The Bible Meditation that I chose for tonight's message comes from; Colossians, 2: 13-14; "And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of the requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us, and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross."
Today's Encouraging Word:
Unknown to most of the world population, there are two judgments that we will all face in the end. Every one of us will stand before the Lord at one of two judgments. Whether you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and become Born-Again or not, you will appear before Him at one of these two judgments. I'm going to explain to the best of my knowledge what those two judgments are. The first one that I'll explain is the "Judgment Seat of Christ" or better known to those that understand the Bible as, "The Bema Seat of Christ." This judgment is for believers only. And this is where many religions of today get confused because they think there's only one final judgment that comes to all people at the end of time as we know it. Those that have been Born-Again will stand before Christ at the "Bema Seat Judgment" where they will receive rewards for their faithful service once they became Born-Again into the Holy Spirit, and let me once again remind you right up front, you cannot earn salvation and this is not what this judgment is all about. Those that enter this judgment have already been saved by the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ. This is not a judgment for the works that you did before you were Born-Again, because no works of the flesh according to God are good enough to earn salvation.
We read this fact in the following Bible verses.
Romans, 3: 10-12; "As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one; there is none who understands; there is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside; they have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no not one."
Just read it, there are none who does good now, no not one. nobody. So if you think you're good enough to get to heaven, read this verse over and over until you hear what Jesus says to you. These verse make it very clear as what I said.
Romans, 3: 13-18; "Their throat is an open tomb; with their tongues they have practiced deceit"; The poison of asps is under their lips"; Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness." Their feet are swift to shed blood; Destruction and misery are in their ways; and the way of peace they have not known." There is no fear of God before their eyes."
When you stand before Jesus at this judgment, everything that you did in the Name of Jesus Christ once you were Born-Again will be revealed, then Jesus will test the heart to see if those things were done with the right motive. If so, you will receive a reward for that service, if not, it will be burned up, but you still will be saved. If you enter this judgment, you are already saved, nothing you can do to lose your salvation at this point. The verses that I just read are clearly describing what each of those that have been saved will be judged by. You will be judged whether your service to Christ was from the heart or from the brain. These are those that have been taken up in the "Rapture." He will judge the intent of our hearts as to why we did what we did. If we build a relationship with Jesus Christ on Gold, Silver and Precious stones, like it says in the verse that I just read, you will receive a reward for that service. If you build on wood, hay, and straw, it will be burned up by fire because the intent of your heart wasn't right. But listen to what the next verse says, "If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. All who attend this judgment are those that are eternally saved, because once you are at this judgment, you will be forever with Jesus Christ. It's possible that you may not receive any rewards, but you are still going to be in heaven for all eternity.
In the following Bible verse, Paul Likens it to what happens when a runner enters a race. All those that enter a race, enter the race to win. Paul tells us that we should run this race as if there is only one prize. He's not saying that only one person will be saved, he is saying we should all run this race as if there is only one prize, in other words, leave nothing behind, give it all you got.
1 Corinthians, 9: 24; "Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives a prize. Run in such a way that you may win."
Now let me explain in better detail what I just said. There are two kinds of people in this world, those that have received Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior, and those that have rejected the only truth of salvation. Those that are born-again during the church age, which is also known as "The Age of Grace" will be Raptured out of this world before the seven years of tribulation that will come upon an unbelieving world. During this time, Believers will be present at "The Bema Seat Judgment" receiving rewards for their faithful service to Jesus once they were Born-Again, in other words, it will be an award ceremony for the saved. Let it be known that this judgment does not include the Old Testament Saints or Tribulation Saints. This judgment is for a special group of Believers that came to Jesus by faith, and faith alone. During the "Church Age." They are also referred to as "The Body of Christ" or "The Bride of Christ." The Bible is very clear that this group of Believers will rule and reign with Jesus Christ for one thousand years during His Millennial Reign on Earth. The Bible also says that those that are martyred during the tribulation period for the sake of Christ, will also rule and reign with Jesus during the Millennial Reign of Jesus Christ.
