God’s Judgment of Each Person in the World and in His Kingdom
Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs shall hear His voice, and shall come forth; those who did the good deeds, to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment. John 5: 28, 29
Judgment will be one appointment all of mankind will keep. The sinners of the world realm will be there to hear their sentence to hell fire. All who are in Christ will be there but not for the same purpose. The faithful will hear our welcome into God’s eternal kingdom along with the children. The saddest group will be the unfaithful people in Christ. Surely, they will be the ones who will be weeping and gnashing their teeth as they hear their sentence: “Depart from me, you who practice lawlessness.” (Matt. 7:23)
Mercy will be available to those who have shown mercy, but Jesus “will render to every man according to his deeds.” Rom. 2:6. Some people appear to have more interest in when the Day of Judgment will come than in why it will come and what will happen. The Apostle Peter connected the second coming of Jesus with the end of time (II Peter 3:10). Speculation about the time is foolish because no one knows but God, the Father.
But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. Matt. 24:36
For those who insist on speculation, Jesus offers the parable of the fig tree.
Now learn the parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender, and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near; even so you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door. Matt. 24:32, 33
You know summer is near in Israel when the fig tree branch is tender and puts forth its leaves. You know because you see the leaves. You have tangible evidence; likewise, we will know Judgment Day is near when we see Jesus coming in the clouds.
And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. Matt. 24:30
The tribes of the earth will mourn, but the faithful in Christ will rejoice. “Jesus in the clouds” will be our tangible evidence the end has come. The lessons in Part IV will continue to be based on the parables of Jesus. These lessons are not a commentary on the parables. However, we will attempt to use the principles established by Jesus in them. The lessons in this part will emphasize how the events of Judgment will affect the lives of Christians now. For instance, judgment belongs to God, and not man, this gives Christians a certain freedom. We don’t need to use our energies to judge and punish evildoers. Another way the events at Judgment will affect our present life is that judgment will involve stewardship. A Christian who is aware of the “what and why” of judgment will not be overly concerned with the “when.”
One lesson in this part will show how on Judgment Day we will stand alone. This should encourage us to stop depending on others to make the church what God wants her to be. Each of us has a part in this stewardship. Finally, be alert, because the things we do on any given day will be our deeds discussed on that Day. The key thought in Part IV – BE ALERT!
