The Life of Christ
Message 160
Preparing for the Lord's Coming 3
The Great Judgment
Matt. 25:31-46

160.w#text file

The fact of the judgment.

	What we have being described here by the Lord Jesus is the Great 
Judgment of God.  There are some who hold that this describes a judgment 
of the nations as nations to see which will be allowed to enter the 
Millenial Kingdom.  Yet this is obviously a judgment of individuals.  One
needs look no further than the prounouncements upon those on the left to 
see that they are turned into hell.

	The judgment of God is described in various ways in scriptures.

Dan 7:9-10
9	I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days 
	did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head 
	like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his 
	wheels as burning fire.
10	A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand 
	thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand 
	stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened. 
	(KJV)

2 Cor 5:10-11
10	For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that 
	every one may receive the things done in his body, according to 
	that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
11	Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we 
	are made manifest unto 	God; and I trust also are made manifest in
	your consciences. (KJV)

Heb 9:27
27	And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the 
	judgment: (KJV)

Heb 10:26-27
26	For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of
	the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
27	But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, 
	which shall devour the 	adversaries. (KJV)

2 Pet 2:9
9	The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and 
	to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished: (KJV)

Jude 1:6
6	And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their 
	own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under dark-
	ness unto the judgment of the great day. (KJV)

Jude 1:14-15
14	And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying,
	Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,
15	To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly 
	among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly com-
	mitted, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have 
	spoken against him. (KJV)

Rev 20:11-13
11	And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose 
	face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no 
	place for them.
12	And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books 
	were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: 
	and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in 
	the books, according to their works.
13	And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell 
	delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every 
	man according to their works. (KJV)

The judgment of God is presented in scripture as being as much a fact as God 
Himself.  It is a function of the justice and holiness of God that every sin 
be accounted for and every righteous deed be rewarded.  The perfection of God 
and His absolute justice demand an accounting for every deed.

It is presented that there are accounting books being kept in heaven in which 
every deed, whether good or evil, is being recorded against that day of judg-
ment.  By the time that judgment is over, every though and every action ever 
committed by any person is going to be taken note of and accounted for in 
some way.

There will be, basically, three methods of accounting for deeds.

First of all, those who die in rebellion against God will be assigned full 
responsibility for their deeds and none of the good things they have done 
will be accounted as having any value.

Ezek 18:23-24
23	Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord 
	GOD: and not that he should return from his ways, and live?
24	But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and commit-
	teth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the 
	wicked man doeth, shall he live? All his righteousness that he hath 
	done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed,
 	and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die. (KJV)

Secondly, the sins of those who repented and believed on Jesus Christ will 
be accounted as having been paid by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

Ezek 18:27-28
27	Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he 
	hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall 
	save his soul alive.
28	Because he considereth, and turneth away from all his transgressions 
	that he hath committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die. (KJV)


Heb 10:12-17
12	But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, 
	sat down on the right hand of God;
13	From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.
14	For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sancti-
	fied.
15	Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he 
	had said before,
16	This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, 
	saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their 
	minds will I write them;
17	And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. (KJV)

And, finally, the good deeds of the saints will be noticed and rewarded.

Matt 10:42
42	And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a 
	cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto 
	you, he shall in no wise lose his reward. (KJV)


Those present at the judgment.

According to our descriptions of the Great Judgment, every person who has 
ever lived will present at this court.

Our text refers to  all nations.'

Dan 12:2-3
2	And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, 
	some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
3	And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; 
	and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and 
	ever. (KJV)

Rev 20:12-13
12	And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books 
	were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: 
	and the dead were judged out of those
 	things which were written in the books, according to their works.
13	And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell 
	delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every 
	man according to their works. (KJV)

No one who dies perishes.  His body goes back to the earth, where it is kept 
track of by God.  The spirit either goes to a place of confortable waiting 
or to a place of tormented waiting.  There will be a resurrection both of 
the righteous and of the wicked so that those who stand before the throne 
will be bodies and souls.

The fate of those judged.

Those who are found righteous on that day will be granted an unending life 
in the New Earth in the fellowship and service of God.

