Questions for the Judgment

Friday night, December 29, 2006, at about 10:00 PM, EST, Saddam Hussein, the Butcher of Baghdad, was led to the gallows.  Accused and convicted of murdering hundreds of Kurds in 1991, he was sentenced to death by hanging.  Moments later, his dead corpse, unhooded, garbed in a long, sleek coat, hung from the end of a rope.  Some say that the only ones who pitied his fate never knew the depths of his savage brutality.  

There will be a day of reckoning for every person who has ever lived.  The scriptures set forth judgment in a dramatic way.  Justice will be served. Wrongs need to be made right; good deeds need to be rewarded; crimes need to be punished; hidden facts must be revealed. A certain day of judgment is a date on the calendar for every soul who has ever lived. “And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment.” Hebrews 9:27.  Many other scriptures echo this pronouncement.  People often deny the reality of things unseen.  They procrastinate, equivocate or take lightly negative events. But, there is a judgment coming. You cannot avoid it, delay it or stop it.  Being a no-show is not an option.  There are no make-up exams.  Results are immediate and final.  What questions will be asked on that day? The Bible poses the following questions: 

Question #1:  Do you have a personal, viable relationship with God?  Do you claim to be a Christian for ulterior reasons?   “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’” Matthew 7:21-23.

Question #2:  If you have committed any sin, have you fully repented and made your heart right with God? “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:8-9.

Question #3:  Have you held the Spirit of God in such contempt that you have blasphemed against the Holy Ghost?  “Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.” Matthew 12:31-32. This is the most frightening question.  The Holy Spirit experience is no laughing matter.  Revere it, respect it, love it.

Question #4:  Have you spoken idle or profane words? “But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” Matthew 12:36-37.

Question #5:  Has worldly gain been your priority in life? “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.” Matthew 16:24-27. 

Evaluate your spiritual life now. How do you fare when measured against the demands of the Word of God? What do you lack?  What needs to be changed?  What amends need to be made? Until the trumpet sounds, you have time to do something about your situation. “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2.