The father judges no one, but has given all judgement to the Son, that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the son does not honor the Father who sent him. Truly, truly I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgement, but has passed from death to life.
John 5:22-24
In this deep teaching, Jesus touches on something so many people are uncomfortable with: God's judgement.
So let's press into that.
There are whole books written attempting to reason and explain away the reality of the judgement of God. I promise to not lead you down such a frivolous path. The whole of scripture is clear that God judges our everyday decisions, and our eternal state. So, what makes us uncomfortable with God's judgement? Though not an exhaustive answer, I think there are two major parts:
1. We do not understand our condition in a fallen world.
2. We do not trust in the holiness of God.
As I have written before, since our fall, humanity has been in a state of rebellion against our Creator. How so? Chiefly in our attempts to define good and evil for ourselves (which we have proven to be terrible at). Philosophers and "enlightened" thinkers have argued that we are not, in fact, born with any sin or evil, but that we are, at our core, good, but must fight through evil temptations. This argument is false. Humans were made to be good, and God even called us good, but that was long ago, before sin had entered the hearts of humans. Since the choice to mistrust God and define good and evil for itself, humanity has perpetually lived in sin, and perpetuated sinful behavior. Left to our own devices, we would repeat the same error as our ancestors, and the world would become a place of violence and hate (see Genesis 6:5-8). Left to our own devices, we will not choose God. This is the fate of humanity without God's intervention, without God's judgement.
But what of God's holiness? One of the reasons we are uncomfortable with God's judgement is because we think of judgement in terms of what we experience from other humans; which is fallible judgment. No matter how hard we try, no matter the honorable boundaries, systems, and morals we instill into our judicial systems and judges, it is all ultimately fallible; is it not fallible humans who carry out judgement on other humans? And, does that not lend itself to error? But what other choice do we have? No one is perfect, so an imperfect judge and judicial system has to suffice, but the fact is that we do not, can not, judge with perfection of wisdom and understanding.
But, God is different. God is unique. God is Holy (set apart). God is completely unaffected by sin. Rebellion against God can't effect God because God cannot be against himself. He is perfect. Perfect in wisdom, perfect in understanding, perfect in patience, perfect in love, perfect in His judgement. God does not judge as we judge, for God does not judge on anything except what is absolutely true about the person; what has been true, what is true, and what will be true. And He judges on a constant, unchanging standard, which is His meaning of life, according to His unchanging character. God judges perfectly. And this is part of what makes being in God's church so wonderful; what is ultimately important, eternity, is not in the judgement hands of fallible people, but is in the hands of our Holy God. And, though we may be judged by human minds in this life, we are ultimately under the authority of God, who is patient, slow to anger, and, when we come to Him in repentance, is faithful in forgiving us. (Nehemiah 9:17. Psalm 85:16, 103:10-12, 130:3-4. Mark 11:25).
If God's holiness were not enough to increase your trust in Him, then consider this as well... He cares. The whole of scripture is clear that despite humanities rebellion against Him, God is fiercely jealous for us; which is to say that He is unwilling to allow us to wallow in rebellion and sin, which is leading us to our eternal death. He is far too loving to be so passive. He desires for us to know the fully satisfied, meaningful life; not as we envision it from our distorted lenses, but as we are designed to experience it according to the Lord's unadulterated meaning of life. God, as the author of life, is the definer of what it means to live rightly. As the sovereign creator and redeemer of life, God is the only one with the right, and the perfect ability, to judge His creation.
And so, here we read the words of Jesus, these profound words; that the Eternal Father of creation has shared this sole right to judgement with one other: Jesus. The one through whom the Father is redeeming the world is also the one who carries the weight of the responsibility to judge the world. What does this tell us about Jesus? It tells us that the same characteristics of the Father which give Him perfect judgement, are also found in the Son. Our savior from Sin, the one who loves purely and truly, is the judge of humanity. To all who believe in Him, may this reminder effect us threefold:
1. Let it be a sobering reminder that our actions meaningless, nor is this life the end. What we do is being judged by Jesus now, and He will guide us, chasten us, and build us up as His body accordingly. As well, all of humanity will be judged by Jesus at the end of this age, and there will be only two outcomes: eternal blessing for those who have honored the Son, or eternal condemnation for those who turned away from the Son.
2. Let it increase our trust in Him; that He will make no mistake in judgement, but will judge each and every person perfectly according to God's unfaltering wisdom, understanding, and character (and if that doesn't comfort you, you need to get to know Him better.)
3. Let us rejoice in Him for the assurance of His perfect judgement, His pardon from all of our sin, and His promise of eternal life. If you have passed from death to life, take some time to rejoice in the Lord.
Until next time, beloved.
Pastor Andrew
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