Rev 21:3-4
3	And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the taber-
	nacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they 
	shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be 
	their God.
4	And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall 
	be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there 
	be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. (KJV)

Rev 22:3-5
3	And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the 
	Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:
4	And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their fore-
	heads.
5	And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither 
	light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall 
	reign for ever and ever. (KJV)

Remember that the curse involved death, the loss of the fellowship with God, 
and all of the hardships of this life.  This is all removed.  All of the 
blessings of the Garden of Eden together with unbroken fellowship with God 
will mark that place.

The issues being judged.

One of the things that has always perplexed me about this text is the associ-
ation of good works with the ultimate fate of those that are tried.

The history of the Anabaptists and the legacy of the Protestant Reformation 
has been the emphasis on justification by faith.  The words of Jesus seem to fall strangely upon our ears.  And the issues of works that He mentions are also somewhat strange to us.

First of all let us remind ourselves that we do indeed hear the scriptures 
to teach justification by faith.

We begin with the words of Jesus Himself.

John 3:16
16	For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that 
	whosoever believeth in 	him should not perish, but have everlasting 
	life. (KJV)

Jesus affirmed to Nicodemus that believing on the Son of God is indeed 
the issus of everlasting life.

The apostle Paul went to great pains to make sure that the theology of just-
ification by faith is understandable and clear.

Rom 4:1-5
1	What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the 
	flesh, hath found?
2	For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; 
	but not before God.
3	For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was 
	counted unto him for righteousness.
4	Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of 
	debt.
5	But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth 
	the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. (KJV)

But men perverted the blessed doctrine of salvation by grace through faith 
into a theology which said that works do not matter at all.  In doing so, 
they removed the issue of repentance from the issue of faith.  The result 
of this was a group of people who claimed to have eternal life based on 
faith but who did not have a change of life to demonstrate the reality of 
that faith.  James, the half-brother of Jesus, was so concerned about this 
tendency that he wrote concerning it in an letter that has served as a warn-
ing against the misuse of this wonderful doctrine from the first century.

James 2:14-24
14	What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, 
	and have not works? can faith save him?
15	If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food,
16	And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and 
	filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are 
	needful to the body; what doth it profit?
17	Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.
18	Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me 
	thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my 
	works.
19	Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils 
	also believe, and tremble.
20	But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?
21	Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered 
	Isaac his son upon the altar?
22	Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith 
	made perfect?
23	And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, 
	and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called 
	the Friend of God.
24	Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith 
	only. (KJV)

Every doctrine has the capability of becoming an error when it is taken out 
of its balance with the rest of the word of God.  Justification by faith 
becomes antinomianism when it is separated from the doctrine of repentance 
from sin and unto good works.  When the doctrine of repentance is separated 
from justification by faith, it becomes legalism, the doctrine of the 
Pharisees.  The two must be held in balance, in equilibrium.  Justification 
is by faith, the kind of faith that produces repentance and good works.

Here is an issue that I just learned in preparation for this message.  
My question to myself was  why these issues?'  Of all the things that God 
might judge man on, why did Jesus choose to mention these seven matters as 
determining the fate of those before the throne?

I found that He had His mind in the book of Isaiah and on the issue which 
had marked all of His messages from the beginning.

Isa 58:1-11
1	"Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a trumpet. 
	Declare to my people their rebellion and to the house of Jacob their 
	sins.
2	For day after day they seek me out; they seem eager to know my ways, 
	as if they were a nation that does what is right and has not for-
	saken the commands of its God. They ask me for just decisions and 
	seem eager for God to come near them.
3	'Why have we fasted,' they say, 'and you have not seen it? Why have 
	we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?' "Yet on the day of 
	your fasting, you do as you please and exploit 	all your workers.
4	Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each 
	other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect 
	your voice to be heard on high.
5	Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for a man to 
	humble himself? Is it only for bowing one's head like a reed and 
	for lying on sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast,
 	a day acceptable to the LORD?
6	"Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains 
	of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed 
	free and break every yoke?
7	Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor 
	wanderer with shelter-- when you see the naked, to clothe him, and 
	not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8	Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing 
	will quickly appear; then your 	righteousness will go before you, 
	and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
9	Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, 
	and he will say: Here am I. "If you do away with the yoke of oppres-
	sion, with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
10	and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the 
	needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, 
	and your night will become like the noonday.
11	The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will 	strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters 	never fail.  (NIV)

Jesus was actually saying that the issue of the judgment will be the issue 
of repentance.  The issues that He chose were issues that He had often 
spoken of through the prophets.  Repentance is an issue of turning away 
from selfishness and false religion.  The repentant heart has two great 
interests: the glory of God and the welfare of others.