We read this fact in the following verses, Revelation, 20: 4b - 6; "Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus Christ and for the Word of God, who had not worshiped the Beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. But the rest of the Dead did not live again until the thousand years were over. And this is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he who takes part in the first resurrection, over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years."
After the thousand years are up, that will be when the White Throne judgment will actually take place. It will be for all those that died without knowing Jesus that have spent all this time in Hades, which is the resting place for the dead at this point awaiting the final judgment, which will be the second death and final death. Know this, those that are in Hades awaiting the final judgment have been suffering every day since their time of death. They are still there. These scriptures that I just read came straight out of the Bible, the Bible that was 100% inspired by the Holy Spirit. Read it yourself and hear what it is saying to you. Most religions try to say that this has already happened, it obviously hasn't happened yet, so they have to allegorize all the scriptures that have to do with this teaching. They teach that we are in the Millennial Kingdom now. Obviously they have no idea what it is going to be like during this one thousand years. Let me share this next verse with you and you decide what it is referring to;
Revelation, 20: 1-3; "Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key to the abyss and a great chain in his hand, and He laid hold of the Dragon, the Serpent of old, who was the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; and he threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the Nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed. But after these things he must be released for a short time."
And that is another study in and of itself. Now, if we're living in the Millennium as many pastors teach; and Satan is bound in the abyss; then I would say that Satan has a very long chain because there is more evil going on in our world on a worldwide level today than ever before in the history of mankind, especially in America. We have never witnessed so much evil in our country since the founding of America.
Here are a few scriptures from the prophet Isaiah and what he had to say about the Millennial Kingdom of Christ on Earth.
Isaiah, 11: 6-9; "The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, The leopard shall lie down with the young goat, the calf and the Young Lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat draw like the ox. The nursing child shall play by the Cobra's hole, and the weaned child shall put his hand in the Viper's den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my Holy Mountain, for the Earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea."
Now let me ask you a question; can someone please enlighten me is that when all these things took place. To my knowledge, they haven't in the six thousand years of existence that I'm aware of, but you can bet your bottom dollar, this will come to fruition just as the Bible says. This will take place during the one thousand year Millennial reign of Jesus Christ. Once again, the churches of today allegorize these scriptures to mean something completely different than what the Bible says. The Bible is very easy to understand, when you study it and take it at face value. It doesn't need to be allegorized.
So, now enough on "The Bema Seat Judgment." Now let's get into the other judgment which is the "White Throne Judgment" that all unbelievers will appear before because they rejected Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Let me say right up front, if you are at this judgment your eternal fate has already been determined. You will spend eternity in "The Lake of Burning Fire." This is where many of today's churches once again get confused. You will not be judged by how good you were at this judgment, because first of all, listen to what the Bible has to say about being good enough to earn your salvation.
Read these verses once again;
Romans, 3: 10-12; "As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one; there is none who understands; there is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside; they have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no not one." "Their throat is an open tomb; with their tongues they have practiced deceit"; The poison of asps is under their lips"; Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness." Their feet are swift to shed blood; Destruction and misery are in their ways; and the way of peace they have not known." There is no fear of God before their eyes."
This is speaking of all mankind in general. None are good, no not one. After hearing these Bible verses, do you actually think you can be good enough to earn salvation. Not hardly if you're listening and understanding what these verse are saying, You need to stop listening to all the lies that are being taught from the pulpits of America that say good works will get you into Heaven. By the way, this is what Satan wants you to believe, because he also knows that you cannot earn your own salvation. With that being said, there is a lot of controversy about how God will judge those that stand before him at "The White Throne Judgment." It's obvious to me, that those that appear to us to be good people, will not suffer the same fate as someone like Adolf Hitler. This leads me to believe that there are different levels of torment for the unsaved. Here's where you will be judged for everything that you've ever done, whether good or bad. Many believe that if your good deeds outweigh your bad deeds you will be saved. This is another life from the pit of Hell that many are being taught in many churches of today. Once again, if you are at this judgment, you will end up in the lake of burning fire for all eternity, but what your eternal punishment is, only God knows for sure.
