Christian who had slipped in his walk with the Lord.  This doesn’t mean that he has lost his salvation, but rather that he is not doing what is best for himself or the body of Christ.  “‘Sins’ are wrong acts that are committed without any necessary reference to a known law; ’transgressions’ are wrong acts committed in open disobedience of a known law.  ‘Sins’ are therefore compared to a ‘cloud’, but ‘transgressions’ to a ‘thick cloud’.  That is to say, ‘transgressions’ are the darker of the two.  However, God’s grace and power are more than sufficient to blot out both the one and the other.”[1]  If a Christian sins and later asks for forgiveness the sin will not be counted against him.  When we become a Christian; God the Father, from that point on, sees us through a veil of the blood of Christ.  This veil keeps the Father from seeing our sins because He has placed the responsibility for judging us in the hands of Jesus.  “If any man's work abides which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.”[2] 

          Those who are not in Christ will be judged for everything they have done.  The most severe judgment will be for those who could have, but refused to receive Christ as Savior. 

          Doctor Maurice Rawlings, a medical doctor, wrote a book about the testimonies of people who had been revived (sometimes referred to as near death experience).  Among other things that they told him, was that some of them went down into hell while others had a heavenly experience.  One of these patients was a Baptist Sunday school teacher who went to hell.  Needless to say, he was later born again.  Simply professing to be a Christian holds no value; you have to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior. 

          The Bible says that God sees what is in the hearts of men.  This is why we are not allowed to judge anyone.  We can’t know what is in their hearts.  “If God failed to judge America, He would have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah.”[3]  Is God judging us now through our slipping world status and financial woes?  The Bible says that it is a sin not to pay a workman his wages.  The wages of sin is death.  Since God cannot sin, He must therefore judge sinners, as that is their wages. 

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[1] Derek Prince

[2] 1 Corinthians 3: 14-15

[3] Billy Graham