It is almost impossible for a person to show that he has love for God apart 
from some intermediate means.  No one can see our hearts or know what is in 
them.  But our treatment of others tells of our love for God in colors 
bright and bold.

But we should not think that the issues mentioned by Jesus are primarily 
physical things.  They are physcial conditions used in scripture to described 
spiritual problems.

Hunger, thirst and wandering as a stranger are terms that are used to 
describe the experience of the sheep of God as they live in this world 
separated from God and His blessing.  They yearn for a place of spiritual 
rest but do not have it until God gathers them to Himself.

Ps 107:1-7
1	O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth 
	for ever.
2	Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the 
	hand of the enemy;
3	And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, 
	from the north, and from the south.
4	They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way; they found no 
	city to dwell in.
5	Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them.
6	Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered 
	them out of their distresses.
7	And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city 
	of habitation. (KJV)

Or, as Jesus said:

Matt 5:6
6	Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: 
	for they shall be filled. (KJV)

It is almost universally agreed that the story of Ruth and her redemption 
by Boaz is an Old Testament picture of the love of Jesus Christ for His 
church and His redemption of His people.  Ruth described herself as a 
stranger who was taken in for the sake of love by her kinsman redeemer.

Ruth 2:8-11
8	Then said Boaz unto Ruth, Hearest thou not, my daughter? Go not to 
	glean in another field, neither go from hence, but abide here fast 
	by my maidens:
9	Let thine eyes be on the field that they do reap, and go thou after 
	them: have I not charged the young men that they shall not touch 
	thee? and when thou art athirst, go unto the vessels, and drink of 
	that which the young men have drawn.
10	Then she fell on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and said 
	unto him, Why have I found grace in thine eyes, that thou shouldest 
	take knowledge of me, seeing I am a stranger?
11	And Boaz answered and said unto her, It hath fully been shewed me, 
	all that thou hast done unto thy mother in law since the death of 
	thine husband: and how thou hast left thy father and thy mother, and 
	the land of thy nativity, and art come unto a people which thou 
	knewest not heretofore. (KJV)

What Jesus is actually saying is that repentance on the Day of Judgment 
will be considered in light of the evangelistic efforts that it bore as 
fruit.  We will have been considered to have fed the hungry and thirsty if 
we have shared the word of God with the lost.  We will have housed the 
stranger and clothed the naked if we have opened out arms to those seeking 
after God and made them a part of our lives and our families.  We will have 
visited the sick and imprisoned if we have gone to the homes of those lost 
without Christ and showed the the way of escape and healing.

I do not want in any way to diminish the labor of those who actually feed 
the hungry, clothe the naked, and visit the sick and imprisoned.  But for 
our efforts to count in the day of judgment, those labors will need to be 
accompanied by efforts to share the gospel with the lost.

I Jn 4:17-5:5
17	Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the 
	day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.
18	There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because 
	fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.
19	We love him, because he first loved us.
20	If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for 
	he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love 
	God whom he hath not seen?
21	And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love 
	his brother also.

CHAPTER 5

1	Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and 
	every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begot-
	ten of him.
2	By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, 
	and keep his commandments.
3	For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his 
	commandments are not grievous.
4	For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the 
	victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.
5	Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that 
	Jesus is the Son of God? (KJV)

He who believes on Jesus with saving faith loves those who are redeemed by 
Him.  And not just the ones that he encounters on Sunday morning in church.  He also loves those who are out there in the world struggling with their hunger and thirst, lost and not knowing the way of righteousness.  Those who love their lost brethren do like the shepherd who had 99 sheep safe and one lost.  
They go and find the lost ones.

If the judgment were held today, what would the Son of God say about you?