Here is something that most people are not aware of because they are not being taught the whole counsel of God. God did not create hell and the Lake of Burning Fire for his created race of humans. It was built for Satan and his fallen angels, but when man fell from Grace back in the Garden of Eden, mankind fell out of fellowship with God, which put all mankind at the same level as Satan and his Fallen Angels at that time. When that took place, we were all destined for the lake a burning fire and that is why God himself had to join his creation, which he did in the personage of Jesus Christ. He had to somehow reconcile mankind back to Himself. He knew that the only way for mankind to be saved from eternity in the lake of burning fire, was to be restored back to Him. Our Holy God could not allow sinful man into heaven, so sin had to be dealt with, and since we can't pay for our own sins, God Himself had to come to earth and live a sinless life. Then He took the sins of the world upon Himself, and allowed Himself to die the most painful agonizing death known to man. He did that so that those who would believe in Him could spend eternity with Him in the most perfect environment imaginable, or should I say unimaginable.
And I say this because of the following Bible verse, 1 Corinthians, 2: 9; "But as it is written, Eye has not seen, nor ear heard. Nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love him."
What God has prepared for those of us that are saved by Grace through Faith, can't even enter our minds. It is so good that we can't imagine what God has prepared for those that have put their trust in Jesus Christ.
Let me wrap this up by giving you a simple to understand example of what I'm trying to get across. Let's say someone gives you an option to go to Hawaii or Haiti. You don't know what day that trip is going to take place, but you have to make the decision soon in anticipation of when that day will come. If you don't decide to go to Hawaii right away, there's a good chance that you might miss out on that trip, and if that were the case, then you would automatically be sent to Haiti. What would you do? I can almost guarantee that everyone would sign up for Hawaii right away without hesitation. Those that don't choose Hawaii would automatically be sent to Haiti. You might say, I didn't sign up for Haiti, why am I being sent there. Well, it's because there are only two choices to make, if you didn't choose Hawaii, the only other alternative was Haiti and this is exactly the same scenario that we all face. There's a hell and there's a heaven. If you don't choose Heaven (And yes, it is your choice) then you will end up in the lake of burning fire, so you need to make that choice very soon. The trip to Heaven could come any day now and if you are not prepared to take that trip, then the only other alternative is Hell. There will be no more hope for you once that day comes. So, let me ask you this, are you starting to get the point? And by the way, Heaven is a much better place in Hawaii and hell is a lot worse than Haiti. So, why would you not accept God's invitation to join Him forever in heaven. Like I said in the title of today's message which was; "Will you Settle out of court?" or do you prefer to stand in Judgment at the white Throne judgment and try to make a case for yourself as to why you believe you should go to heaven. The only thing that will matter at that point is this; did you receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and become Born-Again into the Holy Spirit; or did you reject God's only provision for your sins. At the White Throne Judgment no excuses will be accepted. The only question that you will need to answer is this, did you accept Jesus Christ as you Lord and savior, or not. That will be the only thing that will matter at that point. But know this; only you can make that choice, nobody can make it for you, simply put, do you choose Heaven or Hell. It is your choice, do not blame God for the choice that you make. In a nutshell; this is as simple as I can put it. If you happen to have a court case set up on a certain date to settle a certain matter, but you settle out of court, then that court date will be canceled and you will not have to report before the judge to settle your case. In the same way, if you settle out of court concerning your eternal fate, you will not have to stand in judgment before Jesus Christ at the white Throne judgment, your case will be settled out of court and your sins will have been erased. You will enter into your glory as God say in the following Bible verse,
Matthew, 25:23; "His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’"
Is this what you want to hear...I do! Here is the only other choice, ‘I never knew you;depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ Matthew 7:23b.
Let me end with this once again, "And now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy; to God our Savior, who alone is wise; be Glory and Majesty, Dominion and Power, both now and forever." Amen!
And God bless you in all you do and take care!
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