Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

This morning I mentioned that old familiar quote that “nothing is certain in life except death and taxes.”

Now I wanted to give credit where credit is due on that quote, and so I thought you might like to know who that quote is attributed to, and that is Benjamin Franklin.

Now when I was looking that up I came across an addition that Oklahoma’s Favorite Son, Will Rogers added to that quote.

He said,

“The only difference between death and taxes is that death doesn’t get worse every time that congress meets.”

We discussed this morning the coming of the day of the Lord from .

It’s Certainty

It’s Timing

It’s resulting destruction of the Physical universe

And how then Christians should live knowing all of that.

Tonight we are going to discuss the simple topic of Judgement in it’s various forms,

Judgement while living

Judgement after death

Future Judgement

Transition: We Begin tonight by looking at the kind of judgement that should concern us currently, not because it’s any less important than the other two, but because it is only this judgement that we can currently change.

And that is the fact that God is able to make judgments upon mankind in the moment as we live from day to day.

Judged While Alive

We of course shouldn’t be surprised by this, it makes complete sense that God is not only concerned with us after death or at the end of time, but that he cares for us now, every moment of every day.

And while it’s true that those who reject Christ stand currently condemned, it can also be true of Christians as well.

- Simon the sorcerer, tries to buy the gifts of passing on gifts of the spirit, Peter says to him

Acts 8:20

Judged after Death

Yet again Christianity has long struggled with the timing of this biblical statement.

Does “after” mean immediately after or after in some future sense as in the day of the Lord after?

If it is immediately after, what does that look like?

If we are judged immediately after we die, why do we need to be judged again on the day of the Lord?

Yet if it is not immediately, do we have an awareness after death or do we just “sleep” as the scripture is so fond of using until judgement?

Precious little that addresses this problem head on, but I do think through several key scriptures we can find our answer:

God of the living, not the dead

We further see this on the mount where Jesus was transfigured

- Moses and Elijah were there in a physical form - very obviously not sleeping.

Jesus told the thief hanging next to him on the Cross

Paul said better to die and be with the Lord

Jesus MAYBE gives a glimpse into the afterlife and the immediacy of judgement in his account of the Rich Man and Lazarus

Great debate here on whether or not Jesus intended for us to use this story as doctrine of the afterlife.

Many say that the point of the story is to show that a persons wealth and position in this life hold no standing in the hereafter, and that the scriptures are sufficient to lead us to salvation, and everything regarding the story is just that to prove this point, therefore this may not be exactly how life after death works.

But I’m in the camp that I just can’t see Jesus purposely coming up with a falsity regarding much sought after information regarding the afterlife.

Yes the focus of the story is not the afterlife itself, but I don’t believe Jesus would have any reason to not use his absolute knowledge of what happens after death and take the opportunity to teach two things simultaneously.

So it appears from this account, that the ongoing judgement that happens while we are alive, that a temporary sentencing occurs at death at which time we find ourselves in one of two places

Hades in Torment

or in Paradise at Abraham’s side

and fixed between these two points is a great chasm, an uncross able void.

And when we get to this point, there is nothing that can be done to change our fate, there is no amount of begging, pleading, or repenting that will remove you from the torment, and there is no one that will pull you from paradise.

What has been judged is judged, yet there is one more judgement that remains.

Future Judgement

This morning we discussed the certainty of the coming of the Lord and this very same day is repeatedly tied to what is often referred to as the Great white thrown judgement.

Paul spoke of this day to the the men of Athens in the midst of the Areapagus when he said:

Jesus spoke of that day in Matthew 25

Matthew 25:31

It seems this is the same event that John wrote about in Revelation 20

Rev 20:11-

And that’s what I said this morning when I spoke about what Marshall Keeble said about that fine Texas ranch “The Lord’s going to burn it all up!”

And all that will be left on that day is you and me and everyone who has ever lived or ever will live and according to

As I said this morning, my brain fails me to even try to imagine what that will be like.

To be face to face with God in all of his Glory how will I dare find the ability to speak?

In the presence of his Majesty how utterly ridiculous will any and all of my transgressions against Him seem?

But for us a Christians, this day shouldn’t be cause for terror, but for rejoicing, because in that moment we won’t need to try to justify our actions, instead we’ll appeal to Christ and the blood that he shed on our behalf.

Jesus said in

Notes

Hebrews 9:

Acts 17:

Luke 16:19-

On that day of Judgement, if all we have is our works, if we somehow think that we deserve pardon from our sins based upon ourselves, we will be sorely mistaken.

Our only hope on that day is to be found washed in the blood of Christ.

Those who are not will hear the dreadful words “depart from me, I never knew you.”

and those who are and lived faithfully will hear “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”

The question for you tonight is which one will you hear?

You have the opportunity today to change, to repent, to get right with God or to put him on in baptism.