Living in Light of Judgment Day
At the end of the 25th chapter of the Gospel According to Matthew, the former tax collector records Jesus’ final comments during what has come to be called the Olivet Discourse. What we read is essentially a primer on the final judgment that Jesus will execute upon his return.
As Christians we will be saved from the wrath of God poured out at that time, but that should not render us complacent in the face of the lessons the righteous judgment of Christ has for us. There is a cut-off, an end to what God will endure from this world. This coming end should spur us on more and more to do the things God has called us to do.
First, our primary concern should be telling people the gospel. This means we drop our cultural pet peeves and stick to the truth. There is only one truth that drives our lives, all our lives—that a Holy God loved this world filled with wickedness so much that he sent his Son to live the perfect life on our behalf and die the cruelest death in our place, conquering sin and shame so that we might be converted, given new hearts, and live in relationship with him.
Nothing we can do will compel anyone to listen, understand, and be changed. In one sense, it is a wholly futile task because nothing we can do will change the people we love so that they see the truth. Only God can do that. We don’t know the workings of a person’s heart any more than we know our own. God may be working fiercely in a person when nothing appears to be changing.
Second, the coming judgment should humble us. Yes, it should humble Christians, especially Christians. Those who have been saved by the blood of Christ are the ones called up short and told not to boast about anything unless it is Christ.
Throughout my life as a Christian, I have often heard things that would indicate pride rather than humility. I have heard Christians speak of the blindness of the world with such contempt and bitterness as if the world has any way of knowing any better. Or more to the point, as if you knew any better before you were saved.
It’s not for nothing that Paul reminds us in Ephesians chapter two verse one and following: “And you were dead in trespasses and sins in which you once walked following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. [italics my emphasis]”
Paul goes on to tell the gospel story that God accomplished in us, first and foremost, because he is rich in mercy. It took no small amount of mercy to save you and me because God’s mercy on us put the calling of the cross on Jesus, his son.
Finally, the judgment should put clearly in our minds that we are not the arbiters of justice, Jesus is. He is the one king who is able to discern right from wrong, the true hearts from the false, and he will have his recompense in the end.
The writer of Psalm 2 has this clearly in mind. God does not get upset about the plots of men as we often do, especially as Americans who believe managing our destiny is a God-given right. God simply laughs. He has already set his Son upon the throne, and when Jesus comes into his inheritance, he will set things right and establish the rule of his kingdom.
God’s timing for Christ’s return is unknown to us, and what we see as a delay of justice can cause us to complain and be argumentative. But when this happens, we often miss the blessings that come through our trials.
I remember a lot of complaining during COVID, most of it conspiratorial. Now that all the conspiracies have failed to come true, I’d direct your attention to the fact that we are a more compassionate church than we once were. The technological infrastructure, which was initially so frustrating, has opened up doors for our members who are sick or housebound to be able to attend and interact with our teaching and prayer ministries in a way they never would have been able to do before Covid.
So let Jesus be the final judge and ruler he was born to be. He will take care of the things that are above us. It is ours to humbly seek his sustaining hand as we invite people to his kingdom.
