THE ULTIMATE JUDGE
THE ULTIMATE JUDGE
It is so clear when one reads a bible that God is the ultimate judge of mankind. He actually calls Himself a ‘God of Justice.’ Ps. 50:6, Is. 30:18, Mal. 2:17. Today’s message of salvation focuses on the ‘love’ of Jesus for all mankind. Occasionally we hear about the ‘love’ of God for us all. When one focuses on the ‘love’ of God, one tends to forget entirely that He is a God of justice. We all know what justice entails, don’t we. Well, I guess that may be difficult for Americans to get a grasp of at this time. However, if one takes the time to study God’s word, one sees that the word ‘love’ in the Old Testament, came from a Hebrew word meaning loyal contract. Then, in the New Testament, it comes from a Greek word, agape, meaning: one must make an active choice with one’s will to choose for the highest good of the other, with ZERO regard for personal cost.
I watch, with much grief, pew-warmers on X posting scriptures like 1 Jn. 4:16-23 with zero explanation of what ‘love‘ means in that passage. In the absence of such explanation that passage is simply not reasonable, or plausible. But when we know that love means doing God’s will, it makes perfect sense. Remember Jesus said; “If you love me, you will keep my commandments” Jn. 14:15. He also assured us that to be His disciple, we MUST obey everything He commanded us to do. Matt. 28:19-20. Here are just a few of those from the top of my head. You must be perfect as God is perfect. You must be afraid of God. You must stop sinning. You must give up everything you have. I have NEVER heard any evangelist or church preacher include any of that in an attempt to preach ‘the gospel.’
We all know judges not only declare the innocence or guilt of the defendant, but state the sentence applied to the crime, when that defendant is found guilty. I have always loved speed, having raced stock cars and a saloon car I had modified to exceed all the manufacturer’s expectations of such a vehicle. I lost my driver’s license once, for two years, because of speeding. That was all before I became a new creation after I repented 2 Cor. 5:17. But even when I regained my license, I carefully respected the speed limits because I was afraid of a judge’s sentence, in the event that I was caught. Not that I thought the judge was a bad dude.
God’s ‘Life Instruction Manual’ informs us many times that we must fear God. Jesus even told us that we must ‘be afraid of God’ Matt. 10:28. There is absolutely nothing weird or difficult in that! God is the Ultimate Judge! He holds the eternal destiny of each and every person in the palm of His hand! He knows who are His, doing His will, Acts 10:34-35, and those who are not, 1 Jn. 3:8, doing Satan’s will. Those who do His will, He accepts, but not those who don’t. Gen. 4:7, Rom. 2:12-13, 6:16, Acts 10:34-35. Jesus assured us all that nobody goes to heaven unless they do God’s will.
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons, and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers! Matt. 7:21-23
This is a severe warning to all Satan’s ‘Jesus Freaking’ cult members of today. I shudder when I watch them promoting Jesus on X. Franklin Graham is the worst at boasting about all he does ‘in the name of Jesus.’ I have rebuked him many times on social media, but he keeps repeating the same nonsense. Jesus is clearly NOT the way to heaven! God is! We MUST get to know God so we know what His plans and purposes are for us personally. Jer. 29:11-14.
John wrote some letters to the saints he had got to know, in which he assured us that knowing God is essential for salvation.
We know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands.
Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person. But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did. 1 Jn. 2:3-6
Did you notice that obeying God is ‘loving’ God? That’s true AGAPE.
When a sinner realizes that knowing God really is essential for salvation, he/she will search for Him with ALL their heart, until God reveals Himself to them. Remember that the bible is God’s autobiography, so that’s where u need to go. When u know Him well enough to have a respectful/healthy fear of Him, as the Ultimate Judge, you will want to experience a personal relationship with Him, but you will know that sin negates any chance of that, because He hates sin and sinners.
For you are not a God who is pleased with wickedness; with you, evil people are not welcome. The arrogant cannot stand in your presence. You hate all who do wrong, you destroy those who tell lies. The bloodthirsty and deceitful you, LORD, detest. Ps. 5:4-6
That will allow you to repent [turn from all sin] and receive the Holy Spirit for the forgiveness of your sins.
Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:38
Another thing you will know, once you know God, is that He simply CANNOT EVER dwell in a sinner. And He NEVER hears any prayers from any sinner.
if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and TURN FROM THEIR WICKED WAYS then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land. 2 Chron. 7:14
If I had been aware of sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened; Ps. 66:18 Your version may have the word ‘cherished’ in there, but that came from a Hebrew word meaning ‘to be aware of.’
If anyone turns a deaf ear to my instruction, even their prayers are detestable Prov. 28:9
We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly person who does his will. Jn. 9:31
When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide my face from you. Even if you offer many prayers, I am not listening. Your hands are full of blood! Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight; stop doing wrong. Learn to do right; seek justice. Is. 1:15-16
But your iniquities have separated you from God: your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear. Is. 59:2
He said to me, “Have you seen this, son of man? Is it a trivial matter for the people of America to do the detestable things they are doing here? Must they also fill the land with violence and continually provoke me to anger? Look at them thumbing their noses at me.
Therefore, I will deal with them in anger; I will not look on them with pity or spare them. Although they shout in my ears, I will not listen to them.” Ezek. 8:17-18
That makes perfect sense, once you believe Ps. 5:4-6, doesn’t it? Please note that God could ‘love’ [make a loyal contract with] His created beings while He hated their sin, or even them. That ‘love’ is an active love, with emotions playing no part in it. Just as agape is, post Calvary.
It is God, the Father that we will all have to give an account of our lives to, on that great and awful day. It is God who we MUST obey to be accepted by Him, as being worthy of a mansion over that hilltop. It is God who we MUST fear, so we can turn from our wicked ways…repent. But, very sadly, Satan has substituted that gospel for his ‘Jesus Freaking’ cult. He did that when the Holiness Movement died out during the civil war. Prior to that war, the pulpits were ‘aflame with righteousness,’ according to Alex de Tocqueville who France sent to the New World to see how she had become so great so rapidly. His answer to his boss’s question was: America is great because Americans are good, and if Americans ever cease being good, then America will cease being great.
A seemingly wise man quoted these words at the time America was founded:
“The average age of the world’s greatest civilizations has been around 200 years. These nations progressed through this sequence: from bondage to spiritual faith; from spiritual faith to great courage; from great courage to liberty; from liberty to abundance; from abundance to selfishness; from selfishness to apathy; from apathy to dependence; from dependence back into bondage.”
I will leave you to decide where America is at this moment.
Once a sinner repents, everything that Jesus accomplished on the cross is applied to his/her life. The apostle John confirmed that when he assured us that our sins are purified once we are walking in the light as He is in the light.
This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.
If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth, but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. 1 Jn. 1:5-7
When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” Jn. 8:12
Both those scriptures confirm Peter’s teaching in Acts 2:38. Darkness ALWAYS relates to the presence of sin, all through the bible! Going from darkness to light is the event of repentance. Paul teaches us that repentance can never be repeated. It is a very emotional, once-in-a-life-time event. James gives us a clue how it goes, in the New Covenant. 4:7-10
It is impossible for those who have been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God & the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, bc to their loss, they are crucifying the Son of God all over again & subjecting Him to public disgrace. Heb. 6:4-6
My book is not longer with Xulon Press. I have published it with Amazon Kdp Publishing now, and it’s available on Amazon books now.