“He will come again to judge the living and the dead”

The thought of a God who will judge us is hard for our 21^st sensibilities to swallow. We confuse judgment with judgmentalism and end up rejecting the idea of justice because it sounds mean-spirited and vindictive. Yet when Jesus returns to judge the living and the dead, he will only be giving people more of what they have desired in life. Paul shows us the two edges of judgment in 2^nd Thessalonians:

"They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might, when he comes on that day to be glorified in his saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed, because our testimony to you was believed". 2 Thessalonians 1:9-10

Note the two edges:

1. "Eternal Destruction" is defined as being "away from the Lord and the glory of his might". For those who have avoided Jesus, ignored Jesus, created substitutes for Jesus, run away from Jesus, or have been generally apathetic about Jesus will get the just reward of being still further away from Jesus and the glory of his might! As C.S. Lewis once said: "There are two kinds of people: those who say to God, "Thy will be done," and those to whom God says, "All right, then, have it your way"

2. The reward of the Christian is defined as more of Jesus – what we have desired all our lives! When Jesus returns he will be glorified in his saints and marveled at among all who have believed. The core desire of followers of Christ is that Jesus would get more and more glory. The core passion of followers of Christ is that they would see and savor more of Jesus. And that is just what they will get! We will be in jaw-dropping, mind-blowing, soul-satisfying, wonder and awe as we marvel at the glory of our Lord!

Bottom line: We were created with a capacity for wonder and awe that only Jesus can satisfy. In our sinfulness we look everywhere but to Jesus for our satisfaction. In salvation the Holy Spirit re-awakens a desire for Jesus within us. So – what do you want more of? What does your heart truly desire? Be careful – when Jesus comes to judge the living and the dead, you will get it!

The well wisher of your soul's happiness,

Pastor Tom